The intriguing message of the Beatitudes

By Fr. Roy Cimagala

ONCE again, we are presented with the paradoxical teaching of the Beatitudes in the gospel reading of the Mass of the 4^th Sunday in Ordinary Time. (cfr. Mt 5,1-12) We, of course, wonder how these Beatitudes, which flip conventional wisdom, can be the source of blessedness for us.

They obviously are not simply about promoting suffering or hardship, but rather about revealing the true, ultimate and heavenly values that are meant for us. Yes, we can find strength in weakness, joy in sorrow and power in humility if we would try our best to depend wholly on God, rather than simply on our own selves.

Without God, all the negative elements in our life will remain negative and harmful to us. But with him as we should, all things work for the good. (cfr. Rom 8,28) Even all our earthly suffering and death can lead us to our eternal joy and life in heaven.

The Beatitudes actually reveal God’s heart and values that should be reflected and lived by us also. They show the path to true happiness and fulfillment. They challenge societal norms and expectations that are based only on worldly and temporal values. In short, the Beatitudes tell us that the world’s way is not the only way. God’s ways are different, and they are the path to true joy and satisfaction.

Said another way, the Beatitudes convert what we usually consider as human disasters or clear disadvantages and inconveniences according to worldly standards into a source of joy, a means of our redemption, a path to heaven, narrow and difficult though it may be.

They expand our understanding of what would comprise as our true happiness by including those situations which we normally regard as unsavory and therefore to be avoided as much as possible, if not hated.

To learn to live the Beatitudes is definitely a lifelong task and journey. We really need to pray and reflect, begging God to tell us where we can grow and become more and more his image and likeness. For this, we need to study and involve ourselves in a lifelong program of Christian formation, monitoring our progress regularly and without let up even if we encounter mistakes and failures along the way.

And to be sure, we can live those beatitudes, because Christ himself would give us all the necessary graces. We just have to train ourselves to have the appropriate attitudes, skills and virtues.

We have to learn to be patient, which is an integral part of the virtue of fortitude that in the end can only be animated by genuine charity. We have to be ready when we are bombarded with worldly goods that can take us away from God, cool down our piety, and lead us to sin.

Or when we cannot help but mourn not only because of the death of someone but also because of some failure we commit or a misery we cannot shake off. Or when we get misunderstood and provoked in our daily exchanges of ideas and opinions with others. Or when we have to rein in our curiosity and raging hormones to keep our heart pure and in its proper orientation toward God.

Let’s always remember the beatitudes, and continually ask for the grace to believe and live them to the hilt. Christ’s promises cannot be frustrated. We have to strengthen our faith in his word. And start to live calmly, oozing with confidence and focused on what really matters in life!

The beatitudes should always be in our mind, heart and lips!

Email: roycimagala@gmail.com