Pope Benedict XVI and the Beatitudes

Pope Benedict XVI and the Beatitudes
In writing about the Beatitudes, Pope Benedict XVI discusses in depth how we are to act today as Catholics. He starts off by making it clear that the Beatitudes were not meant to make new commandments. Rather, they give us a deeper understanding of Christ’s teachings and the importance of each one. There are many reasons that Jesus phrases the Beatitudes in the way that He does. In order to understand each Beatitude, we must know the Jewish ancestry and the importance of certain words and groups of people in that day. Pope Benedict tells us that the Beatitudes are “situated within a long tradition of Old Testament teachings.”
The first Beatitude that Pope Benedict XVI writes about is the “poor in spirit.” Many people have a hard time understanding whether Jesus meant that the people who were “poor in spirit” were spiritually poor or physically poor. Pope Benedict helps us to understand that Jesus meant both. He compares the people who are poor to the common people of Jesus’ time. They were poor, yet they were mostly strong in their faith. However, the Pharisees and the Sadducees were considered publically as very holy and close to God. But, they were also are rich and wealth by taking the donations of the common people. Therefore, those who were seen as “poor in spirit” were poor people and common people who prayed quietly to God for their needs.
The second Beatitude that Pope Benedict writes about is “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth” (Mt 5:5). Similar to the first Beatitude, the people who are seen as meek are the common people who pray to God from their hearts and not as a show like the Pharisees and the Sadducees. One important note he makes is that the same word used by Moses for the meek was used in the Beatitudes. Another important thing that Pope Benedict brings up is how the people who were in power came and went. He stresses, however, that those who were meek were the ones who were able to prosper because they were let be in the midst of everything.
The third Beatitude that Pope Benedict talks about the Beatitudes is “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God” (Mt 5:9). A major point I feel is very important is that Pope Benedict established how God promised David that we will have peace in all of Israel’s days. He then goes on to show how Jesus is the Son of David. He therefore showed that Jesus is the peacemaker for all of Israel as the Son of David. Pope Benedicts also states that “Enmity with God is the source of all that poisons man; overcoming this enmity is the basic condition for peace in the world.” In this one powerful statement Pope Benedict hits the core of the Beatitudes.
The fourth Beatitude is about those who morn will be comforted (Mt 5:4). Pope Benedict establishes a good difference between the two types of mourning. The first type is when one has lost hope and it hurts and eats away the person. This is unhealthy. The other is the “mourning heals” mourning, which is healthy and needed. It is the mourning that changes oneself.
The fifth Beatitude that Jesus talks about is about being persecuted for the sake of righteousness (Mt 5:10). This Beatitude is very much connected with the previous Beatitude that the Pope talks about. Those who are persecuted are mourning in the healthy way. Therefore, they are comforted through Jesus and they are able to stay strong enough in the faith to be persecuted and not change their beliefs. Through this Beatitude we hope to achieve unity in Christ’s suffering and the eternal gifts granted to us through Christ’s love.
The last Beatitude that Pope Benedict talks about is “Blessed are the pure of heart, for they shall see God” (Mt 5:8). I think this is a crucial Beatitude. One must be pure and “capable of perceiving God” because without that his soul would be affected in a negative way. This would result in a person being unable to see God and make it harder to grow in love and communion with God.

OT verse Wedding at Cana

What connection is there between the Old Testament readings and the story of the wedding at Cana? Why do you suppose Jesus refers to Mary as a woman? How does Jesus’ miracle relate to Isaiah’s prophecy? What other connections do you find between the story of the miracle at Cana and the Old Testament readings?
In the Bible, there are always connections between the Old and the New Testaments. God continues to make covenants with His people throughout the Old Testament. In the New Testament, Jesus is the new and final covenant that God gives us. Realizing this is crucial to understanding what Jesus did throughout his lifetime. One example of the importance of reading the Old Testament is in the miracle at Cana.
The first connection between the Old Testament and the wedding at Cana is in Genesis 2. There are two main connections between these two stories in the Bible. The first connection is that Jesus calls Mary woman. Another place in the Bible where a man calls a woman this is Genesis 2:23. When Adam sees the girl, he calls her woman. The other connection made between these two stories is the wedding. In the wedding ceremony we are told that the man and woman become one flesh. In Genesis 2 we see that woman is made from man and therefore they together are of one flesh.
Another connection between the Old Testament and the wedding at Cana is the prophecy in Isaiah 61-62. One main point that God makes in Isaiah 62:8-9 is that he will not let their enemies drink their wine in His sanctuary. At the wedding at Cana, Mary asks Jesus to make more wine for the newly married couple’s guests. After some unwillingness, Jesus then takes the water and changes it to wine. He took the water from their jars and changed it to the wine in their house, their sanctuary. Similarly, in Isaiah it says that they will be able to drink their own wine made from themselves.
As these examples show, there is a strong connection between the Old and the New Testaments. Stories, such as the wedding at Cana, can only be understood fully through knowing the entire Bible. Jesus’ sermons and miracles can only truly be understood by understanding the history, which is reading the Old Testament. Without knowing what has happened, it is impossible to what God is trying to tell us in scripture.

The People Who have Influenced Me the Most

The People who have Influenced Me the Most
Everyday people enter one’s life. Some people only step into the hallway of your life. They come in and talk, but never really get to know you. Others come in and stay with you for awhile. They eat, drink, sleep, and talk with you. As the relationship strengthens they start to have a continuous presence in your life and what they do each and every day impacts you. In my life there have been four people who have influenced every decision I make. When I need help getting through something, I know I can go to them for a smile or a laugh. These people are four of my five brothers.

As the oldest child, I was able to see my brothers grow up and change. I got to know my brothers so well when I was playing with them on the floor. I enjoyed that so much because of the sheer look of joy and happiness always on their face. All I wanted to do was make sure that they were okay and that no one would hurt them. I became their protector and tried to make sure that they were going to be okay. Whenever we went to the doctors, I would see them cry as they endured their medical tests. It would hurt me to see them suffer because I knew I would not be able to take the pain away. As I got older, it was even harder to protect them. All I could do was make sure that when they were done with the tests to hold them and make sure they knew I loved them.

However, as they got older and the medical situations got worse, it was harder for me to protect them. I would feel that I had let them down as their older sister and protector because I could not protect them from the pain that they were going through. But, it was during this part of our journey together that I learned the most from them. The first one to go down the harder road was the fourth oldest, Daniel. After the third time of going to the emergency room, he was admitted into the hospital for about two and a half weeks. During this time I had a really hard time being okay with all the tests that he was going through. My mom would stay with him at the hospital and the rest of us would go visit him as much as possible. One thing that I always noticed was how, even when he was in pain, he would smile and laugh and communicate with us. It was during these times that I learned that if the people who are going through the most can get through life with a smile, so can I.

The following year, both Michael and Christopher started going down the same road that Daniel had already started down. I noticed that, although they were going through so much physical pain, they were still the happiest people I have ever been around. Even though Simon has not reached the age in which the rest of the boys’ physical skills weakened, I know that he will be just as strong as the other three boys. The boys, even after everything they have gone through and will go through, still help me to be happy and thankful throughout the hardest parts of life.

These four people have shown me the most valuable lessons in life. They have made me smile and be strong even during the hardest hours. Although I do not know how long they will be here on earth with me, nothing will be able to change how much they influenced my life as a person. They have shown me how to enjoy life for as long as we have it and also to be optimistic even when it is very hard. No matter how hard life seems to be or what I may be going through, my brothers will always be there to share a smile and lend an ear when I need them. That is why they have had the most influence on me.

How does Genesis 22 foreshadow the work of Christ in the New Testament?

How does Genesis 22 foreshadow the work of Christ in the New Testament?
In the Bible, from the beginning, there has always been stories that have foreshadowed God coming down to earth and becoming man to save us from our sins. One story that foreshadows the work of Christ is in Genesis 22. This story is the story of when God asks Abraham to give his only son, Isaac, as a sacrifice to God. Although Abraham deeply loved his son and was saddened by this, he was ready to give anything to God. There are a few things, in particular, that foreshadow Christ’s work in the New Testament. These include God asking for Abraham’s only son and Isaac carrying his own wood on his back.
First, in this story God calls Abraham to him and asks him to take his only son to a mountain called Moriah. Then God told Abraham to take Isaac and sacrifice him as a burnt offering to the Lord. As hard as this was for Abraham to do, he took his son the next morning and started for the long walk to the mountain Moriah. This part of the story foreshadows God taking it upon himself and sacrificing His only son who He loved and giving him to us as an offering to Himself. God the Father gave us God the Son to die as an offering to God in atonement for our sins.
The second part of the story that foreshadows the work of Christ shown in the New Testament is when Abraham asks Isaac to carry the wood for the offering. When Abraham and Isaac arrived at the foot of the mountain, Abraham and Isaac left the servants that came with them and continued on alone. Abraham asked Isaac to carry the wood for the rest of their journey. Starting at the foot of the mountain, Isaac carried the wood upon which he was to die. Similarly, when Jesus was going to be crucified, he also carried the wood on which he was crucified to the site where he was to die. Isaac foreshadows Christ’s carrying of the cross.
This story in Genesis shows us that although God asks a lot from us, He will never ask us to do something that He would not be willing to do Himself. This scripture has normally been hard for me to read because I would always wonder why God would ask Abraham to offer his only son to Him. However, looking at this story in context of the entire Bible, this story shows me that God loved us enough to give us his only son as a sacrifice and in atonement for the sins of the entire world. Foreshadowed by God asking for Abraham’s only son and Isaac’s carrying of the wood, we see that God cared so much for us that as soon as we fell from Him, He found a way to bring us back.

My Favorite Song's Influence on Me

Music has been a great way of communicating for as long as anyone can tell. Through music people can explain every type of feeling that humans experience. In today’s culture music is one of the most common forms of communication. People can express many different feelings as well as their opinions about society and life. A lot of the time a person can tell how someone is feeling by the type of music they are listening to at that time. One song that I have become particularly moved by is “The World’s Greatest” that is sung by R. Kelly. This is my favorite song because it gives me a sense of hope and belonging.
This song represents what I hope others will be able to see in me. When I hear this song it helps me to be the hope that the world needs to become better even in the toughest situations. I hope that when people look back at my life they think of this song to describe me. Another reason why I think this song gives a sense of hope is because it is in first person. When a person sings along with this song they are saying that they want to be that person who can make a difference. This song also shows an example of what being the leader and being a person of strong character means by giving others hope. In this song it talks about being a mountain and a tall tree. In my experience, when people see things like these they look up. Most people look up to leaders and to those who they respect. Therefore, I feel that this song represents the people who make a difference and those that they changed because of it.
When listening to this song it reminds me of a group of people thinking about someone who has led them through tough times and tribulations. It seems to be that the vision of the writer was to be someone who truly influenced the world. A leader like this would give his or her followers a sense of belonging and friendship that he or she might not be able to find otherwise. I think this song would be a great song to meditate on when thinking about JP Catholic’s mission. This is mainly because by choosing to come and be a part of this school, we have decided to be the leaders who will lead this world to a better place.
Listening to this song gives me a sense of hope and belonging that I probably would not have otherwise. When I hear the song it makes me realize that I can be the hope that this world needs. I am a true believer that it only takes one person to change this world. With this song repeating in my mind, I will strive to give hope and strength to those who would otherwise not receive it.