Sermon preached Sunday February 11, 2007.
Year C; Sixth Sunday After Epiphany;
Psalm 1; Jeremiah 17:5-10; 1 Corinthians 15:12-20; Luke 6:17-26
Our Gospel reading this morning is the beginning of what is commonly known as the Sermon on the Plain. It begins with the Beatitudes as they are reported by Saint Luke:
Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you that hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.
Blessed are you that weep now, for you shall laugh.
Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, on account of the Son of man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.
I think that most people are more familiar with Saint Matthew’s Beatitudes which are decidedly more spiritual. Compare Matthew’s “Blessed are the poor in spirit” to Luke’s “Blessed are the poor.” Or Matthew’s “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” to Luke’s “Blessed are you that hunger now.”
Christians have often viewed the Saint Luke’s down to earth Beatitudes as a starting point on how to live as believers. Some Christians have taken them literally. Christians, such as Saint Francis, have tried to live as the Blessed Poor by renouncing all worldly goods and putting their wellbeing completely in God’s hands. Christians have tried to live as the “Blessed Hungry” by fasting on certain days of the year – satisfying themselves not with food, but through prayer and reflection. Christians, such as Saint Ambrose and Saint Augustine, have tried to be “Blessed Mourners” who weep over their sins and transgressions. Christians, such as Saint Ignatius of Antioch and other martyrs of the early church, have tried to live and die as the “Blessed Persecuted” by joyfully undergoing persecutions and martyrdom for the sake of Jesus.
There is a venerable tradition of Saints living out the Beatitudes literally, but I’m not so sure that everyone is called to live run naked through the streets like Saint Francis, confess our sins as publicly as Augustine did, or seek out persecutions as some in the early church did.
If we take Jesus’ great command to love one another as he loved us as our starting point, I think the Beatitudes from Saint Luke can spur us to try to spread the blessings that God has given us to others. One week ago a friend of mine who had been sick for many years died. Her husband who is also a friend of mine is mourning her loss. What can I do to comfort him? Reach out to him and let him know he and his wife are in my thoughts and prayers. In this week’s Angelus Father Beddingfield wrote about the overwhelming hunger and poverty he encountered on his Mission trip to Honduras. What can I do to help those hungry and poor? I can take one of many opportunities and put more in the collection plate on Maundy Thursday when all money from the collection is given to Honduras.
Jesus says: “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a vessel, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, that those who enter may see the light.” I believe we are called to shine the light of Christ on others and spread the blessings that God has given us to others,. What blessings has God given us? In what ways can we share those blessings with others?
Blessed are you poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
Blessed are you that hunger now, for you shall be satisfied.
Blessed are you that weep now, for you shall laugh.
Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, on account of the Son of man! Rejoice in that day, and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets.
I think that most people are more familiar with Saint Matthew’s Beatitudes which are decidedly more spiritual. Compare Matthew’s “Blessed are the poor in spirit” to Luke’s “Blessed are the poor.” Or Matthew’s “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness” to Luke’s “Blessed are you that hunger now.”
Christians have often viewed the Saint Luke’s down to earth Beatitudes as a starting point on how to live as believers. Some Christians have taken them literally. Christians, such as Saint Francis, have tried to live as the Blessed Poor by renouncing all worldly goods and putting their wellbeing completely in God’s hands. Christians have tried to live as the “Blessed Hungry” by fasting on certain days of the year – satisfying themselves not with food, but through prayer and reflection. Christians, such as Saint Ambrose and Saint Augustine, have tried to be “Blessed Mourners” who weep over their sins and transgressions. Christians, such as Saint Ignatius of Antioch and other martyrs of the early church, have tried to live and die as the “Blessed Persecuted” by joyfully undergoing persecutions and martyrdom for the sake of Jesus.
There is a venerable tradition of Saints living out the Beatitudes literally, but I’m not so sure that everyone is called to live run naked through the streets like Saint Francis, confess our sins as publicly as Augustine did, or seek out persecutions as some in the early church did.
If we take Jesus’ great command to love one another as he loved us as our starting point, I think the Beatitudes from Saint Luke can spur us to try to spread the blessings that God has given us to others. One week ago a friend of mine who had been sick for many years died. Her husband who is also a friend of mine is mourning her loss. What can I do to comfort him? Reach out to him and let him know he and his wife are in my thoughts and prayers. In this week’s Angelus Father Beddingfield wrote about the overwhelming hunger and poverty he encountered on his Mission trip to Honduras. What can I do to help those hungry and poor? I can take one of many opportunities and put more in the collection plate on Maundy Thursday when all money from the collection is given to Honduras.
Jesus says: “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a vessel, or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, that those who enter may see the light.” I believe we are called to shine the light of Christ on others and spread the blessings that God has given us to others,. What blessings has God given us? In what ways can we share those blessings with others?
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