“Mysteries,” truths we could never know by reason, but only by the teaching of God; and the gift of understanding enables us to know better what His teaching means.  The Apostles heard and knew what Our Lord taught, but they did not fully understand the whole meaning till the Holy Ghost had come.

184 Q. Why do we receive the gift of wisdom?  A. We receive the gift of wisdom to give us a relish for the things of God and to direct our whole life and all our actions to His honor and glory.

“Relish,” a liking for, a desire for.

185 Q. Which are the beatitudes?  A. The beatitudes are: 

(1) Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of Heaven. (2) Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land. (3) Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted. (4) Blessed are they that hunger and thirst after justice, for they
    shall be filled.
(5) Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy. (6) Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God. (7) Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children
    of God.
(8) Blessed are they that suffer persecution for justice’ sake, for
    theirs is the kingdom of Heaven.

The beatitudes are part of a sermon Our Lord once preached to the people on the Mount. (Matt. 5).  When Our Lord wished to preach, the Jews would not always allow Him to enter their synagogues or meeting houses; so He preached to the people in the open air.  Sometimes He stood in a boat by the seashore; sometimes on a little hill, with the people standing or sitting near Him.  Did you ever think how you would have acted if you lived at that time and were present when Our Lord preached?  How anxious you would have been to get near to Him?  How you would have pushed your way through the crowd and listened to every word?  Why, then, do you sometimes pay so little attention in church or at instructions when the words of Our Lord are repeated to you?  Our Lord instituted a Church which, as we know, is sometimes called the kingdom of Heaven.  In this sermon He laid down the condition for being good subjects of His kingdom; that is, He gives the virtues we should practice to be good children of the Church.  He tells us what rewards we shall have for practicing these virtues and leading a holy life:  namely, God’s grace and blessing in this world and everlasting glory in Heaven.

(1) “Poor in spirit.”  One is poor in spirit if he does not set his heart upon riches and the goods of this world in such a way that he would be willing to offend God in order to possess them, or rather than part with them.  Thus one who has no money but who would do anything to get it, would be poor, but not poor in spirit, and therefore not among those Our Lord calls blessed.  If we are really poor and wish to be poor in spirit also, we must be contented with our lot—­with what God gives us—­and never complain against