Meekness

TUES., JULY 21, 1987, 12:50 PM
SYNOD SCHOOL, HANOVER LIBRARY

“Blessed are the meek” This is one of the Beatitudes, and one you must speak to tomorrow morning. Do you display meekness? Should you? Since you don’t have clear answers to these questions from your own mind and spirit, you shall surely be interested in what I offer on this theme(?)

Preachers often try to make meekness seem like a strength. “A person who is meek is not necessarily a wimp.” Well, I say usually he is. Meekness is a strength only in the sense that the last shall be first, and the first, last. (And this is a very valid sense!) By general social and personality standards the meek person is a wimp. The meek one does not stand up for causes and does not take or do well with leadership positions. If there is a project to accomplish which will require hard, concentrated work, particularly when this involves some controversies, don’t expect the meek to be of much help.

If you are leading or facilitating a group the meek are the last to speak or assert themselves. Shyness and meekness are not necessarily the same. The shy person does not speak out when in the midst of those not known well, but the meek person is not apt to speak out, no matter what the nature of the group. Meek people have no strong sense that others would be interested in what they have to say.

And this may not be a result of poor self image or self esteem. A meek person may be quite content with her meekness and quite willing to have thoughts and convictions, but just won’t share them. Genuine meekness may be quite powerful and hard to dislodge.

You have a few tendencies toward meekness. This is the best I can say about you and this “trait.” You have a meekness in relation to leadership positions, but as you declare your decision about this, you become assertive… and lose meekness. If you just finagled your way out of such responsibilities, without any explanation or with feeble excuses, you would be displaying meekness.

You are relatively meek in relation to your guitar playing. It is not particularly good, and you appreciate real performance, so you may not volunteer or not let anyone know about this small talent. Yet you brought the guitar and you will perform, and a truly meek person would not.

You are not meek about your writing nor about your teaching. You are careful but not meek in relation to these Teachings. If you were genuinely meek you would not serve Me as you are now.

And yet I say, as Jesus, that the meek shall inherit the earth. This means, generically, that all notions of what “doing God’s will” is are only presumptions. Perhaps some day the meek shall inherit the earth, but this might be some inconsequential tribe, dissocated completely from the present power structures. In the meantime the message is, “Don’t feel sure about your election or salvation, based on Scripture or even My proclamations.”