I mention this because her name is a wonderful name for a Christian: Veronica LaVia. The name Veronica comes from the words for 'true' and 'icon' and so it literally means true icon. And an icon is 'a window to the divine' showing us the face of God. Hence we understand Veronica wiping the face of Jesus and his image left on the cloth as the true icon of God, for Christ is the icon. The name LaVia means 'the Way' and this was the name given to the earlier followers of Christ: they were described as followers of the Way. Put together the name means the true icon, the way.

It so happened that this email arrived on the day when the Gospel was of the mother of James and John asking for them to have places next to Christ in heaven and Jesus reminds his disciples and us that we are called to serve. The greatest amongst us must be the least and serve others; in so doing we are following the example of Christ himself. So there you have it - Veronica LaVia in the Gospel: how can we live up to that name in the way we live our lives in the week ahead in the service of others following the example of Christ himself?