The Beatitudes and Dawn

The Eight Beatitudes

"Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn,
for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for justice,
for they shall have their fill.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure of heart,
for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they shall be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven."

Gospel of St. Matthew 5:3-10

I like to be available to give answers. I am happy to be provide family and friends with information that I may have-- that they do not.

How do I wash and dry my comforter?
What is the best way to bring down a fever in a child?
Where did you get those curtains?
How do you publish a book?
When do I stop trying to please him?
Are lemon seeds poisonous?
Can I eat the skin on the salmon filet?

For a long time, I have felt pleased to share what little wisdom I have gleaned. The first time I recollect offering advice when my advice was sought, I attended Brookside Elementary School.
It came about when I was in fourth grade, I was called Dawn, the Peacemaker. Whenever there were conflicts - classmates would come to me and ask me to resolve the small playground disputes. It was a role I neither asked for, nor wanted. It was foisted upon me. However, in Sunday school, I learned the bible verse, Mathew 5:9.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called the children of God.”
This was all I needed to know. I wanted to be a Child of God. If all I had to do was parcel out advice and resolve disputes to gain God’s benediction, sign me up.
After all, I already knew how to do that dance.

As Sunday school progressed, I learned there were an entire list of beatitudes. I went home and rifled through my bookshelves until I found a very small, worn book. It was a book I had treasured when I was little. The illustrations were hand-drawn beautifully. Page after page, there were happy children on swings, gathered around Jesus, working together. Suddenly, I recalled how my parents or my sister would read the verse aloud to me until such time I could read the verses myself. They had been read to me so much that I internalized them without even knowing it.

The beatitudes are eight blessings from Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount. It was through these teachings that Jesus expressed the highest and most true ideals of Christianity. Jesus preached that mercy, spirituality and compassion are the virtues toward which we should strive.
Putting aside all religious connotation, there seems to be an absolute truth to these blessings. Recently, I have started reading Buddhist writings and I am finding that there are some truly basic beliefs that transcend religion. These truths speak to humanity at its best. I will continue to do my small part to contribute to a world that keeps mercy, spirituality and compassion alive.