This is my family tree. You can click through to see a larger image, if you'd like. It's an interesting depiction - one of several I could generate that would show family members back several generations (in this case, there are five generations). I am quite proud of where I am from and who my ancestors are. Each of them has left a part of themselves in me, in the same way that my children carry a piece of me with them, which they will pass on.
This is an image of my DNA results. It wasn't surprising - I'm mostly from northern Europe, and my family tree is sufficiently well-researched to bear that out. My great-great grandmother was born in Sweden and came to Utah when she was very small (it's a great story). I also knew about the Jewish ancestry - one of my most storied ancestors is Alexander Neibaur.
This week's lesson starts out with the stories surrounding the birth of the Savior. Matthew, from the Jewish perspective, gives us a detailed (if somewhat dubious) genealogy, and Luke, with his Greek background, gives us a more experiential review of the events leading up to His birth. I won't go into the respective backgrounds of the authors of the Gospels - that's kind of a fun exploration, but not anything that has bearing on what the text actually says.
Matthew gives us really the only snapshot of Joseph, stepfather of the Lord. According to some traditions, he was quite a bit older than Mary, and is often depicted as an elderly gentleman. It's not entirely clear why this is the case - Mary and Joseph went on to have other children, so he must not have been TOO old. What is clear from the record is how much he cared for Mary and wanted only the best for her and their family.
Luke focuses on some of the other aspects surrounding the birth of the Savior, spending a lot of time in Chapter 1 talking about the miraculous circumstances surrounding the birth of John the Baptist. One of the things I learned from this is that Elizabeth, who is the cousin of Mary, was from the Tribe of Levi, as was her husband Zacharias. Thus, Mary was from the Tribe of Levi, specifically from the lineage of Aaron. This is interesting because it is a claim on the legal right to the Priesthood, although I'm not clear on whether or not this could be done through a mother's lineage, or if it had to be from one's father.
The point I'm finding in all of this is two-fold:
1) The scriptures are meant as a record of God's dealing with men. While much is made of the two different lineages presented in the Scriptures, what seems to be most important is that God's dealings with His children continues in an unending connection. See the genealogy given and discussed in Lectures on Faith. We learn and inherit a connection with the divine through our ancestry. This is also why I believe it's so important that each of us understands our lineage and tribe of the Twelve Tribes. The scriptures are meant to illustrate how much God loves us and has loved his children for all time.
2) God is a God of miracles. His ways are both intimate and personal in their application, while at the same time being unfathomable and unknowable. Only through the consistent application of faith and love and diligence can we come to know Him. This is something I am still working on - knowing Him - and coming to rely on Him. I need to learn to trust Him more, to give up my pride and self-assurance, and to really know that I am nothing compared to Him. While this is nothing new, it's still something that is becoming a life-long pursuit.
Comments