Gospel for February 16 2025 – Luke 6:17, 20-26
Gospel Reflections for February 16 2025
The Beatitudes …your path to success
The famous list in today’s Gospel is called The Beatitudes which is a Latin word for blessed and describes a variety of behaviors. In ancient Hebrew, it also meant Happy. The Beatitudes gives you the path to happiness, in any language.
Is personal success the road to happiness? While we always enjoy success and achieving goals, they never seem to really satisfy, and so we seek more and more in an endless quest.
Parents may understand this Gospel better than most. While they certainly want their children to be successful, they find that the behavior of helping them is immensely fulfilling in itself.
Personal success is rewarding …but not fulfilling.
When we seek the good of another, or help another person find success, as parents often do with their children, they find that profoundly fulfilling and meaningful.
Here is my retelling of the Beatitudes list in my own words.
Happy are the poor who understand the value of even a little amount …and are grateful for it.
Happy are the hungry who know the value of food …and never take it for granted.
Happy are those in sorrow who learn compassion …and feel deeply for another’s pain.
Happy are those who receive insults …who now know from where their personal dignity comes.
Sad are those who seek personal wealth as your only reward …it will be your only reward.
Sad are those who feel full now …and will learn it is just never enough.
Sad are those who only seek entertainment …and will find it gets old quickly.
Sad are those who seek only the praise of others …and will find it ends quickly.
If you have good things or even If you don’t have good things, both can lead you to God and happiness, if you use whatever you have, a lot or not, for the good of others.
This is the way of the Lord and the path to lasting happiness.
Our University Series offers over 40 sessions during Lent with practical ideas on just how to live that kind of life that Jesus lived. You can preregister for $5 per session, and bring a friend for free, or pay $8 at the door, and bring a friend for free. Preregistration ends soon, so take advantage of the discount. See theuniversityseries.org
This is the time to start an even happier life!
God Bless!
Fr. Dave
The Beatitudes in your plain English make great s3nse and are easier to understand and put into every day practice. . The Scripyures are a good way of structuring one’s Life. Written many years ago, they are as valuable today as when first inspired.
Each Sunday a different one is read and offer great tips on leading ones existence now and for Eternity.
Daily Mass also has great Readings and Gospels to assist us in leading better Lives.
Thanks Father for these reminders each week. I appreciate them.
Thank you. More articles to come!
Dear Father Dave,
Indeed, “words (and so more) to live by.”
Please hold, Michael, my son in your prayers. On Tuesday, he is having his second surgery for a rare and aggressive salivary glad cancer that has penetrated the vein. Mike lives on Maui and is flying to Honolulu for the procedure. He has to be at Queen’s Hospital by 5:30 AM.
Thank you for your prayers!
God bless.
Sincerely,
Kathleen
Please be assured of my prayers!
Thank you very much for beautiful prayers. Mike has to be at the hospital by 5:30 this morning. The procedure is extremely complicated.
God bless.
I will Pray as well for Michael. God Bless! Tom
Thank you so very much!
Kathleen
Love Jesus’ precious words Father Dave and love your precious interpretation!!! We a to are beautifully praying for our Michael for our precious Jesus’ healing touch through the Doctor’s skilled hands!! May he be beautifully healed!!! With so much loveeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee, Franca and Dick
Thank you!