The Way to Blessing

Jesus began his "Sermon on the Mount" with a list of beatitudes, ways to be blessed and live in a state of exalted happiness. They are nine brief, yet life-changing, concepts. The main reason the beatitudes are transformative is because they take our focus off our personal problems, our immediate wants and how we have been wronged, and they force us to look at the notion we should not demand mercy and justice for ourselves, but we must never cease to give mercy and justice to others. We should not demand our own rights be upheld, perhaps giving us more time to stand up for the rights of those who are weak or oppressed.
 
The beatitudes promote ideas which many of us struggle to implement in our lives because they go against common mindsets within our society of what it takes to get ahead in life: self-reliance, wealth and power, for example. Instead, we are instructed to be gentle, merciful, pure in heart, peaceful and "poor in spirit," which is often interpreted to mean not placing confidence in our own religious ideas, but relying on God's greater strength to help us overcome adversity. When we mourn, we will be comforted. When we hunger and thirst for righteousness (virtuousness), we will be satisfied.
 
Finally, when our beliefs are challenged, when we are insulted for following Jesus, when false accusations are made against us because of him, we are to recognize this is the way the secular world has always viewed religious principles, and we shouldn't spend the precious time we've been given worrying about what people say about us. The more violently we defend ourselves, the further away we get from the blessings of the beatitudes.
 
If everyone in the world practiced the ideas in the beatitudes, then God's kingdom would be fully present here and now. If every person in the United States lived by these standards, our country would be changed completely. If churches were devoted to these words of Jesus, denominations would not be dwindling. And it starts with each of us deciding to find our own happiness in living out these concepts, thereby becoming a blessing to all we encounter. Happy people help bring happiness to others.

While I've Been Away

It's been nearly three weeks of (mostly) staying away from reading anything on Facebook. When notifications show up in my inbox, I have usually checked in to see what's going on with wall posts and messages, but I have stopped reading most status updates, and I have commented very little. This morning, I spent a bit of time catching up. I discovered I miss many of my friends, but others....not so much. I almost posted something on a friend's status (he had shared something blatantly false), but I refrained, as it would have, no doubt, been construed as political. Because his post was anti-Obama, my pointing out the falsehood of the item would have been taken as a pro-Obama stance on my part. There is no point in me trying to convince him my problem is with the lie, not his political stance. (I know because I've tried.)

And that's one thing I probably should have made clear when I posted my initial "tirade" on September 3. The super-negative comments I referred to, the ones where reason and integrity seem not to be present, are never (or extremely rarely) connected to my blog posts. They are in conversations I've had on some of my friends' threads. Many of those exchanges are entirely pointless, as I'm arguing with those who are not open-minded enough to consider any view other than their own narrow focus. The friends I have who read and comment on my blog topics are wonderful, and even when disagreeing with my opinion, my blog readers are thoughtful and, almost without exception, reasonable.

And there's something else I've come to realize in the weeks I've been away; many people who read what I post (on my status updates and on other threads) likely think I'm writiing political commentary, when most generally, I am not. I think anyone would be hard-pressed to find more than a handful of comments I've made, anywhere, which are about political issues/the direction of our government. You see, I believe in the separation of church and state, so when I write things which might seem (shockingly, I'm sure, to many) to show my support of socialism, for instance, it doesn't have much to do with my stance on government. When I point out our individual responsibilities, my comments are not directed at those who claim no religious affiliation. 

What I blog about is (again with rare exceptions, I suppose) how those who call themselves Christians, believers in God or followers of Jesus, Jehovah, Mohammad, Buddha, Krishna, etc., live out our faith in the world.  How do we put the needs of others ahead of our own? How do we take care of the most vulnerable in society? How do we treat the "least of these"? It's about personal priorities and responsibilities within the context of our spirituality, not within a governmental framework. I do have political opinions, but they are complex and often-changing, quite honestly. I am neither a Democrat, nor am I a Republican. Politically, I am probably the ultimate flip-flopper.

Do a quick search of how much money is spent yearly on cigarettes, perfume, pet care, sodas or bottled water, for example, and it should become readily apparent there is more than enough wealth in the hands of individuals and the private sector to take care of the world's needs. (Examine how the super-rich spend their money, and it's even more sobering.) If each and every one of us lived simply, concentrating on necessities for ourselves and others, then politics wouldn't matter much at all. In fact, I don't think it really matters as much as many of us think it does now.

Easy Choices

For most people, myself included, it's difficult to pass up a cookie in favor of cauliflower. Even though I like cauliflower, I like cookies more. Our preferences, most generally, lean toward choosing what's not so good for us over what is convenient or tastes sweet or salty, whatever our weakness is. It takes a concerted effort to get into the habit of eating better on a regular basis and saving less healthy options for occasional treats. We're all aware of the physical consequences of easy food choices.

As for mindset choices, pessimism is usually an easier route than optimism. Many of us can slip right into thinking the worst of every situation without even trying, and there goes the whole day, given over to a bad mood. Optimism, however, will often take effort. Some days, it might take every ounce of strength we've got to not let the worst get the best of us. 

Likewise, worrying is naturally easy for most people. The more difficult choice is to relax and keep the faith, recognizing to fret does no good, and, in fact, does us harm, as stress is a major cause of many illnesses and conditions.  

These easy choices mostly affect our personal health and welfare, but many other choices affect those around us, especially our choice to judge the actions of others. It seems to be far more difficult to give others the benefit of the doubt, to consider there might be at least one more thing to know about a person or a circumstance which would change our opinion about what's happening. I recently made a decision based on assumptions which were totally off-base. Fortunately, I took a moment to confront the situation, found out I was wrong, had to swallow my pride and apologize for jumping to wrong conclusions. 

And there's the rub with most easy choices. They appear easy at the outset, but the consequences are often unpleasant. Whereas, choosing the difficult path upfront will almost always make our lives easier in the long run. Jesus had much to say about the importance of making the right choice even when it was tough to do. The Way he taught is marked by living simply, but we all know simple and easy can be two different things.

Our Cultural Legacy

What will be the cultural legacy of the current church to future generations? When thinking about the spectacular works of art, the classic inspirational music and the enduring literature created by those in centuries past who were seeking to honor God with their talents, I wonder how the creative impulses of today's Christians will be remembered.

Many congregations seem to be squarely attached to strict religious traditions without embracing the possibility that artistic creativity can still be a part of the search for God. Other churches imitate a secular model in an effort to reach out to an audience entrenched in pop culture. I would not presume to say either way, or any other, is incorrect. How any of us chose to worship is up to each individual.

I am concerned, however, that cultural pursuits are not being embraced and encouraged in most church settings, with the end result being a new generation of artists, composers and writers who are often searching for divine inspiration, yet not seeking to glorify what is holy with masterpieces of a religious nature. Where are the 21st century equivalents of the Sistine Chapel, Handel's "Messiah" and the works of John Bunyan or C.S. Lewis?

When churches try to fit into either a strict Americanized religious mold, often with no room for creative expression, or adapt to society's worldly norm, it seems both approaches are missing an opportunity. Perhaps instead of attempting to shape what is spiritual into something either conventional, or on the other side, cool and  relevant, Christians should make a fervent attempt to express what is sacred in a manner which will stir the imagination in fresh and remarkable ways.

There is certainly enough ugliness to be found almost anywhere we look. I would challenge the Church to show love in the world by doing its part to bring beauty into all we do. If we believe following Jesus is an extraordinary way of life, shouldn't our creative endeavors go beyond the ordinary? The world is more ready than ever to replace the mundane with magnificence.