When it comes to our kids, no name is apparently too special.  A recent article in the “The Week” confirms parents are no longer content naming their kids from a list of—quote--familiar names.  James, Kathy and Robert are out.   Aiden, Emma, and Gunner are in.  Christopher is more likely to go by “Topher.”   And even familiar names must now be spelled uniquely.

Those who track names as a profession tell us that an emerging trend is to give your child a LAST name for his or her first name.  Hence the rise of names like Wilson and Taylor.  There is also a spike in names that are gender neutral:  Jordan. Addison, Dakota…

In 1912, when the most popular names in America were John and Mary, parents of 80 percent of American babies chose from among the 200 most common names. Today less than half of girls and about 60 percent of boys are accorded a top-200 name.

So what's behind the push for all these new names?  Mostly, the experts tell us, a desire for our children to be unique.  Special.  

I find it interesting that as we move further away from a Christian consensus, we reach further and further for significance—specialness--even in the way we name our kids.

You might argue, “How can you prove that?”  Actually, I can't prove it.  And the truth is, probably a lot of the new names are simply the expression of a fresh breath of naming creativity. 

Yet I am still haunted by the reality that on the one hand, we have a Creative God saying, “In me, you are complete.  In me, you are special.”  On the other hand, we have a culture that says, “We reject God.  We'll find our sense of specialness wherever we can.”  I can't help but wonder if at least part of the craze for new names stems from an ancient hunger: the hunger of wondering if God really knows us individually.  And if He does...does He care?  

Pondering all the new names, I'm Jon—spelled without the “H.” And those are my thoughts.