The Beatitudes

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SUMMARY OF THE BEATITUDES

BLESSING	SUMMARY
BLESSING #1 "BLESSED ARE THE POOR IN SPIRIT"	We are "poor" in spirit because we acknowledge that we are not self-sufficient and need God in our lives. We come to Him in childlike faith, knowing we cannot make it on our own without Him.
PROMISE #1 "FOR THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN"	When we acknowledge the sovereignty of God over our lives we discover that He does not save us because of what we have done but because of what Christ has done for us. If we presevere in faith, we are promised the gift of eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven.
BLESSING #2 "BLESSED ARE THEY WHO MOURN"	As we yield to spiritual childhood, admitting poverty of spirit kneeling in His presence, the more clearly we see God. The more clearly we see God, the more we become aware of our imperfections. We become humbled in His presence, and we feel the burden of our sins. The result is that we mourn our sins. Repentance and genuine sorrow for our sins purifies us. To mourn sin is a natural outflow of surrender to God through "poverty of spirit".
PROMISE #2 "FOR THEY WILL BE COMFORTED"	Not only does the Holy Spirit comfort us in our sorrow and repentance, but through living the Sacraments of our faith, He gives us the strength to resist sin and also the strength to stand against sin in our community and the world. We bear our suffering with a spirit of atonement, reconciliation and love; the result is comfort and strength.
BLESSING #3 "BLESSED ARE THE MEEK"	Christian "meekness" is not weakness. It is based on humility, expressed in the New Testament as the supernatural quality that is the outgrowth of a renewed nature. This renewal can only come when we surrender our lives to God and seek His divine will in our lives. This third step, "blessed are the meek" renews us and places us as a useful tool in the hands of the Master of the universe.
PROMISE #3 "FOR THEY WILL INHERIT THE LAND"	No longer does Satan have the power to dominate us because we have been reborn through Christian baptism into the family of God. We belong to the God who created and dominates the earth, and as His children and his heirs, we inherit the earth and the universal Kingdom He has established on earth to lead the nations into the family of God, the Catholic Church.
BLESSING #4 [the turning point] "BLESSED ARE THEY WHO HUNGER AND THIRST FOR RIGHTEOUSNESS"	Christ gives himself to the soul that genuinely hungers for Him. When the world no longer has any hold on us, all we want is Him.
PROMISE #4 "FOR THEY WILL BE SATISFIED"	Filled with the Holy Spirit and nourished by Christ, who gives all of Himself to us in the Eucharist: Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity!
BLESSING # 5 "BLESSED ARE THE MERCIFUL"	As we yield our will to God and are filled with the divine life of His Son, we grow closer to Him and become more like Him. We forgive others and offer His love to others because He first loved and forgave us.
PROMISE #5 "FOR THEY WILL BE SHOWN MERCY"	The more we forgive others, the more we receive forgiveness through the sacrifice of the Son.
BEATITUDE #6 "BLESSED ARE THE CLEAN OF HEART	With Christ living in us, His righteousness cleanses us, and our hearts become pure; we reflect the image of Christ.
PROMISE #6 "FOR THEY WILL SEE GOD"	We will see the face of God in each person with whom we share Christ's love.
BEATITUDE # 7 "BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS"	As we live our lives with the Prince of Peace within us, it becomes natural to share His message of peace and salvation with others.
PROMISE #7 "FOR THEY WILL BE CALLED CHILDREN OF GOD"	John 1:12: "But to all who receive him, who believe in His name, He gave the power to become children of God."
THE RESULT OF LIVING THE BEATITUDES
"BLESSED ARE THEY WHO ARE PERSECUTED FOR THE SAKE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS	When we live God's plan for our lives, we may endure injustice and be persecuted for His sake and for the plan of God working in the lives of others. We answer His call to take up our cross daily and to follow Him.
PROMISE: "FOR THEIRS IS THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN" [this is a repeat of promise #1]	God saw that his children were trapped in a world of sin. He freed us through His love on the cross so we could know the Kingdom of God and become the inheritors of the Kingdom of Heaven, eternal life with our Father.
"BLESSED ARE YOU WHEN THEY INSULT YOU AND PERSECUTE YOU AND UTTER EVERY KIND OF EVIL AGAINST YOU [FALSELY] BECAUSE OF ME"	Our commitment to accepting persecution in the name of Jesus has to be a personal commitment.
PROMISE: "REJOICE AND BE GLAD FOR YOUR REWARD WILL BE GREAT IN HEAVEN. THUS THEY PERSECUTED THE PROPHETS WHO WERE BEFORE YOU"	When we accept our commitment to everything He has taught us we can rejoice in the confidence of His promise of salvation if we persevere in faith to the end.