Sixth Sunday of Ordinary
Time (C) [Lk 6:17.20-26]
Blessings
and Woes (The Lukan Beatitudes)
16.02.2025
1. Theme in brief
The road to attain internal and eternal happiness (blessedness)
2.
Focus Statement
Human search for blessedness
or inner joy can never be satisfied only with riches, full stomachs, pleasures
and high status.
3. Explanation of
the text
In today’s gospel we have Luke’s version of Beatitudes which are
different from Matthew’s. Contrary to Matthew, they are not given on a mountain
but in the plains, and are directly addressed to the disciple with the words:
“Blessed are you…” Though the word “blessed” is commonly translated as “happy,” it transcends the normal connotation of
happiness; that is, being delighted, or being in a good mood, cheerfulness, and
having a pleasurable feeling. It is a state in which one finds oneself being
really fortunate because of the inner joy
and peace that comes from being righteous
or upright in God’s sight.
The
given text speaks about four contrasts of blessings and woes
– poverty vs. riches; hunger vs. full stomachs; weeping vs. laughing; and
defamation vs. admiration. According to Jesus the road to blessedness or inner
joy is to acquire an attitude of detachment from worldly
possessions, instead of attachment to them (6:20); an attitude of total dependence on God instead of on oneself or on
one’s possessions. In other words, Jesus says: What a joy to put our trust in God, and what a pity it is to depend on our
riches and worldly pleasures The poor mentioned here are economically poor.
They are blessed not because of their poverty – as if Jesus wants to glorify poverty – but because of their natural
inclination to trust in God, as they have nothing else on which they can trust.
The rich have a great temptation to trust fully and totally in material
possessions and their own capabilities.
The first beatitude does not mean
to say that all the poor of the world are blessed. Since it is directly
addressed to the disciples of Jesus, we need to understand that as disciples
they are called to imbibe the spirit
of detachment from possessions, dependence on God and trust in him. They are called
to share their goods with the
have-nots instead of accumulating them. The
The same is true of those who fill
their stomachs fully with sumptuous food and laugh now as they enjoy pleasures
of life. The disciples are called to joyfully share their goods with the needy
and undergo the pain of sacrifices and renunciation. When
they see the Kingdom growing, they will be filled with joy (6:21).
Jesus says, if we do
not make compromises with the worldly standards,
people may hate, exclude, revile, laugh at us and defame us but we shall be
happy internally now and eternally later on in heaven because our reward is
going to be really great (6:23-24).
Jesus does
not say that all those who are hated will
receive a reward, but only those who are hated “on account of the Son of Man”
(6:22), that is, for his sake and for the sake of
his Gospel. This is what happened to prophets (6:22, 26) and will happen to his
disciples. People hated the prophets because they stood up and spoke for God; called
people to repentance which they did not want.
The
woes are not curses but a way of exclaiming. Put in a plain language, what
Jesus says could mean: “Oh, what a joy to put our trust in God, and what a pity it
is to depend on our riches and worldly pleasures.”
Beatitudes are the right
attitudes one must
have in order to be a disciple of Christ. In today’s gospel, Jesus calls for an
exemplary Christian discipleship or conduct lived according to the norms of his beatitudes, and promises rewards for such a conduct.
The blessedness mentioned in this text is about serenity, inner peace and joy that is independent of what happens to us externally – a joy which cannot
be taken away by sorrow, loss, pain and even death. Whereas worldly joy can come and go with fortune and success, this joy cannot be lost with the change of fortune or failure of our plans. That is why
this blessedness can be experienced even under intense persecution. The attitudinal
change required by these beatitudes has to take place first of all
in our relationship with God which in turn will influence our relationship with
fellow human beings.
Jesus says that true and inner joy does not lie in abundance of wealth,
pleasures, name and fame, but in living or putting into practice the values of
God’s Kingdom. He challenges us to see and judge for ourselves
whether the road to inner peace and contentment (blessedness) consists in
world’s way or his way. Sadly enough, today, we have so many short-cut methods or ways contrary to these norms to attain momentary happiness and temporary relief such as habitual
or addictive use of drugs, alcohol, sex, T.V., cell phones, internet, etc. Sooner
or later we come to the realization that lasting and internal happiness cannot
be attained by these. When we trust only in wealth, compromise
with worldly standards, we can never experience internal joy and fulfilment. If we are not really happy, we have to ask
ourselves why we are not. Do our principles and methods to attain happiness
coincide with Christ’s? They are inner dispositions of disciples that should influence their outward
behaviour.
Our inner thirst for happiness and contentment can never be
satisfied with riches, sumptuous food, comforts and pleasure. From world’s
point of view the poor, the hungry and the suffering can never be called happy.
Jesus does not mean to glorify poverty and hunger. What he wants to say is that
the poor are better disposed to inner joy because of their total dependence on
God and trust in him. The rich are in
constant danger of trusting and depending on their wealth and possessions. Since the poor are
powerless and helpless, they are more disposed to trust and depend only on God. What leads to unhappiness is our trust in money, riches and
in our own capabilities. This makes us believe that we can manage our lives on
our own and there is no need of depending on God. The
Today, Jesus challenges us, his disciples, to judge for ourselves whether the
road to inner joy consists in relying
totally on our riches, lavish food and laughing at the misfortune of the poor
and the hungry, or in allowing God to rule over us and fill us with such love
that we acquire a keen sense of mourning for the illness of the
world. Are we ready and willing to face hatred, revile, defamation and
exclusion from the company of the powerful when we follow Christ’s values?
5.
Response to God's Word
Do I satisfy my search for real happiness only with
riches, food and drink, pleasures of the world and high status? Am willing to
face hated, exclusion, revile and defame when I do not make compromises with
the world’s standards and uphold God’s? Do I totally depend on myself and on my
riches, power and abilities, instead of God?
6.
A prayer
Lord, give me the joy of working for your Kingdom, even when it involves
humility, poverty, deprivation, humiliation and revile. Amen.
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