Friday December 24, 2021 Jesse Tree-Mary Luke 1:67-79 Zechariah’s beautiful canticle is today’s Gospel. In front of friends and family, he lifts his voice in a prophetic song, from his newly loosed tongue, after his son John is circumcised. This canticle praises God for keeping his word and announces that his son will prepare the way for […]

Thursday December 23, 2021 Jesse Tree-Joseph Malachi 3:23 The prophet Malachi tells us today that the Messiah will “turn the hearts of fathers to their children.” Our Jesse Tree addition is the model of fatherhood, St. Joseph. A quiet man of strength and faith, St. Joseph’s heart was more than turned to his child, he never needed

Wednesday December 22, 2021 Jesse Tree-John the Baptizer 1Samuel 2:1-7 and Luke 1:46-56 From the first book of Samuel, we hear Hannah’s hymn of praise which is echoed in Mary’s Magnificat from Luke’s Gospel. Both hymns, or canticles, speak of how God is mindful of the lowly and forgets not his promises. The Jesse Tree’s ornament symbolizes

Tuesday December 21, 2021 Jesse Tree- Elizabeth Luke 1:39-45 Today we put up a symbol for Elizabeth on the Jesse Tree. Our Gospel is the story of Mary visiting Elizabeth and of her joyous greeting to Mary. Elizabeth’s joy at meeting the mother of our Savior is so overwhelming that her unborn baby can feel it and

Monday December 20, 2021 Jesse Tree- Zechariah Isaiah 7:10-14 and Luke 1:26-38 Our Jesse Tree addition is Zechariah. It seems he is in good company when it comes to not believing the Lord. Ahaz didn’t either. He was unwilling to even ask. Zechariah had asked, but he couldn’t believe his prayer had been answered. He was

Sunday December 19, 2021 Jesse Tree- Bethlehem Micah 5:14a Micah the prophet foretells that the Messiah, a great king and shepherd of his people, will come from Bethlehem. Today we place a symbol for Bethlehem on our Jesse Tree. Bethlehem is described as small—too small to matter. Stature is not important to God. Great things come in small

Saturday December 18, 2021 Jesse Tree- Suffering Servant  Matt 1:18-25 In today’s Gospel, Joseph is assured that it is alright to take Mary into his home. She has not been unfaithful to him. This child she is carrying is a special child destined for great things. What Joseph was not told was what would happen to this

Friday December 17, 2021 Jesse Tree-Isaiah Isaiah 49: 8-10 and Matt 1:1-17 Yes, you can call me a nerd, but I love the Matthew genealogy. I know many people glaze over at the mere thought of all those “N became the father of N” but if you look closely, you will find that there are some

Thursday December 16, 2021 Jesse Tree- Jeremiah Psalm 30 The Psalmist praises God for rescuing him and changing his mourning into dancing. Today we add Jeremiah to our Jesse Tree. Jeremiah is sometimes called the lamenting prophet. He was prophesying to a people in exile who had little to dance about. But Jeremiah promised that God would

Wednesday December 15, 2021 Jesse Tree-Elijah Luke 7:18b-23 In Luke’s Gospel today, Jesus is approached by some of John the Baptizer’s followers. They ask if he is the one foretold by John, or should they look for another. Jesus confirms that he is the one who heals the sick and restores sight to the blind—the things the