I remember an advice I
once got from a very wise man concerning riches. He said, “when a man works hard he would be
blessed [by God] and the more money he makes, the more he ought
to become humble”. I want to mention here that we were speaking from a
very non-religious point of view. Today, I can say that that testimony of the Word
of God that was uttered from this man’s lips is the reason God has continued to
help him grow in his businesses. There is a popular saying that only the strong rule the Earth. One thing people crave the most in our world today is power. The most impressive displays of
wealth are seen in our television cultures where people
elevate the superficial glory of athletes, movie stars and musicians and
believe these superficial ones actually do dominate the earth. This illusion
feeds the desires of many yet there are few who are wise enough to realise
that the most successful people in the world are actually the most frugal. Humility and prudence is an attitude that is
undeniably important to keep it 100% in every aspect of life.
So, the question is
who are the meek and why would the meek inherit the earth? As spiritual as the
beatitudes are, I must say that the blessing in this one has more physical
attributes to it than the others. St. John Chrysostom in his narration of Matthew's Gospel explains the meek man
as someone who is misunderstood to lose all of his own because of his timidity
but Christ promises the contrary saying the meek is “he who possesses his goods in
safety, namely, he who is not rash, nor boastful”. Meekness is easily
understood as gentleness. My dictionary even says “overly submissive or
compliant”. I want to point out that this trait is not limited to timidity but
rather it is a virtue which the most successful people in the world today have
emulated to get to where they are. Brian Tracy once said that “all
successful habits are learnable”, and the only way to learn most
efficiently is to be submissive to the teacher. He also says “if
you want to be successful, do what successful people do” and this means
learning in humility from the words, life and actions of successful people.
In today’s first
reading, the prophet Zephaniah cries out to the Meek of the earth and utters
the same blessings Christ offers to them. “Seek the LORD all you humble of the land,
you who do what he commands” [Zeph II:3]. He warns them of the time of
the destruction of the land of Jerusalem and assures the people that the meek
would inherit the land after the destruction, “I will leave within you
[Jerusalem] the meek and humble” [Zeph III:12]. It’s important to note what
Zephaniah tells us about those who are meek: they do what God commands, meaning,
they are compliant to the word of God. The reward of this beatitude is not just
something like a spiritual earth but an actual inheritance of the blessings of
the earth. Another aspect of the beatitude of meekness is in our relationship
with our parents. I want to assure you that inheriting the earth is not just
about enjoying the riches of this world. There are many who experience short-lived
success because they were taken away by the cold hands of death. Success
without the length of days is not the blessed fullness of the inheritance of the Meek. St. Paul urges us to be meek when he said, “Honour your father and your
mother,” to which he also added the blessings of the inheritance, “for
so shall you live long upon the earth.” [Ephesians VI:2]. Honour
for one’s parents goes beyond just loving and respecting them for giving us the
gift of life. It also includes checking up on them regularly and making sure
that they are honoured in the things you say to them and how well you have
lived up to the very high standards you have received from them even after they
have passed away from the earth.
The inheritance of the
earth is incapable of corrupting the spirit of meekness. The Meek show the best
qualities of leadership which is service just as the meekness of the Lamb of
God is portrayed in the image above on the night of the Passover. The spirit of
service and compliance they have learnt enables them to teach those they are
responsible for the same qualities in their actions rather than lording things over them. Above all else, the
meek seek the Kingdom of God with the humility of one who is poor in Spirit. They
are not bothered with what to wear or what to eat because to them that seek the
Kingdom of God, our Lord has promised “all these things shall be added unto you”. The Blessedness of the Meek is not a thing of the distant future. Their
humility, frugality, compliance, and constant thrive for the kingdom of God has
guaranteed them an inheritance that will remain forever on the earth.
“O the
blessedness of the meek, for they will inherit the earth” [Matt V:5]
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