12/17/2011 – Homily for Saturday of the third week of Advent - Matthew 1:1-17 –

Today, we hear the beginning of the Gospel of Matthew, which recounts the genealogy of Jesus back many generations. It is quite a list, with some names that are not so easy to pronounce.  As I was looking over this reading a couple of days ago, I thought about how Sister Paulinus would read it, how she would find a creative & entertaining way to read all of these names of the men & women in Jesus’ family tree.  Matthew traces Jesus’ ancestors all the way back to the patriarch of the Jewish people, Abraham, to the great Jewish forefathers Jacob & King David.  There are interesting & intriguing & sometimes very scandalous stories linked with the individuals listed in Jesus’ genealogy. 

I know that genealogy & learning about one’s ancestry has become a popular activity among many Americans in recent years.  I know that many of our parishioners are very proud of their ancestors and their heritage, and rightfully so.  Since most of us originally came from immigrant ancestors from distant lands, many of us want to learn more about our roots, about where we came from.  For the people of ancient Israel, knowing one’s heritage & one’s blood line were important, since heritage & lineage determined whether one was considered clean or pure in a religious sense.  Matthew wanted to show that Jesus was indeed in the line of God’s chosen people, the rightful heir to the throne of David, the one to whom God fulfilled the promises he made to David & Abraham, that he would send a savior & a king to Israel to rule over them & to deliver them from their enemies.

I wonder if we see our own spiritual history in the genealogy we hear today.  We indeed come from this spiritual lineage, as we have had our faith passed down to us by our own ancestors, from those who learned their faith in the apostolic tradition.  As we continue in the season of Advent, in this season of waiting & expecting & preparing, in this season of following the signs that God gives to us, let us give thanks for those who passed down the faith to us.  Let us give thanks for the spiritual genealogy of which we are a part.