This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham…and Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary, and Mary was the mother of Jesus who is called the Messiah. Matthew 1:1, 16
Some of my earliest memories involve travel. At the time, however, I was probably a most unwilling traveler. I remembering spending many weekends in the car with my parents and brothers as we went from libraries to courthouses and from churches to cemeteries. You see, my father was passionate about discovering his family tree. Both he and my grandmother did much research to determine from where and from whom we came. While Dad was zealous about the many facts he uncovered as he sought church records, public deeds, and headstones, I, on the other hand, was more thrilled with the trinkets purchased during these adventures, as many a child would be. Only now as an adult do I cherish those handwritten pages with print oh-so-tiny to fit in the designated ancestry blocks on the page. Only now do I understand the value of discovering my roots. Only now do I see that the legacies of my ancestors live on through me and that by knowing where I come from, I gain a better sense of my own identity.
I recently read an article* in The Washington Post that gave a more nuanced joy of discovering one’s roots. A man was contacted by his sister who told him an old property near their childhood home was up for sale. He remembered riding past this stately home in their rural county. But only after he purchased this home and the surrounding land did he realize how connected he and his family were to this property. It was not a coincidence that his last name and the name of the original owners in the 1800’s was the same. As he and his family dug deeper into the genealogy of the family associated with this old homestead, he discovered that his ancestors were enslaved on this property. This truth was bittersweet. To know where you come from is grounding, but to understand more concretely that your ancestors endured the horrors of slavery is traumatizing.
Unlike tracing the roots of my white ancestors through names and dates detailed in county and church records, ancestry details for descendants of slaves may only reveal gender and date of purchase, not names, birth dates, marriage dates, and death dates. Slavery prevents this discovery. Sadly, even stories that might have been passed down from generation to generation were kept under wraps because those generations close to slavery were too traumatized to repeat them. Perhaps they also didn’t want to traumatize their descendants. However, there is new research that shows that trauma can be carried in our genes from one generation to the next. So even without direct knowledge of those stories, the trauma of the past lives on in the lives of individuals today. But also, the trauma of structural racism that began in slavery lives on in our many institutions, laws, policies, and practices, impacting all of us, some obviously more than others.
In Matthew 1, the lineage of Jesus is detailed, tracing Jesus’ roots back to Abraham and David, which for Matthew, a Jew, that connection was of utmost importance in his understanding of who Jesus was. This lineage from both Abraham and David confirmed many of the prophecies of the Messiah, thus helping to prove Jesus was the Christ. (For another list of Jesus’ genealogy which traces Jesus’ roots all the way back to Adam and God, see Luke 3:23-38.)
Just as Matthew’s detailing of Jesus’ lineage helped him and his Jewish audience better understand and connect with the Messiah, understanding our roots helps connect us with our heritage in order to fully understanding who we are. The stories of our collective ancestors, particularly how they overcame hardships, encourage resilience when we face our own adversities.
As one of Jesus’ twelve disciples, Matthew was a witness to how Jesus put into practice His mission statement** on setting the oppressed free and how Jesus worked to create a more just society, often one person at a time. Matthew recorded this history in the book of the Bible that bears his name.
History continues to be written. As the centuries-old legacy of chattel slavery continues to thread its way into the fabric of our society and into our daily lives, will we look back on our own history and be able to say we did what we could to undo the present-day effects of slavery and systemic racism? Will we follow Jesus’ example of love, justice, and mercy? If we don’t, our passivity breeds complicity. There’s no better time than the month of February, Black History Month, to read about the legacy of slavery in the lives of its victims and their descendants, to better understand our collective past, and to work together for a better future. Click here to learn more:
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/black-history-month
Heavenly Father, the Bible states over and over that You are on the side of the oppressed, that You are for love, justice, and mercy. Increase my understanding of racial injustice and oppression in my community, in my country, and around the world. Help me not to be passive and complicit by ignoring the cries of those who suffer, but rather help me to actively work against injustice and by doing so, help fulfill Jesus’ mission to set the oppressed free. Amen.
Text and photograph copyright © 2022 by Dawn Dailey. All rights reserved. Photo of a tree “dancing in the moonlight” on its gnarly roots in Mystery Valley, Arizona, where I visited some years ago. This valley of amazing red rock formations is located in the Navajo Tribal Park near Monument Valley.
*The article that inspired this blog is entitled “An Old Virginia Plantation, a New Owner and a Family Legacy Unveiled” written by Joe Heim, and appeared on washingtonpost.com on 1/22/22.
**Jesus’ mission statement is found in Luke 4:18-19: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Not a subscriber to the monthly blog posts? Click here to subscribe.
A NOTE ON RACIAL JUSTICE: Becoming antiracist is a journey. Together, we can make a difference. Will you join me? Check out my web page on “Justice Matters” to find RECENTLY UPDATED resources and to connect with organizations engaging in the cause of racial justice. Click here to learn more.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
Some of my earliest memories involve travel. At the time, however, I was probably a most unwilling traveler. I remembering spending many weekends in the car with my parents and brothers as we went from libraries to courthouses and from churches to cemeteries. You see, my father was passionate about discovering his family tree. Both he and my grandmother did much research to determine from where and from whom we came. While Dad was zealous about the many facts he uncovered as he sought church records, public deeds, and headstones, I, on the other hand, was more thrilled with the trinkets purchased during these adventures, as many a child would be. Only now as an adult do I cherish those handwritten pages with print oh-so-tiny to fit in the designated ancestry blocks on the page. Only now do I understand the value of discovering my roots. Only now do I see that the legacies of my ancestors live on through me and that by knowing where I come from, I gain a better sense of my own identity.
I recently read an article* in The Washington Post that gave a more nuanced joy of discovering one’s roots. A man was contacted by his sister who told him an old property near their childhood home was up for sale. He remembered riding past this stately home in their rural county. But only after he purchased this home and the surrounding land did he realize how connected he and his family were to this property. It was not a coincidence that his last name and the name of the original owners in the 1800’s was the same. As he and his family dug deeper into the genealogy of the family associated with this old homestead, he discovered that his ancestors were enslaved on this property. This truth was bittersweet. To know where you come from is grounding, but to understand more concretely that your ancestors endured the horrors of slavery is traumatizing.
Unlike tracing the roots of my white ancestors through names and dates detailed in county and church records, ancestry details for descendants of slaves may only reveal gender and date of purchase, not names, birth dates, marriage dates, and death dates. Slavery prevents this discovery. Sadly, even stories that might have been passed down from generation to generation were kept under wraps because those generations close to slavery were too traumatized to repeat them. Perhaps they also didn’t want to traumatize their descendants. However, there is new research that shows that trauma can be carried in our genes from one generation to the next. So even without direct knowledge of those stories, the trauma of the past lives on in the lives of individuals today. But also, the trauma of structural racism that began in slavery lives on in our many institutions, laws, policies, and practices, impacting all of us, some obviously more than others.
In Matthew 1, the lineage of Jesus is detailed, tracing Jesus’ roots back to Abraham and David, which for Matthew, a Jew, that connection was of utmost importance in his understanding of who Jesus was. This lineage from both Abraham and David confirmed many of the prophecies of the Messiah, thus helping to prove Jesus was the Christ. (For another list of Jesus’ genealogy which traces Jesus’ roots all the way back to Adam and God, see Luke 3:23-38.)
Just as Matthew’s detailing of Jesus’ lineage helped him and his Jewish audience better understand and connect with the Messiah, understanding our roots helps connect us with our heritage in order to fully understanding who we are. The stories of our collective ancestors, particularly how they overcame hardships, encourage resilience when we face our own adversities.
As one of Jesus’ twelve disciples, Matthew was a witness to how Jesus put into practice His mission statement** on setting the oppressed free and how Jesus worked to create a more just society, often one person at a time. Matthew recorded this history in the book of the Bible that bears his name.
History continues to be written. As the centuries-old legacy of chattel slavery continues to thread its way into the fabric of our society and into our daily lives, will we look back on our own history and be able to say we did what we could to undo the present-day effects of slavery and systemic racism? Will we follow Jesus’ example of love, justice, and mercy? If we don’t, our passivity breeds complicity. There’s no better time than the month of February, Black History Month, to read about the legacy of slavery in the lives of its victims and their descendants, to better understand our collective past, and to work together for a better future. Click here to learn more:
https://www.history.com/topics/black-history/black-history-month
Heavenly Father, the Bible states over and over that You are on the side of the oppressed, that You are for love, justice, and mercy. Increase my understanding of racial injustice and oppression in my community, in my country, and around the world. Help me not to be passive and complicit by ignoring the cries of those who suffer, but rather help me to actively work against injustice and by doing so, help fulfill Jesus’ mission to set the oppressed free. Amen.
Text and photograph copyright © 2022 by Dawn Dailey. All rights reserved. Photo of a tree “dancing in the moonlight” on its gnarly roots in Mystery Valley, Arizona, where I visited some years ago. This valley of amazing red rock formations is located in the Navajo Tribal Park near Monument Valley.
*The article that inspired this blog is entitled “An Old Virginia Plantation, a New Owner and a Family Legacy Unveiled” written by Joe Heim, and appeared on washingtonpost.com on 1/22/22.
**Jesus’ mission statement is found in Luke 4:18-19: “The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight for the blind, to set the oppressed free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
Not a subscriber to the monthly blog posts? Click here to subscribe.
A NOTE ON RACIAL JUSTICE: Becoming antiracist is a journey. Together, we can make a difference. Will you join me? Check out my web page on “Justice Matters” to find RECENTLY UPDATED resources and to connect with organizations engaging in the cause of racial justice. Click here to learn more.
All scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
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