The Beatitudes - Fortunate are the Blessed The Beatitudes not only help us to get to heaven but the help us avoid hell on earth. This talk is therefore in two halves – and driven by exegesis. What is exegesis. Exegesis is simply the analysis of text and every often of translation In many ways I prefer the Fortunate instead of Blessed Fortunate are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy. Fortunate are the peacemakers, - who build bridges Let us start with avoiding hell on earth. We all know people who simply live in a firestorm. Where ever they go they object or complain or rub people up the wrong way. They simply are not blessed or are not fortunate enough to make theirs and other people’s lives anything but joyless Once upon a time in 1998 in there was a proud and successful landlord and an awkward belligerent customer who drank a whole bottle of wine and then discovered that it was not the one that she had ordered – so refused to pay for it! She was not merciful - conflict res