Redeemed Family Lines

Reflection Date: December 17, 2025 Wednesday of the Third Week of Advent 
Daily Readings: Genesis 49:2, 8-10; Matthew 1:1-17

Children of God: I once wrote a book about my family tree. Let me tell you something about it. In the early 1990s, when the internet was not yet a by-word, I remembered one story shared during one of our clan reunions. It was mentioned that one of my great-grandfathers from Cebu chose not to join his siblings who migrated to Mindanao before World War II. Instead, he went to a place called Calubian in Leyte, in the Visayas region. That great-grandfather, whose name was Teodoro, never saw his siblings again after their separation. Many years later, when I became a priest in 2008, I began tracing our family connections through Facebook. To my joy, I discovered uncles, aunties, cousins, and nephews I never knew before—and I made the bravest decision to visit them personally in Calubian. It was a journey that reminded me that family history, though imperfect and scattered, is still bound together by love.

In the opening salvo of Matthew, we hear about another family story, the genealogy of Jesus Christ. At first glance, it may seem like a long list of names, but behind those names are stories of grace, failure, courage, and redemption. Among Jesus’ ancestors were kings and shepherds, saints and sinners: Abraham who doubted, Jacob who deceived, David who sinned, and Rahab who was a foreigner. Yet through this very human lineage, God’s plan unfolded. The message is clear: God does not work through perfect people, but through ordinary men and women whose lives were touched by His mercy.

Just as my own family tree carries both triumphs and flaws, so does the family tree of Jesus remind us that God’s story is written even through our imperfections. Each of us comes from a history shaped by both light and shadow, and yet God continues to weave beauty from it all. The coming of Jesus shows that no one is beyond redemption, and no family is too broken for God to bless.

Sometimes we think that holiness means having a perfect background or a spotless past. But the genealogy of Jesus tells us the opposite: holiness is God’s grace working in imperfect people. Every act of faith, every step toward reconciliation, every “yes” to God, no matter how small, becomes part of His saving plan. The Lord does not erase our human story; He transforms it.

Children of God: As we look at our own families, with their joys and pains, let us see them as part of our sacred story and God’s larger story of love. If He can bring salvation through a family line full of weakness, He can also work wonders in our lives today. Let us trust that His grace continues to move in our family histories, in our relationships, and in our hearts.