Women who begat Jesus: Mary
The genealogy of Jesus, according to the gospel of Matthew, continues:
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man and his brothers,
at the time of the deportation to Babylon.
And after the deportation to Babylon:
that man was the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man,
and that man the father of a man the husband of Mary, a woman,
of whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.
Something you may not know about my name, Mary: when
Ruth’s mother-in-law Naomi returned home to Bethlehem after losing her husband
and sons, her grief made her so unrecognizable that the women of Bethlehem
had to ask, “Is this Naomi?!”
She responded, “No longer call me Naomi”—which means
“pleasant.” “Call me Mara”—which means “bitter”—“for God has dealt bitterly
with me. I went away full, but God has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi
when God has dealt harshly with me and brought calamity upon me?” (Ruth
1:19-21)
Well, my name, Mary, in the Hebrew language is the
same as Naomi’s new name, Mara. It means “bitter” or “grieved.” And yes, I was very bitter when I first
discovered I was pregnant, without a husband.
Joseph, my betrothed, had every right to have me put to death. Like all
the women before me, and many after me, I had no rights or protection anywhere
on this earth.
According to one gospel community’s version of my
story (Matthew 1), an angel of God came to Joseph in a dream and said, “Do not
be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the
Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save
his people from their sins.”
God is still saving us from the sins of
patriarchy.
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