Pope Francis: the meek are not pushovers
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Pope Francis: the meek are not pushovers
Pope Francis said Wednesday that a meek Christian is not weak, but defends his faith and controls his temper.
āThe meek person is not accommodating, but is a disciple of Christ who has learned to defend another land well. He defends his peace, defends his relationship with God, and defends his gifts, preserving mercy, fraternity, trust, and hope,ā Pope Francis said Feb. 19 in Paul VI Hall.
The pope reflected on the third beatitude from Christās Sermon on the Mount: āBlessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth.ā
āMeekness manifests itself in moments of conflict, you can see how you react to a hostile situation. Anyone might seem meek when everything is calm, but how does he react āunder pressureā if he is attacked, offended, assaulted?ā Pope Francis asked, according to a Catholic News Agency report.
āA moment of anger can destroy many things; you lose control and do not evaluate what is really important, and you can ruin the relationship with a brother,ā he said. āOn the other hand, meekness conquers many things. Meekness is capable of winning the heart, saving friendships and much more, because people get angry, but then calm down, rethink and retrace their steps, and you can rebuild.ā
Pope Francis quoted St. Paulās description of āthe sweetness and meekness of Christ,ā and said that St. Peter also called attention to this quality of Jesus at his passion in 1 Peter 2:23 when Christ ādid not respond and did not threaten because āhe entrusted himself to the one who judges with justice.āā
The pope also pointed to examples from the Old Testament, quoting Psalm 37, which similarly links āmeeknessā with the possession of land.
āIn Scripture the word āmeekā also indicates one who has no landed property; and therefore we are struck by the fact that the third beatitude says precisely that the meek āwill inherit the earth,āā he said.
āPossession of land is a typical area of conflict: one often fights for a territory, to obtain hegemony over a certain area. In wars the strongest prevails and conquers other lands,ā he added.
Pope Francis said that the meek do not conquer the land, they āinheritā it.
āThe People of God call the land of Israel which is the Promised Land āinheritanceā ā¦ That land is a promise and a gift for the people of God, and it becomes a sign of something much bigger and deeper than a simple territory,ā he said.
The meek inherits āthe most sublime of territories,ā Francis said describing heaven, and the land he conquers is āthe heart of others.ā
āThere is no land more beautiful than the heart of others, there is no more beautiful territory to be gained than the peace found with a brother. And that is the land to be inherited with meekness,ā Pope Francis said.