As you say (and I alluded to as a footnote) there are a lot of interpretations of what the beatitudes mean.
My personal feeling is that those who emphasize the “spiritual” interpretations are often doing it as a dodge, to avoid the challenge of having to follow the non-spiritual interpretations.
That said, I make no claim that my interpretations are what most Christians believe. They are definitely what some Christians believe, and they are the interpretation of the Beatitudes that I find personally valuable today, as a non-Christian.
My personal feeling is that those who emphasize the “spiritual” interpretations are often doing it as a dodge, to avoid the challenge of having to follow the non-spiritual interpretations.
That feels a bit contrived. Do you really suggest that the most natural reading of something like “poor in spirit” is… non-spiritual? Turning away from materialism may sure derive from that, but to claim that it was the main focus seems quite a stretch.
As you say (and I alluded to as a footnote) there are a lot of interpretations of what the beatitudes mean.
My personal feeling is that those who emphasize the “spiritual” interpretations are often doing it as a dodge, to avoid the challenge of having to follow the non-spiritual interpretations.
That said, I make no claim that my interpretations are what most Christians believe. They are definitely what some Christians believe, and they are the interpretation of the Beatitudes that I find personally valuable today, as a non-Christian.
That feels a bit contrived. Do you really suggest that the most natural reading of something like “poor in spirit” is… non-spiritual? Turning away from materialism may sure derive from that, but to claim that it was the main focus seems quite a stretch.