Mother Roots : The Female Ancestors of Jesus

by Pearson, Helen Bruch

• ISBN13: 9780835809573
• ISBN10: 0835809579
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2002-12-01
• Publisher: Abingdon Pr

Summary

Most Christians are familiar with the story of Mary, the mother of Jesus, but other women also are named as Jesus' foremothers. In Matthew's Gospel, four women are named in the genealogy of Jesus: Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba. Mother Roots invites readers to take time to learn from these women's stories in the Bible.

Why were these four women included and no others? To enter the stories of Tamar, Rehab, Ruth, and Bathsheba is to experience strong women who had a vision of God's faithfulness and brought about change. Helen Pearson shows that Jesus embraced his heritage and lived out his ministry in radical and unorthodox ways, influenced by his female ancestors. Tamar, Rahab, Ruth, and Bathsheba reflected crossroads and turning points in the history of Israel. These four women took the initiative at crucial stages and made decisions that changed the future. Their lives were empowered by God. In addition to these four women, the book's final chapter deals with Mary.

Mother Roots is written primarily for small groups and contains six chapters. Mother Root

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	9	(2)
The First Word: Introduction	11	(10)
Back to Our Roots: A Genealogy of Faith (Matthew 1:1-16)	21	(26)
Tamar: A Woman Who Sought Justice (Genesis 38; Ruth 4:11-12; Matthew 1:3a)	47	(30)
Rahab: A Woman Who Made Faith Work (Joshua 2:1-24; 6:17-25; Hebrews 11:31; James 2:24-25; Matthew 1:5a)	77	(28)
Ruth: A Woman Who Loved the Enemy (The Book of Ruth; Matthew 1:5b)	105	(48)
Bathsheba: A Woman Who Beat the Odds (2 Samuel 11--12; 1 Kings 1:11-21, 28-31; 2:13-21; 1 Chronicles 3:5; Matthew 1:6b)	153	(28)
Mother Roots: Tracing the Family Tree of Jesus	181	(38)
The Last Word: Mary's ``Yes''	219