The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. ~ Mt 1:1
Who are all these people? Upwards of fifty ancestors of Jesus are mentioned in Matthew’s extensive genealogy, and while a few of them are boldface biblical names—Abraham and Isaac, David the king, Solomon, Joseph the husband of Mary—most of them remain obscure and unknown. Quick, raise your hand if you recognize Nahshon or Eliakim! Most of these men and women (for the inclusion of Tamar, Rahab, Ruth and Bathsheba in the ancestral account was unusual, to say the least) did not make headline news, yet each of them had a role to play in the history of salvation.
As George Eliot observes in Middlemarch, “The growing good of the world is partly dependent on unhistoric acts; and that things are not so ill with you and me as they might have been, is half owing to the number who led faithfully a hidden life, and rest in unvisited tombs.” There are many people who have gone before us, both in our biological and spiritual families, who have quietly and obscurely served God, loved others, and increased the amount of good in the world.
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A widowed young mother who supports other family members despite her own penury, an accountant in a small firm who reaches out to troubled young adults in her community, a monk in a remote monastery who devotes his energy to work and prayer—each of us can think of examples of our forebears who faithfully led George Eliot’s “hidden life” of love and service. Let us give thanks for them when we pray and ask God to help us emulate their example.
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O God of every living creature, Grant that I may be ever mindful of the generosity and sacrifice of those who have gone before me, and make me, like them, an instrument of your peace. Amen.
