The Beatitudes are read by most Christians, but are rarely studied. Pope Benedict XVI gives influential insights on the full meaning of the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus Christ gives a guide for his people's journey of salvation. Pope Benedict XVI points out that this guide is not only for the twelve disciples, but for all people. In the Beatitudes there is a fulfilled promise that centralizes the path for the salvation the world.

When Jesus commands us to be poor in spirit, He does not refer solely to spiritual poverty. Spiritual poverty cannot be obtained with an attachment to material things. Though He is not instructing each one of us to live a monastic life, He is in fact establishing a commandment to free our selves from an empty love for worldly goods. The struggle for freedom of service to false masters is as unique as each soul. Spiritual poverty is a personal battle, but ultimately influences the Church as a whole.

The Catholic Church needs its members to have the Beatitudes deeply rooted in their lives. The Church cannot have its effect in the world without strong apostolic missions. Catholics are called to be modern day disciples of Christ. A holy disciple is poor in spirit, meek, and thirsty for righteousness. Only with these virtues can Christians make fruitful their role as a member of the Body of Christ.

Lastly, the Beatitudes must not be taken as a contradiction to the Ten Commandments of the Old Testament. Matthew 5:17 tells us: "Think not that I have come to abolish the Law and the Prophets; I have come not to abolish them but to fulfill them." The Old Testament's prophecies are a foreshadow of the promise that is to come through the Messiah. In the New Testament, God's covenant with this people is fully revealed. The relation between the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes are similar. The Ten Commandments were set by God with anticipation to proclaim the promise of the Kingdom of God for the poor in spirit.