4TH SUNDAY HOMILY OF THE ORDINARY TIME — YEAR A

4TH SUNDAY HOMILY OF THE ORDINARY TIME — YEAR A

HOMILY THEME: THE BEATITUDES 

BY: Fr. Mike Olumba

Zeph 2:3; 3:12-13/Ps. 146:6-7,8-9,9-10/1 Cor 1:26-31/Matt. 5:1-12A

After celebrating the birth of Christ and his baptism, at the beginning of his ministry, Jesus announces his manifesto: i.e. the roadmap to happiness and the basics of his ministry and teachings; what he intends to accomplish in our lives, what sort of people he wishes to create out of his subjects.

For Mathew, like the New Moses, Jesus climbs the (figurative) mountain to bring the New Law of Grace. Unlike Moses, he does not descend. He rather sits down like the Professor, the Law Giver, who speaks in his name, not like a messenger, but the giver of the Law himself, surrounded by his subjects. This will become clearer when later He says; “You were told this before…., but now I tell you this…..! He will introduce a radical change on account of the New Covenant which demands a New Morality.

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In the Beatitude/Be Attitude he announces: “Blessed are they/Unu e riela/Ha e riela….” In the mouth of Jesus, this resounds as a promise of life that will be fulfilled for the “poor at heart, the meek/ndi umeala, the merciful”, for those who have witnessed in word and deed to God’s love, for them and for others. _Ha e riela (taa, for now, in the present)! Look then at what they shall get in the future._

And to share in this happiness that goes beyond this realm of existence, Jesus, the Way himself, shows us the thousand little paths to follow which run through him:-the path of meekness, humility, mercy, struggle for justice and search for peace. There will not be several heavens (as it will seem to be the case if the gospel passage is taken literally), but each time, Jesus simply uses the virtues practised to demonstrate and name the reward that goes with each. The Way is Jesus Christ himself. But in this Way there are several lanes. These lanes or virtues give identity to those who take them.

And for those who are Persecuted for Righteousness/Justice; those who thirst for righteousness: Jesus spoke especially of those who are persecuted for the righteousness for which they fight for the benefit of others, knowing quite well that their happiness is intimately linked to that of others. They could not continue to have or celebrate feasts, eat to their hearts’ satisfaction when/while their neighbours are dying of hunger; they could not continue to dress comfortably when their neighbours die of cold. So they fight for justice to be done through the equitable distribution of resources knowing that the human community can always be improved. Yet, they know that here on earth there will never be perfect justice (as Communism had falsely hoped, preached and promised).

And “Blessed are the meek/Ha e riela bu ndi di umeala”: They are like reflections of God’s meekness. They will be begotten to the tenderness of God. They are as humble as Humus, lowly as this rich soil, that its richness gives life and fruitfulness in abundance. They will inherit the Promised Land which in our case is Heaven.

Blessed are the Poor at Heart: Rich or poor, their hearts are not dependent on things of this life. While they are here below, their hearts are already set in heaven and things of heaven. Daily and patiently, their confidence is in God! Heaven will finally be their heritage and reward. For such men stripped of everything, for whom the words “to have, to know, to be able” have no meaning, the essential remains: the verb “to love.”

Being humble is another way of saying “poor in spirit.” It does not mean being shy or self-conscious; rather, it means stepping aside to allow the beloved to exist more fully. It means knowing how to depend on another, not like a parasite taking advantage of a situation, but like a flower that needs the sun to bloom and blossom. The proud need no one, neither God nor others. It takes much more character to be humble and welcoming than to be strong and to crush people.

Blessed are the Pure at Heart: Their hearts are pure. Their eyes are pure. Their tongues are pure. Their bodies, their minds, and spirits are all pure. With this purity which they pursued and cultivated here below, they will see, they will touch, and they will taste God.

And for the merciful: those who understand the distress of others; those who understand the weight of guilt borne by offenders and strive to help free them from this burden of guilt even before they are asked to do so; those who understand that they themselves are weak, and thus are ready to forgive others their weaknesses and faults: They will be forgiven by God himself on the day they will be in need of forgiveness.

And for the Peacemakers; those who strive for peace among men; those who turn our wars into peace, our conflicts into harmony; our disagreements into agreements; those who strive to overcome conflicts among men even when they are not involved directly; As they act like God himself who is the God of Peace (in spite all the violence and harm that are done in his name), and for the pains they suffer in the course of peacemaking, they will finally be called the “Children of God”, for that is really what they are.

And for those who are Insulted and Persecuted because of Jesus: In life, sometimes persecution can happen, but one must ask himself questions: Why is one persecuted? Because of the good that he did? Or because of the evil that we have done? Because of Jesus or because of one’s failures? Many are persecuted for their attachment to Jesus and for the good they did. Living and experiencing these persecutions became thus for them, their way to Heaven.

In the film, Passion of Christ, after questioning Jesus in his courtroom at his trial, back at home, Pilate said to his wife; “This man spoke of the Truth, but what is my Truth?” What is the Truth in my life? That Truth which is beyond anyone’s gaze and guess, known only to me and to God? What is my Truth?

The Beatitudes proclaimed by Jesus in this text and in other pages of the Gospel should not be read too quickly as easy consolation, promising unexpected consolation later on. They also point to a path to happiness, starting here and now in the company of God, to blossom fully in heaven in front of God.

In the Beatitudes, everyone can find his way. What then is my way to God? For all of us, what are our ways to God? What virtues will define our little lanes in Christ who himself is the (High)Way to the Father? What can God with his grace accomplish in my life? What is my little path in the Highway that is, Christ?

St. Paul, in his letter to the Corinthians, gives us a lesson in humility. “Brothers,” he says, “you who have been called by God, take note: among you there are not many who are wise in the eyes of men, nor powerful or of noble birth”… May our pride be in the Lord, for he accomplishes his plan with those who are nothing! May our pride, our happiness, be to belong to God and to matter to him. Amen

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