Blessed Are They Who Hope in God
For some, Psalm 1 echoes the imagery presented in the first reading from the prophet Jeremiah. Blessed indeed are those who hope in God rather than in other human beings. Unlike Robert Frost’s roads that seem equal, the classic image of two roads are opposites. The people who are blessed avoid bad company and spend time prayerfully considering God’s plan for the world. Their nurturing way of life is good for them and for the world. This psalm can be seen as an introduction to the entire book of Psalms and it states its thesis quite clearly: “Happy is the one who is rooted in God.” This might be a good week to take time to reflect on the God-given moments in the four seasons: winter – a dark time or trial in life; spring – your faith opened more and bloomed; summer – prayer was easy and all was right; autumn – your faith matured with the glorious colors.
If you would be happy:
never walk with the wicked, never stand with sinners,
never sit among cynics,
but delight in God’s teaching and study it night and day.
You will stand like a tree planted by a stream, bearing fruit in season,
its leaves never fading, its yield always plenty.
Not so for the wicked, like chaff they are blown by the wind.
They will not withstand the judgment, nor assemble with the just.
God marks the way of the upright, but the corrupt walk to ruin.
[verses adapted from The Psalter © 1995, Archdiocese of Chicago: Liturgy Training Publications.]