Shortly after finding out I was pregnant, Matt and I knew exactly what we wanted to name the baby if it was a girl. Looking back on that choice now, it seems perfect that we picked Gianna Marie. Gianna is the name I chose when joining the Catholic church in 2007. My friend Cheryl had given me a prayer card featuring St. Gianna and I thought it was fitting since she is a saint of motherhood and I was pregnant with Angelo at the time. Gianna means "God is Gracious". St. Gianna's birthday is Oct 4th (possibly the day our baby will be born!) and her baby, whom she also named Gianna was born on April 21st - Matt's birthday. In his homily at her canonization Mass, Pope John Paul II called Gianna "a simple but significant messenger of divine love".
The meaning of Marie is "Bitter". I certainly never knew that and at first it struck me as odd considering that Marie is literally one of the world's most popular girl names. However, one definition of bitter is "hard to accept or bear". There is no doubt that the news of Gianna's medical condition was a bitter pill to swallow. But knowing that God IS gracious, it's helped us to see the experience perhaps as "bittersweet" instead - joy tinged with sadness.
What a beautiful insight into her name and divine connection to this story as it unfolds!
ReplyDeleteHum, Marie is my middle name also and I never knew it meant bitter! Interesting.
ReplyDeleteFabulous post about Gianna's name.