Summit, Spirit, Sky: connect to community and creation!
Reciprocity is once more at the heart of this blessing. We are the people who have witnessed and responded to others’ pain, hurt, and suffering. In turn, we are the ones who need — and hopefully receive — compassion and kindness. It’s easier to be on the giving end of this blessing, than on the […]
Now the Beatitudes take a turn. Who are the merciful? They would seem to have some power. Some agency. Some choice. What is mercy anyway? John Stott says, ‘Mercy is compassion for people in need.’ Another scholar substituted the word kind in lieu of merciful. The Message’s contemporary wording of the Gospel reframes this Beatitude […]
As he talked to the people of his time, Jesus used imagery that helped them identify with the conditions of humanity: those who would receive the blessing. Hunger. Thirst. The same metaphors translate well for modern folks. We understand such deep and essential needs. Authors of the Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Biblical commentaries write about this Beatitude by […]
Righteousness is certainly a Biblical word! As we wondered a few days ago, what does it mean? In contemporary times, it has a negative connotation. It comes across as someone who is high-and-mighty, better-than-others, judgmental with lots of critiques of others and no self-awareness. Try this phrase: being in a healthy, ethical, justice-oriented, sustainable relationship. […]
Tue, Mar 9: THIRSTY When Matthew addresses hunger and thirst, we can consider them as intertwined appetites of body, mind, and spirit. Our thirst begins deep inside, born among the gaps and absences, hurts and shortcomings. Something is missing. We feel empty — or perhaps incomplete — and long to be filled. Spiritually, we’re thirsting […]
