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The beatitudes explained
Christs first notable discourse is what is referred to as the Sermon on the Mount (he had a similar sermon on the plain, which is narrated in Luke). All of Jesus teachings are well captured in this sermon and to understand it is to truly understand what the Lord wishes for us.
Within the Sermon, the teachings of Jesus tackles what we call the “beatitudes”. We get the word beatitude from the Latin word for blessings, “beatitudo”. The word blessed, means to receive favor from God. It thus follows that if you desire Gods favor, then one must inculcate and live the beatitudes. The blessings come to those who demonstrate the proper heart attitude and related actions.
The blessings are a mixed bag of what can be enjoyed now and in the future.
a) Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of God
To be poor in spirit relates to being reliant of God, rather than on self (poor in the spirit of self-reliance). This tends to be the case especially among the poor, who simply do not have the earthly wherewithal to address the problems they face. They turn to God for everything. A rich man on the other hand, may feel that he has the Earth in the palm of his hand, and there is really nothing that is beyond his ability to resolve.
So how are we to approach this beatitude practically? As a rule of thumb we should take everything to God in prayer, even if we think that it is something we can easily resolve. Essentially forestall every decision with prayer. The more our world view moves towards a Christian world view, what may initially appear to be the obvious solution may turn out to be the very thing we want to avoid. The more we rely on God and wait for his guidance the more you become better acquainted with the wider dimensions of the issue or problem being tackled. With practice, you learn to place God first, and slowly start to see as God sees.
Mironov- Christ and the young ruler, Mark 10:17-27
b) Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted
Mourning is in regards to reflecting on what is holy and thus right, compared to our present reality of injustice and sin. If you have lamented at the state of the earth, one that lacks compassion, is driven by greed, cares not for the poor and so on, then you have mourned. You have mourned at the depravity of your fellow man. You have mourned for your own sins. You mourn at the sin that abounds in you, failing to be perfect as the Christ desires for us.
It is impossible for us to achieve perfection; our mortal nature means that we are always dogged by sin and worldliness, however our perfection is attained in our continual struggle to live as Christ taught. Keep at it. Our Lord will reward you for it. As we mature in the Christian walk and our conscience is developed or formed along the lines of a Christian world view, we may look on at the past in horror at the things we have done; we will also look in horror at the goings on around us; He promises us that we will be comforted.
c) Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth
First of all let us define what it means to be meek. It’s to be quiet, gentle and submissive. Other synonyms are patient, long suffering, forbearing, resigned and so on. The adjectives that define meekness, are in relation to waiting on our maker and not exercising undue power over others. It does not mean that one is weak, but rather, even if we see, we choose to be gentle and wait upon the Lord for direction.
So if I can put it in my own words, to be meek is to be a “sucker” as far as the world is concerned. You can see through others, but you simply rely on justice from the Lord, while being gentle and long suffering. This is well connected to the beatitude on poverty of spirit. Excess in life arises when all decorum, morals, scruples and so on are thrown out of the window; only winning matters regardless of how it is done. Blatant or selfish ambition for example is considered good by today’s world and is the exact opposite of meekness. “I am up here and you are down there”, as a consequence I am better than you. This is the way of the world, and it is pure folly.
I have met many poor people, and I see great nobility in their midst. I have also met many rich people, and all I see is great fools with money. Our Lord sees the heart and not bank accounts. Meekness goes with humility. Humility is an attitude of mind that intentionally aims to lower our sense of self-importance.
So, how do we practically approach humility and meekness? I think it’s best to simply keep the thought in one’s mind constantly. Our Lord was meek, why not me? Our Lord was humble, why not me? Our Lord lived minimally, why not me? Our Lord disdained ambition in favor of servant leadership, why not me?
For those endowed with plenty, the temptation to think themselves better than others always lingers. What we must never forget is that we all belong to the race of human beings, and we have all arrived similarly into the world and will leave in a similar fashion. Between the advent of our lives and our eventual demise, is a concoction of fate that accounts for all our differences such as skin colour; language; economics; genetics; intelligence and so on. It is only a fool who advances the notion that because I am cleverer than person X, I am therefore better.
The Sermon on the Mount suggests that we take on the responsibility of taking care of our neighbor because of the benefits we have been endowed with from on high, be it wealth, social advantages, genetic ones and so on. Let your strength be your meekness and not the advantage that sets you apart. It is said that to whom much has been given, much will be expected, but I also add, that to him whom much has been given, much will be judged at the end of time.
The greatest men and women on earth (who follow these principles) , while not necessarily Christians, have tended to adopt meekness as part of their characters. By simply placing themselves beneath everyone else, they would naturally have everyone’s ear. Examples include Mahatma Gandhi, Nelson Mandela, and Mother Teresa. Not only were they great, but also exceptionally intelligent and saw the need to use their gifts for noble human wide aims in line with the teachings of Jesus.
d) Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled
We live in a world that claims to seek justice for all, but we see injustice abounding everywhere. Our Lords teachings naturally forms a sense of justice and fairness in one, simply by being cognizant of our neighbor’s needs, we achieve Righteousness for others and for ourselves. Connected to the beatitude on mourning, is the despair that comes from seeing injustice being carried out everywhere with little that we can do. We should however not despair, but try to introduce righteousness in our everyday lives, even in a small way. As more of us act and behave with righteousness and justice in mind, the more that fairness and righteousness will be achieved in our societies.
If you doubt the power of small acts of justice and righteousness to achieve lasting change, think of slavery, civil rights for minorities, human rights courts for genocide, the black lives matters movement, lawyers that provide their services pro bono on matters of principle and human rights, and so on; all these started in small ways and ballooned into the acceptable way.
Small things eventually leads to societal change, as the conscience of society question’s unfair and unjust acts. The power of the Holy Spirit is evident as she rouses the consciences of individuals towards a Christian world view, respecting of all human beings, created in the image and likeness of God.
e) Blessed are the merciful for they shall obtain mercy
If I was to choose an adjective that describes our Lord it would be merciful. He kept saying over and over again, that he came for mercy and not sacrifice. This means that he did not come to condemn but rather to rescue. The Jews being religious people, followed a code that was to be followed arduously; sin was something to be snuffed out especially of a more grievous nature.
Birth of Christ, Luke 2:1-20
I particularly like the story of the adulterous woman (John 8:1-11). This woman, according to the law should have been stoned; there was nothing else for it, the law being very clear. The Pharisees were in constant debate with the teachings of Jesus and they used the occasion to test Him (with the hope of embarrassing Him, should he fail to give the precise determination). He demonstrated his knowledge of the law by fully agreeing with them that she should be stoned, however he also demonstrated great mercy through the caveat that the first to cast a stone should be without sin! Our Lord refined the law by adhering to its spirit, rather than its literal meaning.
On the parable of the unmerciful servant (Matt 18:21-35), also demonstrates the principle of mercy well. God forgives us when we confess and pray for forgiveness. If we are unable to “pay it forward”, regardless of the gravity of the trespass against us, how can we continue to expect mercy from Him? Let us learn to be merciful and forgiving, no matter how stupid we may look in the eyes of the world. What matters is how God sees our hearts, and not how the world looks at us.
f) Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God
This is a truly childlike quality, to have innocence untouched by the motives of men. I don’t know if it’s possible to achieve except possibly for the Saint like. The practical thinking for this is simply having no ulterior motives in our relationships with neighbor or the world in general. No double speak, no hidden agendas, just being forthright and clear. Sin resides in the heart. Our Lord said that it is what is in us, what we utter and think from the heart that leads to sin. A pure heart does not allow sin or the thought of it to linger. This is an arduous task indeed.
g) Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the sons of God
War and violence are always the easier alternative since they immediately help us to assert our dominance, pride and ego over others. To aim for peace is ordinarily to be seen as weak. The practical teaching is to aim for peace at all times, even if we are clearly the stronger party. This is not natural to us, but the beatitude requires that we rise above our natural inclinations and seek unanimity wherever and whenever we can. This applies at the level of the individual, family, nation or nations.
There is a bible parable that says that in the home, one should never be a lion. Children are powerless, and the power of participating in decisions in the home, is a part of their training in meekness and humility for adulthood. We are advised to be meek and humble, even as the heads of our homes. Surely, does this not extend to the level of nations as well?
h) Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven
What is righteousness? It is living according to the teachings of Jesus. It is a daily attempt to follow the Christian walk of difficulty, which is always in tension with the world and the mammon world view. We must all eat, drink, clothe and the like; this is however not our ultimate goal while here on earth. Our ultimate goal is ascending to a Christian world view, and eventually residing with Him in the afterlife. The priorities of a disciple are first to honor our maker, then to love and honor our neighbor, and in so doing naturally achieving the third priority, to keep a place in the marathon for our place with the Lord at the end of our lives.
The teachings of Jesus demand justice for all human beings regardless of creed, color, economic status, genetic make-up and the rest of it. We demand the protection of the innocent and the eradication of all forms of enslavement to the world (whether to the material mammon or spiritual powers). We demand the reverencing of every human being in principle, being created in the image and likeness of God. There will always be tension between the followers of Christ and the world. This has never changed, and is unlikely to since the two adopt completely different world views.
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This post first appeared on Disciples Of Jesus : Thoughts On A Jesus World View, please read the originial post: here
