Meaning of the Holy Names Jesus – Mary – Joseph
TGPSG — On the first Sunday after Christmas, we celebrate the Feast of the Holy Family of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph. It will be helpful to learn the meaning of these three most famous names in the world.
Jesus – Yeshua
In Hebrew, Yeshua is an abbreviation of the name Jehoshua, which is composed of two words: The first word “Jeho” comes from the title Yahweh – which means God; and the second word “shua” comes from the verb “to save”. So, the name Jesus literally means “God is salvation” or “God saves”.
Maria – Marja
The name Maria is of Jewish-Egyptian origin. Often used to name female children born to older parents, the name Marja has two parts: the first part is Egyptian “Mar”, meaning beloved; and the second part is “ja” – an abbreviation of the Hebrew word “Yahweh – God”. So Maria means “Love of God” or “Beloved of God”.
Joseph – Yosef
Joseph – Hebrew Yosef – is a title in the Bible , including: the word Jo – short for the word Jeho, Yahweh – God; and sef, an abbreviation of the verb jasaf, which means “to increase.” Therefore, this title means “God increases blessings.”
Each time we fervently invoke the most holy name “Jesus – Mary – Joseph”, we raise our souls to Jesus, “God the Savior”, son of Mary – the One always loved by God, together with Saint Joseph – who was always blessed by God with countless blessings. Surely God will also give us thousands of blessings, just as God always loved Mary and constantly gave countless blessings to Saint Joseph.
