Purity of heart' beatitude is at the core of what we need in this country
In fact, a good deal of the Bible can easily
be dismissed as foreign to the modern world. So much of every book of the Bible
is in need of interpretation in a world of digital icons and multiple
translations, not to mention the very archeology of the place.
On every page, something cries out for
cultural, social or historical explanations. As in, what exactly is a burning
bush or a sea of reeds or the vizier of the pharaoh. Some people let that kind
of information go by. Others study most of their lives, one Scripture after
another, to apply thousands of years of the spiritual life to this one. And, to
tell the truth, all of that is an enriching and soul-stretching exercise.
But not everything in Scripture lies behind a
plexiglass of uncertainty, of confusion and ancient script. Not, for instance,
in the first six Beatitudes of Jesus.
On the contrary, the Beatitudes have a very
clear place in life. Anybody's life
anywhere. Yours, mine, the Iraqi refugee next door. The Jewish and Black and
Asian home or convenience store or political implications down the street. The
Beatitudes are not a denominational code of professional religion. They are the
about the parameters of what it means to be equally human, always needy,
forever aware of what it is to be one of the "children
of God."
The Beatitudes of Jesus are easy to spot. They
make sense. They provide a veritable way of life for those who take them
seriously.
Justice, mercy, meekness, peacemaking,
mourning and righteousness — the first six Beatitudes of Jesus — are easy to
spot. They are not just aphorisms, pretty prayers or a recitation piece.
The Beatitudes are verbs. They set out to do
things. They change us and everything around us. In fact, to be real at all,
they require a very public demonstration of very important dimensions of life.
We're either
fair and just with people — or we're not —
and if we are not, they know when they're being
exploited.
Being merciful to others eases their lives and helps them to start over in life
with dignity, with their sins forgiven and life renewed.
Humility makes us
comfortable when we're out of our comfort
zones. It takes our differences and turns them into a family of equals. It
forbids the oppression of others and prods us to speak the truths of life at
all times.
When we grieve for people
in the midst of their hardship or losses, we take them out of their deserts of
loneliness and give them a new sense of life when life goes dry and
empty.
Most of all, the righteous rejection
of evil and our commitment to the needs of others is the glue that brings
families, neighborhoods, the world together.
Indeed, the Beatitudes of Jesus change the
very core of life.
Jesus did not preach the Beatitudes as lulling
examples of soft poetry, though poetry they are. They are within us, the steel
spine of life. They hold us up through everything. They enable us to build a
new world around us. They are here to enable us to hold up the weakness of the
human race, and remind us that we are the co-creators of a world in pain just
waiting for us to notice it. Near us. With us. In our own backyards. And with
all those others, as well.
Good. But what about the seventh beatitude? Happy
are the "pure of heart
for they shall see God"? Now that's
something else entirely.
Being "pure
of heart" is not satisfied by physical behaviors or mere acts of public
charity. It has nothing to do with changing my behavior in a way that will make
you comfortable or give you security or contribute to your physical well-being.
Or even if it does, I will never know why you did it. You see, the seventh
beatitude is all about motives. Mine.
Jesus is very clear about that when he
confronts the scribes and Pharisees, saying, "You
brood of vipers and hypocrites. You tell the people that they are no longer
bound to care for their elderly parents" — a major ethical principle of
Judaism — provided they now make an offering, or korban, to the
keepers of the Temple instead.
So, what are these religious officials doing
here? Is the intention to see that the older generation is cared for or to make
money for the Temple itself? Listen carefully: The deal is that the religious
obligation of the children can now be met by paying the Temple officials the
money rather than using it for the direct caring of their parents. Clearly the
motive is toxic. Whatever good may be done on the side this way — though Jesus
doesn't name any — the fact is that it was not done for the right reason. Clever, indeed.
In fact, purity of heart has to do with
intentionality, with why I really do things. With my motives. With the real
reason for what I do, which, however good it makes me look on the outside, may
indeed be poisonous on the inside.
Being "pure
of heart," is not an obsolete factor in the spiritual life. In fact, it
seems to be the very core of what we need in this country right now but are
finding so difficult to determine.
Why are congressional
representatives, for instance, continuing
to declare Donald Trump's lie that this legally honest presidential election was stolen from him,
was actually a fraud, was taken from him by all sorts of nefarious and
nonexistent evidence? Why? Because they actually believe it? Or because they
will do anything to cater to Trump enough to receive his endorsement of their
own election? But which is it: a hidden political gain or a genuine commitment
to the good of the nation?
Have these leaders of ours been fooled, too —
or are they simply pulling the strings of Trump's
paranoia for their own good? It's an
important question. After all, the integrity of the country is at stake.
Which, in that case, means that the country
will be sending liars to Congress consciously, foolishly, and with what credentials
to prove that they are really operating in our best interest?
And if we ourselves do not call those motives
out, who will be the real fools in the end: Trump? Trumpers? Republican shills
who want the seat more than they want honest government, a good future, a just
system? The Lexico Dictionary calls the shill "an accomplice of a
confidence trickster or swindler who poses as a genuine customer to entice or
encourage others."
Their dishonesty lies in the fact that it's all for their own sake, for the sake of a
congressional seat they intend to win even if they have to lie to get it.
The national spiritual malignancy lies in
this: Those who will lie to you to get your support will lie to you when they
get it, as well. Their seat will not be for your good. Not for your sake. Not
for the sake of the welfare of the country. Not to make the country, the
future, the children of tomorrow secure.
No, what the shill does is whatever the shill
must do to reap the harvest for their own benefit. And when lying is for their
own good, they will do it to you again.
From where I stand, it seems to me that of all
the Beatitudes we're in need of at this
moment in time, purity of heart may be the one that the political, social,
moral dimension of the government may be in need of most. If the preservation
of the Constitution, the commitment to democratic principles, the integrity of its
representatives is not central, what will be?
Only purity of heart can save us now. A
precious few have stood to call out the lie.
As Jesus said later, "Where are the others?"
A Benedictine Sister of Erie, Pennsylvania, Joan Chittister is a
best-selling author and well-known international lecturer on topics of justice,
peace, human rights, women's issues and contemporary spirituality in the church
and in society.
Excerpted from NCR
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