Rooted
25 Episodes
This series guides Catholics through a daily Advent reflection using the Jesse Tree model traditionally practiced by families. Each seven-minute episode introduces the ancestors of Jesus Christ, shares a Scripture passage, and offers an engaging, practical reflection. Hosted by Dr. Scott Hefelfinger, Rooted helps viewers apply the passage and related teachings to each day of Advent, guided by the Church’s teaching. Sign up here to receive these episodes straight to your inbox and to check out our other great Advent resources: https://daily.formed.org/advent
Buy the Rooted devotional book here: https://catholic.market/advent-christmas/rooted-rediscover-the-jesse-tree-this-advent-paperback/?srsltid=AfmBOoppL2gJC64GRagGP1pFqw6tX-GUGdUZgRFgYv4z23Ftq_FWIQFE
-
Creation and the Jesse Tree | Rooted | Episode 1
Episode 1
The Jesse Tree—what is it? It seems like a simple question. Actually, it can be answered in a variety of ways. We'll return to this question several times as we continue through Advent. Each time we do, we’ll understand it better!
Want these videos delivered straight to your inbox? Visit https:/...
-
07:37Episode 2
The Image of God | Rooted | Episode 2
Episode 2
It might be tempting to view the early chapters of Genesis as primitive and even irrelevant. The text is ancient, but it’s also quite complex, sophisticated, and wise. We can miss this in our busy world, so let's take another look.
Want these videos delivered straight to your inbox? Visit https:...
-
07:32Episode 3
The Great Refusal | Rooted | Episode 3
Episode 3
Have you ever thought about just how much time and effort we invest in making ourselves independent? To be independent of the fluctuations of seasons, we have elaborate systems of agriculture and transport. To be invulnerable to financial pain, we save, we invest, we have credit cards, 401(k)s, s...
-
Cain and His Descendants | Rooted | Episode 4
Episode 4
Cain is a living contradiction. He relies on God for his life, but he also denies this reliance by taking matters into his own hands, most notably taking his own brother’s life. How do we make sense of this situation?
Want these videos delivered straight to your inbox? Visit https://daily.formed...
-
God Favors the Simple | Rooted | Episode 5
Episode 5
After an epic opening about the Nephilim—the mighty men of the earth—Genesis 6 moves right along to wickedness and then to Noah. It’s almost a letdown... where are all the heroic deeds? But Genesis makes a powerful point: God’s favor takes no notice of the mighty and instead rests on Noah.
Want ...
-
07:15Episode 6
Babel | Rooted | Episode 6
Episode 6
Do you remember hearing the story of Babel as a child and being impressed by the magnificent tower? But then God punishes the people! Is God being petty or fickle here? What's going on?
Want these videos delivered straight to your inbox? Visit https://daily.formed.org/advent to sign up!
Did you...
-
07:18Episode 7
Radical Faith | Rooted | Episode 7
Episode 7
So far in Genesis, we've seen a recurring cycle of goodness, sin, and God’s merciful intervention. Creation, fall, promise of redemption. Family life, fratricide, promise of protection. Descendants, flood, promise of the covenant. After Babel, God makes yet another merciful move to lead us back t...
-
07:41Episode 8
Father and Son | Rooted | Episode 8
Episode 8
We’ve already seen Abram’s faith at work when he left his home and family. In Genesis 22, we see the pinnacle of his faith, which has deepened over years of trusting in the Lord and learning from him. We also see the limits of faith and why it must also be accompanied by hope and love.
Want thes...
-
07:51Episode 9
Wrestling with God | Rooted | Episode 9
Episode 9
Even in the womb, Jacob is a wrestler. Back in Genesis 25, Rebekah is pregnant with twins: “The children struggled together within her” (Gen 25:22). And then at birth, Esau is born first, but Jacob is born holding his heel—in other words, in the middle of some neonatal jujitsu. But it doesn’t sto...
-
08:05Episode 10
The Work of Mercy | Rooted | Episode 10
Episode 10
Are you familiar with the musical "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat" by Andrew Lloyd Weber? Sure, it isn’t always biblically accurate (nor the most theologically profound!), but the music is creative, fun, and varied. Let's talk about Joseph the Dreamer.
Want these videos delivered s...
-
08:45Episode 11
A Great Invitation | Rooted | Episode 11
Episode 11
Moses is one of the greatest figures of the Old Testament: an unstoppable freedom fighter, a powerful intercessor, a prophet like no other, a great patriarch, and a friend of God. It’s an impressive resumé. But Moses didn’t start off this way. He grows up in Egypt, raised in Pharaoh’s household, ...
-
06:55Episode 12
The Shape of Love | Rooted | Episode 12
Episode 12
We can think of the Exodus as God’s definitive saving act in the Old Testament. But one of the main goals is not just to lead the people OUT of Egypt but also to lead them INTO a covenant with God and INTO the Promised Land.
Want these videos delivered straight to your inbox? Visit https://daily...
-
08:32Episode 13
Obstacles Within | Rooted | Episode 13
Episode 13
God didn’t guide his chosen people on a straight shot from Pharaoh’s land to the Promised Land. They ended up wandering for years in the wilderness. Why? Not because God wasn’t a good navigator. Instead, the journey was less a matter of navigation and more about purification. But, ultimately, God...
-
09:49Episode 14
Awaiting a King | Rooted | Episode 14
Episode 14
Do you remember Samson? Perhaps you, too, have a childhood image in mind. Imagine Samson standing blind between two pillars, muscular arms outstretched, grasping the pillars with his huge hands and shaking them as the structure comes thundering down around him. Amazing! Let's talk about this guy....
-
Ordinary and Extraordinary | Rooted | Episode 15
Episode 15
Because the book of Ruth is so short, it allows the author to do some remarkable things with the structure, story, dialogue, and characters. It’s so focused that it has a kind of rich, theological density to it. If Genesis is like the best soup you’ve ever had, the book of Ruth is like the best s...
-
07:45Episode 16
David’s Temple | Rooted | Episode 16
Episode 16
Only one person in the Bible is described as a man after God’s own heart: King David. It’s a pretty amazing description. Wouldn’t you like to be described that way?
Want these videos delivered straight to your inbox? Visit https://daily.formed.org/advent to sign up!
Did you miss a day? Not a pr...
-
08:20Episode 17
A Call to Conversion | Rooted | Episode 17
Episode 17
Psalm 51 echoes throughout the Church's daily prayer in the Liturgy of the Hours. Why? Because conversion is not just a singular moment or a response to a major fall. It’s a continuous, essential aspect of the Christian life. Scott Hefelfinger invites you to explore the journey of conversion thro...
-
08:33Episode 18
An Undivided Heart | Rooted | Episode 18
Episode 18
“Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Jesus offers us this profound truth in the Sermon on the Mount. Those things we think of as precious, those things we desire—these reveal what we love. How would you respond if God asked, “What would you have me give you?”
Want these video...
-
08:28Episode 19
Learning by Listening | Rooted | Episode 19
Episode 19
Elijah’s story offers us a powerful lesson in how to seek God's will: by listening. But God doesn’t speak to Elijah in the way we might expect. Instead, His voice comes in a gentle whisper, requiring Elijah to listen carefully. We, too, are called to follow Elijah’s example—quieting our hearts to...
-
08:18Episode 20
The Jesse Stump | Rooted | Episode 20
Episode 20
We've finally arrived at the main biblical text from which we get the idea of the Jesse Tree: from the stump of Jesse, a shoot comes forth—and from his roots, a branch... a tree sprouting up from Jesse!
Want these videos delivered straight to your inbox? Visit https://daily.formed.org/advent to ...
-
07:35Episode 21
Written on the Heart | Rooted | Episode 21
Episode 21
Ever since Adam and Eve gave in to the serpent's temptation, division abounds: between the body and soul, humans and God, man and woman, and humans and the earth. The consequences of that first sin reveal to us the depth and reach of this division. But that's not the end of the story.
Want these...
-
08:14Episode 22
How to Be a Sheep | Rooted | Episode 22
Episode 22
Depictions of Christ the Good Shepherd combine two beautiful biblical images: John 10 and Luke 15. Reflect on Jesus rejoicing—the lost sheep found and laid across his shoulders—and how the sheep almost melts into him. The sheep must rely so completely on Jesus’ strength that it becomes one with h...
-
08:52Episode 23
A Covenant of Love | Rooted | Episode 23
Episode 23
In the Book of Hosea, God speaks of establishing a new covenant—one that will be written on the heart, much like the covenant described in Jeremiah. But here, the imagery is not legal; it’s nuptial. God’s relationship with His people is described in the tender, intimate terms of marriage. This be...
-
08:39Episode 24
Hidden with Christ | Rooted | Episode 24
Episode 24
When it begins its teaching on Mary, the Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “What the Catholic faith believes about Mary is based on what it believes about Christ, and what it teaches about Mary illumines in turn its faith in Christ.” That’s paragraph 487, where the Catechism begins to unpa...