[Jesus]came down with them and stood on a level place, with a great crowd of his disciples and a great multitude of people from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coast of Tyre and Sidon.
They had come to hear him and to be healed of their diseases; and those who were troubled with unclean spirits were cured.
And all in the crowd were trying to touch him, for power came out from him and healed all of them.
Then he looked up at his disciples and said: "Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.
"Blessed are you who are hungry now, for you will be filled. "Blessed are you who weep now, for you will laugh.
"Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, revile you, and defame you on account of the Son of Man.
Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, for surely your reward is great in heaven; for that is what their ancestors did to the prophets.
"But woe to you who are rich, for you have received your consolation.
"Woe to you who are full now, for you will be hungry. "Woe to you who are laughing now, for you will mourn and weep.
"Woe to you when all speak well of you, for that is what their ancestors did to the false prophets."
Luke 6: 17-26 NRSV
Brent Bill is an author I admire a great deal and I highly recommend his book Holy Silence, which years ago launched a deeper exploration of the subject for me. Today he tweeted a quote from a fine book by another author I appreciate, Barbara Brown Taylor.
"“…Pronouncing a blessing puts you as close to God as you can get. To learn to look with compassion on everything that is; to see past the terrifying demons outside to the bawling hearts within; to take the first move toward the other, however many times it takes to get close; to open your arms to what is instead of waiting until it is what it should be; to surrender the justice of your own cause for mercy; to surrender the priority of your own safety for love—this is to land at God’s breast.”
-Barbara Brown Taylor, An Altar in the World
It is a reflection on the attitude and spiritual practice of blessing and blessedness. The lectionary gospel passage this past Sunday was from Luke's on-the-level version of the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew. It begins with blessings, but in plain-speak (pun intended) compared to Matthew. Luke throws in a few curses as well, aimed at those who figure keeping score with material wealth and food security and shallow distraction are the equivalent of the good life.
Perhaps we'll all getter closer to Jesus today by somehow counting our blessings while avoiding the temptation to hoard them.
What are your blessings today?
When I was on a month long winter holiday on the small island of Bequia, in the British Grenadines, I rode the local bus regularly and mingled and chatted with local folk - one lady got on the bus one morning and greeted a friend, who asked how she was - her reply, with a large smile - "I am blessed!" It got me to thinking about what it means to be blessed (and, of course, it was in our scriptures and in the sermon on Sunday). Having one's basic needs (food and shelter) met is a blessing, and many of us have much more than we will ever need, especially in first world countries. For me, to be blessed also means to have non - material needs met - a sense of peace with oneself and one's neighbours and with God is the best blessing. To be in loving, caring, respectful relationship with others is a great blessing. To know there are others one can count on for friendship and help and companionship, a great blessing. I have to say that I, too, am blessed - and grateful to God for my many blessings.
ReplyDeleteWell said Judy! Thanks for being so thoughtful, and I'm glad you had a blessed vacation!
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