■riie secondary meaning of ' beatitude ' is a de- claration of blessedness. This declaration may be made of glorified saints in heaven, as in the Beati- tudes of the Apocalypse ; or of disciples on earth, as in nearly all the Beatitudes of the Gospels. But the word is unduly restricted in its signi- ficance when it is used as a synonym for beatifi- cation,— a Roman Catholic ceremony wherein an inferior degree of canonization is conferred on a deceased person. The Pope considers his claims to beatitude ; and if these are approved, proclaims his admission to the Beatific Vision, and sanctions the ascription to him by the faithful of the title
ii. Significance op /iaxapio?. — In our Lord's declarations of blessedness He used a word {imko.- Moi) which has an instructive history, and passed by the pagan word for ' happiness ' or ' well-being ' {evdaiij.ovia) which is not found in the New Testa- ment. In Homer the gods are the blessed {fidKapes) ones, because they excel mortal men in power or in knowledge rather than in virtue. ' As com- pared with men, in conduct they are generally characterized by superior force and intellect, but by inferior morality ' (Gladstone, Homer and the Homeric Age). The Greek despair of attaining blessedness on earth led to the frequent use of ' blessed ' as synonymous with dead ; Aristotle also distinguishes between /xaKapur/ids or Divine blessedness, and dbaiixovla or human blessedness {Ethic. Nicom. x. 8). It is therefore suggestive that the Christian conception of beatitude should find expression in a word closely associated with descriptions of the blessedness of the gods and 'originally stronger and more ideal than evdal/ioii>. . . . This is manifest in Aristotle, with whom the Mtt/tdpios as opposed to ^vSeijs is lie who lacks no good' (Crenier, Biblico-Theol. Lex. of NT Greek, p. 776).
But the word which describes the blessedness of those who lack no good is ennobled by our Lord's use of it. He turns the thoughts of His disciples from outward to inward good ; He teaches that blessedness is determined not by fortune, but by goodness, and that it is attainable on earth by all who put themselves into right relation to God. In His Beatitudes, therefore, it is desirable to translate ^ua/tdpioi 'blessed' rather than 'happy.' (Cf. the saying of Carlyle that those who ' find blessedness' can 'do without happiness'). Since the word 'blessed' fell from the lips of Christ, His Beatitudes have worthily set forth an ideal of character loftier than the aristocratic virtue of the Platonists, a joy unknown to the most noble- minded of the pleasure - seeking Epicureans, a satisfaction of soul beyond the reach of the self- sufficient Stoic. Like the chiming of sweet bells.
the Beatitudes call men to enter the kingdom in which to be righteous is to be blessed ; they appeal to a universal longing of the human heart, and they promise a satisfaction of soul which can be fount! only in obedience to the law which the Son of Man proclaims in order that His brethren may be blessed. Beatitude is the final purpose of tlie most perfect law ; beatitude is the experience of tlie humble in whose heart there iei;j;ns the grace which came by Jesus Christ. The Beatitudes of our Lord bring the word ' blessed ' down to earth and there set up the kingdom of heaven ; they portray no remote bliss, nor even a pleasure near at hand, but a fulness of joy within the soul. Henceforth blessedness is seen to be the privilege not only of those who are exalted above all earthly care and suft'ering, but also of those who still share the limitations of this mortal life ; it depends not on outward conditions such as wealth or education (cf. Plato, Republic, 354 A, 335 E), but on inward conditions such as meekness of spirit and purity of heart ; it is not the prerogative of the few who have been initiated into the secrets of a Divine philosophy, but the privilege of all who become loyal disciples of Him in whose life the perfect Law was perfectly fulfilled.
iii. The NT Beatitudes.— 'Beatitude' is not a Biblical word, but it is properly applied to all the sayings of our Lord which contain a declaration of the conditions of human blessedness.
1. Sinrjlc Sayings. — Isolated Beatitudes are re- corded in Matthew, Luke, and John. They describe a blissful state which is the accompani- ment of certain conditions of soul, or the reward of virtuous acts ; but the blissful state is almost always represented as attainable in this life. (The exceptions are Lk 14"- '^). The following is a list (omitting Lk "• '*) of the single sayings or Jesus in which He declares the blessedness of those who possess spiritual graces, or who exemplify some quality of virtue in their actions : —
' Blessed is he, whosoever shall find none occa- sion of stumbling in me.' (Mt 11*, cf. Lk 7-^). ' Blessed are your eyes, for they see ; and your
ears, for they hear.' (Mt 13>«, cf. Lk 10^). ' Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona ; for flesh
and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but
my Father which is in heaven.' (Mt 16"). ' Blessed are they that hear the word of God and