Abbot Michael Brunner

I wouldn’t blame you if you were thinking “Blessed…, what in the world does that really mean?” Especially in the context in which we hear it in the Beatitudes. It may seem to be just one of those religion words. In Greek, the word is makarios, and St Matthew wrote his Gospel in Greek. In Latin it is beatus, and St. Jerome translated the Gospels from Greek into Latin. And in those languages it means Happy, as in the final cause of the human being. But when Jesus spoke on the side of the mountain that day, he spoke in the common language of his people, Aramaic. And the word Jesus used was Toowayhon which means enriched, happy, delighted, blissful. It is a much more direct and powerful word than just blessed or happy, and it would have had a big impact on those listening to him.

The Beatitudes are supposed to have a big impact on us too. But maybe we’ve heard them too many times. The Beatitudes invite us to take a second look at our world and its values and especially our own values and choose instead God’s ways which Jesus announces to us. Our world and society are controlled by those in power, those with high standing and who have all those things people usually call "blessings." But the wisdom Jesus shares with us in the Beatitudes is that God chooses to be on the side of those whose lives don’t have those signs of God’s favor: the weak and forgotten; those who seek justice, and who are persecuted for their beliefs. In other words, in God’s world and society - the kingdom of God - the undervalued, the unimportant, the have-nots, are worth a lot – worth enough that Jesus would give his life for them. But the Beatitudes are not entrance requirements to the kingdom of God; they are not new commandments for how we should act. They are a statement of God’s initiative, blessing those who don’t usually feel blessed; they are promises. They point to where and how God is present and acting in our lives. They are present promises to struggling people that point to the future – a future that is in God’s hands. To be "Blessed" is not simply to be "happy," but to know that we are already included in the new order of things that Jesus has come to announce, that new order described as the Kingdom of God. Those Jesus names as "Blessed" live with confidence now because they know that they are secure in God’s hands. And so we should live with that same confidence… because the Beatitude life is present tense.

The very first one is: Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven - not theirs WILL BE but IS NOW. And what is poor in spirit? It is to be unattached to your Porsche that might be totaled tomorrow, or your mansion that might be struck by lightning and burn down, or your Rolex watch that someone might steal. Or your Ford Focus either, or your two-room shack or your Timex watch. Because if you are poor in spirit you have all you need and if you’re not needing for more stuff, you are rich, and you can focus on what’s important, right now. Happy are you. Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted. Mourn for your sins? Sure. But more importantly mourn with and for those in real distress. Mourn with those Asian families in California whose members were killed during the Lunar New Year. Mourn with the young women and girls in Iran and Afghanistan. Mourn with the homeless crowded into the Armory in Providence that Dr. Perreira helps care for. There’s lots to mourn for in this world, in this country, in this state and if you mourn and do something to help you and those who suffer will find comfort in that. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. Meek has a negative connotation. The better translation is humble. If we look at life or history, the proud and powerful always overextend themselves and collapse. The humble, the workers, the peasants, the weak eventually inherit the land and come out on top. To be humble means to be earthy, to have roots, to be real, to be anchored in truth. To be humble means to be right.

Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. And also: Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Note that last one. Theirs is the kingdom right now. If you really want it - righteousness, justice - like anything, you will work for it and get it. But also: no pain, no gain. You will be opposed. Good things don’t come easy. Heaven doesn’t come easy. Those who endure the opposition and persecution obviously want it so bad, they can taste it now. And more specifically, Jesus says: Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. If you believe in God, if you have faith in Jesus Christ, some people will mock you and insult you. Jesus is the Way to happiness, to eternal life, and he is the highest truth about the human being. So if you are standing up for that truth, all truth coming from God, and you encounter opposition and suffer for that, you know it is well worth it. Related to these is: Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. These Beatitudes inspired Mohandas Gandhi in India, and he achieved independence for his nation by non-violent peaceful means. Gandhi even renamed the outcastes in India Harijans, children of God. Likewise, Martin Luther King Jr. was inspired by the Beatitudes, and he also nonviolently won civil rights for African Americans. But both of them were opposed and killed. Yet they both won. They pursued and achieved a peaceful resolution with their opponents. The truth prevailed.

Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. That’s easy to understand. What you give others, you will get. What you do to others will be done to you. If you give and offer mercy to others, if you forgive those who hurt you, God will be merciful and forgive you too. Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God. This one can be hard to grasp at first. At one level it means innocent, but fundamentally it means: happy are those whose heart is set on one thing. Happy are the single minded, those focused on loving and living in harmony with God’s plan for humanity. And God’s plan for us is happiness. Or if you want to think of it another way, if you are driving your car, your body, through the muddy roads of this world, and this world is full of muddy roads, and the mud is splashed up on your windshield, you won’t see where you’re going, will drive off the road and fail to reach your destination…God. But if your windshield is kept clean, you will see.

While we might think to focus on one or two favorite Beatitudes, we need to see them as part of the whole; not as individual teachings. Jesus himself embodies the Beatitudes. By his words and actions, he turned the standards of our world upside down. In his teachings he is passing on the Wisdom that is his Spirit to us. By that Spirit we become his followers and can learn from him and follow his way of life. We should not ever be discouraged, for Paul reminds us, God chose the foolish and the weak (1 Cor 1:27) To put those who think themselves strong and smart in their place. The Beatitudes are a message of confidence and hope for all who suffer, who have no hope and nothing to expect in their lives…and to those of us who are just depressed and down. Sometimes you hear someone who has had terrible disappointments say, “It is, what it is." But the Beatitudes stand up against such resignation. If we really listen in the Beatitudes, to Jesus’ announcement that God is doing something new, right now then we know, "It isn’t what it is – but… it is what will be."

Blessed - happy - are those who are listening. I hope that includes you.
 

Abbot Michael Brunner, O.S.B., offered this homily to the School community on January 29, 2023, the Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time.