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Readings: Genesis 49:2, 8-10 / Matthew
1:1-17
Reflection
Matthew starts his Gospel with
something most people skip: a genealogy. Forty-two generations from Abraham to
Jesus. Name after name after name. But if you've ever traced your own family
history, really dug into where you came from, you know these aren't just names.
They're people. Lives. Stories. Faith is passed down through centuries. I've spent
years as a family historian tracing my own heritage, and I discovered that my
family name was originally Decio in Italy before it became Dacey in America. As
I traced the lines back through my family tree, through Pesci, DeRosa,
DeMartini, DePete, Merola, I wasn't just collecting names. I was uncovering how
faith survived immigration, persecution, poverty and somehow made it to me.
Matthew's genealogy is stunning because he doesn't sanitize it. Right there in
Jesus' family tree: Tamar (who posed as a prostitute to trick her
father-in-law), Rahab (an actual prostitute who hid Israelite spies), Ruth (a
Moabite outsider), Bathsheba (the woman David committed adultery with after
murdering her husband), Mary (an unwed teenage girl pregnant by the Holy Spirit).
This is the Messiah's family line. Sinners and saints. Outsiders and insiders.
Scandal and grace are all woven together. Jacob's deathbed prophecy in Genesis
pointed to this: "The scepter shall never depart from Judah." Judah,
the fourth son, who sold his brother Joseph into slavery, and slept with his
daughter-in-law, thinking she was a prostitute. That's the line the King comes
from. Not the perfect branch of the family tree. The broken one.
There's something sacred about knowing
where you come from. When my ancestors left Italy in 1875 with nothing but
faith and hope, they carried something more valuable than any possession; they
carried prayers, rosaries, the Mass, and devotion to Mary. They didn't know their
descendants would still be tracing those roots generations later, still
honoring those names, still praying those same prayers in a new language.
That's what Matthew's doing here. He's saying: Jesus didn't drop from heaven
disconnected from human history. He came through a family. A real family with
real stories, some beautiful, some scandalous, all redeemed. Today's O Antiphon
is "O Sapientia,” O Wisdom. And here's the wisdom: God doesn't wait for
perfect families to accomplish His plan. He works through real families with
real brokenness, real sin, real faith, real hope. The world says hide your
family's scandals, airbrush your history, present only the respectable parts.
God says: I'll put the prostitutes right in My Son's genealogy. I'll make sure
everyone knows redemption runs through broken people because that's who He came
to save. That's who He came through. In my years of family history research,
I've discovered this truth in my own heritage: every family tree has both
saints and sinners, heroes and failures, faith and doubt all tangled together.
Just like Jesus' genealogy.
The scepter Jacob prophesied belongs
to Jesus, but it comes through Judah's messy line, through David's complicated
story, through a genealogy that screams "these people needed a
Savior." And that's our hope. When you trace your own family tree and find
the alcoholic, the abuser, the one who abandoned the faith, the one who broke
the family, that's not a dead end. That's where God loves to work. Every family
has names whispered in shame and names spoken with pride. Every genealogy has
gaps we can't explain and stories we wish we could forget. But faith doesn't
require a perfect pedigree. It just requires one generation willing to say yes.
Ruth the Moabite outsider, said yes. Rahab the prostitute, said yes. Mary, the
unwed mother, said yes. And because they did, Jesus came. My family's faith, passed
down through the Decio line that became Dacey, through rosaries prayed in
Italian by grandparents who never learned English, through immigrants who
risked everything for religious freedom, that faith is my genealogy too. And
you're part of Jesus' family tree now. Through baptism. Through faith. Through
grace. The scandalous and the saintly, all leading to one name: Jesus, who saves
His people from their sins. Matthew could have given us a sanitized version.
Instead, he gave us the truth: Jesus' family includes you. Your mess. Your
story. Your name is written into the greatest family
tree in history.
Franciscan
Reflection
Francis came from wealth but embraced
poverty. He came from respectability but kissed lepers. He could have built his
movement with the educated elite, the spiritually impressive, the religiously
accomplished. Instead, he gathered beggars, outcasts, simpletons, the brothers, and everyone else was dismissed. Why? Because Francis understood what Matthew's
genealogy screams: God uses the unlikely. The unqualified. The broken. Francis
called his brothers "little" on purpose, Friars Minor, the lesser
brothers. Because when you're little, weak, and broken, there's more room for
God's power. As a Secular Franciscan, professed in 2008, I've learned that
Francis would look at my messy family genealogy, with all its Italian
immigrants, scandalous stories, and faithful prayers, and say: "Of course.
That's exactly who God would use. That's exactly who God is." We who bear
the OFS after our names share this Franciscan love: we're all broken branches
on imperfect family trees, yet God grafts us into His story anyway. Are you
disqualified by your past? No. You're qualified by God's grace. Stop hiding
your brokenness. Let God use it.
For
Your Reflection
Take your time. Pay attention to the
ones that make you stir.
About the Genealogy:
- Matthew includes prostitutes, adulterers, and
outsiders in Jesus' family tree. What part of your story are you ashamed
of that God wants to use?
- Have you ever thought of your own family genealogy?
You should look into it; it’s a very exciting journey. I learned so much
doing mine.
- If Jesus comes from a line this messy, what does
that say about how God sees your mess?
- Who in your life seems "too far gone"
for God? What would it mean if they're exactly who God wants to use?
About Judah's Line:
- The scepter came through Judah, the son who sold
his brother and sinned with his daughter-in-law. God didn't wait for the
perfect son. Where are you waiting for perfection before you let God use
you?
- Jacob prophesied the Messiah would come through
Judah's line. God's plan includes broken people. Do you believe God's plan
includes breaking you?
- What sin in your past do you think disqualifies
you from God's call?
About O Sapientia (O Wisdom):
- The world's wisdom says hide your scandals. God's
wisdom says: I'll put them in My Son's genealogy. Which wisdom are you
living by?
- Wisdom isn't perfection; it's surrender. Where do
you need to surrender your mess instead of trying to fix it first?
- The O Antiphon calls Jesus "Wisdom." How
does Jesus' family tree change your understanding of God's wisdom?
About Being Included:
- You're in Jesus' family tree now, through baptism,
through faith, through grace. Do you live like you're part of this messy,
redeemed family?
- What would change if you believed God doesn't need
you to be perfect, just to surrender?
- Who needs to hear that their brokenness doesn't
disqualify them? Will you tell them?
Praying
the Glorious Mysteries
As you pray the rosary today, see the
redemption Matthew's genealogy promises:
The Resurrection - Death couldn't hold Jesus. Your past can't hold you. The
genealogy proves it.
The Ascension - Jesus takes humanity, messy, broken humanity to the
Father. Your mess is included.
The Descent of the Holy Spirit - The same Spirit that conceived Jesus in Mary dwells in
you. Broken vessel, holy filling.
The Assumption - Mary, from this scandalous genealogy, assumed body and
soul into heaven. You're next.
The Coronation - The prostitutes and outsiders in Jesus' line are now
part of the royal family. So are you.
The Glorious Mysteries show us where
Matthew's genealogy leads broken people redeemed, sinners made saints, outcasts
crowned as royalty. That's your destiny too.
A
Quiet Challenge: This week, start exploring your own family
story. Share one part of your past that surprised you with one person you
trust. Tell them how God's been preparing you. Tell them how it's part of your own
story now, and how excited you are to learn about the ancestors who were before
you.
A Word of Encouragement: Uncovering your personal genealogy offers a
unique opportunity to connect with your past and understand the journey that
led to you. As you delve into family stories and historical records, you might
find an inspiring chain of faith that has been passed down through generations,
offering new insight into your own beliefs and values. This exploration helps
you appreciate the struggles and triumphs of those who came before you,
providing perspective and a deeper sense of who you are today. By documenting these
discoveries, you ensure that their legacy, and yours, can continue to inspire
future generations. God bless you on this journey.
O Sapientia. O Wisdom. Come. Teach us that Your wisdom looks nothing like ours.
And thank God for that.
Closing
Pray this with your whole story:
"Lord Jesus, O Wisdom, You come
from a line of prostitutes and kings, sinners and saints, outsiders and
insiders. You didn't need a perfect genealogy. You redeemed a broken one. Thank
You for including me, with all my mess, all my scandal, all my brokenness, in
Your family. I don't have to hide anymore. I don't have to pretend I'm
spotless. Forgive me for
thinking my past disqualifies me. Forgive me for trying to clean myself up
before I let You work. Use my mess. Redeem my story. Write me into Your plan
just as I am, broken, surrendered, and desperate for grace. In Jesus' Name,
Amen."
Then ask:
- What part of my story am I hiding that God wants
to redeem?
- Do I believe God can use me as I am, or am I
waiting to be perfect first?
- Who needs to hear that their brokenness doesn't
disqualify them?
- Is there faith in my own Family History that I would
love to connect with?
O Sapientia. O Wisdom. You come
through a messy past. You redeem scandal. You use the unlikely. And today,
December 17, you're seven days from Christmas Eve.
The genealogy is written. Your name is
in it. Now live like you believe it.
Wednesday of the Third Week of Advent
December 17, 2025
A Franciscan Reflection
©2025 James Dacey, Jr., OFS
