Jeffrey L asked Michelle Van Loon:

Hi Michelle. The chapter in your book that deals with Jesus's genealogy is provocative to me, because I think the two different genealogies (Luke and Matthew) are "both Joseph's," and simply contradictory. So if I were to teach a class using your book, I would talk about how our personal genealogies often are put to apologetic ends--wanting to prove a Mayflower descendant, etc., then later prove to be partly invented?

Michelle Van Loon You are not alone in that assessment of the genealogies of Jesus. Some other scholars have posited that view. And while I have landed in a different place on the question, I do like your thesis about how our personal genealogies can be used to serve other ends, whether it is in seeking social status (joining the DAR, for example) or assimilating into US society (some of my husband's relatives hid their Jewishness so they could integrate into majority Gentile culture). Consumer DNA testing has challenged some but not all of those old narratives. If you ever teach a class using my book as a point of discussion, please invite me to visit via Zoom! :)

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