Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Reading just one chapter from Matthew is packed with so much. The beatitudes, salt and light, and several “you have heard it said”. It was a brief reading, but took a while to get through because each little section has so much to think about.
After making the way through the Hebrew Scriptures, I’m struck by the beatitudes. Nearly each group that is called out as blessed, seems like an affront to the thinking I’ve just finished reading. The poor in spirit, those who mourn, the merciful, the peacemakers, those who are persecuted. I can’t cite chapter or verse, but I have the impression that the previous covenant focused on getting or having a healthy sprit, being happy, being stern, being victors, persecuting those who oppose you or God.
To be clear, I’ve always appreciated the Beatitudes as a nice summary of good, admirable, but not easy traits. And after reading Hebrew Scriptures, I’m struck by the contrast from Hebrew Scriptures they portray to what God seeks of me. I’m reminded of a conversation I was having with a female progressive rabbi friend. We were talking politicians whose policies we both found atrocious. I said something about forgiving the enemy. She responded that this was not her tradition’s belief. Christians introduced the whole ‘forgiveness’ thing. I was actually dumbstruck. She’s a lovely, caring person, who just has a different understanding of what God calls her to do and be.
I am not sure what to do with this impression. I don’t want to paint God of the Hebrew Scriptures as judgmental, or unforgiving. Clearly, there are numerous incidents of mercy and forgiveness. And I think the Beatitudes lays out clearly what Jesus is asking of us. And compared to the messages taught and known by Matthew’s fellow religious leaders and scribes, the Beatitudes may have been foundation-rocking.
This morning, I’m thinking about how different familiar passages sound to my ears, after having read my way through the Hebrew Scriptures. As a 21st Century Christian from the dominant culture, in a wealthy nation, I did not have the historical knowledge, cultural context or the family stories that would make Jesus’ messages so scandalous.
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