“POOR IN SPIRIT” Does NOT Mean What You Think (Orthodox Beatitudes)

The Orthodox Christian interpretation of Matthew 5:3 'Blessed are the poor in spirit' reveals that 'poor in spirit' refers to voluntary humility chosen by free will, not misery or weakness; according to St. John Chrysostom, 'spirit' means the soul and free will, making this poverty a deliberate act of self-emptying that imitates Christ's voluntary descent, while St. Basil the Great teaches that true humility involves sober self-knowledge of one's sins and limits without false self-deprecation, and the kingdom of heaven is promised in the present tense because it begins within a person in this life.