The beatitudes is a passage of the gospel that has been widely commented throughout the
history of Christianity. From St. Jerome to Karl Rahner many authors have left
us their ideas in writing so we can go to them and better understand what Jesus
wanted to convey to those who listened to him. Recently Pope Francis in his
apostolic exhortation Gaudete et Exultate also made a profound and beautiful
comment on these words of Jesus; personally, they seem very illuminating to me,
so I want to leave them here so we can meditate on them this week.
Following is the introduction that our Holy Father Pope Francis makes to
the passage of the Beatitudes, and below is a link that leads to the site where the full text
can be read.
...
«There
can be any number of theories about what constitutes holiness, with various explanations
and distinctions. Such reflection may be useful, but nothing is more
enlightening than turning to Jesus’ words and seeing his way of teaching the
truth. Jesus explained with great simplicity what it means to be holy when he
gave us the Beatitudes[1].
The Beatitudes are like a Christian’s identity card. So if anyone asks: “What
must one do to be a good Christian?”, the answer is clear. We have to do, each
in our own way, what Jesus told us in the Sermon on the Mount[2].
In the Beatitudes, we find a portrait of the Master, which we are called to
reflect in our daily lives. The word “happy” or “blessed” thus becomes a
synonym for “holy”. It expresses the fact that those faithful to God and his
word, by their self-giving, gain true happiness. Although Jesus’ words may
strike us as poetic, they clearly run counter to the way things are usually done
in our world. Even if we find Jesus’ message attractive, the world pushes us
towards another way of living. The Beatitudes are in no way trite or
undemanding, quite the opposite. We can only practise them if the Holy Spirit
fills us with his power and frees us from our weakness, our selfishness, our
complacency and our pride. Let us listen once more to Jesus, with all the love
and respect that the Master deserves. Let us allow his words to unsettle us, to
challenge us and to demand a real change in the way we live. Otherwise,
holiness will remain no more than an empty word»
[1] Cfr. Mt 5:3-12; Lk 6:20-23
[2] Cfr. Homily at Mass in Casa
Santa Marta, 9 June 2014: L’Osservatore Romano, 10 June 2014,
p.
8.
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