What did the Catholic Tradition dictate when giving a child a Christian name?
A. 2. The unwritten Catholic Tradition dictates that children to be baptized should be given the name of a Saint. The following examples explain how Catholic names were chosen in the past. 1 st boy: Joseph John Anthony Smith 2 nd boy: Joseph Henry Robert Smith 3 rd boy: Joseph Francis Donald Smith 1 st girl: Mary Magdeleine Esther Smith 2 nd girl: Mary Agnes Anna Smith 3 rd girl: Mary Claire Monica Smith Each child has 3 surnames and 1 family name. The first name of every boy is always Joseph. The first name of every girl is always Mary. These names represent the names of Mary and Joseph, the parents of Jesus. The second name represents the child’s given name, the name of a female saint for a girl and the name of a male saint for a boy. The third name represents, if it is the first girl or the first boy in the family, the name of the mother for the girl and the name of the father for the boy. For all the other children, the 2 nd, the 3 rd, etc…, the third name is the name of the godm
