Readings: Genesis 49:2,8-10
Matthew 1:1-17
“…the genealogy of Jesus Christ,
The son of David, the son of Abraham.”
In today's second Misa de Gallo, we have the Matthean version of the
genealogy of Jesus for our gospel. We may wonder why our liturgy has selected
these series of names for our good news. At first glance, it really seems
difficult to draw some evangelical lessons
out of these names. But not really. The
fact that Matthew begins his gospel this genealogy shows that this forms an
integral part of the whole evangelical message he wants to impart.
1. The
genealogy teaches us the importance of Christ's historical identity. Here, we
have two very significant terms: history and identity. By
history, we always mean time, and place. Such concepts are absolutely
important in trying to understand the mystery of the Incarnation expressed
briefly, the Incarnation means: the Eternal God comes in a particular time and
in a particular place. Thus, the God who was once not in anyway subject
to the limits of time and place has submitted himself to such human limitation
just for our sake.
What
immediately follows from the concept of historicity is identity. By
human standards, the first question asked to an unknown person is: Who are
you? And by his answer, he identifies himself to a particular family or
lineage. In such cases, our genealogy speaks of and for what we are. And here,
we learn the wisdom of the old saying: "a tree is known by its fruit,’
or reversely, "by knowing the tree, we know its fruit.”
2: This is
precisely the case of Jesus. By his genealogy, he identifies himself as "Son
of David." This identity is not merely secular but deeply religious
and cultural. It is embedded in the long history of the Jews as the chosen
race. Thus, the messiahship of Christ traces back to what the prophets of old
would foretell; He shall come from the stock of Jesse, establishing then the
Davidic lineage. True, the Messiah is God. But as he enters into human history,
he lives a life fully human. Thus, he needs an ancestry to identify himself to
he needs a family to belong to. But although he is fully human, he is no
ordinary man either. As the Messiah, he is
undoubtedly a great figure both politically and religiously. In fact this is the
concept of Israel's Messiah. Now, David is Israel's greatest king both in the
standards of man and of God. This messiah, therefore,
must be a Son of David.
3. The genealogy teaches us about divine
providence, and more, about the divine plan of God. Meaning, all that happens
in this world happens not by chance but by
choice. Look. Think.
Jesus neither came out of the blues nor did he come before or after he actually did. And when he indeed came,
he came as a Son of David. But
far from being grandiose as to be of royal lineage, he came among the poorest of the poor. Why? --- Not only that. Surprisingly, the genealogy includes some women in the list.
First, we have Tamar who, in her
determination to secure her right to an offspring, which was refused by Judah,
disguised herself as a prostitute and seduced her father-in-law, Judah himself.
Second, we have Rahab, a real prostitute, who allied
with the Jews in conquering Jericho. Third, we have Ruth the Moabite, a non-Jew
who ended up marrying Naomi’s kinsman Boaz. And
lastly, we have Batsheba, Uriah's wife, who committed adultery with David. And again, we ask, why?
There could be as many answers as there are many minds that think. But perhaps there seems only one, which is
closest, i.e., because these things proceed
from God's definite choice. The fact that they happened
just the way they did suggests that such must have been the best of all possible choices that God could ever
make. And they come
out best since they indeed abide with his divine plan.
4. Life at times runs this way, too. Some people point to their family
tree with pride and honor. Others took at their lineage with some sorrow and regrets. And perhaps a few do not and
cannot point to any at all simply because they don't have, or better, because
they don't know what family they do belong
to. This is truly a sad situation. But it is never a desperate and hopeless
one. Nothing happens by chance. Everything
happens by choice. We are more than the lilies in the field. We are more than
the birds of the air. We are more than the fishes in the ocean. We always
belong to a family. Of course, if not to a human family whom we can point out
to, we have God's family where we can always
find love, peace and security. Indeed, nothing happens by chance everything happens by choice!