Summit, Spirit, Sky: connect to community and creation!
Matthew uses the Greek word basileía. It contains such a big idea. What is heaven? Is it above us, up in the sky or cosmos? Is it lodged within our minds and hearts? Is it a place or a state of being? We can sum up cultural ideas of heaven as a location or realm […]
In these Beatitudes, the kingdom is a place of belonging. In this sense, it becomes an expansive community. Perhaps it will manifest here on earth as well as in heaven. As Christ tells us, the blessed become part of the kingdom. They have citizenship within it. Or if one thinks of kingdom as family, the […]
Ironically, this English word is translated as a possessive noun: theirs. We read ‘theirs is the kingdom’ as if the recipients, now blessed, have been handed a reward. It sounds like the prize or treasure has been given to them. They own it, keep it, possess it. In fact, Greek translators of the Gospel of […]
‘Spirit’ refers to more than feelings, thoughts, or emotions. It belongs in the realm of faith. It may be experienced as the capacity to hope and endure. It may be expressed as a sense of connection to God and heaven (or your own language for holy Love). It has an existential element, yet its implications […]
‘Poor’ in this Beatitude is an alternate form of poverty. In the Gospel of Luke, Christ’s blessing names the economic poor. In Matthew, Christ’s blessing is extended to the ‘poor in spirit’ and has a spiritual, faith-based element to it. Let us be clear, this Beatitude shouldn’t be used to romanticize or valorize poverty. Or […]
