Blessed Are You
Fourth Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
Read this Gospel passage aloud to the family
Matthew 5:1-12- When Jesus saw the crowds, he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. He began to teach them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clean of heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely because of me.
Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven.”
(Parent) Reread this part a few times aloud
“He began to teach them, saying: ‘Blessed...’”
(Parent) Read this meditation aloud to the family
This may come as a surprise, but God wants us happy, immensely happy. Among other things, this is what “blessed” means. Maybe we have heard the beatitudes translated as, “Happy are the poor in spirit...” instead of, “Blessed are the poor in spirit…” To be blessed means to be happy. We may have heard before that the very first sentence of the whole Catechism of the Catholic Church—the summary of the teachings of our Faith—speaks of happiness. It states that God is infinitely perfect and happy in Himself. This means He has no need of us (or anything) to improve Him, His situation, or His happiness. So, then, why would God ever create mankind? God made us for our own sake, for our own benefit. God thought of and created mankind with a huge potential for happiness. And the way we fulfill this potential for happiness is by sharing in God’s own happiness and God’s own life. God wants to share His happiness with us. The whole journey of our life is learning to let Him bless us.
What the beatitudes here remind us, because many of them (like mourning, hunger, persecution) at first look don’t seem like blessings, is that it is God that will make us happy, and that He can do this in any situation.
As a family, pray a portion of the Rosary together (very short if children are young) reflecting on the Scripture passage above. (Optional: allow a brief time for discussion or questions from children concerning their thoughts and prayer.)
