The second Beatitude:
“Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”
Does this introduction sound vaguely timely?
71. These are strong words in a world that from the beginning has been a place of conflict, disputes and enmity on all sides, where we constantly pigeonhole others on the basis of their ideas, their customs and even their way of speaking or dressing.
These behaviors are not the root; they are symptoms of a deeper malady. For Pope Francis, he levels his criticism on narcissism, or, in other words …
Ultimately, it is the reign of pride and vanity, where each person thinks he or she has the right to dominate others. Nonetheless, impossible as it may seem, Jesus proposes a different way of doing things: the way of meekness. This is what we see him doing with his disciples. It is what we contemplate on his entrance to Jerusalem: “Behold, your king is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey” (Matthew 21:5; Zechariah 9:9).
Zechariah is also an Advent Scripture. The prophets looked to a Messiah who would turn expectations on their head. They knew it wasn’t going to be just one-upping the Babylonians, or the current century’s arch-enemy. It has to stop somewhere.
You can check the full document Gaudete et Exsultate on the Vatican website.
Zechariah echoes King David’s instructions for Solomon to be anointed by Zadok and Nathan in Gihon – 1 Kings 1:33-38, and elsewhere one may find much more background on mules/donkeys vs horses in this context….