Heart Matters and New Names: the sixth beatitude

Happy February, Presbyterian women! Here we go on another of the beatitudes. This month, it's the sixth beatitude: the pure in heart who will see God. Of course, in our culture, February is usually less about "pure" hearts and more about these hearts:

 

Photo by Dave Parker, cc license, http://www.flickr.com/photos/daveparker/2264374058/

But this is not what Jesus means in this month's beatitude. In this month's beatitude Jesus calls us to honor those whose pure. In Jesus' day, someone with a pure heart waled with integrity before God and the community. This is not an easy thing to do, is it? Even when we know that things are unjust -- that the poor don't have what they need for food, or shelter, or heat or medicine -- it is hard for us to know what to do about it. It is hard to live a Christian life of integrity in a society that pushes our hearts away from purity to selfishness, greed, or apathy.

For those of us who do strive for that kind of integrity, the promise of the beatitude is that we will see God. But what a promise that is! For one who sees God may end  up wrestling, like Jacob. One who sees God may be sent out with an unpopular message, like Isaiah. One who sees God might end up bearing the Christ, like Mary. One who sees God might end up being an evangelist, like Magdala. And often, one who sees God ends up with a new name. So Jacob becomes Israel and Simon becomes Peter.

 

Rembrandt [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Are we ready to think about hearts this month: not candy hearts but our hearts? What might that mean for us? Might that mean taking a decision at work that might call to task our way of doing business? Might that mean choosing where we shop, or making it known to those from whom we buy that we expect them to do justice? Might that mean standing up against bullies who would silence those without power and status? Might it mean preaching the good news of Jesus Christ to a community that hears nothing but bad news-- bigotry and abuse and condemnation-- from the body of Christ?

As we think of the implications of having pure hearts this month, a month that is also black history month, perhaps we might consider the example of Isabella Baumfree, the slave of John Dumont of New York. Isabella was a slave in upstate New York, a woman of the late 18th and early 19th century. Like so many slaves before her, she was abused by her master and her mistress. Like so many slaves before her, Isabella went in search of the living God. And she began a relationship with the living God that, after she became a free woman, would forever change her.

Somewhere along the way, she had a vision of the living God, this woman who tried to walk with integrity of heart. And as she grew closer to the Christ who loved her, Isabella heard the call of God on her life, a call to live out the rule of love -- Love your neighbor as yourself. And she heard the God of her understanding give her a new name: Sojourner Truth.

By Battle Creek CVB (Sojourner Truth_detailUploaded by pixeltoo) [CC-BY-2.0], via Wikimedia Commons

Sojourner Truth spent the rest of her life speaking truth to power through her Christian faith. In a time when women were rarely ordained, she preached the gospel to all who would listen, sometimes sleeping outside. At a time before war seemed inevitable, she stood against despair and the yearning for war in her compatriot Frederick Douglass, asking him if his God was dead. At a time when women were not really citizens at all, she stood up to those stereotypes that separated poor and rich woman, black and white women in her famous "Ain't I a Woman?" speech. And she continued to stand for the rights of those that Jesus calls us to honor until her life's end.

Friends, February truly is heart month, purity of heart month. We begin it by studying this beatitude. In its midst, we celebrate love. And, we end it on Ash Wednesday by praying David's famous prayer: "Create in me a clean heart, O God." So may it be with us. May we, like Sojourner Truth, walk in integrity before the God of our understanding, the God who created us, saved us and calls us to be sojourners, speaking truth. And when we see our God, may we be forever changed.

Grace and peace to all of you,
Margaret

Comments

[pain medication]

I'll add this blog to my favorites, it truly is great.

[Margaret Aymer]

Dear Elaine,

AMEN!!

[Dianne Andrino]

I have been very disappointed with the study on the Beatitudes. Not only is there too much emphasis on liberation theology, picturing Jesus as some kind of community agitator, changing the meaning of "blessed" and "righteousness" ever so slightly but just enough to change the emphasis and meaning of the whole text. And in the lesson eight video at our monthly meeting, AD (anno domini, year of our Lord) was referred to as CE (common era). I thought that expression was only used by atheists and non-christians who want to wipe out any and all references to Jesus in our culture.

[Elaine Hurd Shepherdstown Presbyterian Women's Group]

Rev. Aymer, Our group would like to share a part of the confession we've been working on based on Lessons 1&2.

OUR SPC PW CONFESSION (Feb. 2012 draft)

TRUE ABOUT GOD
God cares for, deeply loves, greatly honors those who live with grinding oppression every day - the destitute, those economically poor and those who have lost all hope, who feel completely empty.
God expects us to love the poor and to share our resources so all have enough.
God honors those who weep because of personal loss and those who mourn because of injustice done to them.
God honors those who cry out against injustice and the suffering of others.

TRUE ABOUT THE POOR AND MOURNING
Not much has changed since the time of Jesus -the majority are still poor while a small minority enjoys great wealth.
Almost 1/4 of the world's population are literally destitute.
Poor people often don't complain about their suffering. When they do and try to fight back, they are blamed - expected to stay in their place.
Because of their poverty poor people sometimes seem to be more aware of their dependence on God.
Many people who grieve personal losses retreat from social contact, hide their pain.
Some of us also hide our pain. They and we apologize for our tears.
Mourning really has no time boundaries (unlike what our culture teaches us).
Mourners for societal ills (protestors) are often denigrated (as radicals or extremists) and seen as bothersome.

TRUE ABOUT OURSELVES
We are ignorant about poor people's lives and we forget them.
It's painful, depressing, overwhelming to learn about the lives of the destitute. We feel hopeless in the face of the enormity of the suffering.
We love being comfortable. We are afraid of losing our comforts and our security based on those comforts.
We think of our affluence as our own personal achievement.
Because we are better off we think we are better.
We often blame the poor for being poor.
Sometimes we want to stop listening because it's too painful and we feel we can't do anything about it.
We think mourners should "get over it" after a period of time and we stop attending to the needs of those still suffering.
We become too busy - other things capture our attention.
We are distracted, self-absorbed.
We have expectations about how others should respond. If they don't do what we expect, we blame them.
We don't like "whiney" people, we expect them to "buck up".

WHAT WE CAN DO
Educate ourselves. Become aware. Wake up!
Reflect on our priorities and how we use our resources.
Don't fear becoming vulnerable and sharing more economically.
Volunteer time and energy at local soup kitchens homeless shelters, the potluck dinner for migrant workers at local orchards, drive people who need transportation, knit for charities, make prayer shawls.
Listen including when it's not convenient.
Maintain an attitude of respect (not offering solutions and trying to fix persons).
Ask people "How can I help?" Help them find help.
Ask "Can I go with you?" Go with.
Concerning social ills, speak out! Mourn with those mourning.
Speak out agains sexual trafficking; about poverty that drives women to prostitution.

We're continuing to add to our confession at each monthly meeting and want to thank you again for this challenging and transforming Bible study.