The Gospels as we have them were written maybe fifty years after the events they report. We have no way of accessing what Jesus actually said. For example, there are two reports of Jesus teaching the Beatitudes, one in Matthew and one in Luke, that have subtle differences. Since both versions are in the Bible we treat both as the Word of God and meditate on the message each has for us today. St. Luke has Jesus say “Blessed are you who are poor … Blessed are you who are now hungry.” In this version Jesus talks directly (“you”) to those who are suffering and promises God’s intervention. A reminder to us that poverty doesn’t exist, poor people do; hunger doesn’t exist, hungry people do.
