Blessed are the humbled...

"Blessed are the meek, 

for they will inherit the earth."

Matthew 5:5 

In "Confessing the Beatitudes", Lesson Three, we explored the humbled, or meek, and Jesus' renewal of God's promise to those whom society humbles, a promise that they shall inherit the earth.

So what about these two words, "humbled" and "meek"?  What do you think of when you hear these words... one unable to stand up for herself?... a mousy, shy individual?... someone beaten down by the world's harshness?  Let's review what we learned about these words in the Greek.

"meek" = "praeis" in the Greek

this word may also be translated "humbled";

like the Greek word for "mourners" in Lesson Two,

this word is quite unusual in the Bible

To further explore the meaning of these words, our lesson points out that the Bible describes three different kinds of people with this unusual word:

1.  those who are oppressed or downtrodden, targets of injustice

2.  those who are the opposite of proud or mighty; those living justly

3.  those who are guided by God and seek refuge in God; 

the status of these humbled in society is less important than their dependence on God

Not all of us fully agreed with the author's interpretation of the humbled, and we talked about the humbled or meek that we see today.  As we talked, we thought of super retailers (affluent, powerful, oppressive) vs. small business owners (humble, meek) in our day.  We were moved, especially at this time of the year, to write the following confession:

The humbled are to be greatly honored.

God uses anybody and everybody... even us...

to give to the world.

God values the quiet, hidden service

as highly as the spectacular.

God will keep His promise of reward to the meek.

Therefore, we resolve to honor with our patronage

small, local, or fair trade businesses and artisans,

such as SERRV, Heifer International, Ten Thousand Villages,

or the local shops in our neighborhoods

during the coming holiday season 

and throughout the coming year.

We will change our purchasing decisions

to reflect our respect for our local merchants.

As you begin your Christmas gift shopping, think about that small tea shop around the corner, or that knitting store down the street, or the special holiday shopping days at local farmers markets, or the SERRV shop inside the Presbytery office in Portsmouth.  Try giving gifts that are truly unique and support a small business or an artisan struggling to make a fair wage.  Your gift will delight both the recipient AND humble merchants.

And remember... above all else during this hectic season... 

Jesus, God's greatest gift, given just for you.