1. Peter Fitch, St. Croix Vineyard Sunday, November 12, 2017
Blessed are the Meek
Peter Fitch, St. Croix Vineyard
Sunday, November 12, 2017

2. Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7)
5:1 When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.

3. Poor in Spirit . . . For theirs is . . .
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven
Bowed over, cowering, without resources, destitute . . .
Those without one kind of resource have the proper emptiness to receive a different kind of resource
Henri Nouwen, story from Reaching Out

4. Mourn . . . Will be comforted
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted
John Lanchester has said: “A crisis is a terrible thing to waste” (NY Times Magazine, February, 2017)
“Your pain is the breaking of the shell that encloses your understanding” (Khalil Gibran, The Prophet)
“comforted” is the great word From parakaleo

5. Meek . . . Will inherit (Constraint & Concern)
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth
Meek, sometimes translated “gentle”
Aristotle saw it as the mean between reckless aggression and cowardly passivity, between having too much or too little anger (just right . . .)
It was a word used for training horses, bringing power and emotion under control
Has the idea of self-restraint, submission or obedience, and also of humility

6. William Barclay: 3 possible translations
Blessed are those who are always angry at the right time and never angry at the wrong time
Blessed are those who have every instinct, every impulse, every passion under control. Blessed are those who are entirely self-controlled
Blessed are those who have the humility to know their own ignorance, their own weakness, and their own need
(Commentary on Matthew, Volume 2)

7. Only shows up 4 times in the NT
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle (praus) and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls (Matthew 11:29)
Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your king is coming to you, humble (praus) and mounted on a donkey, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden’ (Matthew 21:5)
But let it be the inner person of the heart, the unfading beauty of a gentle (praus) and tranquil spirit, which in the sight of God is precious (1 Peter 3:4)

8. What would it look like today?
In parenting? (Tutu, on Thich Nhat Hanh, p. 143)
In polarized political situations?
In trying to help others?
In standing up for yourself at your workplace?
In trying to fight evil in society?
In standing for what you believe in a group situation?
Where else?

10. Desmond Tutu, Made for Goodness

11. 7 traits of a Sage and a Fool (Pirke Avot)
A sage keeps silent before wisdom and age; does not interrupt the words of another; is slow to answer; questions insightfully, and replies concisely; prioritizes matters in order of importance; admits to what is not known; and accepts correction graciously. The fool does the opposite of these.

12. Ethics of the Sages, Pirke Avot
If your concern for others exceeds your desire for wisdom, your wisdom will endure; if your desire for wisdom exceeds your concern for others, your wisdom will not endure. (and it is the same with kindness) Rabbi Chanina ben Dosa