C: 6th Sun of OrdTime (17 Feb 2019) - BLESSED NOW - Lk 6:17, 20-26

“Not you will be blessed, but you are blessed; this is the first truth we know about the Christian life”. This line is an excerpt of the homily of Pope Francis in the Closing Mass at the Zayed Sports City, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates last February 5, 2019. Meditating on the Beatitudes as presented in Mt 5:3-11, he exhorted the faithful in the Arab territories to be joyful in the midst of troubles and persecutions. He explains that “[t]he Beatitudes are not for supermen, but for those who face up to the challenges and trials of each day. Those who live out the Beatitudes according to Jesus are able to cleanse the world. They are like a tree that even in the wasteland absorbs polluted air each day and gives back oxygen. It is my hope that you will be like this, rooted in Christ, in Jesus and ready to do good to those around you. May your communities be oases of peace.”

The imagery of a tree is similarly used by Jeremiah in our First Reading in describing the blessed one who trusts in the Lord: “He is like a tree by the waterside that thrusts its roots to the stream: when the heat comes it feels no alarm, its foliage stays green; it has no worries in a year of drought, and never ceases to bear fruit” (Jer 17:8). What makes a tree truly blessed now is not because of its size, its sturdiness, its foliage, nor its potential to bear fruits, but because of its rootedness near a reliable water-source. Because of this solid foundation, there is truly no cause of alarm even amidst rough times.

Similarly, a Christian who is deeply rooted in Jesus should feel confident that he/she is blessed at all times even amidst persecution. “This is the reason for our joy, a joy that no one in the world and no circumstance in our lives can take from us. It is a joy that gives peace also in the midst of pain, a joy that already makes us participate in that eternal happiness which awaits us,” Pope Francis reminded us. Our Responsorial Psalm perfectly sums up this truth: “Happy the man who has placed his trust in the Lord”.

Jesus, in our Lukan Gospel (Lk 6:20-26), expressed the same idea of Matthean blessedness but their main structural difference is that Luke has only four “blessed” while Matthew has eight. Instead, the former supplements the four with four “alas” which are found in chapter 23 of the latter. Pope Francis’ notion that the “blessed” are in the present tense may be indeed true to both Gospels but only when the linking verb “are” is supplied. Syntactically, the phrase “makarioi hoi ptōchoi” (literally, “blessed the poor” in English) is devoid of any temporal state. In Matthew, the present tense is surmised. However, in Luke it is expressed very clearly, indicated in the use of the adverb “now” which is used four times (vv. 21a, 21b, 25a and 25b). Indeed, we are blessed not before (when we were still holy after baptism) nor in the future (when God will mercifully allow us entrance in heaven), but NOW (when we continue to struggle in life)! And it is because we are deeply rooted in our faith in Jesus who “has in fact been raised from the dead, the first-fruits of all who have fallen asleep” (1 Cor 15:20). He is our life-source, hence, there is no point in worrying about perishing tomorrow.

Jesus enjoins us all to continue to value joyfully our present conditions, even if they are undesirable and troublesome. It is our persistence in following him despite the hurdles we face that makes us holy and blessed. Appropriately, Pope Francis’ words teach us: “The Beatitudes are thus a roadmap for our life: they do not require superhuman actions, but rather the imitation of Jesus in our everyday life. They invite us to keep our hearts pure, to practice meekness and justice despite everything, to be merciful to all, to live affliction in union with God. This is the holiness of daily life, one that has no need of miracles or of extraordinary signs.”

- Rex Fortes, CM