The Sermon on the Mount (Beatitudes Series #1 of 9)

The Sermon on the Mount, from the Gospel of St. Matthew, is my favorite passage of the Bible. In this passage, Jesus sums up the entire Bible in just a few short paragraphs: love your enemies, be merciful, take care of the poor, make peace. My next eight posts will explore each of the eight Beatitudes (Blessed are the....) and show how these Beatitudes are universal, that they are something upon which all religions can agree.

The Sermon on The Mount

Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down his disciples came to him. And he opened his mouth and he taught them, saying:

Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted.
Blessed are the meek: for they shall inherit the earth.
Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.
Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called the children of God.
Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.

Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savor, wherewith shall it be salted? It is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under foot of men.

Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Ye have heard that it hath been said, thou shalt love thy neighbor, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? Do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? Do not even the publicans so?

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.

Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed by thy name.
Thy kingdom, come,
Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.
And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil:
For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.

One Nation, Many Religions

"Truth has many aspects. Infinite truth has infinite expressions. Though the sages speak in divers ways, they express one and the same Truth. Ignorant is he who says, "What I say and know is true; others are wrong." It is because of this attitude of the ignorant that there have been doubts and misunderstandings about God. This attitude it is that causes dispute among men. But all doubts vanish when one gains self-control and attains tranquility by realizing the heart of Truth. Thereupon dispute, too, is at an end." (Hinduism, Srimad Bhagavatam 11.15)

Born in the early 1930s, my parents practiced the same protestant religion that their parents before them had practiced for their whole lives. They didn't give much thought as to why they practiced the religion they practiced, and had someone asked them if they'd had ever read, for example, The Lotus Sutra (Buddhism) or the Upanishads (Hinduism), they would have scratched their heads. They simply were not exposed to the variety and wealth of religious experience available in America to those born since my generation, a mere 30 years later.

We're now living in an ecumenical age. According to the book, World Scripture, by the International Religious Foundation, the progress in transportation and communication that has brought all the peoples of the world into one global village has also brought the religions of the world into close contact. Just half a century ago, Christians living in North America might never have met a Muslim or a Buddhist throughout their whole lives; in ignorance they could believe that such people were heathen and in dire need of salvation. Muslims in Syria, or Buddhists in Thailand, could as easily hold a similar view of the foreign religions that occasionally intruded upon their lands. But today Western cities teem with immigrants from Asia and Africa bearing their native faiths, and our commercial and political affairs connect us with all nations.


"Like the bee, gathering honey from different flowers, the wise man accepts the essence of different scriptures and sees only the good in all religions." (Hinduism, Srimad Bhagavatam 11.3)

Many people, such as myself, are excited to be able to learn about different religions and practices. I have been privileged to attend a variety of Christian churches, both Protestant and Catholic. I've experienced God's presence in these services, especially during worship. I've also experienced God in nature, and in the many Wiccan and Native American rituals I've taken part in over the years. I've met God in both meditation and prayer, and gained God's guidance through many sources, such as The Dhammapada, The Bhagavad Gita, and The Bible. God is everywhere and I believe God inhabits the praises of all his people's, not just those of a particular religion.

Those who praise their own doctrines and disparage the doctrines of others do not solve any problem. (Jainism, Sutrakritanga 1.1.50)

Although many believers are open to various religions, unfortunately some are still very close-minded, if not hostile, to those with differing religions, and believe that their religion is the "one right true only way". This is unfortunate and I believe stems mostly from lack of knowledge and fear of the unknown. We fear what we do not understand. Only when we can learn to respect one another's religious beliefs, or lack of religious belief, can we truly be one nation, united.