The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to count our blessings as we reflect on our relationship with God and others.
Counting Blessings
The reading from the Second Letter of Paul to the Corinthians is a thanksgiving after affliction.
* [1:7] You also share in the encouragement: the eschatological reversal of affliction and encouragement that Christians expect (cf. Mt 5:4; Lk 6:24) permits some present experience of reversal in the Corinthians’ case, as in Paul’s.1
Psalm 34 offers praise for deliverance from trouble.
* [Psalm 34] A thanksgiving in acrostic form, each line beginning with a successive letter of the Hebrew alphabet. In this Psalm one letter is missing and two are in reverse order. The psalmist, fresh from the experience of being rescued (Ps 34:5, 7), can teach the “poor,” those who are defenseless, to trust in God alone (Ps 34:4, 12). God will make them powerful (Ps 34:5–11) and give them protection (Ps 34:12–22).2
The Gospel of Matthew presents the Beatitudes.
* [5:3] The poor in spirit: in the Old Testament, the poor (’anāwîm) are those who are without material possessions and whose confidence is in God (see Is 61:1; Zep 2:3; in the NAB the word is translated lowly and humble, respectively, in those texts). Matthew added in spirit in order either to indicate that only the devout poor were meant or to extend the beatitude to all, of whatever social rank, who recognized their complete dependence on God. The same phrase poor in spirit is found in the Qumran literature (1QM 14:7).3
Mary Lee Brock comments that the Beatitudes were one of the readings during the funeral Mass for her aunt. Hearing the words of Jesus in light of the life that Anna lived was a beautiful experience.
Reflecting on Anna’s life helps me examine my own life while I ask for God’s grace to live the gospel. Anna was accepting and welcoming. I pray I can I meet people where they are without judgment. Anna was generous. I pray I can I give with a full heart and expect nothing in return. Anna appreciated and enjoyed her live. I pray I can I honor God by appreciating my gifts and by sharing those gifts with others. Anna lived her unwavering faith. I pray for opportunities to deepen my faith and to encourage others to embrace their authentic spirituality. “Rejoice and be glad for your reward will be great in heaven.”4
Don Schwager quotes “Perfect blessedness is humility of spirit,” by Hilary of Poitiers (315-367 AD).
"'Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.' The Lord taught by way of example that the glory of human ambition must be left behind when he said, 'The Lord your God shall you adore and him only shall you serve' (Matthew 4:10). And when he announced through the prophets that he would choose a people humble and in awe of his words [Isaiah 66:2], he introduced the perfect Beatitude as humility of spirit. Therefore he defines those who are inspired as people aware that they are in possession of the heavenly kingdom... Nothing belongs to anyone as being properly one's own, but all have the same things by the gift of a single parent. They have been given the first things needed to come into life and have been supplied with the means to use them." (excerpt from commentary ON MATTHEW 4.2)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on 2 Corinthians 1:1-7 comments that Paul understood that the grace he was receiving wasn’t only for him. God meant it to overflow from Paul into the churches and the people he served, and then for it to flow out of them and into the world.
So when you face a hardship, remember that God is a fountain of unlimited compassion and comfort. Try to imitate Paul by turning to the Lord, trusting in his provision and care. Seek his presence in your prayer, in your worship at Mass, and in your loved ones. You may not find him right away, but you can still believe that he is with you. But don’t stop there. In addition to caring for yourself, look for opportunities to care for other people. Remember those fountains in St. Peter’s Square: God’s comfort is meant to flow into you and out of you. “Lord, I trust that you will offer me your comfort today.”6
Friar Jude Winkler explores the compassion, suffering, and encouragement in the letter of Paul. The order of the Letter to the Corinthians may have been disturbed. Today’s passage may have originally followed the “angry letter” passage. Friar Jude fleshes out the more spiritual Beatitudes in Matthew compared to the blessings and curses in Luke.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, comments that the wisdom from the Christian tradition is that whatever God is doing, it is certainly beyond cultural fears, fads, and social taboos. Open and prayerful people will likely discover a very intuitive and almost common-sense wisdom about what is real and what is unreal in regard to our sexual relatedness and the many ways it allows us to move and discover our true bodily and spiritual selves.
Finally, the only biblical mandate that matters is to copy and allow the pattern of God’s love in you. If this sounds too soft, perhaps it means that we have never loved “all the way.” We have never let it carry us through all its stages, all of its internal ecstasies, loneliness, and purifications. To attain a whole and truly passionate sexuality is hard and holy work. God’s way of loving is the only licensed teacher of human sexuality. God’s passion created ours. Our deep desiring is a relentless returning to that place where all things are one. If we are afraid of our sexuality, we are afraid of God. Nor should we equate sexuality with unadulterated lust, which is far too egocentric to care about anybody else.7
Our relationships make visible the blessings and consolations we have experienced as followers of Christ.
References
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