New Testament

Zoe Qesko

P r e f a c e

In Christianity, the Beatitudes (anglicized

from the Matthean Vulgate, a late 4th-

century Latin translation of the Bible, title:

Beatitudines) are a set of teachings by

Jesus Christ, that appears in the Gospels

of Matthew and Luke. The term Beatitude

comes from the Latin adjective beatus

which means happy, fortunate, or blissful.

The teachings are expressed as eight

blessings in the Sermon on the Mount 1 in

Matthew. Four similar blessings appear in

the Sermon on the Plain in Luke and are

followed by four woes that mirror the

blessings.

Each Beatitude consists of two phrases:

the condition and the result. In almost all

cases the phrases used are familiar from

an Old Testament context, but in the

sermon Jesus elevates them to new

teachings.[

Together, the Beatitudes present a new set of Christian ideals that focus on love and

humility rather than force and exaction. They offer a way of life that promises

eternity in the Kingdom of Heaven. They echo the highest ideals of the teachings of

Jesus on mercy; spirituality and compassion.

On the occasion of Easter, which is coming soon, we, the pupils check back in the

Bible and the Sermon on the Mount to contemplate the relationship between the

articles of the Declaration of Human Rights and the Beatitudes. Let’s have a look at

the next pages… The conclusion is up to you…

by Zoe Qesko, B2,

Lyceum «Miltos KOUNTOURAS», Athens, Greece

April 2012

Comenius project: Human Rights in Europe

1 Sermon on the Mount: The Sermon is the longest piece of teaching of Jesus in the New Testament, and has been one of the most widely quoted elements of the Canonical Gospels. It includes some of the best known teachings of Jesus such as the Beatitudes, and the widely recited Lord's Prayer. To most believers in Jesus, the Sermon on the Mount in 33 A.D., contains the central tenets of Christian discipleship. The Mount is the Mt. Tabor or some other high mountain of Galilee. The mountain is located above Tabcha- 175M higher than the Sea of Galilee (Lake of Gennesaret), yet 35M under the Mediterranean Sea level.

James Tissot, the Beatitudes, Brooklyn Museum , ca 1890

R e s o u r c e s

Catholic Encyclopaedia: http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02369a.htm

Free encyclopaedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beatitudes

Bible: Matthew 5:3-11: http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Bible_%28American_Standard%29/Matthew#5:3

The Gospel of Matthew: http://biblescripture.net/Matthew.html

Κατά Ματθαίον Ε’: http://www.synaxarion.gr/gr/cpgid/3e58f8911f1242c39a0650ea576b6a99/cmspage.aspx

ΤO ΚΑΤΑ ΜΑΤΘΑΙΟΝ ΕΥΑΓΓΕΛΙΟΝ: http://nikolaos.6te.net/pdf/to_kata_mathaion_evangelio.pdf

Μυριόβιβλος: http://www.myriobiblos.gr/bible/nt2/matthew/5.asp

S p e c i a l t h a n k s t o my English teacher Mrs Stavriana Soubassi for her precious help.

The Sermon on the Mount by Carl Heinrich Bloch

1 And seeing the multitudes, he2 went up into the mountain: and when he had sat down, his disciples came unto him: 2 and he opened his mouth and taught them, saying

3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”

Poverty & Wealth-William Powell

4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted”

Misery- Hieronymus Bosch

2 The Lord, Jesus Christ in the Sermon on the Mount

The Gospel of Matthew, chapter 5

5 “Blessed are the meek,

for they will inherit the earth"

La Comumnia Di Apelle - Botticelli

6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,

for they shall be filled”

Cain & Abel - Mark Adams

7 “Blessed are the merciful,

for they shall obtain mercy”

The Merciful - Unknown Artist

8 “Blessed are the pure in heart,

for they shall see God”

Blessed are the pure in heart-William Hallmark

9 “Blessed are the peacemakers,

for they shall be called children of God”

«Blessed are the peacemakers»-Unknown Artist

10

“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,

for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”

Out of Darkness - Jani Freiman

11

“Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say

all kinds of evil against you because of me”

Jesus talks - Unknown Artist

12

“Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in

the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you”

Jesus - Unknown Artist

………………………

A p p e n d i x

The Gospel of Matthew is the opening book of the New Testament of the Bible, and the first of the

Four Gospels, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

The Gospel of St. Matthew is one of the most quoted books of the Bible. Noted especially for Jesus'

Sermon on the Mount in Chapters 5-7, Matthew is the source of the Beatitudes (5:3-12) and the Lord's

Prayer, the Our Father (6:9-13). Jesus states the Golden Rule in the Sermon on the Mount (7:12).

The Gospel of Matthew is especially important for it is one of the two Gospels originally written by an

Apostle (the other being the Gospel of John). The Gospel of Matthew was possibly written in Antioch,

an early home of Christianity. Indeed the followers of Jesus were first called Christians in Antioch (Acts

11:26).

Matthew's Gospel is directed to an audience steeped in Hebrew tradition. The Gospel of Matthew

stressed that Jesus Christ is the Messiah foretold in Hebrew Scripture, our Old Testament, and that the

Kingdom of the Messiah is the Kingdom of Heaven.