Blessed in the Mess: Rethinking Poverty, Power, and the Kingdom of God
Are the Beatitudes a list of things to do to earn God’s favour or something else entirely? In this first Beatitude, “Blessed are the poor in spirit,” Pastor Robyn Elliott suggests that the blessing is found not in poverty itself but in the perspective it offers. With the story of the Good Samaritan playing in the background we see that circumstances are not the condition for blessing, rather circumstances condition us for blessing.
Discussion Questions:
- What does it mean for compassion to “confront comfort?” How can we cultivate a posture of compassion, especially in situations where our comfort is challenged?
- Dorothy Day and the Dalai Lama read the Beatitudes daily and believed they were more than just a list of moral to-dos. What do you think it means to see the Beatitudes as a “portrait of a posture” rather than a checklist for how to be blessed?
- What does it mean to have a “poverty of spirit,” and how does this concept challenge our typical understanding of poverty and blessing?
- How does our comfort prevent us from fully embracing the values of the Kingdom of God (aka life as God intends it)? Is there a connection between discomfort and growth in our spiritual lives? How does the concept of “poverty of spirit” relate to our culture’s value of independence and self-reliance? What can we learn from the Beatitudes about how to live in contrast to these cultural norms?
- Do you agree that “poverty of spirit” is a necessary perspective to embrace the Jesus way?
- If we are not in circumstances that would lead to poverty of spirit how might we actively cultivate it?