BLESSED ARE YOU...

Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Poor in Spirit

                                    Ir-Raba' Ħadd matul is-Sena                                 

Il-fqar  fl-Ispirtu

Messalin A pp 266

Reading 1      

Zephaniah 2:3; 3:12-13

Seek the LORD, all you humble of the earth, who have observed his law; seek justice, seek humility; perhaps you may be sheltered on the day of the LORD’s anger. But I will leave as a remnant in your midst a people humble and lowly, who shall take refuge in the name of the LORD: the remnant of Israel. They shall do no wrong and speak no lies; nor shall there be found in their mouths a deceitful tongue; they shall pasture and couch their flocks with none to disturb them. This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Ewwel Lezzjoni                 

Qari mill-Ktieb tal-Profeta Sofonija 2, 3; 3,12-13                              

Fittxu lill-Mulej ilkoll, intom, l-umli ta' l-art, li tagħmlu ordnijietu, fittxu l-ġustizzja, fittxu l-umilta'; biex forsi f'jum il-korla tal-Muel ikollkom fejn tiskennu. U nħalli f'nofsok poplu umli u mċekken. U f'isem il-Mulej ifttxu l-kenn dawk li jifdal minn Iżrael. Ma jagħmlux ħażen, ma jgħidux kliem b'ieħor, u lsien qarrieq ma jibqax iżjed f'fommhom, hekk li joqogħdu jirgħu u jistrieħu bla ma jbeżżagħhom ħadd. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

                 

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 146:6-7, 8-9, 9-10

The LORD keeps faith forever,
secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free.
R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the kingdom of heaven is theirs!

.
The LORD gives sight to the blind;
the LORD raises up those who were bowed down.
The LORD loves the just;
the LORD protects strangers.
R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the kingdom of heaven is theirs!

.
The fatherless and the widow the LORD sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts.
The LORD shall reign forever;
your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia.
R. Blessed the poor in spirit; the kingdom of heaven is theirs!

Salm Responsorjali                                                              

SAlm 145(146)

Il-Mulej jagħmel ħaqq mill-maħqurin,

u jagħti l-ħobż lill-imġewħin.

Il-Mulej jeħles lill-injassrin.                                 R/

R/   Ħenjin il-foqra fl-ispirtu.

Il-Mulej jiftaħ għajnejn l-għomja;

il-Mulej jerfa' lill-milwijin,

il-Mulej iħobb lill-ġusti;

il-Mulej iħares lill-barranin.                                 R/

R/   Ħenjin il-foqra fl-ispirtu.

Hu iżomm lill-iltim u lill-armla,

imma lill-ħżiena jħarbtilhom triqathom.

Il-Mulej isaltan għal dejjem;

Alla  tiegħek, Sijon, minn nisel għal nisel. R/

R/   Ħenjin il-foqra fl-ispirtu.

Reading 2      

1 Corinthians 1:26-31

Consider your own calling, brothers and sisters. Not many of you were wise by human standards,
not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. Rather, God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, and God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothing those who are something, so that no human being might boast before God. It is due to him that you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God, as well as righteousness, sanctification, and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Whoever boasts, should boast in the Lord.” This is the Word of The Lord.

It-Tieni Lezzjoni

Qari mill-Ewwel l-Ittra ta' San Pawl Appostlu lill-Korintin 1, 26-31

Ħuti, qisu s-sejħa tagħkom:  għax m'humiex ħafna fostkom li huma għorrief skond il-qjiesi tad-dinja; m'humiex ħafna s-setgħana, m'humiex ħafna n-nobbli. Imma Alla għażel in-nies boloh għad-dinja biex iħawwad l-għorrief; għażel id-dgħajfa tad-dinja biex  iħawwad il-qawwija; għażel il-mistmerra mid-dinja, u n-nies li ma huma xejn, biex iġib fix-xejn lil dawk li huma xi ħaġa. Hekk ebda bniedem ma jkun jista' jiftaħar quddiem Alla. Minnu li intom tinsabu fi Kristu Ġesu' li sar għalina l-għerf mingħand Alla, ġustizzja, qdusija u fidwa, biex bħalma hu miktub, min jiftaħar, ħa jiftaħar fil-Mulej. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej

Gospel                       

Matthew 5:1-12a

When Jesus  saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted. Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land. Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied. Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God. Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.” This is the Word of The Lord.

L-Evanġelju

Qari mill-Evanġelju skond San Mattew 5, 1-12a

F'dak iż-żmien,  kif ra l-folol, Ġesu' tala' fuq il-Muntanja, qagħad bilqiegħda,  u resqu lejh id-dixxipli tiegħu. Fetaħ fommu u qabad  jgħallimhom u jgħid: "Ħenjin il-foqra fl-ispirtu, għax tagħhom hija s-Saltna tas-Smewwiet. Ħenjin l-imnikkta, għax huma jkunu mfarrġa.  Ħenjin ta' qalbhom ħelwa, għax huma jkollhom b'wirthom l-art. Ħenjin dawk li huma bil-ġuħ u bl-għatx tal-ġustizzja, għax huma jkunu  mxebbgħin. Ħenjin  dawk li  jħennu, Għax huma jsibu ħniena. Ħenjin dawk li huma safja f'qalbhom,  għax huma jaraw lil Alla, Ħenjin dawk li jġibu l-paċi, għax huma jissejħu wlied Alla. Ħenjin dawk li huma pperwsegwitati minħabba u s-sewwa, għax tagħhom hija s-Saltna tas-Smewwiet.  Ħenjin intom, meta jgħajrukom u jippersegwitakom u  jaqilgħu kull  xorta ta' ħażen u gideb kontra tagħkom minħabba fija.  Ifirħu u thennew, għax ħlaskom kbir fis-smewwiet. Il-Kelma tal-Mulej.

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Charter for Christian Living and Recipe for Extreme Holiness –

A Biblical Reflection by Fr. Thomas Rosica, CSB

As the Church continues her pilgrim journey throughout history, we need a vision to sustain us and give us hope in the midst of our shadows, ambiguities and sins, our joys and hopes and victories.  That biblical vision is found in the great Christian charter in next Sunday's Gospel passage.  This Gospel often called “the Sermon on the Mount” [Mt 5:1-12a] is the first of the five discourses [5:1-7:29] that are a central part of the structure of Matthew’s Gospel.  The Lucan parallel is the "Sermon on the Plain" [Luke 6:20-49], although some of the sayings in Matthew's "Sermon on the Mount" have their parallels in other parts of Luke.

The careful topical arrangement of the sermon is probably not due only to Matthew's editing; he seems to have had a structured discourse of Jesus as one of his sources. The form of that source may have been as follows: four beatitudes [Matthew 5:3-4, 6, 11-12], a section on the new righteousness with illustrations [5:17, 20-24, 27-28, 33-48], a section on good works, [6:1-6, 16-18], and three warnings [7:1-2, 15-21, 24-27].  Unlike Luke's sermon, Matthew’s text is addressed not only to the disciples but to the crowds.

The formulation “Blessed are (is)” used in this Sunday’s Gospel passage occurs frequently in the Old Testament in the Wisdom literature and in the psalms. Although modified by Matthew, the first, second, fourth, and ninth beatitudes have Lucan parallels (Matthew 5:3; Luke 6:20; Matthew 5:4; Luke 6:21, 22; Matthew 5:6; Luke 6:21a; Matthew 5:11-12; Luke 5:22-23). The others were added by the evangelist and are probably his own composition.

The meaning of the beatitudes

The beatitudes are the great charter for Christian living.  They reveal God's ultimate justice and outline Jesus' prophetic outreach to those who live on the fringes of society.  So many people– the sick, the lame, the poor and the hungry converge on Jesus on that Galilean hillside.  In this awesome biblical scene overlooking the Sea, Jesus puts biblical justice into practice by proclaiming the beatitudes.  Authentic justice is a bonding of one's self with the sick, the disabled, the poor and the hungry.  The crowds that listened to Jesus were awestruck because he spoke with authority, with the force of someone who knew the truth and offered it freely to others.  He was a teacher like no other.

While Sunday’s Gospel is undoubtedly one of the favourite texts for all types of liturgical celebrations, how many people really grasp the radicality of what is being stated or realize that the beatitudes are not simply a lovely introduction to the sermon on the mount but actually the foundation of Jesus’ entire teaching?  We are often at a loss to understand and explain the meaning of the beatitudes beyond the fact that they are words of solidarity, compassion and blessing.  The Aramaic language of Jesus may help us to understand Jesus' teachings in a deeper way.  “Blessed” is the translation of the word “makarioi” used in the Greek New Testament.  If we look further back to Jesus' Aramaic language and vocabulary, we discover that the original word was “ashray,” from the verb “yashar.”  “Ashray” does not have this passive quality.  Instead, it means "to set yourself on the right way for the right goal; to turn around, repent; to become straight or righteous."

When we understand Jesus' words in the Aramaic, we may translate the beatitudes like this: "Get up, go ahead, do something, move, you who are hungry and thirsty for justice; you who desire peace." This reflects Jesus' words and teachings more accurately. We hear him saying to us: Get up, stop complaining, do something about the homeless, about the poor, about the discouraged and disillusioned people around you. "Get up, go ahead, do something, move," Jesus says to his disciples and to us. In this way the beatitudes reveal God's ultimate justice and solidarity with the human condition.

We must hold up the beatitudes as a mirror in which we examine our own lives and consciences.  "Am I poor in spirit? Am I humble and merciful? Am I pure of heart? Do I bring peace? Am I 'blessed,' in other words, happy?  Jesus not only gives us what he has, but also what he is.  He is holy and makes us holy.

Blueprint for Holiness

The beatitudes are also a recipe for extreme holiness.  Holiness is a way of life that involves commitment and activity.  It is not a passive endeavor but rather a continuous choice to deepen one's relationship with God and to then allow this relationship to guide all of one's actions in the world.

Men and women of the beatitudes

The beatitudes were lived out in the life of John Paul II.  He himself was an extraordinary witness who, through his devotion, heroic efforts, long suffering and death, communicated the powerful message of the Gospel to the men and women of our day.  A great part of the success of the Pope’s message is due to the fact that he has been surrounded by a tremendous cloud of witnesses who stood by him and strengthened him throughout his life. In the nearly 27 years of his pontificate, he gave the Church 1338 Blesseds and 482 Saints.

On April 2, 2005, he died a public, global death that stopped the world for several days.  On April 8, 2005, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger told the world that the Holy Father was watching and blessing us ‘from the window of the Father’s House.”  On Sunday May 1, 2011 only six years after his return to the Father’s house, the Church formally confirmed what many of us have known for so long: not simply “Santo Subito” (“Make him a saint quickly”) but “Santo Sempre” (Saint always).  May we learn from "Papa Wojtyla" how to cross thresholds, open doors, build bridges and proclaim the Gospel to the people of our time. May we become men and women of the beatitudes and beg for a small portion of the fidelity of Peter's witness and the boldness of Paul's proclamation that were so mightily present in Karol Wojtyla -- Pope John Paul II.