Understanding the Beatitudes

The Beatitudes are a central part of Jesus' message but have have always been a bit mysterious to me. For some reason, I just can't visualize what they mean as well as I'd like. A while back I did some reading on and meditating on them during a holy hour and attempted to define what each one was asking of me. These questions are likely lacking and incomplete but putting them down helped me ponder and better understand Jesus' words...

The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12):

3 " Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Am I detached from things of this world. Do I recognize my need for his mercy?

4 "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted."

Do I morn for my sins and for injustices?

5 "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth."

Do I restrain my anger and discouragement when things don't go well?

6 "Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied."

Do I make the Lord's will my will and seek his kingdom and righteousness in my actions?

7 "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy."

Am I patient and understanding in bearing other's faults and charitable and generous as much as I can be?

8 "Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God."

Do I possess integrity at my core or do I have evil or lustful thoughts?

9 "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God."

Do I sow peace in the world ultimately by sharing the gospel so others can be reconciled with God and experience his peace?

10 "Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Does my commitment to the gospel of Christ make me a target of the world?

 

I am the rich young man - thoughts from my a recent holy hour

I try to be a good person but know I am so far from perfect and so I sit here and ask my Lord what is keeping me from being a saint. Jesus looks at me, loves me and says, "Matthew, you lack one important thing. You must give every last part of you to your family, your neighbors and all those I place in your life who need to be loved. Then let go of every worry, every ambition, every prideful thought and instead follow me in every breath you take."

Like the rich man Jesus spoke to in Mark 10:17-22, there are so many things that I possess that I don't want to let go of. In fact salvation seems to be a ludicrously impossible notion. But for God, all things are possible... even me. He will lift and carry me when I fall and give me the grace I need to grow. Like a fire that purifies imperfections, my God can turn my ugliness into something beautiful. 

These were some thoughts from a recent Holy Hour I made on Feb 27. A verse from the days readings (Mark 10:21) especially stood out to me which reads “Jesus, looking at him, loved him and said to him…” There is a lot in that short statement. First Jesus looked at the young man. He gave him his time and saw where he was at. Then it makes a point to say He “loved him.”  He didn’t just say "I am God and here’s the deal." He loved the man first and foremost. It was only after loving him and through His loving him that Jesus tells the rich young man what he must do to be perfect. This is a reminder to me first that Jesus does see me and loves me as I am which is a beautiful thing. And going beyond that it’s also a blueprint of how I need to be present to others. If I’m going to be a follower of Christ, I need to look closely at the people around me and love them like Jesus does or my words little.

He comes - thoughts from my holy hour last night

I sometimes think that I am the one coming to you here in adoration but in reality you come to me. You are always coming to me. You never are content to just wait for my heart to find you but instead you seek me out. I approach you like the centurion did when you came to his town of Capernaum when his servant was sick. Even at this point you tell him, "I will COME and cure him." Oh Lord I am not worthy to have you come to me the way you do. To care for me and love me the way you do. To come and dwell within me the way you do. Say the word and make me clean. I am not worthy that you should come to me. I should be the one coming to you. I should be the one giving my entire life and love to you. Still you come to me again and again. You always come closer even though I will never deserve your goodness. And you just ask that I approach you honestly and wholeheartedly in humble faith. Increase my faith Lord. Increase my love. Thank you for never giving up on me. Thank you to coming to me. 

Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary correlation with the Blessed Sacrament

Last night while praying the rosary during my holy hour, it occurred to me that the each of the Joyful Mysteries can be meditated on in light of Blessed Sacrament.  

The first decade of course is the Annunciation which is when the Angel Gabriel came to Mary and Jesus was conceived. It struck me that just as God physically entered into Mary in a very real way and she then carried him inside of her, we also have a similar experience when we receive the Eucharist. God physically takes up residence inside of us and becomes one with us in an extremely intimate way. Similar to Mary, partaking of the Bread of Life makes us living tabernacles and is a mystery we can’t fully understand but that changes our very being.

The second decade is the Visitation in which Mary travels to and spends time with her relative Elizabeth who is also pregnant. The correlation to the Eucharist here is that once we have received our Lord in the Blessed Sacrament, we must be moved to take Him to others and serve each other. Mary could have just stayed put and done her own thing in preparing for Jesus’ birth, but she saw  that her cousin was in need and so she gave up her time and made the long journey to be with her all while dealing with the uncertainties in her own life. A former parish priest I knew growing up, always would talk about how the Eucharist needs to transform us and changes us as we leave the doors of the church so that we can help build up the Kingdom of God in this life.

The third decade is Nativity in which Jesus was born. The Eucharistic connection here is the hidden Messiah. As I knelt in the Adoration Chapel before the Bread of Life, it hit me that it takes eyes of Faith to see past appearance of bread and grasp the reality of who is present in that little white host. This isn’t so different then the faith needed by the shepherds and wise men who came and worshiped the Baby King in the manger. Who could fathom that God would come to earth in a dirty stable and take on the form of a helpless infant born into poverty. Would we have recognized who this child is if we had been present there? And do we recognize Christ present to us today hidden in the Eucharist?

The fourth decade is the Presentation in which Joseph and Mary presented the Baby Jesus in the temple and offed a sacrifice according to the law. The Eucharist Meal we participate in at every Mass is truly a sacrificial meal.  At the beginning of the Liturgy of the Eucharist, the priest says, ”Pray, brethren, that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.” Of course this is referencing the bread and wine that will become the Most Precious Body and Blood of Jesus, but I always think of it as broader then just this. We are offering our very selves…everything we have. At the presentation of our Lord, Joseph and Mary offered two turtle doves as that is all they could afford. Now God takes our seemingly insignificant gift and  transforms it into something amazing. And similar to the old man Simeon who took the Baby Jesus in his arms in the temple and rejoiced, we too should be filled with joy at the reality of receiving our Lord and Savior in our own hands at Communion.

The fifth decade is the Finding of Jesus in the Temple. Here the 12 year old Jesus is found in the temple teaching, by his parents who had lost him. Here the parallel is that when we feel like we’ve lost our way and don’t know where or who this Jesus is, He can still be physically found in every Catholic Church in the world.  Like the doctors who were amazed at the young Jesus’ wisdom in the temple, we too can learn much if we spend time with him and listen to what he is telling us. In the stillness of our heart…in quiet prayer, Jesus still speaks and teaches us today. Mary and Joseph were no doubt filled with anxiety and stress as they searched for their lost son but what a feeling of peace they must have experienced when they found Him. That sure is the way it is with my life too. I go along day after day thinking I’ve got my life in decent order, but as soon as I loose site of where my relationship is with Jesus, my life becomes a chaotic mess. I constantly have to refocus my priorities with Jesus at the middle and whenever I do this, all the other noise doesn’t seem so loud. Being able to spend time one on one with Jesus in the Eucharist is our greatest source of peace. 

Best hour of the week....My time with Jesus

Imagine that your best friend is in town and you have a chance to sit down face to face together and catch up. Imagine that you have an opportunity for a personal audience with a distinguished public dignitary. Imagine you have a chance to travel back in time and chat with one of the greatest and wisest figures in history.  “Too good to be true. Impossible” you say. But nothing is impossible for God. He wants a personal relationship with each of us and what better way for this to happen then by giving us the chance to spend time with Him.

Sure God is everywhere, in our hearts and can be found in those around us. And we can talk to him anytime we want. That’s all good but what’s better, talking on the phone or face to face? There’s no substitute for being physically with those we love. To grieve with them, laugh with them, cry with them and listen to them. One would have to conclude that if you could have that kind of closeness with our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, this would be the most amazing things in the world. Well I’ve got news for you. Jesus is more real then you ever imagined.

I’m talking about one of the best kept secrets of our time: Adoration of the Holy Eucharist. As a Catholic I believe the consecrated host is truly and miraculously Jesus himself and He can be found in every Catholic church around the world. Many churches offer times for adoration during which the sacred host is displayed in a chapel for people to come and sit with Him,. talk with Him and listen to Him.

This year I’ve started making a regular Holly Hour each week with Jesus and that hour is one of the best parts of my week. It’s truly remarkable how quickly the time goes and how at peace I feel when leaving. I feel almost giddy at times that I get to spend that time with my dearest friend. I do some talking and tell Jesus what’s heavy on my heart. I ask Him to bless my family and friends and bring us home to heaven one day. I praise Him and thank Him for all he’s done for me. And I ask him to take away my shortcomings (there are many) and worries and make me beautiful for Him. It just depends how I feel. At times I’ve been very excited about something in my life. And other times I’ve been frustrated and hurt. Either way, Christ listens and gives me peace. And sometime I just listen. I’ll read some scripture readings and reflections as well at times and meditate on prayers such as the rosary or the stations of the cross.

One day I was even angry with God for allowing my young cousin to be killed in a car accident. I know He doesn’t will such things but my beef was that He could have stopped it. As I knelt there asking Jesus “Why?” I heard in my heart, Him ask a question back to me. “Do you Believe?” It’s a question that stung me and challenged me. I say I believe that Jesus is Lord, that God has a plan and that He finds ways to bring beauty out of ugliness. Jesus wasn’t giving me the answers but asking me to put my heart where my actions are and to trust in Him. It’s not the answer I wanted, but it’s the answer I needed and He knew that.

Many times my moments with Jesus aren’t quite so emotional. But it always amazes me how fulfilled and peaceful I feel regardless of if we had a deep conversation or if I had little to say. There are no awkward silences with Jesus. It’s actually a very intimate experience to be face to face with my maker, savior, king and friend.

Now I don’t blame people for being skeptical that it’s really truly Jesus. After all, the Eucharist still looks like a little white wafer of bread. And if Jesus can do anything, why would He choose this simple ordinary and unspectacular way to be present to us? It’s a fair question and ultimately, I can’t scientifically prove it’s Jesus. But His Word and His Church tell me that it is Him and I DO believe.

My faith in this isn’t blind however. And the best testimony I can give is to tell you how being in His presence makes me feel. But could  this just be my own emotional excitement projecting ideas I have? This is another fair question. But I’ll point to a time recently when I went to make a Holy Hour and the Eucharist wasn’t there on display due to an out of the ordinary event after which our priest forgot to place the Host back in the adoration chapel. I stayed for the hour anyway doing scripture reading and prayers like I normally do. I even talked with the Lord in my heart as I know He is always with us. But it wasn’t the same. Something was missing and it was surprisingly obvious to me. Even in the days that followed, I just didn’t feel as warm and close to Jesus as I typically do after a Holy Hour. I guess when you are longing to be spend time with someone, there’s just no substitute for the real thing.

It baffles the mind that spending a quite hour in prayer could make me  feel more centered, at peace and joyful. But that is what happens. The people of Jesus’s time thought it was crazy that God would be present to them in Jesus, born to simple people in a simple town. As Christians we now see that this was God’s plan and what a beautiful thing it is that he He came into our world this way. He’s just as real to us today as He was 2000 years ago so don’t miss out on one of the greatest gifts you could ever receive. Being with Jesus in this special time is a glimpse of Heaven hear on Earth. I’ve gotten a taste of it and boy do I want more.