The Topeka state journal., 1912-04-27

shall be filled
Blessed are the merciful; for they
| shall obtain mercy.
| Blessed are the pure in heart: Tor
| they shall see God.
| Blessed are they that have been
| prosecuted for righteousness sake; for
theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
| Blessed are ye when men shall re-
proach you, and persecute you, and
say all manner of evil against you
falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be
exceeding glad; for great is your re-
ward in heaven; for so prosecuted
they the prophets that were before
you
Somebody has called these "the
octave of happiness" They all, save
one, represent qualities of character,
and not of state. They contradict
the notion that things make happi-
ness, for they are the laws that the
blessed are those possessed of certain
spiritual characteristics. Especially
noteworthy is the inherent nature of
the reward; the master does not say
that those who fulfill the conditions
which he lays down shall possess
certain rewards. He says. Blessed
are''-not blessed shall be- but, by
the very fact of possessing humility,
meekness, spiritual yearning, purity.
and so forth, persons are already
tue is its own reward. The divine
seal of approved, and guaranty of
happiness is upon all whose condi-
tion is described in the Platform of
Jesus.
Reversing the Conventions.
The whole worlds modern mood
of democracy receives justification
in this comprehensive statement by
the man from the carpenter shop
For the Beatitudes are pronounced
to the plain people, the down-trod-
den under-class, the oppressed pro-
Of
Merrill quotes one commentator as say
ing that, Regarding these words,
poor, meek, etc, they are all names
for one and the same class, the poor
OF an oppressed country, the peasan-
try or fallahin, who then, as now.
for the most part lived quite and
religious lives. but who were the VIC
TINS of constant iII-treatment and
plunder at the hands not only of
tyrannical rulers but also of powerful
and lawless neighbors."
The paradoXeS of this nlatforr,o
have had vast social and political
consequences. From this Magma
Charta OF democracy have sprung
emancipation of the common peonIe
from ancient thraldoms. This upside
down" law of Jesus is turning the
world right side up. BY exalting the
spiritual integrities which are embodied
IN the plain man, the fate of empires
has been settled. Trace the course of
IHe nations or our own time and it
becomes plain that the peoples whose
strength is in the character of the rank
ana hle of their citizens are TODAY
dominating history. The Sermon on |
the Mount is good statesmanship.
Pract1cing Ones Own Preachrnent
1mpractical!'' cries the man who !
prldes himself upon his 'hard-headed- !
ness, as he reads the Beatitudes =
Inc best answer to that statement is |
not ot TO point to the philosophers, mod |
ern and ancient who have accepted |
the dicta of Jesus but to point to the |
!lVes IN which these teachings have been
incorporated There is no gainsaying |
TACT. one instance outweighs all mega |
tive assertions.
10 singular degree, Jesus met the |
test or His own utterances. The can
dldate could stand upon the platform. |
Ihe BeatitudeS describe with rare ac- |
curacy the character of Christ Himself. |
He embodied His belief in a life be- |
fore He formulated it into words This |
bleness of Jesus from His gos- |
pei is one of the secrets of the hold |
which He has taken upon the race. |
From the cEneiform tablets of Baby
lonia, and from the sacred writings of |
India and China. some utterances have
been extracted which somewhat resem-
Bile certain of the words of Jesus They |
arouse no enthusiasm however, because
they are not, like His, incarnated in a
life. The practicality of the platform
of Christ is proved by the life of Christ |
His party not only subscribe to His
doctrines: they live them.
Tho nF