“Blessed are they that mourn: for they shall be comforted. (Matthew 5:4)” – Jesus

As we continue on in our spiritual discussion of the beatitudes, this second beatitude is another which may be hard to comprehend because the sorrow which we suffer, & tears we shed, over the loss of a loved one, many take us weeks, months, or even years to get over. In some cases, the mourning we go through never leaves us until we succumb to death ourselves. However, Jesus was not speaking about the mourning over the loss of life or material possessions.

I will remind you again that these beatitudes were spoken from an exalted spiritual consciousness and therefore they all have a deeper spiritual meaning to them. We should be reminding ourselves that Jesus came to declare to humanity that God is our Father; and his mission was to show the world the way back to God. Therefore, when we read or hear any of the beatitudes we should be saying to ourselves: “how can any of these verses help me to know, find, &/or experience God in my life?”

The “mourning” which Jesus says will be comforted is the “mourning” which our soul goes through after recognizing or “awakening” to the consciousness of being “separated” from God. In truth we are never really separated from God, for if we were we couldn’t exist. So, we never truly lose Him, we just lose sight of Him. And it is the pursuit of selfish desires which have caused us to fall from an elevated spiritual consciousness into a lower more material one.

Selfishness has caused us to “died” spiritually and makes us feel disconnected or separated from God. Once we become “Enlightened” we regain or “awaken” to a higher level of consciousness and come to know how intimately united to God we truly are. But, until we reach that point our soul, which is buried within us, is deeply yearning and desiring to be reunited with it’s Beloved Maker. And when we love God above all other things, and cry out from our soul for Him, then He will respond to us & comfort us.

In fact, this is one of God’s many promises (Jeremiah 33:3, Qur’an 40:60). But, our calling cannot be just lip-service. Only when we cry out to God, with all our hearts, “mourning” over the “loss” of knowing Him, as we would mourn the loss of a parent or child, will He come to us. For, as our soul yearns for God and draws closer to Him, the attractive force of love, draws God closer to us; and He comforts us with the bliss & love of His presence.

Think of it this way, is it the child who is happily playing alone in the yard, or the continuously crying child, who will attract a response from its parent?

In the same manner, it is the soul, which continuously cries for God & spiritual knowledge, who is comforted by the embrace of God and has his/her tears wiped from his/her face.

In fact, what Jesus is teaching in this second beatitude he repeats in the parable he spoke about “The Persistent Neighbor” (Luke 11:5-8). If we don’t stop calling out to God; if we keep crying to Him from the depths of our soul, and continually seek Him, then one day our efforts shall be rewarded & our sorrow shall be comforted by His coming to us.

Therefore, as you walk your spiritual path, allow your soul to “cry” over the loss of knowing God. If you “mourn” over the fact that you have lost intimate contact with Him, you shall eventually be surprised & comforted by His presence. So, know that truly blessed are all of you who are crying & mourning for God now. For, by this yearning you shall attain Him and rejoice in the knowledge of Him throughout the rest of eternity.

God bless you on your journey & remember to –Always Heed the Spirit,

Anthony