Sermon of the Beatitudes (James Tissot)
“Now when he saw the crowds, he went up on a mountainside and sat down. His disciples came to him, and he began to teach them saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” (Matt 5:1-3, NIV)
How many times have you read this passage? I’ve probably read it a few dozen times, but I’ve never really considered it, except as one element of the Beatitudes Christ gave during the “sermon on the Mount”.
What does it mean to be ‘poor in spirit’? There are several ways to look at it. Is it addressing the poor, saying that they are blessed in spirit, or that those who are “poor in spirit” are blessed? Is that splitting hairs?
The first context addresses the poor, saying that they are blessed in spirit. I don’t think this is a glorification of physical poverty so much as to say that those who are destitute can find special blessings in Christ, indeed, that “theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” Wow. An example would the widow who in her poverty gave an offering of a small coin. Christ exalted her over the rich who gave large amounts. (Mark 12:41-44)
The Aramaic word used for poor is ‘anya’, which can mean “bent down, afflicted, miserable, or poor”. This gives the second context, which some read to say that that we are to be humble beggars before God; that is, spiritual beggars who have abandoned pride and self-sufficiency and who rely totally on God for support. I’m good with that understanding as well. Compare the tax collector and the Pharisees in Luke 18:9-14. Again, the Pharisees were making a show of their piety, while the “tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’” This guy recognized his place before a mighty God. I don’t think it’s reading too much into the passage to consider that he was blessed.
How do you understand “blessed are the poor in spirit”?
Tags: Beatitudes, faith in art, james tissot, poor in spirit
