Today’s gospel reading, the genealogy of Jesus Christ, has been one of my favorite Advent readings for many years. Maybe it’s because it is a challenge to read the many old Hebrew names that do not roll off the tongue very easily. Maybe because this reading anchors the birth of Jesus Christ, specifically in the history of the Jewish people. Maybe it’s because the Old Testament is rooted in Genesis, and in Matthew the New Testament begins with the genesis of Jesus. Maybe it’s because these generations of people listed in this reading are rooted in a rich history, rooted in God’s sovereignty, rooted in God’s promises and rooted in God’s grace. But most important to me is that this gospel reading is focused on family. This reading is all about ancestors and family.
Today thousands of people are researching their family connections, their family stories and their genealogical records in order to find out more about their family history and ultimately about themselves. In our STM community we have people like Jill Martin who have taken courses on genealogical study and have traveled to various countries to find relatives and connections. We want to discover where our ancestors came from and unravel more about who we are.
Genealogies were always very important to the Jewish people and until records were destroyed in 70 A.D., all Jews had records of their lineage. Today, probably the most important part of being a good Jew, is to focus on family and the history of family. Some years ago, Elie Wiesel, the remarkable Jewish storyteller who survived the Holocaust, reminded us that, for Jews, to forget is a crime against justice as well as memory. If we know the play “Fiddler on the Roof,” we can see clearly that Judaism is anchored in family lineage.
At this time in our history when we are being deprived of seeing family, of family celebrations, of family deaths, of the warmth and love that comes with tender touch of family and of sharing Christmas that brings our Christian past into the present, we can feel shattered. But this reading brings us hope as it reminds us of the strength in generations and in family history. If we dissect the fourteen generations in this reading, we see survival after great challenges, we see bridges of old to new, we see hope after despair and yes, we see plenty of imperfection and struggle in this lineage of Jesus. We are reminded that no one has perfect lineage (not even the Royals) but God uses everyone. We see that all people are important to God and we see Jesus as a real human being, ONE OF US! We are not called to be perfect; we are called to be loving and compassionate. In His coming, in this human birthday, there is a divine promise. Each one of us can be one with God and one with one another, even when we aren’t physically present to one another. God uses each of us and our ancestors in order to bring forward God’s promises and kingdom. God became human, one with Jesus, to make us divine, to give us a share in God’s own life, to make it possible for us to survive even a pandemic, to hope against hope and to love as Jesus loved. Even in this difficult moment in time, we are working out God’s plan in history. With our strong ancestries in our own rich family lives and in the inheritance of the lineage of Jesus, we have the strength and assurance to look forward to a life when we can hug and love greatly together once again.
Addendum: Happy Birthday to Pope Francis, born December 17, 1936 as Jorge Mario Bergoglio
As we celebrate Pope Francis’s birthday today, we also remember the strength and heritage we as Roman Catholics have been given in this long history of our church leaders. Some have been a great help to the world and our church and others not. Yet God has used all of them to help bring about His kingdom. We ask God to bless Pope Francis, as he helps with God’s plan of salvation. We work with him and with our Lord in that effort.
