My pastor mentioned something called the "beatitudes" in the book of Matthew. What are they?

There is a question listing out the Beatitudes in the link below. I'm interested in these because according to the Bible, these eight things will make everyone happy! Can you help me interpret these in layman's terms, so they are easily understood? Please look at my interpretations below each and make any corrections and/or expand on what I have. The more answers the better, because, in life, there isn't just one correct answer. https://christianity.stackexchange.com/questions/61188/what-are-the-beatitudes Please be very specific about which ones are from the first person, second person or third person, or a combination thereof. I did not put this much thought into it yet, because I was afraid of getting it wrong. The first person is the I/we perspective. The second person is the you perspective. The third person is the he/she/it/they perspective. For people with empathy, they feel what the other person they are with is feeling. So in a sense, they both share the same feeling. But in order to achieve the feeling (either when together or in prayer or thought), I need to know which person the beatitude is happening to, and which person the beatitude is being observed from. The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12) >**3** Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. - people who recognise their own spiritual poverty, their need for God >**4** Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. - feel regret or sadness about someone else, but not ourselves >**5** Blessed are the meek: for they shall possess the land. - quiet, gentle, and easily imposed on; submissive to others >**6** Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice: for they shall have their fill. - fairness in the way that people are treated >**7** Blessed are the merciful: for they shall obtain mercy. - being compassionate and forgiving when someone else does not deserve it >**8** Blessed are the clean of heart: for they shall see God. - speaks of our motivation, our desires that move us to act and seek a place and purpose in the world >**9** Blessed are the peacemakers: for they shall be called children of God. - a person who brings about peace, especially by reconciling adversaries >**10** Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice' sake: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. - if someone is harassed or punished in a manner designed to injure, grieve, or afflict, then heaven is on the way soon for them >**11** Blessed are ye when they shall revile you, and persecute you, and speak all that is evil against - you, untruly, for my sake: **12** Be glad and rejoice, for your reward is very great in heaven. - to express disappointment; to harass or punish;

At Matthew 5:6 (RSVCE), Jesus says: “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. The concept of physical hunger and thirst, as we understand today, appears to be far different from that the people of Jesus' time had. If it was spiritual hunger and thirst the Jesus was in deed referring to, the attributes would have been similar. I hope that the Church has explained at length, the deeper meaning of hunger and thirst, as would have been in the mind of Jesus when He spoke on the Mount. I wish to know what the official interpretation of Matthew 6:5 in the specific context of day-to-day life of the time of Jesus, and offered by the Catholic Church is.

Matthew 5:11 says, > Blessed are ye when they shall revile you, and persecute you, and speak all that is evil against you, untruly, for my sake: (Douay-Rheims) From the sound of it, this verse has mostly to do with what people say or think of us. But what about when people beat us? or steal from us? or poison us? Does the same blessing apply in those cases as well? Would they also be examples of persecution? Are there other verses from the Sermon on the Mount, or the Gospels, or the NT, that deal with the theme of injury and the blessing that comes with it?

I'm working through a study on "The Beatitudes" of Matthew 5 and would appreciate any insight into Christ's statement: > Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. > ESV My question is specifically in regard to what "poor in spirit" means, not "kingdom of heaven." An interesting paradigm shift came to me from Dallas Willard's *The Divine Conspiracy*, 1997, which inverts the apparent formulaic assumption of "poor in spirit" to represent a **bad thing.** on pg. 99 of his aforementioned book he puts it this way: > [Willard's paraphrase of Matt. 5:3] "Blessed are the spiritual zeros - > the spiritually bankrupt, deprived and deficient, the spiritual > beggars, those without a wisp of 'religion' - when the kingdom of the > heavens comes upon them." > ... > > ... The poor in spirit are blessed as a result > of the kingdom of God being available to them in their spiritual > poverty. So, seeing "poor in spirit" turned into a bad thing that the kingdom of heaven's availability turns into a good thing was an interesting idea to me, but Williard fails to provide much objective or external support for this beyond his own reasoning. If you're aware of an objective or external argument supporting this perspective, please share it. In short, any answers that can expound on the meaning of "poor in spirit" would be greatly appreciated. Please avoid giving me opinions, and please provide references for all answers, if you can. Thanks!