Tag Archives: happiness

Living the Beatitudes

The Sermon on the Mount

Our Lord, Jesus Christ, giving the beatitudes during the Sermon on the Mount.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave us the eight Beatitudes, eight attitudes or dispositions that should characterise every follower of Christ, of whom they are a portrait. In this meditation we consider how:

  • The Beatitudes should characterise every Christian
  • They contrast notably with the ways of the world
  • If we live them well we will grow in holiness
  • We will show the world a better way to live
  • We will find the true happiness we are seeking

Lessons from the manger: detachment

Christ is born in Bethlehem

The birth of Christ is a special time in the Church’s calendar. It is a joyful event that marks the beginning of our salvation.

From the manger in Bethlehem Jesus teaches us many lessons. In this meditation we consider the lesson of detachment from material things and comforts, which abound especially at Christmas but throughout the year as well. We consider that:

  • Jesus wants us to be happy but we will not find true happiness in material things
  • We were made for God and will be truly happy when our heart rests in him
  • Jesus teaches us much about detachment in the Sermon on the Mount
  • Pope Francis in his encyclical Laudato Si teaches us how to be happy with a simpler way of life
  • St Teresa of Calcutta shows us how detachment from goods is freedom
  • We can follow some very practical suggestions to find the happiness we seek

Meditation on the will of God

God has a particular will for each one of us. Our holiness and our happiness, both here and hereafter, depend on whether we do what God is asking of us. In this meditation we consider how we can know God’s will and fulfil it.