HUMILITY. We are capable of kindness and self-sacrifice, but also of incredible selfishness and sin.

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1 HUMILITY In the account of the life of St. Anthony Abbot, it is said that God showed him the world beset with the snares the devil had prepared to entrap men. Following the vision, the saint was filled with fear and asked Lord, who can escape so many snares? And he heard a voice that answered, Anthony, he who is humble can escape, for God gives His grace to the humble, but the proud fall into all the traps the devil sets. Yet the devil does not dare to attack the humble man. So what is humility? The word humility comes from the Latin word humus (soil or ground) and recalls the fact that we humans are very much of the earth. It was the great Spanish mystic and reformer, Teresa of Avila, who offered the simplest and most direct definition of humility: humility is truth. We are capable of kindness and self-sacrifice, but also of incredible selfishness and sin. Humility is the virtue that sifts through the many paradoxes of human existence in search of truth. It peels off the layers of vanity and self-deception to reveal us to ourselves, as we really are. And it does so not by comparing us to other people but by placing us before the throne of God. Only in the light of God s truth and love can we see the whole truth about ourselves, without exaggeration. The truly humble person sees himself as he really is, since he sees himself as God sees him. Knowledge of the truth about us, however important, does not suffice. Humility goes one step further. It not only instills in us knowledge of the truth but also the ability and indeed the habit of living in the truth. This means thinking, speaking and acting according to the truth of who we are. We should begin by weeding out false notion that obscure the truth. 1. Humility is not false modesty.

2 We have all met people who can t take a compliment. When faced with praise for their accomplishments, or good looks or intelligence etc. They deny what seems evident to everyone else. Often we chalk such behaviour up to humility, as of humility was the ability to deny our positive qualities or attributes. Some reject compliments, because they honestly believe that this is the Christian thing to do. They believe that humility compels them to debase themselves wherever possible. But true humility recognises the truth- good or bad (e.g. Yes, I may have done well here, but I also know in my heart that many times I don t do so well. Or yes, I may be intelligent but that is a gift from God for which I am accountable and which I am called to use for his service and that of my brothers and sisters. True humility rounds out the truth of our existence by keeping everything in its proper perspective and especially by acknowledging God as the origin and Giver of all good things. Fear from denying his gifts, it moves us to praise and thank him and to use the gifts we have for the good of all. 2. Humility is not weakness of character Some see humility as the absence of backbone and passion, opposed to boldness, confidence and strength of will. Yet while, pride often manifest itself in excessive self-assurance and independence, humility does not induce us to back down in the face of spiritual challenges. The greatest saints have been persons of intense conviction and burning love not fickleness and inaction. Let us look at the example of Christ himself. He declared himself to be meek and humble of heart but Jesus was no wimp. This Jesus, meek and humble of heart, is the same one who gave the Scribes and Pharisees a dressing down that they never forgot, calling them blind guides, whitewashed tombs, hypocrites and a brood of wipers (Matthew 23: 24&33) When this same humble Jesus entered the temple and found money changers and vendors, he proceeded to make a whip out of cords and drive them all out, overturning their tables. As gently as he was, Jesus was a man of passion and decisive action, a leader in every sense of the term.

3 Sometimes out of a mistaken sense of humility we avoid taking positions of responsibility or preaching Christ to others. Yet Jesus gave us our faith and our talents for a reason to build up his body. It is often a well-disguised pride that tempts us not to act. Humility, on the other hand, impels us to do something, even if it is small and imperfect, for the good of others. 3. Humility is not abdication of the truth Many today, thinking they are practising intellectual humility, refuse to take a firm position on religious or moral questions. We think it judgemental and discourteous to proclaim our religious or moral beliefs as absolutely true, as if our religious connection could only be the fruit of arrogance. Growing more humble does not mean abandoning our certitudes or entertaining unreasonable doubts but recognizing that our faith came to us as a free gift that we did nothing to merit. With gratitude and confidence we should profess the faith that we received and in which we live by the grace of God. Humility is a Christian virtue. The Greek Philosophers Plato and Aristotle didn t include humility in their lists of virtues. The Stoics and Epicureans had no place for humility wither. It was Christianity building on the tradition of Judaism that elevated humility to the rank of a virtue. Of Christ s many virtues, the only one he specifically showcases for our imitation is his humility. Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart His example of humility is truly impressive. Jesus is the King of heaven who chose to be born not in a place but in a smelly stable. He does not assert himself but empties himself for our sake, taking on the human condition and dying in our place. Yet Jesus command to imitate his humility also contains a blessed promise And you will find rest for your soul for my yoke is easy and my burden is light (Matthew 11: 29-30). Much unrest and anxiety assail the proud, who cannot know the peace of heart enjoyed by humble souls.

4 In the end the essence of pride is the centripetal force of self reference and self importance, when everything else acquires value only in its relation to me. God opposes the proud but he gives generously to the humble (James 4: 6; Proverbs 3: 34; 1 Peter 5: 5). As you can see this proverb is referenced three times in the Bible. The proud person trusts in himself, the humble in God. It is as simple as that. Nothing blocks the sanctifying power of God s grace as effectively as pride. As Thomas A. Kempis wrote Know that your love of self hurts you more than anything else in the world We also see that humility and trust go hand in hand. God wants us to place our trust in Him alone. Humility assures us of our absolute need of r God. We need His grace, His mercy, His strength and the salvation that only He can provide. Humility and trust are related in another way too. Humility without trust leads to despair. Trust without Humility leads to presumption. If we are aware of our sinfulness and misery but unaware of God s overpowering love for us, we have no choice but to despair. Yet contrary is also true. If we have absolute trust in God but no knowledge of our sinfulness, we easily fall into presumption and take God s goodness for granted. As we have seen, pride isolates, humility unites. One particular expression of pride is our tendency to judge others. We can be remarkably perceptive of other s faults but always ready to excuse our faults. Jesus warned us First take the log out of your own eye and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother s eye. (Matthew 7: 5) When an adulterous woman was dragged before Jesus for his judgement, he famously invited the one without sin to throw the first stone. Everyone walked away. Humility teaches us to look first at our own sins before rushing to judge others. This is what St. Augustine had to say But men are hopeless creatures and the less they concentrate on their own sins the more interested they become in the sins

5 of others. They seek to criticize, not to correct. Unable to excuse themselves they are ready to accuse others. And what was Adam s response when caught red-handed eating the forbidden fruit? It was the woman you put with me, she gave me the fruit and I ate it (Genesis 3: 12). And once the spotlight moved to Eve she too quickly said The serpent tricked me, so I ate it. Instead of blaming others, true humility keeps the focus on self and recognizes that we simply haven t lived up to God s love. We must acknowledge our fault and repeat time and time again Lord, be merciful to me a sinner. Pride also has a little sister name Vanity. She too needs to be curbed by humility. In all our good works fasting, almsgiving, prayer, Jesus warns us to avoid the subtle temptation of impurity of intention, acting in order to be seen (Matthew 6: 1) Vanity s active dimension makes us seek attention and praise, recognition and esteem. Vanity s passive dimension makes us worry about what others will say and think and often keeps us from doing the good we ought to do. Humility serves as a remedy for both dimensions of vanity by placing us in the presence of God and directing us to please Him alone. St. Theresa of Avila (The Way of Perfection) says The truly humble person will have a genuine desire to be thought little of and persecuted and condemned unjustly, even in serious matters. For if she desires to imitate the Lord, how can she do better than this? As in the vase of most things, the most effective means of growing in humility comes through prayer. God can help us to become humble if we allow him to and He is happy when we ask. On the other hand, we had better be ready for his response. In answer to a prayer for humility, God sometimes sends humiliation to help us put our lives in perspective. The key here is to cooperate with His grace, rather than resist it. If we recognize God s loving hand in these opportunities, it will help us to accept the prescription he offers.

6 We can exercise humility when we are treated badly, accused of things we did not do, or make to look foolish. Instead of jumping to our own defense in the name of justice and setting the record straight we can imitate the example Christ left us in his Passion when like a lamb that is led to the slaughter and like a sheep before its shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth (Isaiah 53: 7). Along with asking for God s intervention, the very act of putting ourselves in God s presence and meditating on God s goodness and our own sins helps us become more humble. The soul that contemplates God and savours him in prayer will never be proud. And we must remember that if we are to expect mercy from God, he required us to be merciful to others. The mount you measure out is the amount you will be given. Matthew 7: 2) Another exercise is the habit of gratitude thanking God for the good things in our lives. Sincere gratitude toward parents, family and friends leads to a more humble worldview. Humility does not so much consist in thinking less of ourselves as in thinking of ourselves less. We don t become more humble by imposing a negative self-image on ourselves but by forgetting about ourselves entirely. Thus, one of the most effective remedies to pride consists in actively focusing on others and their needs. We have said that humility leads to love, but love also leads to humility. When we apply our creative energies to loving others, the ego is necessarily displaced from the centre. Attention to others crowds out our excessive attention to self. Christian love, or charity, encourages humility in another way too. Since for the proud person it s all about me and others are rivals or competitors, rejoicing in other s successes help us become m ore humble. Paul remarked If one member suffers, all suffer together. If one member is honored, all rejoice together (1 Corinthians 12: 26). Charity urges us to praise others, to lift them up and see them recognized. This spirit of communion is so characteristic of Christian charity helps us grow in true humility. In one of her letters to her Missionaries of Charity, Mother Teresa offered a few practical tips for growing in humility that are every bit as useful to us as to her own sisters:

7 Speak as little as possible of oneself Mind one s own business Avoid curiosity Do not want to mange other people s affairs Accept contradiction and correction cheerfully Pass over the mistakes of others Accept blame when innocent Yield to the will of others Accept insults and injuries Accept being slighted, forgotten and disliked Be kind and gentle even under provocation Do not seek to be specially loved and admired Never stand on one s own dignity Yield in discussion even though one is right Choose always the hardest These suggestions can help any Christian who is seriously interested in becoming more humble. How easy to see the value of these measures, but how difficult to practise them with any consistency. To the question How shall I become humble? corresponds, the immediate answer is through the grace of God. Only the grace of God can give us a clear vision of our true condition and the awareness of the dignity that comes from humility. That is why we should desire this virtue and ask for it incessantly, convinced that with it, we shall have God and be capable of great enterprises despite our weaknesses. Taken from: Spiritual Progress (Becoming the Christian you want to be) by Thomas D. Williams In conversation with God (Volume 4) by Francis Fernandez.