Sunday Homily: Learning Humility

When it comes to reaching a better understanding of how to apply a biblical principal to everyday living, I often find it helpful to reflect on the past so that I can get a better picture of how, over time, my opinion about certain things of the faith has developed. Growth and development is something we all should have in common, so it should be easy to relate. Today's scripture focuses on humility as a trait belonging to those who choose to follow the path leading to the kingdom of God.

Many years ago as a young college-aged person I remember asking myself, "What is it, after all, that's so bad about wanting to be praised and recognized, about wanting to be rich and happy—to be a great success?" And, "What is so wrong about pursuing my own self-interests and sticking up them when I need to do so?" I recalled, all of my life it seemed, being pointed in the direction of obtaining personal success, gain, prosperity and personal esteem as the true measure of happiness.

Therefore, when I came to the faith in such a way to consider it on my own as a young adult, I had to reckon with the ample scriptural exaltations of the poor, the meek, and the humble. It made for a somewhat difficult path in that I hadn't really been accustomed to being any of these. I had to deal in a personal way, as do the majority of us, with the truth that humility and meekness are not expressions of what the world necessarily values. Rather they are more the embodiment of the way of the few, of the voluntary spiritual poverty of ascetics; however, they are also the embodiment of a king who arrives, not on a noble steed, but on the back of a common donkey. So a choice, and a tension, emerges regarding something essential about Christian morality, about how we relate to the world as persons, and how we come to follow Christ.

Clearly, what Jesus appears to be asking of us in today's Gospel runs opposite to the values of a world that elevates and exalts individual self-importance. Also, it is important to realize that a call to radical humility in is in no way opposed to true self-esteem.

It 's actually quite possible to approach life in such a way that we exercise humility in our daily existence, and to receive the joy of spiritual self-esteem simultaneously. In doing so we accept our secular tasks –whatever they might be—with humble dedication, and thus come to a deep personal communion with our Lord. Humility is possible even though we may in fact have acquired great personal success in many areas of our lives. We must learn to "possess good things as if we owned nothing." Humility realizes that God is the source of every blessing, and all that we have is his gift to us.

Rather than being a form of self-abasement, humility, as Christian morality, finds its truest expression in service to others—especially in service to those who suffer greatly in our world. In terms of the world's morality it is the poor who ordinarily are at the service of the rich; contrarily, in Christian morality, humility is found in turning away from oneself and being at the service of others, especially of those who have the greatest need for mercy. Thus, in Christianity, we have the real foundation for social justice present in the principle of humility, that is, in service. Also, it isn't necessary to go far to find opportunities for service. We have multiple opportunities here at our parish. Humility, most simply stated, is service.

Humility also expresses a great Christological truth, and we must remember that we are to be imitators of Christ. In lives of humility we approach a reality that speaks more eloquently than the blood of Abel. We approach and comprehend the descent of God who humbled himself and took on the form of a slave, and became obedient to death. In Christ's example we see the greatest sacrifice of self for others.

The descent of God in Christ is his pouring out of love upon the world. Moreover, it is God's bringing forth love into the world, and the greatest expression of humility is love; for love seeks not its own but always has in mind the other. Love is that which gives itself entirely to the other, providing, giving, and never counting the cost. Love is that which purifies us and unites us to one another and to God, but without humility there can be no real love, for love depends upon an attitude of self-sacrifice for the other. Recall, "No greater love has one than to give one's life for one's friends."

I have found a great deal of inspiration in the Litany of Humility, composed by Cardinal Merry del Val, during the early 20^th century. It is a litany difficult for many to pray for it asks that we be freed from the desire to be esteemed, loved, honored, extolled, praised, preferred, consulted, and approved. It asks that others be loved and esteemed more than I. That they increase and I decrease; that they be chosen and I set aside; that they be praised and I go unnoticed, and that others be preferred to me in everything. It is indeed a difficult prayer and certainly not one that everyone is required to pray. Yet in it we learn that true humility has to do with our attitude toward others. By placing ourselves at the service of others, fixing our glance entirely on our fellows, and not considering our own needs first we begin to approach the humility that Christ bore perfectly in himself.

In a work published this last spring, Pope Benedict teaches us that the true morality of Christianity is love. He says that love indeed runs counter to self-seeking, that it is an "exodus out of oneself." However, he goes on to say that love is precisely the way that we come to ourselves. With this in mind, humility it seems, is the means by which we come to love, bearing in mind that God is love.

Through humility we learn the way of love; through love we accept God. Rather than being merely a personality trait we are born with or that is instilled in us, humility, in the final analysis, is the choice we make each day to love and serve as our Lord has taught us.

Comments

[YonderGarden]

Beautiful.

I've always loved the Cardinal's Litany of Humility. What a goal! (What a challenge!)

Two of the most humble people I have ever known worked in a Church thrift shop for so many years, and volunteered in many other service (and pastoral) areas as well. Only those who knew they sent their three (adopted) children to parochial schools could have guessed they had money, for they both kept all their goods moderate, including house, car and wardrobe.

Not until their obituaries did we see all the civic honors they'd garnered over the years; but the poor, from whom we did not hear, spoke the most eloquently in their honor with tears of grief and gratitude at the funeral Masses.