Word to the Wise
Sunday, February 1, 2026 - 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time - A
[Zeph 2:3; 3:12-13; 1 Cor 1:26-31; Matt 5:1-12a]God chose the foolish of the world to shame the wise, and God chose the weak of the world to shame the strong, and God chose the lowly and despised of the world, those who count for nothing, to reduce to nothings those who are something, so that no human being might boast before God. [1 Corinthians] "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...... [Matthew]
The gospel scripture for this Sunday contains the beginning of the Sermon on the Mount from the Gospel According to Matthew. Jesus is depicted as a kind of "new Moses" who takes up the teacher's position on a mountain to proclaim the fulfillment of the Law of Moses. He begins with the "Beatitudes" which challenge us to realize what true Judaeo-Christian identity and integrity mean. They are not meant to exalt a given state of being but to call attention to the care and attention that we should give to those who are "poor in Spirit, meek, mournful, hungry, etc.. After reading the Beatitudes, one might profitably go, in this same gospel, to chapter 25:31-45 to see, even more concretely, what Jesus is challenging us to do. It is not simply a list of activities, but an entire attitude of faith. I heard one preacher speak of it as a "BE-attitude."
The familiarity of the beatitudes can cause us to let them get past us. The enormous amount of suffering in the world can be too much to contemplate. But each of us lives in a particular place and set of circumstances that reflect the challenges of the beatitudes. How do we respond to these challenges? The Sermon on the Mount will go on to give some very big challenges. Chapters 5-7 of the Gospel According to Matthew are virtually a catechism of Judeao-Christian life. The danger is in an attitude of "Yes, yes! I've heard/read it all before!" The Sermon on the Mount is not simply a "code of law" but a way of being in which we see others as Christ would see them - to have "the mind of Christ." [1 Cor. 2:16]. AMEN