Ph-201-APprofessor Izzi March 31, 2014Meister Eckhart: PovertyThe philosophy of Meister Eckhart, German, Dominican and theologian, is strongly based on Dominican and religious values. Eckhart's thought involves aspects of both Neoplatonism and Christianity, in which he views God and "the One" as being the same, while recognizing the Trinity. Although the Trinity appears as three distinct entities, they are in fact one, only God remains fertile in which He appears as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Sermon 22 focuses on Matthew 5:3: “Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. ” His main point concerns poverty and furthermore this provocative statement: “This is why we ask God to free us from “God”. As a Dominican, poverty is considered praiseworthy because the order renounces materialism such as possessions and family. At the time of Master Eckhart's life, in the Middle Ages, there existed a religious phenomenon known as imitatio Christi or imitation of Christ; live as Christ lived. Christ and his disciples lived in poverty...