Interpretation of the meaning of the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus Christ

The Sermon on the Mount is a revolutionary teaching in its essence. In it, Jesus Christ formulated new principles of the relationship between man and God, characteristic only of Christianity. The sermon is remarkable because it contains all the important things that a Christian needs to know and do. The Holy Evangelist Matthew completely recorded the words of the Savior, to which three chapters of the Gospel are devoted - from the 5th to the 7th chapters. Evangelist Luke gives only some parts of the sermon in the 6th chapter of his book.

What is the Sermon on the Mount

Jesus Christ delivered the Sermon on the Mount in the first year of His public ministry, climbing a low mountain located on the northern shore of Lake Galilee near the city of Capernaum.

Definition of the concept

The Sermon on the Mount is a collection of sayings of the Savior about the principles of Christian morality. It begins with the nine Commandments of Beatitude (happiness), which set out the New Testament law of spiritual rebirth. It goes on to say that Christians are called to have a beneficial influence on the surrounding society. Christ also emphasized that his teaching does not cancel, but complements the Old Testament commandments.

The Lord explains with examples how one must give alms to one’s neighbor, pray and fast correctly in order to please God. Jesus gives people the words of the Lord's Prayer, which is often called the Lord's Prayer. She serves as an example of not saying unnecessary words. Just a few lines capture the most important spiritual and material things that a person needs. The prayer book “Our Father” teaches you how to correctly distribute your worries, shows what is more important and what is secondary in life. Then there is a call to non-covetousness, humility and hope in God.

Also in the Teaching on the Mount there is a commandment “not to resist evil”, “turn the other cheek” and the Golden Rule. The phrases “salt of the earth”, “light of the world” and “do not judge for yourself, lest you be judged” have become catchphrases.

Significance in history

In Christianity, this sermon is considered an addition to the Ten Commandments engraved on the tablets, which God gave to Moses on Mount Sinai. It reflects the basic concepts and truths of Christian teaching.

The Sermon on the Mount said a lot of new things about the meaning of human life, happiness and immutable laws. Before the coming of Jesus Christ, the scribes and Pharisees enjoyed the exclusive right to interpret the law of God and explained it to the people in a confusing and incomprehensible way, mainly explaining it from the point of view of rituals and external observance of the law. The Pharisees gave arbitrary interpretations, taking into account their own benefit and selfishness. They despised the people, considered them an ignorant mass that was useless and unnecessary to educate.

Jesus Christ, on the contrary, spoke simply and clearly, in a language accessible to the common man, and gave examples taken from the ordinary life of the Jews for clarification. The Savior spoke about how people should live in order to create the Kingdom of God on earth, the kingdom of Light and Reason, Justice and Goodness. The Lord explained that a short earthly life was given in order to achieve eternal bliss in the Kingdom of Heaven. It is possible to achieve this goal through fulfilling the will of God, his commandments, and doing good deeds.

Sermon text

The text of the sermon has a beneficial effect on the consciousness of people, opens the path to God for a person, talks about a righteous lifestyle, and has a positive effect on the actions and relationships of people in society, the political structure of the country.

The Savior’s advice helps shape a person’s spiritual image, pointing the way to all-round perfection (spiritual and physical), to the improvement of both the individual and the entire world civilization.

I - First part of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5)

Beatitudes (Matt. 5:3–12)

And in response to these thoughts and feelings of theirs, the Lord reveals to them His Gospel teaching about the beatitudes, radically breaking their delusions. He teaches here the same thing that he spoke to Nicodemus: that we need to be spiritually reborn in order to create the Kingdom of God on earth, this paradise lost by people, and thereby prepare for ourselves the bliss of eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven. The first step towards this is to recognize your spiritual poverty, your sinfulness and insignificance, and humble yourself. That is why “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for of them is the Kingdom of Heaven.” Blessed are those who, seeing and recognizing their sins that prevent them from entering this Kingdom, cry for them, for they will be reconciled with their conscience and will be comforted. Those who mourn their sins reach such inner peace that they become incapable of being angry with anyone and become meek. Meek Christians have indeed inherited the land that was formerly owned by the pagans, but they will inherit the land in the future life, a new land that will open after the destruction of this corruptible world, “the land of the living” (Ex. 26:13; Rev. 21:1). “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,” i.e. fulfillment of the will of God in everything, for they will be satisfied and achieve that righteousness and justification of God, which is given by a sincere desire to fulfill the will of God in everything. The merciful God also requires mercy from people, a virtue that is achieved by those who strive to live according to the will of God. Therefore, “Blessed are mercy, for these will be shown mercy” by God, as well as vice versa: “Judgment without mercy has shown no mercy” (James 2:13). Sincere deeds of mercy cleanse the human heart from all sinful impurity, and those who are pure in heart are blessed, because with their heart, as with a spiritual eye, they will see God. Those who see God strive to imitate Him, to become like His Son, who reconciled man with God, who brought peace to the human soul; they hate enmity and therefore become peacemakers, striving to establish peace everywhere. Therefore, they too are blessed, for they will be called “sons of God.” Those who have reached such spiritual heights must be prepared for the fact that this sinful world, “lying in evil” (1 John 5:19), will hate them for the truth of God, the bearers of which they are, and will begin to persecute them, revile them, slander them and in every possible way persecute for their devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ and His Divine teaching. Those who suffer much here for Christ will have a great reward in heaven.

These nine New Testament commandments, called the Beatitudes, represent, in an abbreviated form, the entire Gospel. Their characteristic difference is from the 10 Old Testament commandments. It speaks mainly about the external actions Here we speak primarily about the inner disposition requirements in a categorical the conditions

Evangelist Luke complements the teaching of St. Matthew on the Beatitudes. He cites the words of the Lord Jesus Christ, containing a warning to those people who see bliss only in the intoxication of earthly goods. “Woe to you, rich people!” - says the Lord, contrasting these rich with the poor in spirit. Here we mean not just those who have earthly wealth, of course, but those who trust in it, are proud, exalted and arrogantly related to other people. “Woe to you who are now full, for you will hunger” - in contrast to “those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,” these are people who do not seek the truth of God, but are content with their false truth. “Woe to you who laugh now: for you will weep and wail” - such people are undoubtedly opposed to those who weep; these are careless people, frivolous about the sinful life they lead. The world, lying in evil, loves those who indulge it, who live according to its sinful customs; therefore, “woe to you when all people speak well of you ,” this is a sign of trouble in your moral state.

You are the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13)

The Lord further says that all His followers who fulfill these instructions of His will be the salt of the earth. Salt protects food from spoilage and makes it healthy and palatable - so Christians should protect the world from moral corruption and contribute to its healing. Salt imparts its saltiness to all substances with which it comes into close contact, so Christians must impart the spirit of Christ to all other people who have not yet become Christians. Salt does not change the essence or appearance of the substances in which it dissolves, but only gives them its own taste. Likewise, Christianity does not produce any external disruption in man and human society, but only ennobles the human soul and through this transforms all human life, giving it a special Christian character. “As soon as the salt becomes strong, it becomes salty” - in the east there really is a type of salt that, under the influence of rain, sun and air, loses its salty taste. Nothing can correct such salt. Likewise, those people who, having once tasted grace-filled communion with the Holy Spirit, fell into the unforgivable sin of resisting Him, are no longer able to be spiritually renewed without God’s extraordinary help.

You are the light of the world (Matt. 5:14–16)

The light of the world is the Lord Jesus Christ himself, but since believers perceive this light and reflect it into the world, they are also the “light of the world.” These are especially the Apostles and their successors, whose purpose is to shine the light of Christ - the shepherds of the Church. They should live in such a way that, seeing their good deeds, people glorify God.

I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill (Matt. 5:17–20)

Intending to show the relationship of His new law to the old one, the Lord first calms the zeal of the Jews for the law, emphasizing that He did not come to destroy the law, but to fulfill it. Christ really came to earth so that the entire Old Testament Word of God would be fulfilled in Him, in order to reveal, implement and establish all the power of the law and the prophets - to show the true meaning and spirit of the entire Old Testament. “How did He fulfill the law?” - asks the blessed one. Theophylact: “Firstly, by the fact that he accomplished everything predicted about Him by the prophets. He fulfilled all the commandments of the law, for He committed no iniquity and no flattery was in His mouth. He fulfilled the law by completing it "Iota" is the smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet. Saying that “one jot, or one tittle, will not pass from the law,” the Lord emphasizes that even the least in the law of God will not remain unfulfilled. The Pharisees divided the commandments into large and small and did not consider it a sin to violate the small commandments of the law, including, among other things, the commandments of love, alms and justice. “He will be called the least in the Kingdom of Heaven,” according to the property of the Greek expression, means: he will be rejected, will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven. The righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees was characterized only by the external fulfillment of the rules and regulations of the law, and, moreover, mainly petty ones; Therefore, she coexisted in their hearts with conceit, arrogance, without the spirit of humility and meek love, and was outward and hypocritical; under her guise vile vices and passions could nest, of which Christ the Savior repeatedly forcefully denounced them. The Lord warns His followers against such external, ostentatious righteousness.

You must not be angry (Matthew 5:21)

Further, throughout the entire 5th chapter, starting from v. 21, the Lord shows exactly what He came to complete the Old Testament law: He teaches here a deeper and more spiritual understanding and fulfillment of the Old Testament commandments. It’s not enough just not to kill a person physically, you can’t kill him morally, being angry at him in vain. “Whoever is angry with his brother without cause will be subject to judgment; whoever says “cancer” to his brother is subject to the Sanhedrin; and whoever says “madman” is subject to fiery hell.” Here, in relation to Jewish ideas, different degrees of sins of anger against one's neighbor are indicated. The ordinary city court dealt with lesser crimes; major crimes were subject to the great Sanhedrin, or host, the highest court, located in Jerusalem and consisting of 72 members presided over by the high priest. “Raka” means “empty man” and expresses contempt. “Ure” or “mad” expresses an extreme degree of contempt or disdain for one’s neighbor: this was the name not only for a stupid person, but also for a wicked, unscrupulous person. The punishment for this highest degree of anger is “fiery Gehenna . This was the name of the Valley of Ennom, located southwest of Jerusalem, in which, under the wicked kings, the disgusting service of Molech was performed (2 Kings 16:3 and 2 Chronicles 28:3), where young men were led through fire and infants were sacrificed. This valley, after the cessation of idolatry, became an object of horror and disgust. Sewage and corpses of those left without burial began to be brought there from Jerusalem; Death penalties were also sometimes carried out there; the air in this valley was so polluted that a fire was constantly burning there to purify it; therefore, this place became terrible and disgusting, nicknamed the valley of fire and began to serve as an image of the eternal torment of sinners. The meekness and love of a Christian for his neighbors should extend to the point of not only not being angry with anyone, but also not in any way causing anger against himself on the part of his neighbor, of course, with an unkind feeling. This prevents you from offering prayers to God with a clear conscience, and therefore you must hasten to reconcile with your brother. In relation to Roman legal proceedings, according to which the creditor could force his debtor to the judge, the brother offended by us is called our “rival”, with whom we must reconcile while still “on the path” of this earthly life, so that he does not give us to the Judge - God, and we would not have suffered the retribution we deserved. And St. ap. Paul urged the offender to make peace with the offender, saying: “Let not the sun go down on your anger” (Eph. 4:26).

You cannot commit adultery in your heart (Matthew 5:27)

In the same way, it is not enough to fulfill the 7th commandment of God’s law in an external way alone: ​​“You shall not commit adultery,” protecting yourself from gross violation of it by falling into sin by doing so. Exalting this commandment, the Lord teaches that not only the external act of adultery is a crime, but also internal lust, looking at a woman with lust. “He commits adultery with his wife in his heart,” says St. Athanasius Vel.: “one who agrees to a cause, but is hindered by either the place or the time or the fear of civil laws.” Not every look at a woman is a sin, but a look combined with an inner desire to commit the sin of adultery with her. In the event of a temptation to sin, one must show such determination to suppress the temptation so as not to spare anything most precious, which are a person’s own members - members of his body, an eye or a hand. In this case, the eye or hand is indicated here as symbols of everything precious to us, which we must sacrifice in order to eradicate passion and avoid falling into sin.

You can't get divorced (Matt. 5:32)

In this regard, the Lord forbids a husband to divorce his wife, “except for the sin of fornication,” that is, “except for the guilt of fornication.” The Old Testament Law of Moses (Deut. 24:1-2) allows a husband to divorce his wife by giving her a letter of divorce, a written certificate that she was his wife and that he is putting her away for this or that reason. The position of a woman under the arbitrariness of her husband was then very difficult.

The Lord says in another place (Mark 10:2-12) that permission to divorce a wife was given by Moses to the Jews, “due to their hardness of heart,” but that from the beginning it was not so that marriage was established by God as an indissoluble union . It is terminated by itself only in the event of adultery of one of the spouses. If a husband divorces his wife without this reason, then he pushes her into adultery, just as he is the culprit of adultery for the one who takes her.

Do not swear at all (Matthew 5:33)

The Old Testament law forbade using an oath in the name of God in empty deeds, especially in lies. The third commandment of God's law prohibits taking the name of God in vain, prohibits any kind of frivolous attitude towards swearing in the name of God. The Jews contemporary to the Lord Jesus Christ, wanting to fulfill to the letter this prohibition of abusing the name of God, instead swore by heaven or earth, Jerusalem, their head and, thus, without using the name of God, they still swore in vain and in lies. These oaths are forbidden by the Lord Jesus Christ, for everything was created by God: to swear by any of His creation means to swear by the Creator, and to swear by Him in a lie means to insult the sanctity of the oath. A Christian must be so honest and truthful that he must be believed in one word: “she, her: neither, nor” without any godliness. But in important cases this does not prohibit a legal oath or oath. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself confirmed the oath at the trial, when to the words of the High Priest: “I adjure You by the living God,” he answered: “You said,” for this was precisely the form of the judicial oath among the Jews (Matt. 26:63–64). And ap. Paul swears, calling on God to testify to the truth of his words (Rom. 1:9, 9:1, 2 Cor. 1:23, 2:17, Gal. 1:20, etc.). Empty and frivolous oaths are prohibited.

In ancient times, revenge was so widespread that it was important to at least somewhat moderate its manifestations, which is what the Old Testament law did. The law of Christ completely abolishes revenge, preaching love for one’s enemies. But the saying: “do not resist evil” cannot in any way be understood in the sense of “non-resistance to evil in general,” as Leo Tolstoy and similar false teachers do. The Lord forbids us to rebel with retaliatory malice against a person who has caused us evil, but against all evil, as such; a Christian must be completely irreconcilable and must fight evil with all the measures available to him, not only allowing evil into his own heart. The words should not be taken literally: “But if anyone strikes you on the right side of your cheek, turn to him the other also ,” for we know that Christ Himself acted differently when the minister, during the interrogation of the high priest Annas, struck Him on the cheek (John 18:22 –23). We must try to correct not only those who do evil in general, but also our personal offenders, about which there is a direct commandment of the Lord in Ev. Matthew 18:15–18. The evil feeling of vindictiveness is prohibited, but not the fight against evil. Litigation is also prohibited, but on the contrary, it is prescribed to satisfy the needs of one’s neighbor: “Give to him who asks you!” This, of course, does not exclude those cases when giving to someone who asks is not only not useful, but also harmful: true Christian love for one’s neighbor will not allow, for example, giving a knife to a murderer who asks for it or poison to someone who wants to take his own life.

In the Old Testament we do not find the commandment: “You shall hate your enemy,” but, apparently, the Jews themselves derived such a commandment from the commandment to love one’s neighbor, for they considered “neighbors” only people close in faith, origin, or mutual services. The rest, i.e. Gentiles, foreigners and people who showed malice were considered “enemies”, love for whom seemed inappropriate. Christ commanded that, just as our Heavenly Father, alien to anger and hatred, loves all people, even the evil and unrighteous, as His children, so we, who want to be worthy sons of the Heavenly Father, would love everyone, even our enemies. The Lord wants His followers to be morally superior to Jews and pagans, whose love for other people is essentially based on selfishness. Love for the sake of God, for the sake of God’s commandment, is worthy of reward, but love out of natural inclination or for the sake of one’s own worldly benefit does not deserve reward. Thus, gradually ascending higher and higher on the ladder of Christian perfection, the Christian will finally reach the highest and most difficult commandment for a natural and unregenerate person about love for enemies, with which the Lord concludes the first part of His Sermon on the Mount. And as if wanting to show how much the fulfillment of this commandment likens a weak and imperfect person to God, He confirms that the ideal of Christian perfection consists likeness to God: “Be ye perfect, even as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” This is completely in accordance with the Divine plan, expressed even at the creation of man: “Let us make man in our image and likeness” (Genesis ch. 1 v. 26). Divine holiness is unattainable for us, and therefore what is meant here is not equality between us and God, but some kind of internal likeness, a gradual approach of the immortal human soul to its Prototype with the help of grace.

History of appearance

The Savior proclaimed his commandments while wandering through Galilee, around 30 AD. In what Jesus said on the mountain, some researchers see an analogy with the ascent of Moses to Sinai. Thus, Christ acts as a follower, continuator of the work of the Old Testament prophet

Event location

The mountain where the teaching was delivered was called the “Mountain of Beatitudes.” Although there are no mountains in this part of Galilee, there are several large hills to the west of Lake Galilee. Some Gospel scholars believe that a more accurate translation from the Greek is “high place” rather than simply “mountain.”

There is also a version according to which Jesus Christ delivered his speech in a cave on a hill, where he performed a miracle with bread and fish, not far from Capernaum.

Preacher and listeners

Interestingly, according to the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus preaches his sermon while sitting. This may mean that the target audience for the Discourse on the Mount was not the entire Israeli people: teachers in synagogues always sat teaching doctrine. Thus, the evangelist emphasizes that the disciples and apostles were the main listeners of Christ.

This theory is confirmed in works of art - in paintings and icons, those close to him sit next to Jesus, and ordinary people are at a distance, although they can hear what is being said.

It is believed that the speech was addressed to three types of listeners: those close to them, the people and all of humanity, which is why it was recorded.

Introduction

The entire Sermon on the Mount is presented only in Ev. Matthew. In an abbreviated form it is presented by Ev. Luke, in whom certain parts of the Sermon on the Mount are found even in different places in his Gospel.

The Sermon on the Mount is remarkable in that it contains the entire essence of the Gospel teaching. Not far from Lake Gennesaret between Capernaum and Tiberias, the “mountain of beatitudes” is still shown, from which the Lord delivered the Sermon on the Mount for the convenience of the large listening people. Proud of their chosenness and unable to come to terms with the loss of their independence, the Jewish people began to dream of the coming of a Messiah who would free them from foreign rule, take revenge on all enemies, reign over the Jews and enslave all the peoples of the earth to them, and give them purely fabulous prosperity: he would command the sea throw away pearls and all his treasures, he will dress his people in purple, adorned with precious stones, and will feed them with manna even sweeter than that which was sent to them in the wilderness. With such false dreams of the earthly bliss that the Messiah would give them, they surrounded Jesus, expecting that He was about to proclaim Himself the King of Israel and this blessed age would come. They thought that the end of their suffering and humiliation was coming, and from now on they would be happy, blissful.

Sermon Structure

The sermon is divided into eight parts:

1. Introduction - Christ heals the sick and people come to see the miracle.
2. The Beatitudes are the main part of the teaching, describing the moral qualities of a person who suffers to enter the Kingdom of God.
3. The parables of salt and light complete the commandments and precede the next part.
4. Explaining the Law—Jesus gives a new interpretation to the commandments of Moses.
5. Condemnation of hypocrites - those who perform good deeds for show.
6. The Lord's Prayer is an example of an appeal to the Creator.
7. Judge not, lest ye be judged - a discussion about whether a person has the right to judge other people.
8. Heavenly Father's goodness and Holiness are the conclusion of the sermon.

Beatitudes

The moral teaching of Christ is devoted to ways to achieve the heights of Christian perfection, purity of thoughts, and morality. The Ten Commandments were given to the people during the time of Moses to keep them from evil.

The Beatitudes were spoken to the disciples to show them what spiritual qualities they must have in order to touch God and achieve holiness.

According to the commandments of the Lord, blessed are:

• the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven;
• those who mourn, for they will be comforted;
• the meek, for they will inherit the earth;
• those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied;
• merciful, for they will receive mercy;
• the pure in heart, for they will see God;
• peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God;
• persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven;
• you, when they will revile you and persecute you and slander you in every way unrighteously for My sake.

Parables of Salt and Light

Salt and light are metaphors used by Christ in the Teaching on the Mount. They are simple and easy to understand. Thus, salt that has lost its saltiness is not needed by people, and light should illuminate everything that happens in the house.

The Savior emphasizes by this that his teaching must be offensive in nature and reach the ears of all who live in the House created by the Lord, that is, on Earth.

Interpretation of the Law

The Ten Commandments of the Old Testament are restrictive and prohibitive. Jesus, without abolishing the Law of Moses, expands it, giving the Old Testament teaching a deeper meaning.

For example, the commandment “thou shalt not kill” was taken literally before Christ. In the teaching of Christ, it receives a deeper meaning: even vain anger, which can become a source of hostility with disastrous consequences, is a sin and unacceptable.

The same applies to all nine commandments. Do not do as the hypocrites do. Christ sharply condemns religious ceremonies performed for show for the sake of human praise, and asserts that external manifestations of love for God have no meaning without sincere faith in the soul.

According to Jesus, people should not accumulate earthly wealth while seeking a greater value—the Kingdom of Heaven.

Lord's Prayer

The Lord's Prayer is part of a sermon dedicated to hypocrites. She is an example of a brief and sincere appeal to God and shows how to pray.

The Lord's Prayer has deep historical roots. In particular, it has parallels with the First Book of Chronicles of the Old Testament. By the time the Sermon on the Mount was delivered, the need to give humanity a specific text was long overdue, since even believers preferred to solve problems directly - through negotiations, wars and other methods, without turning to God for help.

The indisputable authority of “Our Father” is based on the fact that it was given to us by the Lord himself, through his Son.

Judge not lest ye be judged

With this saying, Jesus makes it clear to his listeners that none of the people has the right to judge their own kind, since this right originally belongs to God.

“You don’t need to judge others, then you won’t be judged yourself.” Because with the kind of judgment you judge, you will be judged as well,” continues the Lord.

It should be read this way: if people are lenient towards the misdeeds of others, then God's judgment will be merciful towards them.

“And with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” And why do you look at the speck in your brother's eye, but do not feel the plank in your own eye? - says the Savior.

This means that a person likes to notice even minor sins and shortcomings in others, but does not want and cannot see much greater sins and vices in himself.

Heavenly Father's Goodness and Holiness

Jesus concludes the Discourse on the Mount by warning people about the rise of false prophets and emphasizing that man is incapable of good works without the participation of God. The Savior illustrates his words with the example of a prudent man who built a house on a solid foundation and a short-sighted man who built it on sand.

Interpretations of the text

The Teaching on the Mount, for all its brevity, is filled with great meaning. Therefore, researchers have always aroused a desire for a detailed interpretation. One of the most difficult questions in Christian theology is how doctrine fits into the daily life of a Christian.

Various interpretations:

1. A literal understanding of the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus Christ rejects any compromise. If a Christian, adhering to the Scriptures, is deprived of earthly goods, this should not interfere with the fulfillment of the teachings of the Gospel.
2. Ancient scribes changed the text to make the sermon as easy to understand as possible.
3. The hyperbolic interpretation says that the principles proclaimed by Jesus in his teachings are only hyperboles, and in ordinary life they should not be carried out so literally.
4. According to the first principles method, Jesus does not give listeners instructions to follow, but only lays out the basic principles that should be followed in everyday life.
5. The Roman Catholic Church maintains a dual interpretation, believing that the teaching applies both to general provisions and to specific cases. The fulfillment of the former is a prerequisite for salvation, and the latter are intended for clerics and monks who are improving in God.
6. Martin Luther divides human existence into spiritual and material. He believed that unconditional instruction has to do only with spirituality. In the temporary, material world, a person’s responsibilities to family, society and government push him to seek a compromise.
7. A close reading of Scripture indicates that the understanding of some of the most radical teachings of the Teaching on the Mount is explained by other passages in the New Testament.
8. The interpretation, the essence of which can be described by the phrase “not for what you act, but how you act,” appeared in the 19th century. Its essence lies in the importance not of what a person does, but of the spirit with which his actions are imbued.
9. Albert Schweitzer is the author of the interpretation of temporal ethics. From his point of view, Jesus was convinced that Armageddon would come soon, and therefore material life did not interest him.