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Our focus for the next few weeks is on the words of Jesus we call “the Sermon on the Mount.” Up to now, in Matthew’s gospel, we have read about Jesus’ genealogy, Jesus’ birth, the visit of the Magi (Wise Ones), the flight and return from Egypt, the baptism of Jesus by John in the Jordan, the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness, the beginning of Jesus’ healing and teaching ministry, his calling of the disciples and his growing fame.
But so far, other than proclaiming the same message as John (“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near”), we haven’t heard much from Jesus. The beginning of the Sermon on the Mount, what we call the Beatitudes, is our initial encounter with this Rabbi, this special One, we have decided to follow.
Jesus could have started the way John did, preaching hellfire and brimstone—“You brood of vipers!” Jesus could have listed all the things that were wrong with society, wrong with the religious authorities, wrong with each and every one of us.
The poet Thom Shuman imagines what Jesus could have said in “Baditudes.”
baditudes
i could come carrying the
ashes
of my arrogance,
handing them to
you,
waiting expectantly
(just ignore the tap, tap, tap
of my foot)
for you to
recycle them into a plaque
with my name etched in
bronze;
i could come
with crocodile tears
(running down my cheeks)
about how the world
operates,
even as i continue
to gain
from the predicaments
of others;
i could come sitting down
at the table reserved
in the quiet corner,
ordering the special of the day:
filet of bias (medium well),
mashed meanness,
a medley of injustices sauteed
in herb butter,
followed by apple pie
ala marred.
or
i could simply follow the
Blesseds,
carefully placing
my feet in the
tracks
they leave behind
in the muck and mud,
as they wander through that
kingdom
they can see
with their eyes shut
tight.
© 2011 Thom M. Shuman
Jesus started with Blessings. And not just any blessings, but turn-the-world upside-down blessings. I’m pretty sure before Jesus started to talk that those who were poor in spirit, or mourning, or meek, or hungering and thirsting for righteousness felt this was a blessing.
From the very beginning, Jesus had a message that said “God is with you—where you are, who you are, how you are.” This was a message for everyone, but especially for those who might have been “Lost, Lonely, Last, Least, and Left-out” as Barry Black, the chaplain of the Senate reminded us during the Inaugural luncheon.
What would it mean for us to begin each day with blessing? What would it mean for our church to have blessing as our first priority? What would it mean for our world if we could see, could find, could lift-up blessing rather than curse? Blessing rather than complaint? Blessing rather than chaos?
In your bulletin there is a sheet of paper with seven blessings—Depend on God, God will comfort you, Be gentle, Live God’s ways, Be kind, Heart that sees God, God’s peacemaker. I invite you to take your sheet home, cut it apart, maybe even put the pieces on an index card or rewrite it—make it your own. Each day, pick a card (seven cards for seven days of the week!), and try (with God’s help) to live/know that blessing that day.
To start us on that journey, I’d like you to imagine that You are one of those who has climbed the hillside, and gathered close to hear Jesus—listen for his first words to you, as reimagined by Eugene Peterson in “The Message.”
“You’re blessed when you’re at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.
4 “You’re blessed when you feel you’ve lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.
5 “You’re blessed when you’re content with just who you are—no more, no less. That’s the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can’t be bought.
6 “You’re blessed when you’ve worked up a good appetite for God. He’s food and drink is the best meal you’ll ever eat.
7 “You’re blessed when you care. At the moment of being ‘care-full,’ you find yourselves cared for.
8 “You’re blessed when you get your inside world—your mind and heart—put right. Then you can see God in the outside world.
9 “You’re blessed when you can show people how to cooperate instead of compete or fight. That’s when you discover who you really are, and your place in God’s family.
10 “You’re blessed when your commitment to God provokes persecution. The persecution drives you even deeper into God’s kingdom.
11-12 “Not only that—count yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens—give a cheer, even!—for though they don’t like it, I do! And all heaven applauds. And know that you are in good company. My prophets and witnesses have always gotten into this kind of trouble.
May we know how blessed we are as children of God,
Alleluia, Amen.
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