The Beatitudes

     Today I sent in my craft submission to RTJ's Creative Catechist for the Feb/March issue. The liturgical season of Lent is one of the topics for this issue, and I wrote how we can use the beatitudes from Jesus' Sermon on the Mount to help us examine our consciences for the changes we need to make as true followers of Christ. Due to word count limitations, I was unable to do more than simply list the beatitudes. Here is an abbreviation of what they mean and how Jesus modeled them for us during his life on earth:

1. "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."  To be poor in spirit refers to our spiritual weakness before God; we respond to this weakness by focusing our priorities on God and his will for us, not on material possessions or other things of this world such as power and pleasure.
 At the agony in the garden, Jesus demonstrated his reliance on God when he said, "Father, if you are willing, take this cup away from me; still, not my will but yours be done." (Luke 22:42)
 
2. "Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted."  Despite our sinfulness, we can find comfort and strength in the Lord when we repent and ask for forgiveness.
In Matt 23:37-39, Jesus grieves for the people of Jerusalem, who sin by failing to recognize him as the Messiah: "Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how many times I yearned to gather your children together... but you were unwilling!"

3. "Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land."  To be meek means being humble and 

submitting ourselves to the will of God; this is the opposite of being self-centered, pushy, and controlling of others.

Jesus resisted being tempted in the desert, saying,"The Lord, your God, shall you worship and him alone shall you serve." (Matt 4:1-4) 

4. "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied."  We respond to injustice by taking care of our neighbors and grow in truth and holiness seeking to carry out God's will.

When Jesus passed by a blind man, he said, "We have to do the works of the one who sent me while it is day..." Then he smeared clay on the blind man's eyes and restored his vision. (John 9:4-7)

                                                                                                                              

5. "Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy." We are merciful when we forgive others, including our enemies, without holding grudges.
At his crucifixion, Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, they know not what they do." (Luke 23:34)

6. "Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God." We are clean of heart when we respect others and ourselves and remain close to God.
Jesus drove out the buyers and sellers in the cleansing of the temple, telling them, "...My house shall be a house of prayer, but you are making it a den of thieves." (Matt. 21:12)

6   7. "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God." We work for peace by settling conflict, ending violence, and sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with others.

      At the betrayal of Jesus, one of his disciples cut off the ear of the high priest's servant. Jesus said, "Stop, no more of this!" then he touched the servant's ear and healed him. (Luke 22:40-51)

     

      8. "Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."  We stand up for what is right in Jesus Christ, even though it may be unpopular and causes us pain and suffering and possibly death.  

      Jesus Christ, the Son of God, suffers and dies for us. (Matt. 27--28)

8

The Kings of the Promised Land

     The lesson for last Sunday's religious education class included a study of the southern kingdom of Judah under the reign of King David's descendants. I told my students that from 922 BC to 721 BC, the northern kingdom of Israel had been ruled by 19 kings before falling to the Assyrians, and from 922 BC to 587 BC, the southern kingdom of Judah had been ruled by 20 kings before the Babylonians gained control.
      One of my students wanted to know why the kingdom of Judah had outlasted the kingdom of Israel by over a hundred years, with only one more king.
        My immediate response was that perhaps one king had ruled for a hundred years. Some people from the Old Testament lived to be hundreds of years old, and it wasn't unheard of to be 800 years old. The textbook listed the names of the kings and the years they ruled. I suggested that the student look over the list.
      After class, I examined the list myself and compared it to the textbook's list of kings from Israel. What I discovered is that five kings from Israel ruled not more than a year, seven more ruled between five and eleven years, six between 15 and 27 years, and King Jeroboam ruled the longest at 40 years. 
         In contrast, several kings of Judah reigned for longer periods of time. Four kings ruled not more than a year, seven kings ruled between two and eleven years, six between 17 and 37 years, and three between 40 and 45. 
         Students ask the most interesting questions... The same student asked about the origin of the Latin language when the lesson turned to a discussion of the four epiphanies of Christ. I stated that "epiphany" is derived from the Latin word, "epiphania", and the first epiphany occurred on Christmas Day, or the Nativity of the Lord. But this is a topic for another day!