4th Sunday in Ordinary Time
My dear parishioners,
God is Good!!! All the time!!! And all the time!!! God is Good!!!
Like so many of God’s agents in the Bible, Zephaniah had to confront the proud and the complacent of his day, a few generations before the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC. To motivate his resistant audience, Zephaniah warned them of an approaching day of the Lord. If nothing else would make them change their sinful ways, God was prepared to bring judgment down upon them. In this reading, however, the prophet shifts his focus to a bright future in store for the people.
Gospel Pericope. Matthew begins his famous Sermon on the Mount with a series of Eight Beatitudes. Jesus is depicted as a type of Moses who ascends a mountain, assumes the authoritative position of sitting, and proclaims the fulfillment of the Torah. While this sermon can be overheard by the crowds, it is specifically aimed at the disciples.
What are beatitudes?A beatitude, as a literary form, is found frequently in the Old Testament wisdom literature and the Psalms. The Greek word for beatitude is “makarios” and it can be translated as “blessed,” “happy,” or “fortunate.” It describes a very positive situation for a person wherein the significant aspects of one’s life have come together producing joy and wellbeing. In a religious context this usually indicates a positive relationship with God.
Beatitudes and diminishment. One of the odd things about Jesus’ beatitudes is that they are used to describe mostly states of diminishment. People are declared blessed, happy, or fortunate who are poor in spirit, mourning, powerless, and hungering and thirsting for righteousness. How can that be? A careful reading will show that the reason for the state of diminishment is not terminal. In fact, these states of diminishment will ultimately be turned into their opposites. It is precisely because of this ultimate transformation that the person currently suffering is declared “blessed.”
The foundational beatitude.Of all the beatitudes listed here, the first one is the most important. It does not limit poverty to only its material aspects. To be poor in spirit is to have the courage and honesty to admit one’s own limitations and dependence on God. Those who are poor in spirit do not believe that personal human achievement is a series of unlimited possibilities. Those who are poor in spirit know that they are part of a greater whole with responsibilities to care for and nourish others. This is the understanding and commitment that leads to the kingdom of heaven. Those who embrace this first beatitude will in turn be able to prosper from those that follow. These beatitudes form the foundation upon which the rest of the Sermon on the Mount is built
Excerpts from “Sunday Homily Helps”, is used by permission of Franciscan Media. www.FranciscanMedia.org. All rights reserved
Sincerely in Christ,
Fr. Aloysius