His name is Judah Aguila

Tomorrow we celebrate Judah with our faith community and ceremoniously "give him back" to God. Not a day goes by that I am not unraveled by his beauty and grace and as second children generally aren't as celebrated as their first counterpart, I want to say a few words about this little man and the name that he bears.

With our first son, we chose to pattern our children’s names with Spanish renditions and animal imagery- a common practice in indigenous cultures around the world such as the ancient Hebrews and Native Americans.

We were initially drawn to the way “Judah” sounds but as we explored the biblical character, we were delighted by what we found- especially in the sibling dynamics in the Benjamin/Joseph in Egypt account. Judah acted as an advocate for his brother on more than one occasion. Similarly, Christ as the “Lion of Judah” was an interesting connection that ties Sylas León to his brother.

Judah’s middle name is Aguila- which means Eagle in Spanish. We love the elegant and wild strength of eagles and are drawn to the biblical and mythic imagery around them as something we would desire for our son. Isaiah promises eagle-like animation for those who trust in the Lord as the storms of life rail. Mythically, as in JRR Tolkien’s work and elsewhere, the eagle is a symbol of hope and redemption- “The eagles are coming!”

Already we have seen this in his spirit as he has had a tough start at life with severe eczema episodes- his smile bursts through and engages our despair with pure joy. Our desire is to guide this little Eagle into flight. Knowing that we can’t do it on our own, tomorrow we will invite our faith community to join us in the journey that is the parenting of Judah in love and discovery of his unique markings and how these will be brought to bear in a world that is in need of his beautiful presence.