Saturday, August 16, 2008

do you see what i see?

judah has a perfect five pointed star on the bottom of his foot. which makes even more sense of his middle name, balthazar. according to ancient christian texts (specifically early ethiopian orthodox christian history), balthazar (or a spelling derivative thereof) was one of the 3 magis/kings who followed the star in the east to first visit baby jesus after his birth. he was the wiseman who carried frankincense and is represented in 3rd century art as most likely the african or "moor" magi. the idea was that the lion of judah/tribe of judah, which claim the lineage of christ, and the origins of balthazar would further tie our son to his ethiopian sisters and the ethiopian context in which i spent my first trimester pregnant with him. pregnant with him and wretching in addis ababa, lalibela, gondar, etc. plus, we also liked the idea of having his name naturally invested with the idea of true hospitality, empathy, worship, and celebration.


7 comments:

Unknown said...

He is so perfect. I really want to kiss him and hold him. Damn computer.

Auntie J said...

Man that kid can sleep. I am so jealous of your amazing sleeping baby. :)

Gretchen said...

WOW! I dig that story....

Thanks for your extremely sweet comment on my blog. I wish we lived close- I think we would make great friends.

If you ever feel like adding an email buddy to your list, please do so! My address is:
crosejaynes(at)gmail(dot)com

Anonymous said...

Hola Thomas Gang!!!

Anna, you're our hero!! A mother of three!! How wonderful for all of you. You guys are the cutest family. We love the story of Judah's name. GOD BLESS AND WE SEE SOME LONG NAPS IN YOUR FUTURE!!

KIM AND ED

Anonymous said...

Congrats! He's a handsome one. really, I'm not just saying that...because you know some babies aren't...but this kid has a future with J.crew magazine!
Call us and tell us when's a good time to come over.
And get some rest,

Brandon

Mia said...

Anna and Ben,

He is so perfect. Congratulations! Soak it in. Love, Mia

Tricia said...

How fabulous! Do you think you could get a print of his foot?