Icon of Genealogy of Our Lord or Genealogy Sunday
Description of Icon
In this icon, the genealogy of Our Lord is represented as the tree of Jesse, out of which grows the Messianic branch (Is 11:1). At the lower part of the tree, at the top of the trunk, is depicted Adam, the first man created in the image of God; at the top of the tree is Christ, the Perfect second Adam, born to redeem and save lost mankind. Between Adam and Christ are portrayed the most significant in the human line of genealogy. The entwining branches and leaves represent the fourteen generations from Abraham to Christ. We also see, in the top of the icon, portray of the Holy Trinity. God the Father is depicted by a Divine Hand reaching down into human history. In the center, at the top of the tree, is Christ the incarnate Son of God. At the top right is represented the Holy Spirit, in the form of a dove. As for the shades of blue, they stand for the divine presence of God and for eternal light. The blues also stand for heaven and the greens for earth, as heaven and earth meet in genealogy of the Son of God.
This weekend we celebrate the Genealogy of Our Lord Jesus Christ. We find in our bibles that there are two versions of the genealogy of Jesus in the New Testament. One can be found in Matthew 1:1-17 and the other in Luke 3:22-38. This basic aim of any such list of descendants in the scriptures is the connection of each era to God's progressive plan of salvation which reaches its fulfillment in Christ.
The genealogy of Matthew emphasizes that Jesus is the fulfillment of all the promises God mad to Abraham and David. One can also note that there are four women, perhaps all gentiles that are also in this list. the inclusion of these women may serve to indicate that Jesus cam to save all mankind and not just the Jews Mt. 28:19. David was a sinner guilty of adultery and murder according to 2 Samuel 11:6 but is also included in the list, thus indicating that Jesus, who was without sin, was fully immersed in the sinfulness of humanity.
In Luke's Gospel it is more obvious in how it indicates the universal mission of Jesus. He goes back from Jesus to Abraham, and all the way back to Adam, the son of God. Therefore, showing Jesus as the New Adam, who begets a new humanity.
The Genealogies call us to trust in God's Plan of Salvation: all will be brought to fulfillment by the Lord in his own time and in his own way. In spite of difficulties, we are called to trust in the promises of the Lord. Jesus himself, the Son of the Father promised the following: "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not."
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