The Catholic Defender: Acts 2:21,Who is on the Lord's side

Exactly what does calling upon the name of the Lord really mean? Is it just that simple for a Christian to do, to call upon the name of the Lord? Where does this come from?

St. Luke gives a great clue, “and it shall be that everyone shall be saved who calls on the name of the Lord.” Is it possible that St. Luke read Romans 10:13? Romans 10:13 states, “For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved”.

Obviously, we are to call upon the name of the Lord, especially during times of tribulation or when we have been prodigals who have been on our own for a long time, but is this exactly what St. Paul and Luke is really pointing too?

James 5:19-20 gives a tighter clue as to the direction the Apostles are pointing to, “My brothers, if anyone among you should stray from the truth and someone bring him back, he should know that whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

For such a sinner, the calling upon the name of the Lord was central in their return back into the Faith of the Apostles.

Psalms 116:3-4 gives an important clue, “I was caught by the cords of death; the snares of Sheol had seized me; I felt agony and dread, Then I called on the name of the Lord, ‘O Lord, save my life!”

Today, what catches my eye on this subject, calling upon the name of the Lord, Psalms 116:12-13 centers this home for me,“How can I repay the Lord for all the good done for me? I will raise the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord.” Now this text takes more consideration, "I will raise the cup of salvation…"

Jesus said, “Then he took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of the many for the forgiveness of sins.” Matthew 26:27-28

When we are calling on the name of the Lord, are we not called to the table of the Lord? Are we not connected to the cup of salvation that became the sign of the new and everlasting covenant? Yes, the cup of blessing is where we rest in the Lord.

People in Jesus time challenged Him asking, “What sign can you do, that we may see and believe in you? What can you do?” (John 6:30)

Even while still on the cross, they challenged Jesus saying, “He saved others; he cannot save himself. So he is the king of Israel! Let him come down from the cross now, and we will believe him.” They didn't understand why Jesus was shedding his blood for them even then nor did they understand the Eucharist given at the Last Supper.

Jesus many times have given us signs and wonders helping us in our weak faith to believe as we continue to call out the name of the Lord.

Acts 2:17-19 states, “It will come to pass in the last days, God says, ‘that I will pour out a portion of my spirit upon all flesh. Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your young men shall see visions, your old men shall dream dreams. Indeed, upon my servants and my handmaids I will pour out a portion of my spirit in those days, and they shall prophecy. And I will work wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below.”

In Dronero Italy, 1631, the Lord showed a young girl a great miracle, today it is remembered as the “Eucharistic Miracle of Dronero”

On the afternoon of Sunday, August 3, 1631, a great fire broke out in the commercial district of Saluzzo in the town of Dronero. A young farm girl foolishly kindled a fire with dry hay at the very moment an upwind was developing into a thunderstorm. The flames quickly and violently spread to the home of the Borgo Maira. The townspeople desperately attempted to extinguish the fire, but all their efforts proved useless as the fire developed further.

Friar Maurice da Ceva, a Capuchin, was inspired to have recourse to the power of the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. He immediately organized a procession with the Blessed Sacrament, followed by all the townspeople, to the location of the fire. The moment the Blessed Sacrament arrived, the flames subsided instantly and miraculously were extinguished! This miraculous event is described in details on a stone tablet in the small Church of St. Brigid. On the Feast of Corpus Christi, the citizens of Dronero keep alive the memory of this miracle with a solemn annual procession with the Blessed Sacrament.

The people called out to the Lord carrying Him in procession that saved them from a fire. Today, we need to call upon the name of the Lord, carrying Him before the fires blazing across America. The glorification and acceptance of sin is causing a fire that can only be extinguished by calling upon the name of the Lord.

Lord Jesus, have mercy upon us…