Meek

Blessed are the meek For they shall inherit the earth

1MeeknessWhat is meekness?What examples do we have?How can we achieve it?What does it mean to inherit the earth?2The Greek Word:

To make tameWe need to look carefully at the original Greek word for meekness. Only so can we come to understand what Jesus meant by meekness.The Greek word for meekness, praotes, is really untranslatable. Many feel that perhaps the word gentle comes closest to expressing its true meaning. Let us examine the variety of meanings that are associated with the word praotes.The Greek word translated as "meek," praus, was used to describe a wild animal who had been tamed and made gentle: a horse that would accept a rider, a dog that would tend sheep. In the human sphere it refers to a person who disciplines himself to be gentle rather than severe, nonviolent rather than violent.

3Aristotle

Meeknessis the midway point betweenangerand indifferenceAristotle saw meekness as the virtue that lies between opposing extremes of anger: cold cruelty, on the one hand, and burning wrath, on the other. The meek person is neither too hasty nor too slow-tempered; such a person bears reproaches and slights, is not bent on revenge, is free from bitterness and belligerence, possesses tranquility and steadiness of spirit.

Who are the meek? They are the people who give soft answers to harsh questions."Meekness is regularly contrasted with pride because it is the opposite of arrogance.Meekness always keeps company with love. For, true love, agape, is meek, gentle, and kind.

4Psalm 37:11But the meek shall inherit the earth anavim = lowly ones

This is a direct quote from Psalm 37:11. The word translated "meek" is (or ), perhaps better rendered as humble or gentle. In the Hebrew text of Psalm 37, the word isanavim (), usually translated as "lowly ones" (anavahis the Hebrew word for humility). This word does not suggest weakness, but rather the recognition of one's proper place in the universe before God. It is not self-effacing but rather reality-focused. The meek inherit the earth because they are grounded in the truth of reality...

Humility suggests the acceptance of the principlegam zu l'tovah- "this too is for the best" indicating faith that God will work all things for good to those who trust in Him (Rom. 8:28). The meek person realizes that the only person he can control, and should control, is himself... As Socrates once said, "No evil can come to a righteous man."

The opposite of the "meekness" is self-assertiveness, manipulation, deception, and violent aggressiveness. "O the misery of those demand their "rights" in this world, for they will receive no inheritance in the world to come."For Jews, meekness is the essential quality of the human being in relationship to God. The equivalent Hebrew word, anaw, is often used in the psalms to describe the stance of a man or woman aligned with God. Such a person seeks God's guidance and is not bitter or resentful in obedience to the divine Law, though it is one of the glories of Judaism that the human being, however meek, is called to be more than God's "yes-man."

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Meek???Meek is the Old Norse word for "soft" mjark.Ironically, the word meek was brought to England by Viking warriors; it has its roots in the Old Norse word for "soft" mjark. Meek not only rhymes with weak but for many people indicates much the same thing, though its actual meaning has nothing to do with decrepitude or cowardice but with showing patience and humility, with gentleness.

6What is meekness?Meeknessis to reject every thought and action of external coercion, hostility, and violence. It is to be gentle and kind, and to be empty of all selfishness and earthly ambition.7To be meek means to be gentle and kind, to be empty of all selfishness and earthly ambition. It means, in a word, never to return evil for evil, but always in everything to overcome evil by good. (Cf. Romans 12:14-21)8Meekness is to have the firm and calm conviction that the good is more powerful than evil, and that the good ultimately is always victorious

Fr. Thomas Hopko9Uriah Heap

Im ever so umble... An umble, umble manWhile meekness is a hard virtue for everyone, men especially have fled from being labeled as meek. We have been made to think of meekness as a feminine quality: "Women are from Venus, men are from Mars," etc. For many, the male archetypes are cowboys, gun-slingers, and the Marlboro Man. Normally it isn't women who shoot first and ask questions later. "This is the Gospel According to John Wayne," says Father Joseph Bonders, a Dutch priest who has spent most of his life in Africa. "No matter who plays the lead, the story is always the same. When faced by bad men, people evil right down to the marrow of their bones, the only solution is to kill them. It is a 'gospel' in the sense that it is the defining story for many people."One of the synonyms of meek, humble, has also had bad press. In Charles Dickens's novel David Copperfield there is the spider-like character of Uriah Heap, a cunning and loveless figure who never tires of describing himself as "a humble man." Few aspire to humility; we prefer being proud. "I'm proud to be(fill in the blank)." We're proud of who we are, whatwe've done, the national or ethnic group to which we happen to belong. Coming "from humble origins" means not being born with a silver spoon in your mouth but, through perseverance and hard work, leaving poverty behind and achieving things "to be proud of."

10Abraham

Consider Abraham. Without meekness, there would be no Abraham, only a long-forgotten Abram, immobilized in his possessions and the details of his life, unable to leave Ura busy man dismissing strange voices that called him to wander off to unseen places. Yet this icon of meekness, at God's call, uprooted himself from his home, allowing himself and his family to be led he knew not where-only that he would be guided to a "land which I will show you" (Gn 12:1). Yet Abraham is not simply the Creator's "Amen chorus." Later in life, he passionately bargains with God in an effort to prevent the destruction of Sodom. Confronted with Abraham's appeal, God agrees to spare the city if fifty just men can be found among the inhabitants, and finally God assents to acquit the city even for the sake of ten just men. Sadly, there were not even ten upright citizens, and the depraved city was destroyed (Gn 18:23-33). But the book of Genesis preserves the remarkable story of meek Abraham and almighty God bargaining with each other just as merchants and customers still bargain throughout the markets of the Middle East.The same meekness marks Abraham when there was conflict between his herdsmen and those of his nephew Lot. "Then Abram said to Lot, 'Let there be no strife between you and me, and between your herdsmen and my herdsmen, for we are kinsmen. Is not the whole land before you? Separate yourself from me. If you take the left hand, then I will go to the right; or if you take the right hand, then I will go to the left.' And Lot raised his eyes and saw that the Jordan valley was well wateredeverywhere like the garden of the lord, like the land of Egypt, in the direction of Zoar.... So Lot chose for himself all of the Jordan valley" (Gn 13:8-11). It was through meekness that the Promised Land itself was given to Abraham.

11Moses

"meek above everyone on the face of the earth" (Numbers 12:3). Meekness is obedience to God. Moses was known as the meekest man in the Bible (Numbers 12:3). Why? Not because he was the greatest. And certainly not because he didn't make mistakes, because he made a lot of them. When the Lord called him, he said, "0 Lord, don't call me. I am not worthy," but he was submissive. He obeyed God. And, through Moses, God performed great miracles. No weakling could have led two million people out of Egypt, or had the faith and boldness to believe that when he stretched out his hand over the Red Sea that God would open it up and let the people go through on dry land. He who grew up a prince of Egypt murdered a cruel overseer in a fit of righteous rage, fought men at the well, confronted Pharaoh, freed the Israelites from bondage, argued with God face-to-face, used his Egyptian education to write a law code and led a fractious people to the promised land.Moses was called meek. But when the Israelites turned away from God, he got so angry that he broke the tablets on which the Ten Commandments were written. You call that meekness? If Moses is considered the paragon of meekness, perhaps we need to re-examine our concept of meekness.12In the PsalmsGod leads the humble in what is right and teaches the humble his ways.God adorns the humble with victory

In psalm after psalm we are assured that God hears the cry of the humble, that God favors the lowly, that his judgment is in their favor rather than in favor of the proud and mighty. Psalm 25 says that Godleads the humble in what is right and teaches the humble his ways.In Psalm 149 God "adorns the humble"not the mighty"with victory," while in Isaiah the meek shall "obtain fresh joy in the lord" (Is 29:19).

13: "Here I am, the servant of the Lord: Let it be with me just as you have said" (Lk 1:38).

There is radiant meekness in Mary's response to the Archangel Gabriel: "Here I am, the servant of the Lord: Let it be with me just as you have said" (Lk 1:38). God did not simply cause Mary to be pregnant and explain its meaning to her after the fact. It was Mary's free acceptance of God's will that allowed the Second Person of the Holy Trinity to take flesh in her body and become her son. In all its meekness, no other act in human history has had such significance. Through Mary, our Creator became one with us in the flesh. She gave birth to the Savior, nourished him, cared for him, raised him, and accompanied him as a disciple.

14Jesus and the MoneyChangers

The moneychangers found out how "meek" Jesus was when lie chased them out of the Temple.Meekness is one of the principal attributes of Jesus Christ. He who calls the universe into being, who walks on water and brings the dead back to life, says of himself, "I am meek and humble of heart" (Mt 11:29).

15Meekness Does Not Deny Force

Meekness is not as tepid as Nietzsche imagined. It does not deny force. Force is necessary at times to awaken rigid consciences. Love for people requires it sometimes, for he who loves his brethren should at times bother and agonize them for their own good, and that is always done at the expense of the doers own comfort. For this reason, Jesus acted forcefully in many incidents of his life. He was not only meek, but forceful when the situation required force; therefore there is no similarity between the Jesus of the Gospel and the pale emotional depiction imagined by Renan, for instance . He addressed the Jewish people, and especially their leaders, in a harsh manner, scolding them over their pride, hypocrisy, adoration for supernatural acts, and lack of faith: O generation of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak good things? (Matthew 12:34), An evil and adulterous generation (Matthew 12:39), O faithless and perverse generation (Matthew 17:17), and woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! (Matthew 23:13). His force was clear not only in his speech but also in deed, as John the evangelist tells us: And the Jews passover was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem, and found in the temple those that sold oxen and sheep and doves, and the changers of money sitting; and when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers money, and overthrew the tables, and said unto them that sold doves, Take these things hence; make not my Fathers house a house of merchandise (John 2:13:16). Even his apostles faced his force, for he called them of little faith (Matthew 8:26), scolded them for being slow to understand spiritual matters (Matthew 15:16), and rebuked Peter because he tried to discourage him from sacrificing Himself by saying: Get thee behind me, Satan (Matthew 16:23).Yet Jesus used force in those conditions without hatred or animosity, and there was nothing but love in his heart. He embraced with unmatched tenderness that adulterous people, healing their sick and preaching to their poor. He called his disciples who were slow to understand and occupied with earthly things little children, he prayed on his cross for the Pharisees and Scribes who murdered him, and he wept on Jerusalem as he called her killer of prophets, warning her of punishment. Jesus used force only as a surgeon uses a knife, not out of hate for the patient but in his service and for his wellbeing. It is said that some people apposed the method of non-violence which Gandhi had adopted by quoting before him the incident where Jesus forced the merchants out of the Temple, while knowing that the Indian leader was imitating Christ, so he answered them saying: If it were possible for you to have the meekness that was in Jesus when he forced the merchants out of the Temple with a scourge, I would have allowed you to use scourges.

16Meekness Does Not Mean Weakness

It is clear then that true meekness does not mean cowardice or capitulation, but involves persistence in completing its mission whatever the obstacles may be, even if doing so leads to death. The meek person does not wish to destroy others, but does not retreat from sacrificing himself if the need arises. Jesus the meek was not passive but firm in his position toward the glorious of the world. This is apparent in the incident told to us by the evangelist Luke: The same day there came certain of the Pharisees, saying unto him: Get out, and depart from here, for Herod will kill you. And he said unto them: Go you, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected. Nevertheless I must walk today, and tomorrow, and the following day (Luke 13:31-33). We find that same determination and resolve the determination of someone who gave his life voluntarily for the sake of completing the mission of love which he took upon himself in the position of Jesus when he fell into the hands of his enemies and during his unjust trial: we see him acting toward his frightened and nervous enemies and judges as if he were the judge, not as one to be judged, in meekness accompanied by strong, quiet resolve.

Meekness Does Not Mean WeaknessIt is clear then that true meekness does not mean cowardice or capitulation, but involves persistence in completing its mission whatever the obstacles may be, even if doing so leads to death. The meek person does not wish to destroy others, but does not retreat from sacrificing himself if the need arises. Jesus the meek was not passive but firm in his position toward the glorious of the world. This is apparent in the incident told to us by the evangelist Luke: The same day there came certain of the Pharisees, saying unto him: Get out, and depart from here, for Herod will kill you. And he said unto them: Go you, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures today and tomorrow, and the third day I shall be perfected. Nevertheless I must walk today, and tomorrow, and the following day (Luke 13:31-33). We find that same determination and resolve the determination of someone who gave his life voluntarily for the sake of completing the mission of love which he took upon himself in the position of Jesus when he fell into the hands of his enemies and during his unjust trial: we see him acting toward his frightened and nervous enemies and judges as if he were the judge, not as one to be judged, in meekness accompanied by strong, quiet resolve.

17Meekness Does Not Contradict Combating Evil

Meekness Does Not Contradict Combating EvilMeekness does not mean compromising with evil; its source is love, and love must always be equipped to combat every evil, because evil threatens others in body and soul. Meekness does not mean that a human should stand inactive before evil. But it does impose a special method of combating evil. It requires that evil be fought without hatred for the evil person, that peaceful means be used whenever possible, and that we seek to stop evil by addressing peoples minds, no matter how devoted they may be to serving the passions; their hearts, no matter how corrupted; and their consciences, no matter how rigid they have become. It requires faith that the image of God is still implanted in the depth of the human being, even if it has been distorted. Meekness therefore has great patience (love endures says the apostle) because it includes great respect for the other, even if he has gone astray.Gilbert Cesbron wrote in his latest novel Between Dogs and Wolves: Pacifism is not the opposite of violence, but patience is. Yet this patience of meekness is the strongest weapon against evil. Meekness fights the roots of evil because it attempts to extract animosity from the heart of the aggressor and reclaim him for the camp of love, while fighting evil with hatred and animosity results in making it permanent, even if things change on the surface. Therefore, since meekness has such supernatural power in fighting evil, we find that the powers of evil revolt against it with rage, and the seemingly unimaginable happens: the meek person who hates no one and preaches that no one else should hate becomes the victim of hatred. The martyrdom of Gandhi, the messenger of non-violence in our time, is but one deep and effective example.

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Finally, we see the meekness of Christ bearing the sins of the world I submitting to crucifixionThis wondrous meekness was possessed to the fullest measure by our Saviour. When He was hit over the head and the crown of thorns, when He was spat upon, the Lord did not turn His face away, but silently and meekly gazed upon His tormentors. And when the Lord was being crucified, He prayed for His executioners. To such a grace, to such a supreme and wondrous possession we must aspire with all our hearts. If we attain this meekness, we will attain the rapture of the Heavenly Kingdom of Christ.

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Meekness has to do with controlling the emotions, not suppressing them. There would be something wrong with a person who could stay calm in the presence of cruelty.Meekness does not avenge itself. It leaves vengeance in God's hands Meekness does not seek its own comfort but that of others. Meekness is quick to listen, quick to forgive, slow to anger. But how does one become meek?

20Ways to Gain Meekness

Meekness is not merely a pleasant emotion or a comfortable and easy position. It is a resolute and difficult commitment in a world that is often ruled by the right of might. Cesbron explains in the book mentioned above: It is more difficult for one not to be violent while violent people attack him. In other words, one must reverse the popular notion that one must be a wolf among wolves. Meekness requires a renewed look at the human, the universe, and new criteria in evaluating issues, making love the definite and ultimate value, because God is love; and he that dwells in love dwells in God, and God in him (1 John 4:16), for love is of God; and every one that loves is born of God, and knows God. He that does not love does not know God; for God is love (1 John 4: 7-8). Meekness necessitates a new understanding of action, and a pursuit, not of superficial and cheap action, but action that is genuine and deep.It requires liberation from ego-centrism to be able to consider the other as an objective, not merely a means and a tool. It requires in the end true conversion and transformation in the depths.This conversion is a conversion to Christ, because hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us (1 John 3:16). The way to gain meekness is for the image of the meek Christ to be activated in us by humble reading of the Gospel; it is for Christs love to live in us by prayer, the sacraments, and observing the Word. If this love is established in us we can be free from pride and love for power, the two main motives for violence. And if fear is one of the sources of violence, then gaining meekness requires liberation from the yoke of fear, and that happens when we become certain that we are loved by God, partakers, although weak, in the victory of the Lord who rises from the dead to deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage (Heb 2:15). Thus we may attain confidence that allows us to demolish the bonds of our isolation in order for us to embark, in turn, on the risk of love without fear.

21The Violence of Love

If we walk on this path of meekness, what then will be the fate of the energy of violence that is concealed in us and which accompanies our life itself to some degree? The solution of course is not to sever it, thus weakening a force that was founded to be mobilized entirely in the service of God. We are not required to suppress it in the Freudian sense either, that is to ignore its existence, which can lead to breakdown and explosion. Human instincts are not evil per se, but are confused, as is the case with all the powers of the fallen and wounded human. Therefore it is essential that they pass through the sacrament of the cross for purification and restoration. The Lord does not expect us then to suppress or sever the energy of violence that is in us, but to control it with conscience and tame, civilize, and consign its power to the direction of good. In other words, we must enhance the energy of violence that is in us to the level of love; thereby we may direct this enormous energy instead of becoming enslaved and controlled by it. By doing so we can fight with it a war that is unlike the wars of mortals, although it is not, as the poet Rimbaud says, less violent than those are. It is the spiritual war, which contains no hate, against the evil that is in us and around us; it is zeal over Gods question on earth, because The zeal of your house has eaten me up (John 2:17).It is to this struggle, not to submission and inaction, that Christ calls us when he says: Do not think that I come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword (Matthew 10:34), and the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force (Matthew 11:11).The only violence that is fitting to God and worthy of humans is the violence of love, that love which knows no rest for it is a glorious flame: I have come to send fire on the earth; and how I wish it were already ablaze (Luke 12:49).1963

22St. Moses the Black

Abba Moses the Black, a former robber turned monk, w;in asked to join a meeting at which one brother was to be >m demned for some sin or shortcoming, but Abba Moses f;iil