Who are you?

I’m still pretty unfamiliar with texting and haven’t quite figured out the etiquette of when to add my name to text (or where to add it for that matter). I sent a text to a Zumba instructor this weekend. She replied immediately, another skill I lack, and wanted to know who I was. I figured simple question – simple answer. Wrong. Now she thinks that it’s ok to text me anytime with all future class changes.

Still, who are you is a deeper question. With the selection of a new pope last week, the choice of Pope Francis new name begs the question: if you had to choose a name, who would you be?

In the case of Pope Francis, he is, of course channeling St. Francis of Assisi, beloved saint that no Pope has seen fit to honor in the entire timeframe of Popes choosing names. 

In an interesting article entitled 5 Things About Popes And Their Names; Like, Why Do They Change Them? by Mark Memmott, Papal name changing started in 533 when "Mercurius" had to change his name to distance himself from the Roman god Mercury and all the mythology included in that loaded name. He became simply John II, the first of 23 Popes to follow in his footsteps. Likewise, the first Pope to retain a derivative of his name was Marcellus II in 1555, who was born Marcello, and must have liked it.

Other names of interest include Peter, a name that is no longer an option since the church can only have one foundation on which it is built. Linus and Lando, along with St. Hyginus, St. Zephyrinus and St. Dionysius, are all waiting to be used. Paddy Power is an Irish online betting site dedicated to giving odds on what name the next pope will choose. Francis didn’t even make the list. Still, Francis appears to be an inspired choice, especially popular with animal lovers.

This leads into the longer discussion of what name would you chose if you were pope? While I don’t have any experience in this area, I have been involved in the naming choices of two children, each of whom have two names. All four names were chosen on the basis of family heritage and older generations of family members with the same name. It is unfortunate to note that most of these names were also on the most popular choices list of their given years. Sometimes one cannot escape the zeitgeist of destiny. 

While most of us are not likely to become Pope and need to choose a new name, many of us only make slight alterations to our names as we age. The show “I dream of Jeannie” was popular when I was growing up. I chose to retain my full name of Jeannine in rebellion to the popular show and its annoying theme song. Unfortunately a couple of my relatives retained the name, but I don’t live near them or see them often.

Still, I’ve grown to appreciate who I am, and like my name despite the fact that it is a bit too long and uses contains a few too many n’s. Perhaps in the future more time should be given to the questions of what is in a name….