Choosing Biblical Names For Your Children

[Eulaha L. Long]

I am wondering if any parents were strongly "encouraged" to give their children biblical names? If you did not give your children biblical names, how did the leadership react?

[EricFoy]

Hi, Eulaha.

I don't recall anyone being strongly encouraged in that way.  I think it was pretty much a bandwagon that a lot of people jumped on, but it was strictly voluntary, as far as I ever knew.  Also, I must add that it is a very well established Christian tradition that dates way back, long before the assembly existed.

As with many other aspects of daily life in the assembly, of course, there was always this sort of undertow of conformity.  In other words you always knew you'd be "safe" if you named your kid Matthew, Mark, or Dorcas, whereas you never knew if you might catch some heat for picking a name like William, Ralph, or Sandra.

[Margaret]

Hi Eulaha,

I think Eric is right about the bandwagon. But I think there was also encouragement to do it. Steve and I can't remember exactly, but it seems like it was more along the lines of, "We named our sons Bible names--David and Timothy. That's what you want to do. You want your children to identify with the great characters of the Bible." Before we hooked up with G & B, we named our first child after Steve's dad. But the next two, born in the Assembly, had to have Bible names. I remember thinking when Tim & Ginger named their second daughter Dawn, "How did they get away with that?"

Margaret

[moonflower2]

It is also true that other Christian churches were naming their children after Bible characters, or at least using the names from the Bible.

Moonflower

[Oscar]

Eulaha,

During the 1960's and 70's there was a cultural shift among younger people.  Drugs, rock music, "free" love, long hair, hitchhiking all over, panhandling, communal living and much more.

It was quite the fashion to give kids names like Summer, Dawn, Spring, Moonlight.  Some of these hippies began to get saved due to the efforts of evangelists that were willing to go outside traditional forms to reach them.

These folks were into speaking in tongues and communal living, but also into Bible study and evangelism.  Most of the young people from the start up era of the assembly came from this background.

GG took over two Hippie communal living situations.  The House of Christian Love and another one.  These folks had already been deeply influenced by the Jesus People subculture, and giving your kids biblical names was big among these folks.

Having been an elementary school teacher, I wanted to avoid any name that would invite teasing from the other kids.  So I named my girls Grace, Glory, and Joy.  These names are, imho, pretty and can't easily be joined to some vulgar or mocking rhyme.  They are also names with Biblical significance. 

When I named my son Stephen, I was thinking of I Corinthians 16:15.  It had to do with the kind of man I hoped he would turn out to be.  If he had turned out to be a girl I was going to name him Hope Victoria.

I do not recall ever being influenced by GG or BG concerning names.  What was said to others, I don't know.

Tom Maddux

[Gu3st]

Having been an elementary school teacher, I wanted to avoid any name that would invite teasing from the other kids.  So I named my girls Grace, Glory, and Joy.  These names are, imho, pretty and can't easily be joined to some vulgar or mocking rhyme.  They are also names with Biblical significance. 

I remember listening to Dr. Dobson explain that his toddler girl messed up her face by a fall on the coffee table, so he searched through names until he thought he found one that could not be made fun of and thus named her "Danae".  First day of school the kids were calling her "Denae decay".  Never underestimate the inventiveness or cruelty of the juvenile mind 

BTW, Grace the ugly face, gory Glory, and Joy who looks more like a boy than a girl.   I don't mean it personally, so please don't take my lunch money.   

[Oscar]

Gu3st,

My plan seems to have worked...none of them ever complained that other kids were making fun of their names.
 

Tom M.