Beatitude no.1&2

went to church this morning, today being a sunday.. i have to accede that it was actually a pretty pleasant day.. not only due to the fact that i had an exhilarating time in church, but also due to the fact that i have wrapped up my weekend assignments!

today's sermon was on the second beatitude, and if you flop in your attempts to recall the contents of the verse itself, let me refresh your memory.

"blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted"

this sermon, in fact, is linked very closely to the first. and if your mind is again ineffectual in your ventures to recall the first beatitude, here it is.

"blessed are those who are poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven"

i shall begin by explaining the first beatitude. As a typical carbon-based homo sapien (lol!), what is a person's general impression of the word 'poor'? one's mind will most probably turn to images of cadaverous, undernourished people squandering their time away looking for scraps of food to keep themselves alive.

if so, what is the impression one gets when one hears the phrase 'poor in spirit'? most probably images of shallow-minded, faithless people, ya? actually the true meaning behind the phrase is something entirely discrepant to the typical illustrations of the human mind.

the actual definition of one who is poor in spirit is an individual who realizes that he/she is lacking in every spiritual aspect, and thrives to better oneself's spiritual life ad infinitum. being 'poor in spirit' is a must-have virtue of a true christian. by being 'poor in spirit' one would have to realize one's own faults; simultaneously confessing all of them in humility before the Lord.

do we have many people in the present society who are equipped with these values? that presents all of us with a huge question mark. if we do not even have the basic essentials to live a true christian's life, how then, can we be prepared to enter heaven's gates?

one must humble ourselves before the Lord and confess all our sins and wrongdoings, working to right oneself's ways simultaneously. that, indeed, is the thing that plays a primordial role in one's attempts to lead the life of a true christian.


the second beatitude concerns mourning. and again i catechize the human mind. the typical human mind would instantaneously turn to images of people in a crematorium, mourning over the dead bodies of their loved ones. the true meaning of mourning in this verse, again, is comprehensively discrepant to the stereotypes of the typical human mind. the definition is of one who mourns perpetually. yes, perpetually. which, if your vocabulary does not permit you to comprehend it's meaning, means 'all the time'. not the kind of mourning in which you get over it within a few weeks. not that.

the perfect example of one who mourns, is Jesus. Jesus mourned all the time. he saw the sorrow of the people, and he mourned over it. one very short verse which brings out the gravityof the whole situation, is "Jesus wept."

two words. just two words, and yet it sends a substantial message across to it's readers. the message of Jesus' love for us, for us God's children.

do we have many people in our society who practices this? sadly i must concede that only a meagre number of people do it.

true mourning leads to salvation, but it cannot take place without the existence of spiritual poverty in our lives. true mourning is the sign of true repentance.

do we grieve over our sins? do we constantly appraise ourselves, so as to appear acceptable in the eyes of the Lord?

i must work hard, and i know that day will come. that day when i can stand firmly upon my feet, and say yes to both of these questions.