The Beatitudes offer a summary of Jesus? Sermon on the Mount'a succinct summary of his essential teaching. In probing the meaning of these eight verses, Michael Crosby cuts to the heart of Matthew's Gospel: a spiritual message that is at once personal and deeply social. Crosby posits that Matthew's Gospel was written for a more affluent church community. As such, his Gospel offers a particularly telling challenge to First-World Christians. To pray in the spirit of the Beatitudes is to answer a radical call to conversion: a journey into God's Reign of peace, justice, mercy, and renewal. Originally published in 1980, this edition has been thoroughly revised and updated.