During his life on earth Jesus gave a sermon on a mount throughout which he informed the people listening of a list of ‘beatitudes’. The beatitudes are the objective of human actuality and the purpose for all our acts. Christ implies that if we live according to the beatitudes that we will experience the happiness of heaven in this life.
Each beatitude asks something different of us, some being harder to carry out than others, however, every single one of them is achievable and can be demonstrated on different scales. A modernization of each beatitudes could be done like this.
1. “Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
To be poor in spirit, despite the way it sounds is not to be lacking motivation or initiative but rather it refers to displaying traits such as modesty and humility both towards other beings and towards God. This particular beatitude asks that we as humans show modesty towards one another and towards God through our actions, speech and thoughts. We can be humble towards others by doing simple tasks such as volunteering our time to benefit others who may not be as fortunate as us. Even in doing something simple such as praying for others we are putting their needs before ours and are thus being humble. Even through prayer we recognise our need for God and thus again are demonstrating humbleness.
2. “Blessed are they who mourn, for they shall be comforted.”
Mourning is not just confined for the death of a person but can be extended to such things as a job lost or the breakup of a relationship. This second beatitude asks us to be concerned about the pain and suffering of others no matter how small we may see it to be. When we take the time to care for those who may have lost a loved...
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...is life? We may not know what’s out there, beyond this world and beyond the infinite number of galaxies and universes, which dwell out of our reach. However, what we do know is this, the only things that are guaranteed in life are the present and the knowledge that one day each life will reach an inevitable end. We will all choose to take different routes in life with different careers and goals. We will all grow to accomplish different things and each of these will play an important role in the big picture of life.
No matter where we are from, what culture we choose to cultivate or what our beliefs are - at the heart of it all, is that we are all human beings who have ambitions and aspirations to live life to its fullest. And we should not allow political, religious or cultural differences to cause conflicts that only bring sorrow and destruction to our world.
As in the stages of change, pre-contemplation or denial is followed by the slow understanding that a profound alteration in our lives is occurring. In this early stage, Deits encourages the reader to focus on the immediate personal needs of the grief stricken. Early in this pr...
In spite the basic requirements for human’s survival, personal relationships should be added because not many people are able to function well without intimate relationship with other people or valuable things. Due to this fact, grief occurs when there is a loss either through death, divorce, and theft or when something valuable to an individual can no longer be reached. Grief is that period of time when loss is felt acutely, and the feelings of loss are still very raw to the person. This paper is based on the book of Lament for a Son which was written by Nicholas Wolterstorff, a collection of narratives by this author who is going through grief due to the premature death of his 25 years old son, Eric, who died by an accident when climbing
...an inspire us to overcome in every situation; to pursue our callings relentlessly, knowing that he that hath begun a good work in us will perform it until the day of our Lord Christ Jesus!
The chapter on the Beatitudes, Yancey covers a great deal of information that shows how Jesus cares for the less fortunate and humble. Yancey points out that the Beatitudes describe the present and future, a fact that I never realized. He tells of how they are a contrast on how we can succeed in the kingdom of Heaven verses the kingdom...
In the Gospel of Matthew eight blessings are recorded that we know as the “Beatitudes”.
The feelings of loss, or the void of a distant love are both attached to forms of grieving, and are symbolically tied to darkness, melancholy, and other negative things. The loss of a loved one, either to death, distance, or disagreement results in distress that often is expressed in many different ways. Solitude, longing, woe, and lament are the usual results of lovesickness, or grieving, and are forms of dealing with a loss of a relationship either physically, mentally, or both. When first reading “Zero Degrees” by Elizabeth Spires, my initial image was of the upcoming winter; cold, dark and long. The image of a person lamenting the absence of a loved one during a cold night, where the bedding itself is a reminder of what is lacking evokes feelings of solitude and sadness. These concepts all express a lack, or a void, something as humans we all strive to fill, and in the process, fear. In this essay I will look to uncover how ”Zero Degrees” conveys the concept of void and mourning in the context of relationships and nature.
Though most have a desire to leave earth and enter eternal life peacefully, without any sorrow, the departure of a loved one can be despondent. Previously in 2011, my grandfather passed away due to heart failure. It was an arduous battle, not only for my grandfather, but also for the close knit family surrounding him. His battle with heart failure enabled me to create unforgettable memories with him, even in his final days. Laughing together, playing together and learning significant values about life together made me grow to become a more mature and wise person. Therefore, my personal experience is entwined with empathy because the death of my grandfather has made me realize how dismal it is to lose someone important. It also interplays with self-interest because I have grown as an individual to deal with the ache that is attached to losing a family member. It has helped me to realize how beautiful the gift of life is. Stephen Dunn, the poet behind Empathy and my story are connected because they both involve the feeling of empathy for others and the self-interest of an individual. They help us to grow and learn about ourselves and the emotions of
has nothing; But the soul of the diligent shall be made rich. (Proverbs 13:4, KJV). The key word
“Every part of my body hurts. Except my heart. I saw no one, but, strange as it was, I missed no one” (Strayed 70). This takes a turn of events. “Every part of my body hurts, except my heart,” gives new meaning and how Strayed manages to gain emotional stability in the wake of her mothers’ death, and illness. This shows great strength in regards that she rises above the obstacles thrown in her path--the feeling of what it means to be alive. This work invites and informs the reader of the many ways one can cope with loss; moreover, Strayed demonstrates what what may work for everyone--the method of sublimation.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.” (Women's Devotional Bible, Matthew 5.3) In today’s world we don’t associate the word poor with blessed, in any fashion. Whether we are talking about life in general or a person’s spirit we think blessed are the rich. Today’s culture does not celebrate a person who needs help. We have adopted the “I can do it myself” attitude. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that God helps those who help themselves, yet we hear that phrase all the time. Being poor in spirit means that you are at a point where you are broke, you can’t fix your problems and you have to ask for help. That is hard for people when you live in a world where we are all about appearing like we have it all together. If a person tries to do it all themselves, they run the risk of becoming frustrated and worn out instead of blessed. When you reach the end of your rope and turn it over to God that is when you’ll find your hidden blessing.
During some point any many lives, someone had lost a loved one and weren’t sure how to properly mourn for them. Their death led to a path of agony and despair for the living that can’t handle to feel as their emotions died as well. It’s always hard to accept that the one you love is gone, but reality takes a stab at you telling you to wake up. In Emily Dickinson’s “After Great Pain” piece, she examines the series of steps every person has gone through now or in the future.
The universe, and what it means to be alive is almost impossible to define; yet that does not stop humanity from trying. “Lonergan’s philosophy of the human person reveals that being human means having an unlimited number and variety of questions about life and the universe.” (Morgan, 1996). There is no limit on the number and variety of questions the human person will ask, "the most subversive people are those who ask questions” (Gaarder), as a result there are many varied and opinionated answers. This essay will explore three different theories on how one might find answers to life's ultimate questions. At one point or another, every human being has asked the question why: Why am I here? What is my purpose? What is the point? It is in our nature as human beings to reason, to think, to ask, it is what separates us from the rest of creation, and with this ability to reason, we are left with one question: Why? Throughout history many have tried to answer this question, some have come to the conclusion that meaning is found through God, and one’s faith. Others feel that life begins meaningless, and it is up to the individual to give life meaning; then there are those who believe that life has no meaning, and we are all essentially, just waiting to die, "The meaning of life is that it ends." (Kafka).
Imagine that the person you love most in the world dies. How would you cope with the loss? Death and grieving is an agonizing and inevitable part of life. No one is immune from death’s insidious and frigid grip. Individuals vary in their emotional reactions to loss. There is no right or wrong way to grieve (Huffman, 2012, p.183), it is a melancholy ordeal, but a necessary one (Johnson, 2007). In the following: the five stages of grief, the symptoms of grief, coping with grief, and unusual customs of mourning with particular emphasis on mourning at its most extravagant, during the Victorian era, will all be discussed in this essay (Smith, 2014).
Jesus teaches us the eight attitudes. These attitudes or beatitudes explain that we are to live differently than the world for Christ’s sake. Blessed means happy. So when these attributes become part of us God is pleased and we are blessed. The beatitudes are to be poor in spirit, mourn for sin, be meek, and to hunger and thirst for righteousness. We are to be merciful, pure in heart, and peacemakers. When we follow Christ in this manner we may become persecuted for our faith, but this too becomes a blessing and we will receive a heavenly reward.
Living in a diverse world should be something a person should be proud of. Getting to know a person’s culture and their beliefs should be a wonderful ability. Respecting one another is important, even though a lot of people still disregard that, which should discontinue. We should all start to learn how to make this world a better place,