Newsletter January 29th 2023 (4th Sunday in Ordinary Time)

The Beatitudes, A condensed Gospel

The beatitudes offer a summary of Jesus’ teaching. This gospel is Jesus’ manifesto. It is a manifesto that he promises will bring us near to God.

People who are detached and show gentleness to others, are blessed. Even if they are rich, their money does not make them boastful or proud. Grief is the price we must eventually pay for having loved. If you are determined never to cry at a funeral, don’t ever love anyone. The meek and the gentle are the most resilient of people. Good people deeply respect justice and fair play, and try to win them for others. As you treat others, so you will be treated. If we want to receive mercy and compassion, we must show mercy to others. A pure heart is not devious, deceitful, selfish or cunning. Jesus did not say we should be passive. Rather he urges us to build bridges of peace with others.

Jesus warns those who follow him will be treated as he was. There is a cost in Pentecost, and following him means sharing his cross. Right from the beginning when Simeon saw him in the temple, he said that Jesus would be a sign of contradiction. Everything he said and did was a challenge to this world’s values. Those with power, prestige, and control felt undermined by his message. The religious leaders who were the arbiters of right and wrong, were so threatened by him that they planned his death.

There is a cleansing power in the beatitudes. They are about letting go of things that are not life-giving, and about becoming truly free. They offer guidelines for living, for inner peace and happiness. Spirituality is the work of the Holy Spirit. It is about letting go, so as to be free in God’s sight.