Fr Marco Lazzaron
oday’s Gospel presents to us the passage of the Beatitudes, which are somewhat like the Magna Carta of Christianity. They offer us the program of Christian happiness and seek to be the portrait of the person on the journey toward holiness, as God desires: “Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). These express the desire for a better world made of goodness, sincerity, and justice, without violence and without falsehood—in short, an entirely different way of being human.
“With the term ‘beatitude’ in the biblical tradition, one means to define the condition of ‘full joy’, of deep happiness, of the authentic fulfilment of the person blessed by God” (Fr Giuseppe De Virgilio). The blessed one, the wise person spoken of in today’s Gospel, is the one who knows how to grasp and live well the present moment, even the most difficult one, because he knows it is not the final word. In fact, the Beatitudes have three parts. The first part, always the same, is the definition: blessed. The second part is the condition: the poor, the meek, those who weep, those who are persecuted. And the third part is the consequence: those who are poor, those who weep, those who are persecuted will inherit the Kingdom of Heaven!
The words of Jesus say to all who are disillusioned today: stop being sad and discouraged, listen to the beautiful news—God is for you. For you who suffer, for you who are forgotten, for you who weep, for you who are persecuted. God is with you and for you! The Kingdom of God is not in some distant tomorrow but is already today, as the first beatitude states in the present tense: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven!”
“The Kingdom of God belongs to the poor in spirit. Some possess the kingdoms of this world: they have goods and comforts. But these are kingdoms that come to an end. Human power passes and disappears. The riches of this world go away, and so does money. The elders used to teach us that a shroud has no pockets. No one takes anything with them. These riches remain here. The Kingdom of God belongs to the poor in spirit. The one who knows how to love the true good more than himself is the one who truly reigns. And this is the power of God.
In which way did Christ show Himself powerful? On the cross because He was able to do what the kings of the earth cannot do: He gave His life for humanity. And this is true power. The power of charity, the power of love, the power of humility. In this there is true freedom: whoever has this power of humility, of service, is definitely free. The poverty praised by the Beatitudes is at the service of this freedom” (Pope Francis).
Prayer
Lord Jesus, You call blessed the poor, the meek, those who suffer, and those who are persecuted. Grant us the grace to recognize Your Kingdom already present, to live with humility, fraternity, and love. May we find hope in trials and, in poverty, in the true richness of Your Spirit. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.