Lion is the Lamb

The texts of the Roman Catholic Lectionary today reflect the approach of the celebration of the Incarnation at Christmas. What is the expectation for the Messiah among the people who will experience this event? The Book of Genesis looks to the future of the people of Israel as being led by a strong ruler, the Lion of Judah, who will command obedience of the peoples of the earth. Friar Jude Winkler comments that the Lion of Judah in Genesis becomes the Lamb sacrificed in Revelation. Matthew begins his account of the life of Jesus with a genealogy which links Jesus as Messiah to the line of David and Abraham. Winkler discusses the symbolic nature of the "fourteen" generations as indicating that Jesus is much greater than David. Today, we sometimes wish for a great Christian warrior that would slay the Goliath that appears to threaten our way of life. It seems that one great surprise of Jesus life is that inclusion is Way and love for our enemies is the Truth. The challenge for the Body of Christ is to avoid the roar of the Lion and to practice the self sacrifice of the Lamb.