Then Jesus began to speak,
and taught them, saying:
“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."
(from Matthew 5:1-12)
To say the least, I am greatly disturbed by the videos of the Memphis police beating Tyre Nichols.
I am heartbroken as I watched his mother passionately talk about his life and the type of person he was.
Analysts discussing the videos not only highlighted the violence, but also the culture that assumes a Black person means trouble.
Tyre Nichols followed the teachings for people of color being stopped for a traffic violation: be calm, do as the police say, and you will be okay.
What is it that God has to say about episodes like these?
God speaks through Jesus' Beatitudes beginning with either "blessed" or "happy".
I am wondering how on earth was Tyre Nichols blessed? Or how was his mother happy? Or is there a blessing for the rest of us as we watch yet another violent act based on racial profiling?
It seems to me that when Jesus talks about being blessed, it is to experience some sort of assurance, but also for making it through some extremely difficult situation while working for things important to God.
In the kingdom of God, to be blessed is to know life is governed by God's promised gift of abundant life after going through a tough time trying to live as a faithful disciple in a
confusing world.
One overarching message I see in the beatitudes is hope.
Hope a gift from God which enables us to believe that it makes sense to work for a better world, for the future lies in God's hands.
With our world in God’s hands, we can take huge risks to carry out what we feel called to be and do, such as protest demonstrations.
Motivated by the hope in Jesus' teachings, we can speak and against the injustices of this world by lifting up the equalities of God's world.
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