The Catholic Calendar for Monday, June 12, 2006
Monday of the Tenth Week in Ordinary Time

Scripture from today's Liturgy of the Word:
1 Kings 17:1-6
Psalm 121:1-8
Matthew 5:1-12

A reflection on today's Sacred Scripture:

We are all familiar with the thousands of self-help books that top bestseller lists each year, promising everything from wealth, to health and to happiness in a prescribed number of easy steps. When trying to achieve a formidable goal, it is beneficial to have a well-defined, simple step-by-step approach to help guide us in the right direction. And that is what the Beatitudes in today's Gospel do for the followers of Christ. They basically define the core values of what it means to be Christians and reflect on motivations behind our mission. For Jesus did not merely speak the Beatitudes but lived them while He was on earth as an example for all of us to follow.

What does it mean to be "blessed"? Many dictionaries give the definition of "having the favor of God." And how can we achieve this? The Beatitudes tell us that we should not seek to eliminate every kind of hardship in life, but should instead center our efforts around our duties to God and our neighbour first. The Beatitudes also remind us that it is through life's struggles that we often encounter the grace of God. The Beatitudes also call for our continual conversion in order to bring about God's Kingdom of truth, life, holiness, grace, justice, love and peace into our world. But in addition to incorporating all the challenging characteristics of what it is to be a disciple of Jesus, the Beatitudes also include the promise of hope and an invitation to "rejoice and be glad." For if the reign of God is to be ours we must have faith in God's complete and undying love for us, and place our complete trust in Him.

"[The] Beatitudes . . . mark the path of the following of Christ and the royal road to spiritual maturity and freedom." - Pope John Paul II

- Anne
(anne97 at gmail dot com)