Matthew 5:1-12
When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
"Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
"Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
"Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
"Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
"Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
"Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
"Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
"Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
Reflection From his perch atop the mountain at first glance Jesus likely sees a motley crew of dusty peasants weeping, laughing, starving, napping, gnashing their teeth, being still. That is what he sees with his eyes. With his mind he recognizes Jews and Gentiles, tax collectors and soldiers, religious officials and lepers, friends and enemies and who knows what else. With his heart, yes, with the eyes of his heart, Jesus sees people in need of blessing. Regardless of their physical, emotional, social, political or religious condition, Jesus sees crowds of people in need of blessing.
And so Jesus begins his first sermon with “Blessed are the poor in spirit.” It has taken me years to arrive at what I believe Jesus means when he refers to the poor in spirit. I believe the poor in spirit are those of us who know that we are in need of blessing. Who among us does not need blessing? Yet, who among us leaps up, waves our arms and shouts, “Over here. Look at me. I am poor in spirit. I need your blessing.” Honestly, I have never uttered those words, but I should.
Who among us does not need blessing? Who among us does not suffer anguish, grief and lament? Who among us does not submit, defer or yield? Who among us does not desire goodness, respect and justice? Who among us does not long for kindness, compassion, generosity and peace? Who among us does not feel misjudged or persecuted? Who among us does not need blessing?
Of course, that brings us to the other side of the equation. Who among us is not a source of blessing? Who among us does not reach out to comfort those who suffer and grieve? Who among us does not ache for the oppressed and seek to dignify all people? Who among us does not act with kindness, compassion and generosity? Who among us is not meant to be a source of blessing?
Sunday we celebrate All Saints Day and just in case you are wondering, “Who are the saints?” the answer is, the saints are ordinary people, you and me, regular folk who follow Jesus’ example and use all three kinds of vision to perceive the need for blessing. We see our neighbor's physical condition with our eyes, we recognize our neighbor's social, political and religious situation with our minds, and we perceive our neighbor’s need for blessing with our hearts.
When we open our eyes, our minds and our hearts to see by this threefold vision, we are transformed. Like the great multitude of people from every tribe and nation in the visionary Revelation to John, we join the ranks of people who, having come out of the ‘great ordeal’ replace our blue shirts and red hats with white robes, then ever so humbly fall to our knees, praising and worshipping God day and night. We are the company of saints wrapped in our white robes.
White is the liturgical color associated with purity, completeness and light. It is the color in which we wrap our holiest moments; new life at Christmas, baptism and the promise of renewed life at Easter, and the pall we drape on a casket at the completion of our life. As people of God we find our identity and mark the passage of our journey wrapped in white robes, the outward and visible sign of the interior light of Christ with us.
When we imitate Jesus’ threefold vision we see our neighbors physical and emotional condition, we recognize their social, political and religious situation and we perceive their need for blessing. And we do not stop there. As was Jesus, so are we, moved to offer blessing upon blessing to all the crowds of people because everyone needs to be blessed and we are all blessed to be a blessing.
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