On The Blessed

The poor in spirit, mourners, meek, hungry, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, the persecuted. These are the blessed. (Matthew 5:2-11)

From one vantage point, these reflect societal classes or segments of the population. From another viewpoint, this listing reflects attributes of a rooted and fruitful faith.

From the societal perspective, when we revile, mock, ignore, or reject one of these groups of people then we are cursing the blessed. In so doing, we distance ourselves from both God and our own true humanity.

From a faith perspective, if we do not see ourselves in any of these categories, we must ask ourselves if we are indeed counted among the blessed. We most likely will discover that we are suppressing our true humanity and limiting our ability to commune with God.

Considering both angles, it is important to fully hear and digest what is counted as blessed and what gets left out. Those that are marginalized, in crisis, seeking community, cast aside, and self-aware of their humanity are the blessed. Those that are vain, proud, stubborn, mean-spirited, violent, and demeaning towards others are not the blessed.

Socially, we should desire to be associated and counted among the blessed; and faithfully, we should pray and strive to take on attributes of the blessed.