Beatitudes and Racism
When the Israelites entered the wilderness, they were confronted with a whole new set of challenges and conditions in which to live. To shape their lives as they worked together as a community adjusting to this new situation, God provided them with a set of Ten Commandments to provide a framework for their life together.
As your church considers how to approach the wilderness of racism, filled with a minefield of challenges and harsh conditions, what if we considered the Beatitudes, Matthew 5:1-12, as the framework for the church? Both as we relate to each other, sometimes with strong conflicting ideas, and as we live in our larger society that continually divides around racial issues, consider receiving Jesus’ beatitudes as a framework for how you proceed. Jesus even gives you a break—there are only nine beatitudes.
After each beatitude, try to write one or two sentences for either how we relate to other members of the church—both local and the larger church. Also write at least one sentence about how it affects the church’s relationship with our society.
Matthew 5:1-12 (NRSV) The Beatitudes
5 When Jesus[a] saw the crowds, he went up the mountain; and after he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 Then he began to speak, and taught them, saying:
- “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
- The church:
- Society:
- “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
- The church:
- Society
5 “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.
- The church:
- Society:
6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.
- The church:
- Society:
7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they will receive mercy.
- The church:
- Society:
8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.
- The church:
- Society:
9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
- The church:
- Society:
10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
- The church:
- Society:
11 “Blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely[b] on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
- The church:
- Society:
When you gather your statements together, what does the picture of your church and its ministry with respect to racism look like? Use your internet connections with other Christians and see how your shared opinions both support and challenge each other. You might even want to re-read the story of the Exodus journey across the wilderness and note how they both supported and challenged each other.
As it was with Jesus, you can’t expect everyone to support your story, but we do have an important story to tell to the nations.
Jesus declared that the greatest commandment was to Love God with your whole heart and soul and that the second was to Love your Neighbor as yourself. These two commandments provide us with the basic framework for our faith.
When you look at the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20, you will notice that these original commandments follow this same division. The first three focus on our relationship with God, and the final six focus on how we relate to our neighbors. The fourth commandment, the one on the Sabbath, acts as a bridge between these two parts of the framework of our faith. On a regular basis, we are to step aside from our labors and give attention to God in worship and our neighbors in the community.
Be an interesting experience to invite the members of first you leadership team and then your membership to complete and share this exercise and see how their responses compare with each other, the leadership team, and t heir pastor.
