Date: November 17, 2014 Author: Len Corcoran
BLESSED ARE THE MEEK, FOR THEY SHALL INHERIT THE LAND (Matthew 5:5) Part 1
MEANING
Jesus said He was “meek”. Contemporary meaning would suggest “passive” or “weak”. Any examination of Scripture will certainly not find passive nor weak behavior in Jesus. He is very much assertive. He consistently refers to doing the work of the third party – the Father.
Actually, the word from which meek is translated means “power under control”. So this Beatitude means the person with his own power under his control will inherit the land.
“The man who is filled with the Holy Spirit speaks in different languages. These different languages are different ways of witnessing to Christ, such as humility, poverty, patience and obedience; we speak in those languages when we reveal in ourselves these virtues to others. Actions speak louder than words; let your words teach and your actions speak.” – St. Anthony of Padua
The action verb for the third Beatitude is Assert. Most current material on assertiveness comes from conflicts with authority during the 1960’s and 1970’s . In the beginning, it was a reaction to the Drama Triangle – aggressive, passive, and rescuer – results of “up to down” and “down to up” communication patterns. Assertiveness begins with taking responsibility for the reception of a message in order to reach a “win-win” outcome. In effect, the assertive person seeks to understand before being understood.