The Beatitudes of Peace: Meditations on the Beatitudes, Peacemaking & the Spiritual Life

For me the biggest takeaway from John's reflections on the Beatitudes is that Jesus is the original peacemaker, and He is calling all of us to follow in His footsteps. This journey includes allowing the Spirit of God to do its inner work of transforming our hearts and well as inspiring us to find our place of service in God's Kingdom by reaching out, and prophetically speaking up, on behalf of the "least" among us.Dear believes that Christians from all traditions can and should follow Jesus in showing the world a "third way" beyond the typical divisive left-right politics as an alternative which seeks to serve as a bridge between both. As Richard Rohr says; the joy of serving as a bridge is that you get walked on from both sides. The goal is to end violence by transformation, a changing of the heart.John views Matt. 5:43-45 as Jesus' most revolutionary commandment; "You have heard is said, 'You shall love your countrymen and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you..." as the pinnacle of the Sermon on the Mount. He goes so far as to say it sums up Christianity. I agree. Yet, sadly "we've done our best to avoid and disobey it," says Dear.Dear concludes with a rousing call to "arise and walk forth," which is another translation of the familiar "Blessed are..." or "Happy are..." preface to all of the Beatitudes. The key to spreading the message of nonviolence is that we embody the message and carry it everywhere we go. "As Beatitude people, Sermon on the Mount people, from now on we seek the kingdom of God first," prays John Dear.Oh for the day in which the entire earth will resonate with his message and say ... AMEN!

For now, this is a review on the first 30 pages...Why? because I am sitting with the discomfortof those first 30 pages and can't allow myselfto shy away from the deep soul searching thatthey ignite, like a torch deep in a cavern bringinglight to those recesses that accumulate that whichI am all to comfortable in ignoring!This is no "I'm ok but you aren't so hot" preambleto the text. No, no spoiler alert -- will dull the impact.John Dear, takes us through who we/I become bit bybit when I/we abandon living the Beatitudes. This is aharrowing journey through the 'deconstruction' of purityof a heart aligned with teachings of Jesus Christ. It ishow we got where we are as individuals and as a cultureand none of us a innocent. My intent then is to re-readthese first thirty pages again and again until I've foundmy own failings without any relativism of "yeah but, theyare so much worse" and "he is talking about those overthere, and these here and now." It is in recognizing whoI become when I ignore the Lord's teaching in the Sermonon the Mount -- that prepares me to take on by the graceof God, dismantling a long litany of habits.And that's only from the first 30 pages!!

Father John Dear makes a courageous call for us to examine the teachings of Jesus through the lens of modern times, and to engage them seriously as a call to nonviolence. If Christians around the world would take this call seriously, I believe we would welcome in the kingdom of God.If you’re curious about how Jesus’ teachings have been the basis for nonviolent movements around the globe, or if you heard that Mahatma Gandhi took inspiration from Jesus, or particularly if you are personally wrestling with the teachings of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, you should pick up this book and learn more.

A beautiful book on so many levels.

What a refreshing take on the Beatitudes - inspiring and worth reading.

A very challenging look at the Beatitudes.The basic focus of Christianity is not to gain converts but to be people who care for each other and our world. The call of the Gospel is to be people of non violence. This book is a guideFor all of us whether christian or non christianThe Beatitudes must be our guideline. GANDHI READ THE sermon on the Mount daily. His non violence evolved from this reading.John Dear has done a marvelous job presenting this challenge to us.

Once again, John Dear powerfully expresses why he is a credible prophetic voice in our age. He is not only a clear articulator of biblical truth revealed in the Sermon on the Mount on the centrality of Jesus' teaching on justice and peace; he has consistently backed up that teaching by a lifestyle of risktaking. This is a must read for anyone who hears the divine call to modern day prophecy.

As Marine in Vietnam I was responsible for deaths. Now in my final years I look back at those actions and seek forgiveness or at least resolution. This book goes a long way to help me find that peace and resolution i have been seeking for 50 years