THE JESSE TREE

WHO WAS JESSE?

L-The prophet Isaiah foretold the coming of the Messiah. Isaiah's words helped peopleknow that the One who was promised to them by God would be born into the family ofJesse.

" A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse and from his roots a budshall blossom." Isaiah I I : I-10

Jesse of Bethlehem had seven sons. Jesse's youngest son, David, watched over the sheepfor him. One day the prophet Samuel came to Jesse's house and met David. Samuelanointed David. Many years later, David became King.

It was from Jesse that the family tree branched out to David and his descendants. Jesseand David were ancestors of Jesus. At the time of Jesus' birth all those who belonged tothe family of David had to return to the town of Bethlehem because a census was beingtaken. Since Joseph and Mary were of the House of David, they had to travel fromNazareth to Bethlehem to register.

WHAT IS THE JESSE TREE?

The Jesse Tree is a special tree used during the season of Advent. The Jesse Treerepresents the family tree of Jesus. It serves as a reminder of the human family of Jesus.

The uniqueness of the Jesse Tree comes from the ornaments that are used to decorate it.They are symbols that depict the ancestors of Jesus or a prophecy fulfi l led at His coming.Traditionally, the Jesse Tree ornaments also included representations of Adam, F.ve andCreation. These symbolize the promise..

The Jesse Tree Book

SUGGESTIONS FOR JESSE TREE ORNAMENTS

Directions: The list of names below aresuggestions that can be used for Jesse TreeOrnaments. Make a list of people you wouldlike to include on your Jesse Tree. Readabout them in the Bible. Select somethingabout each person that can be used to sym-bolize them. Select one of the suggestedsymbols or design a decoration of your own.

Adam: Genesis 1, 2 and 4Hebrew word for "man"; the man inthe Garden of Eden in the creationstory; the first man.Symbols: outline of a man; creationsymbols; tree of knowledge.

Eve: Genesis 2, 3 and 4the name of the first woman; thewoman in the Garden of Eden in thecreation story; mother of Cain, Abeland Seth.Symbols: outline of a woman; cre-ation symbols; tree of knowledge.

Noah: Genesis 6, 7, 8 and 9the hero of the story of the flood;father of Shem, Ham and Japheth.Symbols: ark; dove; rainbow, olivebranch.

Abraham: Genesis 12 and 15father of the Israelites; was willing tosacrifice his son Isaac to God; made acovenant with God; was promised byGod that his descendents would be asnumerous as the stars.Symbols: sword, fire, stars.

Sarah: Genesis 15 and 21wife of Abraham; a free womanwhose son is a son of the promise;she gave birth to Isaac in her old age.Symbols: outline of a woman; crown;stars.

Isaac.* Genesis 21son of Abraham and Sarah; wasalmost sacrificed by Abraham inobedience to God; had twin sons,Esau and Jacob, with Rebecca.Symbols: bundle of twigs, knife.

Jacob.' Genesis 25 and 35son of Isaac and Rebecca; the youngertwin of Esau; God changed'his nameto Israel; had twelve sons; ancestor ofthe twelve tribes of Israel.Symbols: ladder, a tree with twelvebranches.

Joseph: Genesis 37 and 47youngest son of Jacob and Rachel;sold into slavery by his brothers;slave traders took him into Egypt.Symbols; coat of many colors, chainsof slavery, silver coins, well, bucket.

Moses: Exodus 19 and 20led the people of Israel out of slaveryin Egypt; made a covenant with God;received the commandments.Symbols: stone tablets,Ten Com-mandments, burning bush.

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Copyrighl O 1994 by Journal Press II Resources, Inc. • PO Box 1214 • Linden, NJ • 07036. All Rights Reserved. Permission lo duplicate granled lo subscribing parish/school.

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The Jesse Tree Book

Ruth: Judges 4 & 5; the Book of Ruthaccompanied her mother-in-law,Naomi to Bethlehem after the deathof her first husband; harvested wheatto support herself and Naomi; mar-ried Boaz and had a son, Obed, thegrandfather of David; the heroine ofthe Book of Ruth.Symbols: sheaf of wheat; a book.

: 1 Samuel 16 and Isaiah 11a Bethlehemite; had seven sons;father of King David; mentioned inthe prophet Isaiah's writings as theroot from which the Messiah wouldcome.Symbols: stump; family tree.

David: 1 Samuel 16son of Jesse; shepherd, played a harp;wrote psalms; was anointed bySamuel, the prophet; killed Goliath;succeeded Saul as king of Israel.Symbols: star of David, harp, slingshot, crown.

Solomon." 1 Kings 3 and 1 Kings 6succeeded his father, David as king;built the Temple in Jerusalem;brought wealth and splendor into theking's court.Symbols: crown; temple; scales ofjustice; coins.

Zachary: Luke ipriest; received a message from theAngel Gabriel that his wife Elizabethwould bear a child in her old age;doubted God's message and wasdumb until the birth of his son, John.Symbols: incense; priest.

Elizabeth: Luke iwife of Zachary, the priest; mother ofJohn the Baptist; cousin of Mary;visited by Mary when she was preg-nant; the baby in Elizabeth's wombleaped with joy; sang a song ofpraise, the "Magnificat."Symbols: open arms; a musical note.

John the Baptist: Isaiah 40; Mark 1son of Elizabeth and Zachary; pre-pared the way of the Lord; lived inthe desert; preached the baptism ofrepentence; baptized Jesus in theJordan River.Symbols: shell with water; sandals;cactus.

Joseph: Luke 1 and Matthew 13husband of Mary; foster father ofJesus; born of the House of David; acarpenter; went with Mary toBethlehem for the census; took Jesusand Mary into Egypt to protect Jesusfrom Herod.Symbols: carpenter tools, lily.

Mary: Luke ichosen by God to be the Mother ofthe Messiah; wife of Joseph; gavebirth to Christ in Bethlehem.Symbols: the letter M; a lily

: Matthew 1 and Luke 1the fulfillment of the promise; theMessiah; Redeemer; Son of God andSon of Mary.Symbols: chi rho; the word,"Emmanuel" or "Messiah;" a cross ora star.

Copyright O 1994 by Journal Press II Resources, Inc. • PO Box 1214 • Linden, NJ • 07036. All Rights Reserved. Permission to duplicate granted to subscribing pariih/icbool.