Fourth Beatitude

"To Hunger and Thirst"

Definition of a Beatitude

Fourth Beatitude

• To hunger and thirst for justice is to have a strong and continuous desire of a religious lifestyle and high moral standards
• Someone wants what is right just as much as another who is dying of thirst wants a glass of water.

Ashley's Reflection

“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled”

A beatitude is any of the eight sayings Jesus said in the passage of Matthew (and Luke). He declares that the poor, the meek, those who mourn, the merciful, the peacemakers, the pure of heart, those who thirst for justice, and those that are persecuted for righteousness' sake will receive blessings from Heaven.

Mackenzie's Reflection

To be righteous is to be justified. If we break justice down, it means to have/give fair treatment. Because I am a human being, making justice a huge priority is pretty difficult. First instincts lead us to avoiding justice. I catch myself walking by unjust situations because of this. To practice this beatitude, I will do at least one act of justice a day.

This beatitude relates to my life by how if I want to live a worthy life, I must hunger and thirst for those gifts that only God can grant upon us. Without these gifts, I would end up putting all focus into earthly things that have little meaning if you reach Heaven.

Thanks for listening!

"For Righteousness"

Veronica's Reflection

If this beatitude was to be followed by plenty of the world's population, we would have:

• a world where everyone is considered equal
• fair chances to participate in activities
• no bullying

By Ashley, Mackenzie, and Veronica.

• Righteousness- to restore a relationship with justice, to be justified
• Righteous people are those who put faith and effort into their relationships with the people around them and with God

A lot of times, the right thing to do isn't just there, and I can relate a lot to that personally. I get side-tracked, and forget the importance of righteousness. But, I do seek it constantly. Even when it's not clear right away. I must hunger and thirst for what is right, and see beyond mundane, temporary things.

References

What about society?

Is the fourth beatitude accepted?

http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02371a.htm

http://www.theologyofwork.org/new-testament/matthew/the-kingdom-of-heaven-at-work-in-us-matthew-5-7/the-beatitudes-matthew-51-12/blessed-are-those-who-hunger-and-thirst-for-righteousness-for-they-will-be-filled-matthew-56/

http://bibleseo.com/?s=Hunger+and+thirst+for+righteousness

Really, it depends on the person. If one person feels quite strongly about justice, then they would accept this beatitude. If one is startled about taking a stand for what is right, they may be intimidated by this beatitude. Generally the "good" part of society accepts this beatitude.

What about Society?

What are the concequences?

If society rejected this beatitude, every day would be unfair. Bullying and inequality would increase every day. We are taught that making ourselves higher than others is unjust, but without the fourth beatitude, we wouldn't be taught anything about justice. Therefore, people could be unfair whenever they so desire.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness