Do You Want to Be Great?

Reflections on the Virtue of Humility

CHARLES BELMONTE

Copyright (C) 1992 by Charles Belmonte

Works of Msgr. Josemaría Escrivá and their translations: Copyright (C) Scriptor, S.A.

All other translations (C) copyright by the author

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NIHIL OBSTAT: Msgr. Benedicto S. Aquino

Vice-Chancellor

IMPRIMATUR:  + Jaime L. Card. Sin

Archbishop of Manila

The Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur are a declaration that a book is considered free from error in matters of faith and morals and therefore fit for publication. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.

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Contents

Preface

Part I: INTRODUCTION

1. God Speaks on Humility

2. All about Humility

3. God, Neighbor, Ourselves

Part II: FIVE HOLY MEN SPEAK ON HUMILITY

4. St Augustine: On the Fear of God and True Humility

5. St Francis of Sales: Introduction to the Devout Life

6. St John M. Vianney, Priest of Ars: Homily on Humility

7. J. Pecci (later Pope Leo XIII): The Practice of Humility

8. Josemaria Escriva: Christ Triumphs through Humility

9. Josemaria Escriva: Humility

Part III: ANTHOLOGY OF TEXTS ON HUMILITY

10. Humility: Its Nature and Necessity

11. True and False Humility

12. Basis of Humility

13. Degrees of Humility

14. Our Lord's Example of Humility

15. Our Lady's Humility

16. Humility toward God

17. Humility toward Neighbor

18. Humility toward Ourselves: Humility of Mind

19. Humility toward Ourselves: Humility of Heart

20. Humility toward Ourselves: External Humility

PREFACE

Do you want to be great?

Many years ago, Sacred Scripture had this question answered for you and me: "Humble yourself the more the greater you are, and you will find grace with God" (Sirach 3:18).

Years later, St Augustine, the great African Doctor of the Church, explained to us the route to greatness:  "Do you want to be great?  Become little.  Do you plan to erect a building of colossal height?  Apply yourself first to set a solid foundation --the higher your building, the deeper the foundation should be.  The building will be going up; it will soar high; but first someone must dig the foundations, sink in the depths.  Before going up, buildings go down; they humble themselves.  The finials and pinnacles gracefully stand up only after the humiliation" (Sermon 142).

And in modern times, St Francis of Sales gave us the gauge to measure a man's greatness:  "Do you want to know if a man is really wise, learned, generous, or noble?  Observe if his talents tend to make him humble, modest, and submissive.  If he tends to brag, his talents will be less true in the same proportion as they appear evident" (Introduction to Devout Life).

Are you willing to go along this route?  Begin your journey of humility by the hand of great saints, masters of spirituality, from St Augustine to Pope Leo XIII and beyond.  You will find many thoughts of a modern saint, Blessed Josemaría Escrivá; he, more than anyone, helped many of us to live better our Christian lives.  Transmitting to us the reflections of his rich spiritual life, he would say:

I shall only stir your memory

so that some thought may arise

and strike you:

and so your life will improve

and you will set out along the way of prayer

and of Love.

And in the end you will become a soul of worth.

The Way

I leave you in the company of good friends.  They have tried to be great, and they became so.  Meditate on these points, apply these reflections to your daily life, and you will reach your goal.

Part I

Introduction

1

God Speaks on Humility

Finding a Unifying Principle

The mysteries of our Lord’s life were revealed to us for our sanctification, to show us how we should conduct ourselves before God and our fellow men.  Our Lord set before us the example of every virtue, lived in different circumstances.

Compare the charming sincerity and docility of the Child of twelve, in the presence of the learned doctors of the Law, with the majestic calm and manly fortitude of the Man-God, twenty-one years later, before the members of the Jewish Council.  The bearing of Jesus on both occasions was perfect, but how dissimilar the perfection in each.  Every period of his life was a perfect picture.  Thus, “to put on Christ,” we must study and meditate on all these mysteries.  As we do so, we learn to imitate –or better, to reproduce in ourselves– his manner of acting.

In the hierarchy of virtues, charity is the first; thus, all the saints have excelled in charity.  Yet, as a beautiful landscape differs from another, so does one saint differ from another.  Each saint seems to have a moral virtue that he has practiced to a high degree as the unifying principle of his life, as his characteristic.  One is remarkable for his apostolic zeal, another for his tenderness toward the suffering, a third for his spirit of contemplation, and so on.

Similarly, we can look for some unifying principle in the life of Jesus, a vantage point from which we can see all his virtues as various manifestations of one unique spirit.  Can we trace back these diverse streams and find the source from which they flow forth?

If this were possible, we would be able to understand our Lord’s life as a whole, grasp the essential unity in the rich variety of his life, and acquire a knowledge of our Lord’s human character such as would not be yielded up by the most profound study of the different events of his life taken separately.  What is more, we would have found the key to human existence itself.

What is this unifying and fundamental principle in the human life of our Lord?  He has not left us without revealing it to us, for he knew that, by ourselves, we would not have discovered it.  He knew that even if we did discover it, we would still be astray in our efforts to imitate him, for we would have looked at it as only one principle among many, merely coordinated with the rest, and not one which is the motive and inspiration of, and which gives meaning to, the others.

What characterizes the “spiritual temperament” of our Lord is his humility; a tender, child-like realization of God’s sovereignty and fatherhood.  Jesus was the perfect expression of the humble spiritual childhood that he recommended to us.

“Learn of me,” he said, “that I am meek and humble of heart.”  It is as if he said:  “My words, my works, my virtues, my sufferings, my perfect endurance of shame and humiliations are the direct consequence of my humility.  I am all that you see me to be, I have all the perfection that you admire in me, yet I am humble.  If you wish to imitate me in everything, in my virtues, in my words, in my actions, in my attitude toward God and toward man, learn of me to be humble of heart.”

The perfection of our Lord’s human virtue is linked to the perfection of his humility.  Humility did not take the place of the other virtues; rather, it inspired and guided the mode in which these virtues found expression in his life, in his personal relations with God, and with men.#1

Jesus, Our Archetype

Christian humility takes its root in Christ, in his incarnation and death (Phil 2:8), in his service to all (cf. Mt 11:29; 20:28; Jn 13:15-16), in everything he did.  The more a Christian captures the spirit of Christ’s perfect humility, the more Christ-like he becomes.  Men will approximate the charity of Christ when they approximate the humility of Christ; he expressly urged us to imitate his humility.  He knew that one virtue follows the other, as the edifice rises on its foundations.

“A dispute arose between them about which should be reckoned the greatest, but Jesus said to them, `Among pagans it is the kings who lord it over them, and those who have authority over them are given the title of benefactor.  This must not happen with you.  No; the greatest among you must behave as if he were the youngest, the leader as if he were the one who serves.  For who is the greater, the one at table or the one who serves?  The one at table, surely?  Yet here am I among you as one who serves!’“ (Lk 22:24-27).

Our Lord was not talking to monks alone, he was talking to ordinary people, who had to live the virtue of humility in the midst of the world.  We often have a vague and incorrect notion of humility.  Religious asceticism encourages certain practices that help a person acquire and develop humility and curb his pride.  We may wrongly think that these are acts of the virtue of humility itself; in that case, the true nature of this virtue would escape us.

What some people are obliged to do to crush and repress their pride is wrongly taken to be the expression of the fundamental Christian virtue of humility.  This is a great error.  Besides, these practices may not be applicable to the circumstances of some other people.  We miss the meaning of our Lord’s life if we consider him humble only on account of the lowly circumstances in which he decided to live. The root of humility is rather a disposition of the soul.  Humility does not consist of acts, but it is reflected in them.

The apostles learned humility from Christ; they were humble and encouraged the faithful to be humble before God (cf. Lk 5:8; Act 20:11; Rom 11:20) and to acknowledge their weaknesses (cf. 1 Pet 3:8; Gal 6:1-3).  The early Christians were ordinary people, almost all working in different occupations.

This is the new order of things that the Lord brought to the earth:  In whatever circumstances, those who serve more are the greatest; those who serve others, out of love of God and their neighbor, are the best; the higher one is, the more should one lower oneself.

And God likes man’s abasement; the parable of the Pharisee and the publican (Lk 18:9-14) shows that God attends to the prayer of the sinner who confesses his unworthiness, and rejects the proud man who does not seek His pardon, thus, blocking the flow of grace into his soul (cf. 1 Pet 5:5).  This parable and many other passages of Sacred Scripture listed here will give us a complete picture of the virtue of humility.

The Virtue of Humility in the Old Testament

Your power, O Lord, does not lie in numbers, nor your might in the horses’ strength; since you are the God of the humble, the defender of the little ones, the support of the weak, the refuge of the forsaken, the savior of the despairing (Judith 9:16).

God brings down the proud and saves the downcast (Job 22:29).

Could any man ever think himself innocent before God?  Born of a woman, how could he ever be pure?  If even the moon lacks brightness and the stars are unclean in his sight, what then man, who is rottenness, a son of man, who is only a worm! (Job 25:4-6).

My sacrifice is a contrite spirit.  A contrite and humble heart, O God, you will not despise (Ps 51:17).

He will turn to the prayers of the humble; He will not despise their prayers (Ps 102:18).

From far above, Yahweh sees the humble, from far away he marks down the arrogant! (Ps 138:6).

O Lord, what is man that you care for him, the son of man that you think of him?  Man is like a breath; his days are like a fleeting shadow (Ps 144:3-4).

Pride comes first, disgrace comes after; but with humility comes wisdom (Prov 11:2).

The fear of the Lord is a school of wisdom, humility goes before honor (Prov 15:33).

Before its destruction, a man’s heart is proud; before it is exalted, it is humbled (Prov 18:12).

Accept all that happens to you, be patient when you are humbled, for as gold is tested in the fire, so those chosen by God are tested in the furnace of humiliation (Sirach 2:4-5).

The greater you are, the more you should behave humbly, and then you will find grace from the Lord.  For great though the power of God is, he accepts the homage of the humble (Sirach 3:20).

The prayer of a humble man pierces the clouds; he does not rest until it reaches its goal, nor will he withdraw till the Most High takes notice of him, acquits the virtuous and delivers judgement (Sirach 35:21).

Other References from the Old Testament

The humility of Gideon (see Judges 6:11-18).

Samuel anoints David; God always chooses humble people (see 1 Samuel 16:1-13).

David and Goliath (see 1 Samuel 17:1-52).

Saul’s jealousy of David (see 1 Samuel 18:5-16).

Cure of Naaman, the servants begged him to obey the prophet (see 2 Kings 5:1-27).

Prayer of Judith (see Judith 9:1-14).

Jeremiah’s complaint (see Jer 20:7-18).

The dream of Nabuchadnezzar: the statue (see Daniel 2:1-45).

The Virtue of Humility in New Testament

John said: I am baptizing you with water for your repentance, but the one who is to come after me is mightier than I; I am not worthy to carry his sandals; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire (Mt 3:11).

Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; I am gentle and humble of heart; and you shall find rest for your souls (Mt 11:29).

Jesus called to his side a little child, and set the child in front of them.  Then he said, “Believe me, unless you become like little children again, you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 18:2-4).

Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted (Mt 23:12).

He has pulled down the mighty from their thrones, and has lifted up the humble (Lk 1:52).

When you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, `Friend, move up to a better place.’  Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests.  For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted (Lk 14:11).

God has chosen what the world considers foolish, to shame the wise; he has chosen what the world considers weak to shame the strong.  God has chosen what the world considers common and contemptible –he has chosen what is nothing at all to show up those who are everything;  no human creature was to have any ground for boasting, in the presence of God (1 Cor 1:27-29).

If anyone thinks he is something, when in fact he is nothing, he deceives himself (Gal 6:3).

I, the prisoner in the Lord, urge you therefore to lead a life worthy of your vocation, with all humility and meekness...(Eph 4:1-2).

Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:  Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God a prize to be coveted, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a slave, being made in human likeness.  Presenting himself to us in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient until death –even death on a cross!  (Phil 2:5-8).

You are God’s chosen people, holy and well beloved; clothe yourselves with sincere compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience  (Col 3:12).

Humble yourself before the Lord and he will exalt you (James 4:10).

All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because “God opposes the proud but gives his grace to the humble.”  Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand; he will raise you up, when his time comes to deliver you (1 Pet 5:5-6).

Other References from the New Testament

The Annunciation (see Lk 1:26-38).

The Visitation; the birth of St John the Baptist (see Lk 1:39-80).

St John the Baptist denies being the Christ (see John 1:19-34).

The speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye (see Mt 7:1-5).

Jesus praises St John the Baptist for his humility (see Lk 7:24-35).

Lack of rectitude of intention of the Pharisees (see Mt 15:1-20).

God reveals himself to the little ones (see Mt 11:25-30)>

We are unworthy servants (see Lk 17:7-10).

The Pharisee and the publican (see Lk 18:9-14).

Exhortation to humility (see Lk 22:24-27).

Palm Sunday: triumphal entry riding a colt (see Mt 21:1-16).

The washing of the feet (see John 13:1-11).

Jesus’ humble service (see John 13:12-17).

Jesus predicts Peter’s denials (see Mt 26:30-35).

The vine and the branches (see John 15:1-11).

Pentecost: Peter’s address (see Acts 2:1-36).

The first Christians (see Acts 2:37-40).

The apostles before the Sanhedrin (see Acts 5:27-42).

FOOTNOTE:

1. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2, 2.

2

All about Humility

What Is Humility?

Humility is a misunderstood and unappreciated virtue.  We sometimes confuse it with a laughing protestation in denial of excellence, a denial that must itself be protested according to the rules of the game.

True humility does not consist in outward actions, or in the use of things that look humble, or in appearing in a lowly and humiliating posture.  This may be, and often is, an effect of true humility, which is an intimate conviction, by which we meekly and lovingly recognize before God that we are detestable, nothing but misery, poverty, and incapacity on account of our sins.#1

Humility is a virtue that is derived from a profound reverence toward God.  It consists in a recognition of our true position with respect to our Creator and fellow creatures and in a disposition to shape our conduct in accordance with that position.

Humility is the true expression in thought and conduct of what we really are.  Hence, it is based on truth.  It is primarily a disposition of our will to restrain that tendency which we all have to claim an esteem and consideration which is beyond our due and to assert an independence of judgment and of will that does not belong to us as creatures.

The repression of this impulse of our unregenerated being to exalt itself, to exact consideration for itself as for itself, cannot be achieved by any self-analysis, no matter how thorough; it can have its source only in a deep sense of God’s all-pervading sovereignty, and in a profound reverence arising from this.  Through that reverence, man will not desire to assign to himself more than is due to him, by reason of the position given him by God.

To be humble, then, we must know what we are, and our relation to God.  When our conduct is directed by this true knowledge, and is in accordance with it, then we are humble.#2

Basically, to be humble is to know our lowliness and misery, and to act accordingly.  Thus, humility has a double root:

(a) Truth, to know ourselves as we really are.

(b) Justice, to act upon that knowledge.#3

To know our lowliness we need to know what man is.  Using our reason, and also through God’s Revelation, we discover:

- that we are human beings, with body and soul; that the body must be subject to the soul (to reason); and

- that the soul must be subject to God.

Body Subject to Soul

Man is a creature of God; that is, created by Him; and thus, His servant.  Man has a spiritual –nonmaterial– side called soul, and a material side, the body.  The spiritual side is more excellent than the material one.  The higher powers of the soul are the mind and the will; and, below these, the rest of the soul’s powers and appetites reside.

Furthermore, man was elevated to the supernatural level; he was no longer considered by God a servant; he became a friend, a son (cf. Jn 15:15).

Man could use his free will rightly or perversely.  God did not will man’s perversion; He wanted man to attain greatness and happiness through the wise use of his freedom of choice.  Man could choose to respond to God’s designs, or, on the contrary, to disobey, bringing disorder into creation by the perverse use of his faculties.

And man sinned against God; his disobedience wounded his own nature.  God did not will this; He merely permitted it, and thus permitted all the consequences that flowed from it.

With sin came strife and injustice.  Every child of Adam at its birth is caught up by and dragged into a system where disorder reigns, and where it is bound to endure buffeting and ill treatment because of such disorder.  Disturbed by the passions, man will have a hard time directing his natural impulses and appetites, from now on.

Although man lost his dignity by disobeying God, Christ’s sacrifice on the Cross made it possible for him to be cured and healed.  This transformation and cure is done by God’s grace; man must match God’s gift –he will always fall short– with his loving dedication to God; he must deny himself –at times contradicting the tendencies of his wounded nature– to do God’s Will, imitating Christ.

To do so, man must place his body and his appetites under the command of reason; he must control his passions, practicing temperance, humility, and related virtues (modesty and decorum, meekness, curiosity, fortitude and daring).

Humility has a specific task in this struggle: to curb man’s inordinate desire for personal excellence and incline him to recognize his own worth in its true light.  Thus, it has two functions:

(a) to restrain the inordinate desire for personal excellence; and

(b) to subject man to God by man’s recognition that all the good he has comes from his Creator.#4

Love for One’s Excellence

The mind has a tendency toward a good that is difficult to attain.  In so doing, we may be carried away –the appetites being affected by passions– by our craving things above ourselves.  The mind, then, needs a moderating virtue.  The function of humility is to temper and restrain the mind lest it press forward to higher things without moderation or reason.  Knowledge of reality sustains humility by giving information that keeps us from considering ourselves better than what we are.

We, Christians, have our hope in God.  We must know and accept our own weaknesses; thus, we will not depend obsessively on our own resources.  In any undertaking, we must use all the human means open to us, but above all, we must rely on prayer.  Humility is not a matter of despising ourselves, because God does not despise us, since we are the work of his hands.  It consists in forgetting ourselves, and sincerely thinking about others.

Humility is the opposite of shyness, cowardice, or mediocrity.  It encourages us to be aware of the talents we have received, put them to good use, and fully enjoy them with an upright heart.  It forbids us to boast about these talents and to use them without taking into account the needs of our neighbor.#5

The proud man makes himself the end of his own actions.  His soul is full of love for self.  This disorderly love for one’s own excellence leaves no room for charity, which means to love God above all things and to love others, oneself included, for God’s sake.

Man Subject to God

The essence of all idolatry lies in cutting off oneself from dependence on God, to tie oneself to some creature –be it some human being, money, fame, power, work, or pleasure.  By adoring it, we adore ourselves.  Humility discloses to us that anything good in us –in the natural level as well as in the level of grace– proceeds from God; we have received from Him everything.  We must acknowledge and accept joyfully this fact.

We may consider two kind of possessions in us:

(a) what we have, coming from God; and

(b) what we have of our own.

We have received from God everything implying goodness or perfection; all goodness or perfection we find in the world is a participation in God’s own.

We have of our own everything implying imperfection or defect; it is evident, because imperfection cannot come from God, who is absolutely perfect.

Compared to God, we are insignificant.  Humility sprouts from the awareness of this infinite gap; we recognize our absolute dependence on God; that everything we have is a gift from God (cf. Lk 16:15; 1 Cor 1:26-29); that everything good in us belongs to God, while weakness and sin belongs to us; that we will always be indebted to God; and that the initial debt grows unremittingly.

Only God is his own end; He is for His own sake.  The rest of us –creatures– have God as our end; we are for God.

These considerations must lead us to deny ourselves, and to assert God.

FOOTNOTES:

1.  Cf. Ven. Libermann, Lettres Spirituelles, 1, 60.

2.  Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2, 2.

3.  Refer to chapter 12 for quotations on the basis of humility.

4.  Refer to chapter 10 for quotations on the nature and need of humility.

5.  Refer to chapter 11 for quotations on true and false humility.

3

God, Neighbor, Ourselves

Humility does not consist so much in despising ourselves, but rather in forgetting ourselves, joyfully recognizing that we have nothing that we have not received.  It lead us to become God’s little children, who find all their strength in the strong hand of God, their Father.  Thus, to be humble is to live in reality; it is essentially an awareness of our own position:

(a) before God;

(b) before other men; and

(c) with regard to ourselves.

Once we know our situation, we should act accordingly, imitating Jesus Christ and wisely controlling our desires for personal glory.

Humility in Relation to God

The practice of humility implies our reverence and subjection to God; it has the following manifestations:

(a) Piety toward God.  Once we become aware that we are children of God, the logical consequence is for us to render him adoration and submission.  The following aspiration reflects a humble piety toward God: “Only you are holy”, “Not unto us, Lord, not unto us, but unto your Name give glory,” Non nobis, Domine, non nobis, sed nomini tuo da gloriam (Ps 113:1).

(b) Gratefulness: “Lord, take all I have and cherish; you have given me all I have.”  “We give thanks, Almighty God, for all your benefits.”

c) Sense of dependence upon God.  We come from nothing –“from the dust of the soil;” we cannot do anything of our own, either in the natural order –God keeps the world in being– or in the supernatural order –“without Me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:15).  Hence, our absolute dependence on God.  The acknowledgment of our nothingness must lead us to rely on God for everything.  Consider thus:

(i) How ridiculous it is to boast of our lineage and “connections”; we come from nothing.

(ii) How foolish it is to bask in our alleged qualities and achievements.  At the level of being, we are nothing; at the level of action, we can do nothing without God.

(iii) What a great lie pride is.  Only humility is truth.#1

Humility in Relation to Our Neighbors

We must appreciate the many gifts our neighbors have received from God.  Considering what we have that is truly ours (our sins), we must be grateful to God and esteem our neighbors.

We also have been enriched with gifts and graces from God; we are God’s instruments on the crossroads of the world.  Thus, for God’s sake, we should humble ourselves and serve the others with our work and loyal friendship.  In relation to our neighbors, we should follow these guidelines:

(a) Without envy or jealousy, to appreciate the natural and supernatural gifts God has given them.

(b) Not to gloat over our neighbors’ defects; rather, to excuse them with charity; at least, to concede our neighbors’ good intentions; to correct them if we are in a position of authority.  We should offer them our sincere friendship, pray for their conversion, and –if advisable– help them with fraternal correction.

(c) To consider ourselves inferior, because of our poor correspondence to grace.  One should think: Anyone else who could have received all the graces God has given me, would have been more faithful to God.

(d) Humility is not indecision, a waiving of our rights in order to avoid friction with anybody and become acceptable to all.  It is rather the profound conviction that God is our Father and uses us as his instruments; thus, at times we must demand from others.  To follow Christ is to reach the fullness of human and supernatural maturity to which each Christian has been called.  Since the sanctity of a lay person revolves around his work, we must seek prestige and status in our profession, but gaining it in honest competition with our colleagues.

(e) We need humility to realize what aspects of our conduct are not pleasing to God and to the others; and to correct these faults.  We must forget ourselves and concentrate on making life pleasant for those who live or work with us.  If we have a genuine affection for the others, we will overcome any friction arising from differences in character.  Thus, we will bring to our family life the flavor of charity and the warmth of a Christian home.

We should also consider that our neighbors have some virtues we lack; or that we have some vices the neighbors do not have.  Thus, we humbly submit ourselves to the others.#2

Humility in Relation to Ourselves

Humility also influences our self-esteem, the way we regard ourselves.  To exercise this virtue, we should extend it to our whole self –our mind, heart, and conduct.

(a) Humility of Mind.

(i) Humility of mind begins with a distrust of self, of our own opinion.  Let us make it a habit never to talk–badly or well–about ourselves.  If we talk badly of ourselves, we will fall into hypocrisy; only the saints were sincere.  If well, we will fall into vanity.

(ii) We must not make a display of our talents; we must use these to be useful, and to serve.

(iii) We must practice intellectual docility, not only by submitting to the official decisions of the Church, but also by heartily accepting pontifical directions; besides God’s assistance, there is greater wisdom in them than in our own judgment.#3

(b) Humility of Heart.  This means being satisfied with our situation, accepting any lack of appreciation, neglect, or lack of recognition.#4

(c) External Humility.  This should be a reflection of our interior dispositions; of our wish to love our lowliness.#5

Those who have received some gifts from God should acknowledge them, as St Paul says: “For we have not received the spirit of the world, but the Spirit of God, that we may understand what God has freely given us” (1 Cor 2:12).

Concrete Means of Practicing Humility

There are three chief means of arriving at a sincere humility:

(a) To ask God for humility constantly.  We must ardently desire it, value it, and ask God for it.

(b) To look at Christ, the incomparable model of humility.  To imitate Christ, we must foster docility in resolutely carrying out the advice received in spiritual direction; joyfully receive fraternal correction; thankfully accept humiliation in silence for love of God; and obey quickly and wholeheartedly.#6

(c) To imitate Mary, the Queen of the humble.  Imitating Jesus and Mary, we will exercise charity in continual details of service to others.  With her support, we will be able to live humility of heart in relation to God, our neighbor, and ourselves.#7

Humility and Charity

Charity is the motor of humility; it gives humility its right orientation.

Humility is the foundation of all virtues; without it, no virtue can exist.  There is no sanctity in a person who does not fight to be humble; there is no genuine human personality in that man.

Moreover, humility is the root of charity.  Humility creates like an interior void, then charity comes and fills the soul.  Since love always tends to an end, without humility it would be directed to self.  Only if we forget about ourselves can we be concerned with and care for the others.  Many points that show a lack of charity can be traced to subtle or not-so-subtle forms of vanity, pride, egoism, and desires of dominating other people –which ultimately betrays a lack of humility.

Pride–lack of humility–is also the great obstacle to charity.  It is often manifested in touchiness; touchiness leads to grudges; grudges lead to coldness or quarrels.

Charity and humility are the drive forces of our interior life.  Like the foundations of a building, humility lies at the base; like the roof, charity is at the top; and all the other virtues revolve around them.  To grow in sanctity, we have to grow strong in these two virtues; then, it will be easy to acquire the others.  “Humility and charity are the mother-virtues; all other virtues come after them as chicks follow the hen.”#8

Jesus is the example of charity and humility.  No one ever had an equal dignity; no one ever served all as he did: “I am in your midst like a servant.”#9

Humility and Other Virtues

All the other virtues are related to humility, but most especially cheerfulness, obedience, chastity, the desire of beginning again, understanding, simplicity, kindness, and magnanimity.#10

Among the fruits of humility are a profound peace, even in the midst of weaknesses and defects; a wisdom that understands all things and refers them to God; and, externally, abundant apostolic fruits.#11

A humble person easily makes friends.

The Opposite Vices

The vices opposed to humility are:

(a) Pride, a disorderly desire for one’s excellence.

Egoism and pride are vices contrary to humility.  Egoism is the exclusive preference of one’s own activities and needs to those of other persons and things.  Pride is a false appraisal of one’s own qualities, and a disorderly desire of personal glory.  Pride is the “root and mother” of all sins, even of the capital ones; it is the greatest obstacle man can pose to grace.#12

(b) Inordinate self-depreciation.  Also on the opposite side of humility is inordinate self-depreciation, which leads man to faintheartedness, and lack of courage and resolution –a caricature of humility.  It also leads to laziness in acquiring due knowledge.#13

Humility makes us aware of the talents we have received and of our responsibility to make them bear fruit, and of our divine filiation.  These two urge us to carry out heroic tasks in the service of God; thus, daring and fortitude are related to humility.

FOOTNOTES:

1. Refer to chapter 16 for quotations on humility toward God.

2. Refer to chapter 17 for quotations on humility toward neighbor.

3. Refer to chapter 18 for quotations on this matter.

4. Refer to chapter 19 for quotations on this matter.

5. Refer to chapter 20 for quotations on this matter.

6. Refer to chapter 14 for quotations on our Lord’s example of humility.

7. Refer to chapter 15 for quotations on our Lady’s humility.

8. St Francis of Sales, Letter.

9. Refer to chapter 17 for quotations on humility and charity.

10. Refer to chapter 20 for quotations on humility and other virtues; p. 000 for quotations on magnanimity.

11. See p. 000 for quotations on the fruits of humility.

12. Refer to chapter 10 for quotations on this matter.

13. Refer to chapter 11 for quotations on this matter.

Part II

Five Holy Men Speak On Humility

4

St Augustine

On the Fear of God and True Humility

St Augustine, the author of this sermon,#1 was born in 354 in Tagaste in North Africa.  He taught rhetoric first in Carthage, and later in Rome and Milan; he was always in search of knowledge.  After years of licentious life, he was converted, and baptized; then he became a priest and a bishop.  His books and sermons are treasures of Christian thought. He died in 430.

As Scripture testifies, the prophet and psalmist David was chosen according to the heart of God, and he fulfilled every wish of God.  He shows us, my beloved brethren, God’s love for his creatures in these words:  “Who is like the Lord, our God, who is enthroned on high and looks upon the humble things of the heavens and the earth below?” (Ps 113:5-6).  The Almighty Lord of infinite excellence and greatness esteems and appreciates humility in all His creatures, both in the highest and in the lowest of them—that is, in angels and men.  Therefore, how necessary it is for us to look continuously after humility and keep it in everything, so as to please our Creator.

The excellence of the virtue of humility can be easily measured by the words of the Lord, when he condemned the pride of the Pharisees:  “Everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled and he who humbles himself shall be exalted” (Lk 14:11).  Only by steps of humility do we ascend to the heights of heaven; not by pride but by humility we reach up to God most high.

It is written: “God resists the proud but bestows his grace on the humble” (Jas 4:6), and in the psalms:  “The Lord is on high, yet he takes care of the lowly, and he knows the proud from afar” (Ps 138:6).  God takes care of the humble to exalt them, and looks at the proud to pull them down.

Let us learn humility; it brings us closer to God, as he himself says in the Gospel:  “Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart.  Your souls will find rest” (Mt 11:29).

Because of his pride, the admirable angelical creature was hurled down from heaven; because of Jesus’ humility, our frail human nature won heaven.

The practice of humility is beautiful; it is evidenced by these words of Solomon:   “When pride comes, disgrace comes; but with humility there is wisdom” (Prov 11:2).  Moreover, another sage says: “Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find grace with God” (Sir 3:18).  And God says through the prophet:  “My eyes are drawn to the man of humble and contrite spirit, who trembles at my word” (Is 66:2).

The grace of the Holy Spirit does not abide in him who is not humble and meek.  God became a humble man to save us; let man be ashamed of being proud.  The more the heart lowers itself through humility, the more it is raised up to sanctity; the humble will be exalted in glory.

The first degree of humility consists in listening humbly to the words of truth, keeping them in mind, and putting them into practice.  It is certain that truth always flees from those minds which are not humble.  The more humble one is, the greater he is in the sight of God; the more glorious the proud person appears among men, the more despicable is he before God.

Trying to gather all other virtues without true humility is like casting dust upon the wind.  Thus, the Scripture says:  “Why are dust and ashes proud,” (Sir 10:9) while the wind of pride takes away and scatters everything you gained by fasting and alms?

Beware, man, of taking pride in your virtues; you will not be your own judge, but another; before him, humble yourself in your heart, so that he may exalt you in his judgment.

Descend if you want to ascend; humble yourself if you want to be exalted.  Thus, being exalted, you will not be humbled.

He who sees his own defects, is beautiful before God.  He, who does not give satisfaction to himself, pleases God.  Thus, be small in your own eyes, to be great in God’s eyes; the more contemptible you are in your own opinion, the more precious you are in God’s sight.  In the greatest honor, have the greatest humility; the greatest praise for an honorable person is his humility.

No one can reach this virtue of humility without the virtue of fear of the Lord; one cannot exist without the other.  These, my children, are the effects of the fear of the Lord: “Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom” (Ps 111:10); presence of God is the great means to avoid sin; anyone who fears the Lord will be glad in the Day of Judgment.

Some are ashamed of committing sin in the presence of men; how much better is to be ashamed of doing evil in the presence of God, who sees our deeds and also our hearts.

He who has a filial fear of the Lord, tries to do his Will.  Different is the fear of servants; servants fear for the penalty, children fear for love of the father.  We are children of God; let us fear Him from the sweetness of charity, not from the bitterness of dread.

The wise man fears the Lord in all his actions, because he knows that it is impossible to escape from his presence. The psalmist says to God:  “Where can I go from your spirit?  Where can I flee from your presence?” (Ps 139:7);  and in another place he adds that “neither from the east nor from the west” is there a hiding place for him who flees from the Lord (cf.  Ps 75:7).

He who fears the Lord will receive his doctrine; and he who is vigilant in the observance of his commandments will find an everlasting blessing.

Blessed is the man who fears the Lord; he is strong against the devil’s temptations; “happy the man who is always on his guard” (Prov 28:14), who always keeps the fear of the Lord before his eyes.

He who fears the Lord turns back and leaves the evil path, directing his steps to the way of virtue; the fear of the Lord renders man prudent and vigilant to avoid sin.

Where there is no fear of the Lord there is perverted life; whoever does not fear God in time of prosperity, let him fear him in time of distress, taking refuge in him who scourges and cures.

“Happy the man who fears the Lord, who finds great delight in his commands” (Ps 112:1); the fear of the Lord eliminates the fear of hell, because on its account man flees from sin and multiplies good deeds.  Then he will reach that kind of fear called holy and everlasting (cf. Ps 19:10), because it is grounded on love.  Thus, my brothers, we have to fear the Lord, to be able to love him.

Perfect charity removes the servile kind of fear, giving us an abundance of security and the fullness of every good.  Thus, the prophet says:  “Fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing.  The big lions may grow weak and hungry; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing” (Ps 34:10-11).

For all this, I implore you, my dear ones, to have always before the eyes of your mind the fear of the Lord; and never forget his precepts.  Consider seriously that whoever fears the Lord and obeys his laws, goes to life everlasting.  On the contrary, whoever scorns and rejects the commandments goes into everlasting torments.

I still beg you to cultivate true humility within your heart; and to implant it in your neighbor, without using false pretensions.  Edified by your good example, may they also give glory to God; together with you, may they receive the eternal reward in heaven, with the help and the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.

FOOTNOTE:

1. De Tempore, Sermon 103.

5

St Francis of Sales

Introduction to the Devout Life

His ardent love of God, and his rare wisdom made St Francis of Sales exceptionally effective in guiding souls; his books left deep influence on the spirituality of our times.  In his pastoral work as bishop of Geneva, he brought back to the true faith more than 70,000 heretics.  He died at Lyons (France) in 1622.

About Exterior Humility [Part 3, n. 4]

“Borrow jars from all your neighbors, empty jars, and not a few,” Elisha said to the poor widow, “and pour oil into all these jars” (2 Kings 4:3-4).  To receive the grace of God, our heart must be emptied of vainglory.

Humility drives back Satan, and preserves the graces and gifts of the Holy Spirit within us.  All the saints, and particularly the King of Saints and his Mother, have always esteemed and cherished this blessed virtue more than any other moral virtue.

We call vainglory the honor we assume for:

(a) what is not in us,

(b) what is in us but is not ours,

(c) or what is in us and is ours but does not deserve such glory.

The nobility of our ancestors, the approval from important people, and popular respect are things that are not in us.  They are in our ancestors or in the esteem of other men.

Some men become proud and insolent because they ride a fine horse, carry a feather in their hat, or wear elegant clothes.  How foolish! If there is any glory in these things, the glory belongs to the horse, to the bird, or to the tailor.  What meanness of heart is there in stealing honor from a horse, from a feather, or from some passing fashion.

Some men value and pride themselves for having a well-trimmed beard, a well-cut hairdo, or soft hands, or because they can sing, dance or play.  They are shallow men who seek to increase their worth and reputation with such frivolous and silly things.

Others, with a little learning, seek to be honored and respected by the whole world, as if everyone should learn from them and have them as their master.  They are called pedants.

Some even presume they are handsome; they strut around like peacocks thinking that everyone admires them.  All this is extremely vain, offensive, and foolish; the glory raised on such foundations is likewise vain, foolish and frivolous.

Do you want to know if a man is really wise, learned, generous or noble? Observe if his talents tend to make him humble, modest, and submissive.  If he tends to brag, his talents will be less true in the same proportion as they appear evident.

Men’s virtues and good qualities born from and nourished by pride, ostentation, and vanity have merely the appearance of good.  They are without juice, without marrow, and without substance.

Honor, reputation, and dignity are like saffron, which thrives when trodden underfoot.  It is not honorable to be handsome and to boast of it.  Beauty, if it is to have a good grace, should be overlooked; and learning is a disgrace if it puffs us up and degenerates into pedantry.  If we are punctilious about places, precedence, and titles, we shall be exposing our qualities to be examined, tried, and contradicted; we shall render them contemptible.

Honor is beautiful when freely given; it is vile when exacted, sought after, and requested.  When the peacock spreads its tail to admire itself, in the act of raising up its beautiful feathers, ruffles all the rest and displays its own ugliness.  Flowers that are fair while growing in the earth, whither and fade when handled.

The pursuit and love of virtue make us virtuous; the pursuit and love of honor make us contemptible and blameworthy.  Generous minds do not amuse themselves with the tawdry toys of rank, honor, and reputation.  They have other things to care for.  Such belongs only to degenerate spirits.  Whoever has pearls never bothers himself with common shells; those who aspire to sanctity do not trouble themselves with honors.

Everyone should take and keep his place in society without prejudice to humility, but it should be done without noise.  Those who come from Peru bring silver and gold, and also parrots and monkeys that do not cost much and are not burdensome.  So those who fight for sanctity should not refuse the honor and reputation due to them, provided they do not devote all their attention to this task or cause them anxiety, conflict, and friction.  I am not referring to those whose reputation has a bearing on society, or to some extraordinary cases.  In these, everyone should keep his reputation with prudence and discretion, with charity and good manners.

Deeper Inward Humility [n. 5]

You want me, Philothea, to lead you still deeper into humility.  To do what I have said above is human wisdom, rather than humility.

Listen.  Many do not want—or do not dare—to consider the graces God has given them.  They think this will excite their vainglory and self complacency.  They deceive themselves.

St Thomas of Aquinas states that the means to attain the love of God is the consideration of his benefits.  The more we acknowledge them, the more we love God.  We should especially pay attention to the benefits that are not frequently found in any person.

Nothing humbles us so effectively before God’s mercy as the consideration of his benefits; nothing humbles us before his justice as the enormity of our offenses.  Let us consider what he has done for us and what we have done against him.  As we reflect on our sins, let us consider his graces also.

We should fear that the awareness of God’s gifts will make us proud; it will not happen if we keep in mind this truth: Whatever good is in us does not come from ourselves.  Do mules stop being vulgar brutes simply because they are laden with the treasures and perfumes of the prince? What good have we that we not received? And if we have received it, why should we glory in it?

The consideration of God’s gifts makes us humble because it generates gratitude.  If this consideration leads us to vanity, we should reflect then on our lack of correspondence to God’s grace, our defects, and our miseries.

If we consider what we did when God was not with us, we will easily realize that what we do when he is with us is not our own exertion.  We shall appreciate and enjoy God’s gifts, because we possess them; but we shall give glory to God because he is the author.  Thus, the Blessed Virgin confesses that God has done great things for her, but this leads her to humble herself and glorify God: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord, because he has done great things for me” (Lk 1:47.49).

We often say that we are nothing, that we are misery itself and the refuse of the world.  But we become very upset if anyone take us seriously or tells others that we really are such miserable wretches as we declare.  We pretend to go away and hide, so that the world may run after us and seek us out.  We pretend we wish to be considered the last of all, and to sit down at the lowest end of the table, but it is to pass more easily to the first place.

True humility does not put up a show, or use humble words; it keeps other virtues on a low profile, and goes itself unnoticed.

My advice, Philothea, is that we should not use words of humility, or else use them with sincerity of heart, meaning them interiorly.  We should never cast down our eyes, except when we humble our hearts.  We should never ask to be at the lowest place, unless we really desire it.  I do not admit any exception to this rule.

I would only add this: Good manners require us to offer precedence to someone who will surely refuse it.  This is not duplicity or false humility.  The precedence is only the beginning of a tribute we cannot give entirely.  The same rule applies to some polite words of esteem or respect, which may not be strictly due.

A humble person prefers that someone tells him he is nothing, miserable, and accomplishes nothing, rather than saying it of himself.  If he knows that someone has this opinion of him, he does not contradict it, but heartily agrees with it.  A humble man accepts this opinion; he is satisfied that others share his own judgment.

Many say that they leave mental prayer for the perfect; they deem themselves unworthy of doing it.  Others declare that they do not take Holy Communion often because they are not sufficiently pure.  Or that they would cause scandal if they take it.  Some refuse to apply their talents in the service of God and neighbor; they know their own weakness and are afraid of being proud if they become instruments of any good; and that in giving light to others, they may become darkness.  All this is nothing but a ruse, a false and malicious sort of humility.  Under the pretext of humility, they subtly find fault in the things of God, shun responsibility, conceal the attachment to their own opinion and their love of comfort.

“Ask Yahweh your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of hell or from the heights above,” said Isaiah to the unhappy Ahaz, and the king answered, “I will not ask, and I will not tempt the Lord” (Is 7:11.12).  The wicked king pretended to have an extreme reverence for God; he excused himself—under the cover of humility—from accepting that grace which the divine goodness offered him.  Didn’t he see that when God wants to give us his grace, it is pride to refuse it? We are obliged to receive God’s gifts; humility is to obey and comply the best we can with God’s desires.

God’s desire is that we should be perfect, uniting ourselves to him and imitating him as much as possible.  The proud man, who trusts in himself, has always a reason not to attempt anything.  The more humble a person is, the more courageous, the more responsible, and the more he acknowledges his own inability.  The more wretched he esteems himself, the more confident he becomes, because he places his whole trust in God.  And God likes to display his power in our weakness and to lift his compassion over our misery.  We should then humbly and devoutly conclude we can tackle everything assigned to us by those directing our souls.

To think that we know what we do not know is complete folly.  To desire to pass as knowing what we are well aware we don’t know is inexcusable vanity.  For my part, just as I would not parade knowledge even of what I actually know, so contrariwise I would not pretend to be ignorant of it.

When charity requires it, we must candidly and gladly share with our neighbor not only what is necessary for his instruction but also what is useful for his consolation.

Humility conceals and covers over virtues to preserve them, but it reveals them when charity so requires to enlarge, increase, and perfect them.  In this respect humility imitates a certain tree found on the island of Tylos.  At night it contracts and closes up its beautiful blossoms and only opens them again in the morning sun.  The natives of the country say that the tree sleeps at night.

In like manner humility covers over and hides all our purely human virtues and perfections and never displays them except for the sake of charity.  Charity is not a natural but a supernatural virtue; and not a moral but a theological virtue.  Charity is the true sun of all the virtues and should have dominion over them.  Thus, acts of humility that are against charity are certainly false.

I don’t want to play either the fool or the wise man; if humility forbids me to play the sage, candor and sincerity forbid me to act the fool.  As vanity is opposed to humility, so intrigue, affectation, and dissimulation are contrary to honesty and sincerity.

Some saints have pretended to be fools in order to be more abject in the eyes of the world; we must admire but not imitate them.  The had their motives to act in this unusual manner.  Their motives were so special and extraordinary that no one should draw conclusions for himself.

David danced and leaped with all his might before the Ark of the Covenant (2 Sam 6:14-22).  He did not wish to act foolishly.  With all simplicity and without any affectation, he danced to express the extraordinary joy he felt within his heart.  It is true that when Michol, his wife, reproached him for it as a foolish act, he was not sorry to see himself criticized.  Continuing in a natural and genuine manifestation of joy, he testified that he was glad to be criticized for the sake of God.  Thus, I tell you, don’t mind people thinking you are abject or foolish because of true, genuine manifestations of piety.  Be humble and rejoice at such fortunate criticism; its cause is not in you but in those who make it.

Humility Causes Us to Love Our Own Wretchedness [n. 6]

I now move on to tell you, Philothea, that in all things you should love your own wretchedness.  When our Lady says in her sacred canticle that because our Lord “has regarded the humility of his handmaid all generations shall call her blessed” (Lk 1:48), she means that our Lord has graciously looked down on her abjection, and lowliness in order to heap graces and favors upon her.  A person is abject when he is pushed into the corner, shorn of one’s glory, miserable.

There is a difference between the virtue of humility and wretchedness.  Wretchedness–that is, abjection, lowliness, dishonor, and baseness—is in us although we may not be aware of the fact; humility is true knowledge and voluntary acceptance of our wretchedness.  The humble person not only willingly admits his wretched state, but loves it and delights in it.  This must not be because of lack of courage and generosity but in order to exalt God’s Majesty all the more and to hold one’s neighbor in higher esteem than oneself.  I urge you to do this.

Among the evils we suffer from, some are wretched and others are honorable.  Many men can easily adapt themselves to evils that bring honor with them but hardly anyone can do so to those which bring dishonor.  You see a devout old hermit covered with rags and shivering with cold.  Everyone honors his tattered habit and sympathizes with his sufferings.  If a poor gentleman, or a poor gentlewoman is in the same condition people laugh and scoff at them.  Thus you see that their poverty is wretched poverty.

A monk meekly receives a sharp rebuke from his superior or a child from his father, and everyone calls it an instance of mortification, obedience, and wisdom.  If a lord or lady suffers the same thing from someone, even though it is accepted out of love of God, it is called cowardice and lack of spirit; this is another wretched suffering.

One man has a cancer in his arm and another on his face; the first has only a disease, while the other suffers contempt, disgrace, and wretchedness along with the disease.  I tell you, we must not only love the disease—this is the virtue of patience—but also embrace the shame and wretchedness—this is the virtue of humility.

Moreover, there are virtues which are wretched and virtues which are honorable.  Patience, meekness, simplicity, and even humility itself are virtues that worldly people consider mean and wretched.  On the other hand, they hold prudence, courage, and liberality in the highest esteem.

There are also acts of one and the same virtue, some of which are despised and others held in honor.  To give alms and to forgive injuries are both charitable acts, yet the first is held in honor by everyone while the second is despised in the eyes of the world.

A young gentlemen, or a young lady, who refuses to take part in the dissipated conduct of a debauched group, or to talk, play, dance, drink, or dress like the rest will be scorned and criticized by the others; their modesty will be called fanaticism or prudery.  To love this criticism is to love our own wretchedness.

Take wretchedness of another kind.  If I am sent to the most miserable and materially wretched among the sick, I gain honor in the eyes of the world; for that reason I may love the assignment.  If I am sent to persons of quality, it is spiritual wretchedness for there is not so much virtue or merit in this other assignment; I should love this humble wretchedness.  We may fall down in the public street and, in addition to the fall, incur shame.  We must love such wretchedness.

We may be involved in some faults related to lack of good manners that entail no other ill except shame and wretchedness.  Humility does not require that we should deliberately commit such faults, but we should not worry once we have committed them.  Among them are certain kinds of mistakes, incivility, and inadvertency that we should avoid out of regard for good manners and discretion.  But if they have been committed, we should endure the dishonor they entail and willingly accept it to practice humility.

If in passion or anger we have spoken any unbecoming words offending God or our neighbor, we should sincerely repent, be sorry for the offense, and make the best reparation we can.  At the same time, we should accept the wretchedness and ridicule it has brought upon us.  If one could be separated from the other, we should gladly cast away the sin and humbly keep the wretchedness.

Although we love the wretchedness that follows a disgrace, we must correct by just and lawful means the evil that caused it, especially when it is serious.  If anyone has some disagreeable infection in his face, he should have it cured, although not merely to remove the wretchedness he suffered.

If through inadvertence or indiscretion one has offended or scandalized another, he should correct the offense by some true explanation; the scandal being present, charity requires him to remove it.

Moreover, charity sometimes requires us to remove the wretchedness for the good of a neighbor before whom we should preserve our good name.  In such cases, although we remove the wretchedness from our neighbor’s sight to prevent scandal, yet we must enclose this shame in our heart for our own growth in sanctity.

If you wish to know which are the best kind of humiliations and wretchedness, Philothea, I tell you plainly, those which come to us accidentally or because of our state in life.  These are the most profitable to our souls and most acceptable to God.  We were not seeking them, but have accepted them as sent by God; his choice is always better than our own.

If we were to choose any form of humiliation, we should prefer the greatest; those most contrary to our inclinations, as long as they are in keeping with our vocation.  To say it once and for all, our own choice and selection spoil and lessen almost all our virtues.  Who will say with the greatest king, “I have chosen to be lowly in the house of the Lord, rather than to dwell in the tents of sinners”? (Ps 83:11).  No one can say this, Philothea, except our Lord.  To exalt us, he suffered and died becoming “the reproach of men and the outcast of the people” (Ps 21:7).

Many of the things I have told you may seem hard when you reflect on them, but believe me, they will be sweeter than sugar or honey when you put them to practice.

6

St John M. Vianney, Priest of Ars

Homily On Humility

John Vianney was born in 1786 near Lyons in France.  Ordained priest, he was parish priest of Ars for nearly 42 years.  His zeal, and mortifications transformed the population.  On certain days he spent up to sixteen hours in his confessional.  He died in 1859.

Every one that exalts himself shall be humbled; and he that humbles himself shall be exalted (Luke 18:14).

The Pharisee and the Publican

Could our Redeemer, my dear brethren, have pointed out to us more clearly than in these words the necessity of humbling ourselves?  He is inviting us to consider ourselves of little value, in our thoughts, words, and actions, so that we might be exalted to sing the praises of God for all eternity.

Being in the company of Pharisees, Jesus noticed that many of them boasted of their good deeds, and despised others.  He told them this parable: “Two men went up into the Temple to pray.  One was a Pharisee, the other a publican.  The Pharisee stood proudly erect, and said this prayer to himself: `O God, I thank you that I am not as the rest of men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, and particularly that I am not like this publican here.  I fast twice a week, and pay tithes on all I get’ (Lk 18:10-12).”

Observe that this prayer was all affected with vanity and pride.  The Pharisee did not come to ask God his grace, but to praise himself, and to despise those who really were praying.

The publican, on the other hand, stood some distance away from the altar, not daring even to raise his eyes to heaven.  He struck his breast, and said: “My God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”  “This man, I tell you,” Jesus Christ added, “went home justified, the other did not.”  The publican had his sins forgiven; the Pharisee, with all his good deeds, went home more in sin than when he left.

Although he was a sinner, the publican’s humility was more pleasing to God than all the superficial good works of the proud Pharisee.  Jesus Christ demonstrates with this example that every one who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted.

Yes, dear brethren, the only way leading to glory in the next life is humility.  Without humility, that lovely and rare virtue, you will be as unlikely to reach heaven as without Baptism.  Let us, therefore, today, dear brethren, understand the necessity of humbling ourselves; learn the motives which should encourage us to do so.  Thus, consider that:

(a) It is absolutely necessary for us to be humble if we wish to please God by our actions, and be rewarded in the next life.

(b) We need to practice humility toward God, and toward ourselves.

We Need To Be Humble

Humility is as necessary as Baptism; as necessary as the Sacrament of Penance after mortal sin.  It gives such great merit to all our actions, and adorns so abundantly all our good works.  Before making you understand how much we need this beautiful virtue, I must tell you what this amiable virtue is.

St Anthony practiced humility in such an extraordinary manner; he renounced wealth, friends, parents, and relations to spend his life in the desert with wild beasts making atonement for his sins.  This great saint tells us that humility is to know ourselves, not to think too much of ourselves, and—finally—not to take pleasure when we are praised.

God Loves the Humble

I say that it is absolutely necessary for us to be humble if we wish to please God by our actions, and be rewarded in heaven.  Jesus Christ himself has told us that we can as little expect to gain heaven without humility, as without Baptism.  St Augustine tells us: “If you ask me which is the first virtue for a Christian, I will tell you that it is humility.  If you ask me again which is the second, I will say to you it is humility.  If you again ask me which is the third, I will still say that it is humility, and as often as you ask me this question, I shall always give you the same answer.”

If pride produces every sin, we can just as well say that humility produces every virtue.  With humility you have the means to please God and save your soul; without humility all the other virtues will be of no avail.

Like Children

We read in the Gospel that some mothers brought their children to Jesus Christ, for him to bless them.  The apostles wanted to turn the children away, but our Lord would not permit this.  He told them: “Let the little children come to me; do not stop them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven.”  Jesus embraced them, and gave them his blessing.

Why did the divine Redeemer receive the children so lovingly?  Because children are simple, humble, and without guile.  If, therefore, my dear brethren, we desire to be received kindly by Jesus Christ, we too, must be simple, and humble in everything we do.

The Blessed Virgin’s Humility

St Bernard tells us, “The eternal Father looked at the Blessed Virgin with delight on account of her humility.  Also by her humility, Mary conceived the Son of God.  If the Blessed Virgin is the Queen of angels, she is also the Queen of the humble.”

St Teresa once asked our Lord why the Holy Spirit revealed himself and talked to the patriarchs and prophets of the Old Testament, but does not do so any longer.  Our Lord answered her that this happened because they were simpler and humbler; now men are full of pride and vanity.  God does not interact with them.  He does not love them as he loved the good patriarchs and prophets who were simple and humble.

St Augustine tells us: “If you were profoundly humble, and acknowledged that you are nothing, and deserve nothing, God would grant you abundant graces.  But when you exalt yourselves, and think so much of yourselves, he withdraws himself from you, and abandons you to your misery.”

Humility and the Beatitudes

To show that humility is the most beautiful, and precious of all virtues, our Lord began his beatitudes with humility, by saying: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for to them belongs the kingdom of heaven.”  St Augustine tells us that the poor in spirit are those who have humility as their only possession.

The prophet Isaiah asked God: “Lord, upon whom does your Holy Spirit descend?  Is it perhaps upon those who bear a great name in this world, and upon the proud?”  “No,” said the Lord, “but upon those that are humble of heart.”

Humility, Basis for Friendship

Humility renders us not only pleasing to God, but also to men.  Everyone likes a humble person; everyone is glad to be in his or her company.  Children are loved because they are simple and humble.

A humble person yields in all things, never contradicts anyone, or causes trouble to anybody.  He is always satisfied, and tries to pass unnoticed from the eyes of the world.  Proud persons are disliked as much as humble persons are liked; the latter make no ostentation; everyone respects and loves them.  All desire the company of those who possess this beautiful quality.

Humility, the Foundation of All Other Virtues

I say that humility is the foundation of all other virtues.  If we want to serve God faithfully, and save our soul, we should begin to practice this virtue fully and with conviction.  Without humility our piety will resemble straws planted on a field; nothing grows, the barren stalks will be blown down by the first gust of wind.

Yes, dear brethren, the Evil Spirit is not afraid of our piety if we do not put humility as its foundation.  The devil knows well that he can destroy that piety if he wants to.

It is said of St Anthony that once God showed him the world full of snares, set by the Evil One to entrap men into sin.  He was surprised and scared, and he said to God: “O Lord, who will be able to avoid so many snares?”  A voice answered him: “Anthony, those who are humble; because God grants his grace to the humble, so that they may resist temptation.  He allows the Evil One to ridicule the proud, who fall into sin at the first chance.  On the other hand, the devil does not dare to attack those who are humble.”

When we are tempted, dear brethren, let us remain protected under the shelter of humility; we shall discover that the Evil Spirit has very little power over us.

What Is Humility?

Do you want to know what is humility?  Listen, I will tell you in the first place that there are two kinds of humility: exterior and interior humility.  The following are signs of exterior humility:

- Not to praise oneself, not to talk of one’s talents and cleverness.

- To keep quiet about the good deeds one has done; such as almsgiving, prayers, works of penance, the services rendered to the neighbor, the interior graces granted by God.

- Not to take pleasure in being praised.  To divert the conversation from the success one has achieved, attributing it to God, or by showing that this topic is unpleasant to us.

- To avoid arguments.  To yield in everything that is not a sin.  Not to think that one is always right.  If anyone thinks he is right, he should also think that he is frequently mistaken.  One should never seek to have the last word; this is an evidence of having a very proud spirit.

- Never to be sad when one seems to be despised.  Not to complain when one is under this impression.  Complaining would be a proof of having no humility.  A humble person thinks he could never be treated as bad as he deserves on account of his sins.  One should thank God, as King David did when he was cursed by Shimei (2 Sam 16:5-14).  “Let him curse on if the Lord has told him to,” David told his officers, “perhaps the Lord will look on my wretchedness and repay me with good for this curse today.”  He thought he deserved the insults as punishment for his sins.

- Never to excuse one’s faults, when one has done anything deserving censure.  Even when one is falsely accused—unless the honor of God is at stake—one should rather suffer in silence.

Interior Humility

You see here, dear brethren, what is exterior humility.  Now, what is interior humility?  These are the signs of interior humility:

- To have a poor opinion of oneself; never to approve of oneself at heart when one has done anything well, but to look upon oneself as unworthy and incapable of bringing a good deed to a successful completion without the help of God.

- Not to mind other people knowing one’s faults, this is an occasion to improve one’s life.

- To be happy if others surpass us in wealth, in intelligence, in virtue, and in other good qualities.  One should be subject to and accept the opinion of those in authority, when this is not a sin.

This, my dear brethren, is to possess Christian humility, a virtue which renders us so pleasing to God, and so amiable to man.  Look well now whether you have it or not.  And if you don’t have it, spare no pains—if you want to be saved—to implore it of God, until you obtain it.  Without humility one can not enter heaven.

Motives To Be Humble

And why should we practice humility?  Dear brethren, a Christian who knows himself thoroughly should feel urged to humble himself for more than one reason.  I will name three: the consideration of God’s glory, the example of Jesus Christ, and our own wretchedness.

God’s Glory

Who can contemplate the immensity of God, without humbling himself into the dust?  God, created heaven and earth out of nothing; with one word he could turn heaven and earth into nothing again.  Think: God is so great; his power is boundless; God is filled with every perfection.  Consider: God and his never‑ending eternity; his great justice; his providence, by which he rules everything so wisely, and looks after everything with such care; and we a mere nothing!

The Example of Jesus Christ

The example of Jesus Christ should make us humble.  St Augustine says: “When I see that God led a life filled with abasement and ignominy, from his Incarnation up to the Cross, can I be afraid of humbling myself?  God seeks lowliness; I, a worm, should exalt myself?  My God, destroy my pride, which separates me so much from you!”

Our Own Wretchedness

The third motive, dear brethren, which should lead us to be humble is our own wretchedness.  We merely have to look at our own selves closely, and we shall find innumerable reasons to humble ourselves.

“Ah,” the holy Job tells us, “what are we?  Dust, before our birth; miserable, when we come into the world; waste, when we leave it.  Born of a woman, we live only a short time.  Though life is short, we weep a great deal.  And how soon are we snatched away by death!”

Judge, then, if we have the slightest occasion to exalt ourselves.  Whoever has the presumption to think that he is eminent, is a fool who has never known himself.  When we really know ourselves we can only despise ourselves.”

Our Talents

We have no less reason to humble ourselves if we consider the grace of God in us.  The few gifts and talents we have, all come from the generous hand of the Lord.  He bestows them to whom and when he likes.  We cannot, therefore, boast of them.

The Hope of Heaven

We must be humble at the sight of the glory and blessedness which await us in the next life; for of ourselves we do not deserve anything.  O how loving is God who gives us the hope of such benefits; we who have nothing, and deserve nothing.

What, then, should we conclude from this, dear brethren?  Each day, we should ask God for humility, with our whole hearts.  We should ask him for the grace to know that we are nothing of ourselves, and that our corporal and spiritual well-being depends on him alone.

Let us, therefore, practice humility as much as we can.  There is no virtue more pleasing to God than that of humility.  If we possess it, we shall possess all the other virtues.  Even if we are great sinners, we can be sure that, if we are humble, God will forgive us.

Yes, dear brethren, let us practice this beautiful virtue.  It will unite us to God; it will let us live at peace with our neighbors; it will make the cross less heavy; it will give us the blessed hope of seeing God in heaven.  He, himself, tells us this: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for they shall see God!”  This it is that I wish you all.  Amen.

7

J.  Pecci (later Pope Leo XIII)

The Practice of Humility

Joachim Pecci was born on March 2, 1810 in Carpinetto, near Rome.  Fourth son of the Counts of Carpinetto, he studied in Rome and became an outstanding humanist.  He was ordained in 1837 and was governor of a province of the Pontifical States.  He became a bishop at the age of thirty-three and was sent to Belgium as Nuncio.  Back to Italy, he became bishop of Perugia in 1847.  He was there during the attack on the Papal States; he was accused of “inciting to despise and dishonor the civil laws of the Kingdom of Italy.”

During this period of persecution he wrote The Practice of Humility, addressed mainly to the priests and seminarians of his diocese, but useful for all.

Created a cardinal in 1850, he remained as bishop in Perugia, loved by even his enemies.  He was elected pope in 1878 taking the name of Leo XIII.

Leo XIII was a holy, simple, and intelligent pope; his encyclicals are among the greatest documents of the Church in recent years.

It is an undisputed truth that no mercy will be reserved for the proud, that the gates of heaven will be closed to them and opened only to the humble.

To become convinced of this, it is enough to open holy Scripture; it teaches us in various places that God resists the proud and humbles the mighty; that only those who know how to become like little children will enter his glory, while those who do not will be excluded; finally, that God bestows his grace only upon the humble.

It is of the utmost importance for every Christian, and especially for those who aspire to a greater perfection, to practice humility and to remove from their spirit any presumption, vanity and pride.  No labor is too taxing, no effort is too great to assure the success of such a holy undertaking.  And since it cannot be achieved without the grace of God, we must ask for it insistently, and without getting tired.

With Baptism, every Christian has assumed the obligation of walking in the footsteps of Jesus Christ; he is the divine Model of our life.  Now, this God-Savior was humble to the point of making himself the curse of the earth; this, to lower the haughty and heal the wound of our pride, teaching us by his example the only way leading to heaven.  This is, to speak properly, the most important lesson of the Savior: Learn from me.

Receive docilely, therefore, disciple of the Divine Master, the advice I am going to give you, and put it faithfully into practice, if you wish to gain this precious pearl, which is the surest pledge of sanctity and the most certain sign of predestination.

1          Open the eyes of your soul and realize that you have no good of your own which can make you believe that you are something.  Only sin, weakness, and misery are yours.  The gifts of nature and grace which are in you all come from God, who is the principle of your being, thus, only to him does glory belong.

2          Develop a profound awareness of your nothingness and make this grow constantly in your heart, despite and in contempt of the pride prevailing in you.

Be intimately convinced that there is no more vain and ridiculous thing in the world than the desire to be esteemed for some gifts you have borrowed from the Creator; he has lent them to you gratuitously and generously.  As the Apostle says, “If you have received them, why are you boasting as if they were your own?” (1 Cor 4:7).

3          Think often of your weakness, blindness, cowardice, and hardness of heart, of your sensuality, insensitivity towards God, and attachment to creatures, of the many other vicious inclinations welling up from your perverted nature.  May these considerations plunge you continually into your nothingness, and remind you of how small and humble you must always be in your own eyes.

4          Have always impressed upon your spirit the memory of your past sins.  Be convinced that the sin of pride is such an abominable evil that it is unsurpassed by any other on earth or within hell.  This was the sin which caused the fall of the angels in heaven into the abyss; this was the sin which corrupted the entire human race and drove upon the earth the infinite crowd of evils which will last as long as the world, or rather as long as eternity.

Moreover, a soul loaded with sins is only worthy of hatred, contempt, torments; thus, see how much you can esteem yourself after having become guilty of so many sins.

5          Consider that there is no crime –no matter how enormous and detestable it may be– to which your nature is not inclined; no sin you may not commit.  And remember that you have been set free from such until now only through the mercy of God and the help of his grace.  As St Augustine wrote: “There is no sin in the world committed by one man which cannot be committed by another, should the hand which made man fail to sustain him.”#1

Cry wholeheartedly over such a deplorable state, and resolve firmly to include yourself among the most unworthy sinners.

6          Think often that sooner or later you will have to die; that your body will have to rot in a trench.  Have always before your eyes the inexorable tribunal of Jesus Christ, before which all will necessarily have to appear; meditate on the eternal pains of hell prepared for the wicked and especially for the followers of Satan –the proud.

There is an impenetrable veil hiding the divine judgments from human eyes; consider seriously that the result is uncertain; –will you be among the damned?  These will be plunged into the place of torments, in the company of the demons for all eternity, to the fire enkindled by divine justice.  This uncertainty alone should be enough to keep you in the utmost humility and to instill in you the most salutary fear.

7          Do not think of acquiring humility without these particular practices proper to it: acts of meekness, patience, obedience, mortification, self-hatred, detachment from your feelings and opinions, contrition for your sins, and many others.  These alone are the weapons capable of destroying in you the kingdom of self-love, that corrupted ground where all vices sprout, where your pride and presumption take root and thrive.

8          As far as possible, keep yourself in silence and recollection; but do it without causing inconvenience to others, and when you have to speak, do so always with reserve, modesty and simplicity.

If you are not listened to, either through contempt or for any other reason, do not show resentment; rather, accept this humiliation and bear it with resignation and tranquillity.

9          Refrain from haughty and proud words denoting an attitude of superiority; avoid affected expressions and sarcastic remarks; silence anything that would lead you to be considered witty, or worthy of esteem.  In a word, never speak of yourself without a just reason, and avoid doing anything just to gain honor and praise.

10        In conversations, do not annoy or make fun of others with sharp words and sarcasm; shun everything worldly.  Concerning spiritual things, do not speak in a magisterial fashion, unless demanded by your office or charity; be glad to consult with a mature person who will give you proper advice.  To play teacher without necessity is adding wood to the burning fire of our soul, already engulfed in the smoke of pride.

11        Repress vain and useless curiosity with all your might; do not be over-anxious to see any of those things which the worldly call beautiful, rare, and magnificent.  Struggle instead to know well your duty and what is beneficial for your salvation.

12        Show always the greatest respect and reverence for your superiors; have esteem and consideration for your peers; and use a great charity with your subordinates.  Be convinced that a different behavior can only result from a soul dominated by pride.

13        As in the holy Gospel, seek always the lowliest place for yourself; be sincerely convinced that it is the right one for you.  Likewise, in every necessity of life beware of desires and concerns that aim too high; on the other hand, be content with simple and modest things, as more in harmony with your littleness.

14        If you lack human consolations, and God takes away from you any spiritual sweetness, think that you have always had more than you deserved; be content with the way the Lord treats you.

15        In your examination of conscience, cultivate always the practice of accusing, blaming, and condemning yourself.  Be a severe judge of all your actions; these are always accompanied by thousands of defects and by continuous pretenses of self-love.  Foster a just contempt for yourself, seeing yourself as lacking prudence, simplicity and purity of heart.

16        Refrain from judging others as from a most grievous evil; rather, interpret every word or action well; with creative charity, find reasons to excuse and defend your neighbor.  Whenever defense is impossible, since the fault committed is too obvious, do your best to minimize the blame; attribute it to unawareness, or surprise, or any other suitable reason.  At least, stop thinking about it, unless your position requires you to apply some remedy.

17        Do not contradict anyone in conversation when the things involved are doubtful or debatable and can be taken in one way or the other.

Do not get excited in conversation; if your opinion is found false or less good, give in modestly and remain in humble silence.  Again give in and behave in the same way about trifles, even if you are certain that what others maintain is false.  On any other occasion, when it is important to defend the truth, do so with courage, but without fury and resentment; you may be sure that you will succeed better with kindness than with rage and indignation.

18        Endeavor not to cause sorrow to anyone, no matter how inferior he may be, either with words, actions or conduct, unless duty, obedience, or charity demands it.

19        If someone disturbs you often and mortifies you on purpose with insults and humiliations, do not get angry; consider him an instrument which God uses in his mercy for your improvement, to cure the deep-rooted wound of your pride.

20        Anger is a despicable vice; it should not be allowed in anyone, especially in persons with interior life.  Anger takes its roots and derives its violence from pride.  Exert effort, therefore, to build up a reservoir of sweetness; thus, even if someone offends you, you will be able to keep calm.  In these cases, do not harbor or kindle in your heart sentiments of aversion or revenge against your offender; forgive him wholeheartedly; be convinced that you could have no better chance than this to obtain forgiveness from God for having offended Him.  This humble endurance will earn you merit for heaven.

21        Suffer patiently the defects and weaknesses of your neighbor, having always before your eyes your own misery; they also had to bear with you.

22        Be humble and meek with all, but especially with those for whom you feel a certain repugnance and aversion.  Do not say as some do: “May God forbid me from hating that person, but I do not want him around, nor do I want to have anything to do with him.”  This repugnance comes from pride and from not having conquered your proud nature and self-love with the weapon of grace.

If your nature and self-love were to let themselves be moved by grace, they would soon see all difficulties vanish by true humility, and you would patiently endure even the most unkind and irrational person.

23        If you encounter some adversity, bless the Lord who has disposed things thus for your good; think that you deserve it all, and more, and that you are unworthy of every consolation.  With all simplicity, ask the Lord to free you from these hardships, if it is his will; otherwise, ask him to give you strength to draw merit from this difficulty.

In time of trial, do not seek external consolation, especially when you know that God sent this adversity to humiliate you and break your pride and presumption; rather, say with the royal prophet: “It is good for me to be afflicted, so that I may learn your decrees” (Ps 119:71).

24        Do not become irritated if the food served is not to your liking; behave in this case as do God’s poor ones, who willingly eat what is set before them, thanking divine providence for it.

25        If, by mistake, you are scolded; if your behavior is criticized by your subordinate, or by one who should first look at himself as more worthy of reprehension, do not despise his indications or reject the advice given; examine your conduct calmly in the light of God.

Be deeply convinced that without God’s grace, you would fall at every step.

26        Never wish to be loved in a singular way.  Since love depends on the will and the will tends by its nature towards good, it follows that being loved and considered good are one and same thing.  The desire to be esteemed with a preferential love does not harmonize with a sincere humility.

Stop begging for the love of creatures; how much fruit would you get if you rectify! Take refuge in the sacred wounds of the Savior; you will experience untold divine sweetness in the adorable Heart of Jesus.

The generous renunciation of human love for the love of God will empower you to savor abundantly the honey of divine consolation; these divine consolations are always denied to the prisoners of the false and alluring sweetness of earthly compensations.  Divine consolations are so pure that they do not mix with earthly compensations; we are filled with the former the more we empty ourselves of the latter.  Moreover, your soul will be able to turn freely to God and find repose in his presence contemplating his infinite perfection.

Finally, since there is nothing sweeter than to love and be loved, if you deprive yourself of this human pleasure for the love of God, the Lord takes possession of your heart, undivided by any other natural love; and you will be offering to God a sacrifice most pleasing to him.

Do not fear that by so doing you will cool your charity for your neighbor.  Rather, you will love your neighbor with a purer love; not for your own interest –following your own inclinations– but only to please God, doing what you know He likes.

27        Perform all your actions, no matter how small they may be, as attentively, precisely and diligently as possible; acting lightly and rashly is the result of presumption.  The truly humble person is always vigilant to avoid failing, in even the smallest things.

For the same reason always practice ordinary exercises of piety; shun the unusual practices suggested by your nature.  The proud seeks always to stand out, the humble, on the contrary, is glad doing what is common and ordinary.

28        Be convinced that you are not a good adviser of yourself; fear and distrust your opinions as coming from polluted and contaminated soil.  Aware of this, ask advice from a wise and upright person; prefer to be directed by one better than you, rather than to follow your own whim.

29        No matter how high the degree of grace and virtue you have achieved, no matter how great the gift of prayer God has given you, even if you have lived one thousand years in innocence and with fervor and devotion, you must always walk vigilant and distrust yourself, especially in the matter of chastity.  Remember that you carry within yourself concupiscence, an inextinguishable source of sin; think that you are all weakness, inconstancy, infidelity.

Be always on guard against yourself; close your eyes to avoid seeing or hearing what could stain your soul; always run away from dangerous occasions; abstain from useless conversation with the opposite sex, and carry on the necessary dealings with the most scrupulous modesty and prudence.

Finally, since without the grace of God you can do nothing, continually ask God to have mercy on you, that you do not remain on your own for a moment.

30        Have you received great talents from God?  Are you considered someone great?  Fight, then, to know yourself as you really are; become aware of your weakness, incapacity and nothingness; you must become smaller than a child.  Do not seek the approval of men, and do not yearn for honors; reject both the one and the other.

31        If they have caused you a great injury, if they have provoked you, instead of raging in fury against the offenders, turn your eyes to heavens, turn your eyes to the Lord.  In his infinite and loving providence, he arranged things thus, either to make you atone for your sins, or to destroy your pride; he is encouraging you to make acts of patience and humility.

32        When you have the chance to render some low and humble service to your neighbor, do it joyfully; do it with the humility you would have if you were the servant of all.  From this practice you will draw vast treasures of virtue and grace.

33        Do not worry about matters not under your care, for which you do not have to render an account to men or God.  Involvement in these matters reveals a concealed pride and vain presumption; it feeds and swells vanity; it causes endless worries, uneasiness, and distractions.

On the contrary, minding only yourself and your own duty will give you peace and tranquility, as it is written in The Imitation of Christ: “Do not involve yourself in matters which are no concern of yours; thus, you will have little to trouble your mind, and that but rarely.”#2

34        If you do some extraordinary mortification, try to remain immune from the poison of vainglory, which often destroys all the merits; do that mortification for the right motive: because it is unbecoming for a poor sinner like yourself to live at your convenience and pleasure and because you have so many debts to pay before the divine justice.  Reflect that you need penitential works to check the violence of the passions, keeping you within the limits of duty, as bridle and bit are necessary to tame an impetuous horse.

35        When you feel the sting of impatience and are overtaken by sadness in tribulations and humiliations, stand firm against this temptation.  Remember your many sins, for which you deserve much harsher punishments than those you are now enduring.  Adore the infinite justice of God and receive his blows with docility; these are your sources of mercy and grace.

If only you could understand how good is to be wounded in this wretched life by the hand of such a sweet Father as God, certainly you would abandon yourself completely into his hands.  Repeat often with St Augustine: “Here in this life, burn and cut in me whatever you wish; do not spare me any suffering here; forgive me and spare me the sufferings of eternity.”  To refuse tribulations is to rebel against the justice of our Father God, to reject the chalice that he mercifully offers us and from which Christ himself –although innocent– wanted to drink first.

36        If you committed a fault which deserved the contempt of those who witnessed the deed, be heartily sorry for having offended God and for having given bad example to your neighbors; accept the shame as a means sent by God to atone for your sins and to make you humbler and holier.

If you are distressed and sad for having been exposed to dishonor, conclude that you are not truly humble, but still poisoned by pride.  Ask the Lord insistently to cure you and save you from this poison, for if God does not have pity on you, you certainly will fall into other abysses.

37        If, among your companions, there is one who seems to you repulsive and worthless, it would be wise and prudent for you to consider the good qualities of nature, and grace he has received from God; because of these, he is worthy of respect and honor.  You should not criticize and blame him for his defects.  At least, look at him as a creature of God, formed in his image and likeness, ransomed by the precious Blood of Jesus Christ, a Christian marked with the light of God’s countenance; that he has a soul capable of seeing and possessing God eternally, and perhaps a predestined one according to the secret plans of God’s adorable providence.  Do you perhaps know the graces the Lord has bestowed upon his heart, or those he is in the process of bestowing?  But instead of attempting all this research, it would be better immediately to reject all these thoughts of contempt as poisoned suggestions of the tempter.

38        When you are praised, instead of falling into vainglory, fear that praise as if it were the sole reward of the little good you have done.  Recognize inwardly your misery, deserving the contempt of the others, and cut off the discourse tactfully and discreetly; thus, no further thought will be given to your affairs.  Do not act as the proud, who pretend to be humble in order to gain more praises.

If your efforts do not succeed, direct all the honor and glory to God, saying with Baruch and Daniel: “All honor and glory belongs to the Lord, our God; to us, the look of shame we wear today” (Bar 1:15).

39        Feel aversion for personal praise given to you; in the same proportion, be joyful for the praise and honor given to the others.  And on your part, honor your neighbor to the extent allowed by truth and veracity.

Envious people cannot stand the glory given to others; they think it lessens their own, and they resent this.  Thus, during conversation, they cleverly throw out certain ambiguous words or expressions with double meaning to lessen or render suspicious the merits of the others.

You must not act this way; in praising your neighbor, you praise the Lord, thank God for the gifts he has given him, and appreciate the talents one may use for God’s service.

40        When you hear calumnies against your neighbor, you must feel very sorry, but try to excuse the weakness of the slanderer; on the other hand, you ought to defend the person, target of gossiping, with cleverness, so that your defense does not become a second accusation.  Thus, you may recall his good qualities, or highlight the esteem that he deserves from all, or shrewdly change the conversation, or show your displeasure for the tone of the conversation.

Acting in this way, you will render the greatest service to yourself, to the slanderer, to the listeners, and to the person in question.  On the contrary, if, without shaking off your inertia, you feel satisfaction when your neighbor is humiliated and annoyance when he is extolled, recognize that you are very far from possessing the incomparable treasure of humility.

41        Nothing better helps one to grow spiritually than being warned about his own defects; thus, it is most convenient and necessary to encourage those who sometimes have given you this charitable service to continue doing so on any occasion.  Receive their advice with joy and gratitude, and make it a duty to put this advice into practice, not only for the sake of correcting yourself, but also to show these friends that their concern has not been useless and that you appreciate their thoughtfulness.

Even when he rectifies, the proud person does not want to show that he followed the advice received; rather, he displays an attitude of contempt towards all.  The truly humble, on the contrary, is content submitting himself to everyone for the love of God; he considers the wise advice received as coming from God himself, regardless of the instrument used.

42        Abandon yourself completely in the hands of God; follow the disposition of his loving providence, as a tender child abandons himself into the arms of his beloved father.  Let God do whatever he wishes, without being troubled and disturbed for whatever may happen to you.  Accept with joy, trust, and respect, everything that comes from him.  Acting otherwise would be to distrust him, an ingratitude toward the goodness of his Heart.

Humility shelters us far beneath the infinite being of God and shows us that God is our strength and consolation.

43        Without God, you are unable to do anything good; you would stumble at any step; the least temptation would overcome you.  Thus, acknowledge your weakness and impotence to do good; remember that you need God’s help for every little action you perform.

With these thoughts, keep yourself inseparably united to God, as a child who, not knowing any other refuge, clings to his mother’s bosom.  Repeat with the royal prophet: “Were not the Lord my help, I would soon dwell in the silence of death” (Ps 94:17); “Look toward me, and have pity on me, for I am alone and afflicted” (Ps 25:16); and, “Hasten, God, to rescue me; O Lord, come quickly to help me” (Ps 70:1).  Finally, thank God always with all your heart; thank him above all for the protection he gives you; and ask him that you may never lack the help which he alone can give.

44        Go to your prayer aware of your unworthiness and vileness, with holy awe for the presence of the supreme Majesty to whom you dare to speak to: “Shall I be so bold as to speak to my Lord, though I am but dust and ashes” (Gen 18:27).

If you receive any extraordinary favor, consider yourself unworthy of it; do not be vain, attributing it to your merits; God granted it to you out of generosity and compassion.

If you do not receive any singular gift, do not feel at all disgruntled; rather, reflect on how much you still have to do to deserve it; consider how good and patient is God only to bear you at his feet, like a beggar crouching for hours at the door of the rich man to obtain a little alms, the relief of his misery.

45        Give all the glory to God for the good results of the task entrusted to you; attribute to yourself only the possible failures; these alone are exclusively yours.  Every good is from God; glory and gratitude must be given to him.  Impress this truth so deeply on your spirit as never to forget it.

Anyone else, so much helped by the divine grace as you have been, would have performed much better and would not have had so many flaws.  Reject the praise given to you for success; this is not due to such a vile instrument as yourself, but to the mighty and eternal Maker.  He can, if he wants, strike a rock with a staff and make water spring from it, or use a bit of mud to give sight to the blind and perform endless miracles.

46        If, on the other hand, the tasks entrusted to you, do not go well, there is much to fear that the failure is due to your ineptitude and negligence.  Your self-love and pride—hostile to any humiliation—would lay the blame upon others or, at least, would lessen your guilt.

Do not follow these vicious inclinations; conscientiously examine your conduct; find your failure; acknowledge your guilt before God, and accept the humiliation as a deserved punishment.

If, however, your conscience does not accuse you of any guilt, adore the divine disposition even in this case; reflect that perhaps your past sins and an excessive self-confidence have removed the heavenly blessing from your labors.

47        If you go to holy Communion with a heart burning with divine love, you must also bring a spirit penetrated with sentiments of true humility.  How could you not be astonished contemplating that God—infinitely pure and holy—supplies such a sign of love for such a miserable creature as you are; he gives himself to you as food.  Acknowledge the depth of your unworthiness; do approach that love-worthy sanctity with the greatest reverence; and when this amiable Lord—who is all charity—caresses you, sharing with you his indescribable sweetness, do not lessen the respect due to his infinite Majesty.  Always keep yourself in your place—in submission, in humility, in your nothingness.

The realization of your poverty and misery must not close up your heart or remove from you that holy confidence you must have at this holy banquet; rather, it must make you grow in love for God, who humbles himself making himself the nourishment of your soul.

48        Have for your neighbor a heart of charity and a perennial fountain of affection and sweetness; with holy zeal, try to help him in everything, but do always so to please the Lord.  Examine the motive of your actions to discover the snares of vanity and self-love.  Refer to God alone all the good you do; if you keep a good deed hidden and secret, known only to God, it will reap a priceless profit.  If by your negligence men know it, it will lose almost all its value, as does a good fruit which the birds have started to eat.

49        Your filial fear of displeasing God must always be accompanied by a supplication, an appeal to his compassion: that he may prevent you from falling, that he may impede such disaster.  The saints recommended this holy groan of the heart; it leads us to be vigilant in all our actions, to meditate on the divine truths and despise temporal things, to do mental prayer, and to keep oneself far from all that is not God.

This filial fear of the Lord is the source of true humility and detachment; foster it, and ask for it continually.

50        A patient who strongly desires his recovery removes from himself whatever can delay it; he takes even the best food cautiously, examining at almost every mouthful whether it does him good or not.  Likewise, if you wholeheartedly desire to recover from the deadly sickness of pride, if you are really eager to grow in humility, you must always be on your guard, vigilant of what you say or do.  Thus, think before every action whether it leads you to humility or not, and then, do it immediately or reject it completely.

51        Another strong reason to make you practice the virtue of humility is the example of our divine Savior; he must be your model always.  He told us: “Learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart” (Mt 11:29).  And St Bernard notes: “What pride cannot be crushed by the humility of the divine Master?”

Christ is the only one who really humiliated and abased himself; we do not lower ourselves at all, we merely occupy the place which is due us.  Vile creatures guilty of a thousand crimes, we have a right only to pain and the void, but our Savior Jesus Christ abased himself way below the heights befitting him.

He is the Almighty God, the Immortal and Eternal Being, the supreme Arbiter of everything, yet he became man, weak, vulnerable, mortal and obedient until death.  He lowered himself below his creatures; he who is the joy and beatitude of the angels and saints in heaven willed to be the Man of Sorrows and took upon himself the miseries of mankind; the uncreated Wisdom and the wellspring of all knowledge who was burdened with the shame and infamy of a fool; the Holy of Holies, holiness itself, went by as a sinner and a criminal; he whom the countless hosts of the blessed worship in heaven willed to die on a cross; the supreme Goodness bore all kinds of temporal miseries.

After this example of humility, what shall we do, ashes and dust that we are?  Shall we complain of any little humiliation, miserable sinners that we are?

52        Consider also the examples left by the saints of the Old and New Testaments.

Isaiah, such a virtuous and zealous prophet, deemed himself impure before God, and confessed that all his good deeds were like dirty rags (cf. Is 64:5).

Daniel, whom God called a holy man, capable of arresting the divine wrath through his prayers, spoke to God with the humility of a sinner covered with confusion and shame.

St Dominic, a miracle of innocence and holiness, had reached such a degree of self-contempt that he thought he drew curses from heaven upon the cities which he had to pass through.  Thus, before entering a city, he would kneel down, put his face toward the ground, and say with tears: “I implore you, O Lord, have compassion on me, do not look at my sins, and do not punish this city as your just vengeance for keeping me within its walls.”

St Francis, who deserved to be an image of Jesus Crucified for the purity of his life, believed himself to be the worst sinner on earth; this thought was so firmly fixed in his spirit that no one could have removed it.  He used to say that, had God granted all those graces to the lowest of men, that man would have made better use of them and would not have been so ungrateful.

Several other saints believed themselves unworthy of the food they took, of the air they breathed, of the garments they wore.  Others regarded it as a great miracle of the divine mercy to be tolerated on earth, instead of being thrown into hell.  Still others were surprised that men could bear them and that all creatures would not get together to exterminate and annihilate them.  All the saints abhorred distinction, praises and honors, and because of the great contempt that they had for themselves, they longed for nothing other than humiliations and dishonor.

Are you perhaps holier than they?  Why don’t you consider yourself—after their example—unworthy and vile?  Why don’t you seek—as they did—the simple joy of holy humility?

53        Recall in your imagination the insults which could come upon you; this will help you to grow in this virtue and to find humiliation sweet and familiar.  Study within yourself how to accept these imagined insults, in spite of your obstinate nature; they are tokens of God’s love for you and sure means of sanctification.

Perhaps in so doing you will have to struggle, but be courageous and strong in the fight, until you feel firm and well determined to suffer everything joyfully for the love of Jesus Christ.

54        Let no day pass without reproaching yourself as your enemies would do, not only to soften these insults in advance, but also to keep yourself in self-abasement and contempt.

If, in the midst of the storm of a violent temptation, you become impatient and complain interiorly for the way God is trying you, repress these motions in time and tell yourself: “I am a vile and miserable sinner, should I complain about this suffering?  Have I not deserved harsher punishments?  Don’t you know, my soul, that these humiliations and sufferings are like bread received from the charity of the Lord to bring you out of your misery and poverty?  Ah, if you refuse this God-given trial, you are not worthy of it and reject a rich treasure; it will be given to someone else who will make better use of it.

“The Lord wants to number you among his friends, the disciples of Calvary; will you be a coward and flee from the combat?  Do you try to be crowned without having fought?  And how will you have the reward without having borne the burden of the day and of the heat?”

These and similar reflections will re-enkindle your fervor and arouse in you the desire to accept suffering and humiliations, as our Lord did.

55        Do not think that you possess humility because you enjoy much tranquillity and peace in the midst of contempt and contradictions.  Very often pride is only lulled; it creates havoc again as soon as it is awakened.

Your weapons should be self-knowledge, escaping from honors, and love for humiliations; never rid yourself of them, not even for an instant.

Do not be afraid of losing this rich inheritance again; to humble oneself is the sure means to keep the precious gift of humility.

56        Take Mary as your advocate and protectress to obtain from God the gift of humility.  St Bernard says that “Mary humbled herself more than any other creature; being the greatest of all, she made herself the least in the most profound abyss of her humility.”  Thus, she received the fullness of graces and was prepared to be the Mother of God.  Mary is also a tender and compassionate Mother; no one ever had recourse to her in vain.  Abandon yourself trustfully in her maternal bosom; implore her to obtain for you that virtue, so precious to her.  Do not fear that she will ignore you; no, Mary will ask it for you of that God who raises the humble and annihilates the proud.  Since Mary is all-powerful with her Son, she will undoubtedly be answered.

Turn to her in all your crosses, in all your needs, in all your temptations.  May Mary be your support, may she be your consolation; but the first grace you must ask of her is holy humility.  Never keep still, never stop imploring her until she obtains it for you; never be afraid of troubling her too much.  Oh, how much she likes your persistent requests for the health of your soul and for being more acceptable to her divine Son.

Press her to be always favorable to you; ask this in the name of her humility, by which she was elevated to the dignity of Mother of God, and in the name of her maternity, the indescribable fruit of her humility.

57        Have recourse to those saints eminent in humility:

- to St Michael the Archangel, the first of the humble, as Lucifer was the first of the proud;

- to St John the Baptist, who although he had reached such heights of sanctity as to be taken for the Messiah, felt so lowly as to deem himself unworthy to loosen Jesus’ sandal strap;

- to St Paul, that privileged apostle, taken up to the third heaven.  Having heard the mysteries of the divinity, deemed himself the least of the apostles, not even worthy of the name (cf. 2 Cor 12:11);

- to Pope St Gregory, who busied himself more to escape the supreme pontificate of the Church than the ambitious do to achieve honors;

- to St Augustine, who at the zenith of glory, both, as holy bishop, and most profound doctor of the Catholic Church, left an immortal monument of his humility in his admirable books The Confessions and Retractions;

- to St Alexius, who disguised as a beggar within the walls of his paternal home, preferred the insults and outrages of his own servants to all the honors and dignities which he could very easily have obtained;

- to St Aloysius Gonzaga, a nobleman who gave up his title happily and chose a humble and austere life rather than the greatness of the world.

Turn to so many other saints, who shine with the brightest light in the splendor of the Church because of their humility.  Be convinced that these humble servants of God will intercede before him in heaven so that you may be among the imitators of their virtues.

58        Frequent Confession and Communion will provide you with the most effective help to persevere in the practice of humility.

In Confession, we reveal to a man like us the most secret and shameful miseries of our soul; it is the greatest act of humility that Jesus Christ demanded of his disciples.

In Holy Communion, we receive in our heart God-made-man, debased for our love; it is a marvelous school of humility and a most powerful means of acquiring it.  In it, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, meek and humble furnace of love and charity, will rest upon your heart.  Then, ask him for humility with all the fervor of your soul; he will grant it to you.

Go frequently to receive this love-worthy sacrament; as often as you go with the necessary dispositions, you will find the hidden manna, reserved only to those who seek it eagerly.

59        Against your interior opposition, remain firm against the difficulties you will experience in putting into practice what I have taught you.  Do not say, as the disciples did: “This is a hard teaching.  Who can accept it?” (Jn 6:61).  I assure you that the initial bitterness will soon turn into indescribable sweetness and heavenly consolations.

Perseverance in these exercises will free you from anxiety of spirit; it will instill in your heart so much peace and tranquillity that you will have a foretaste of that eternal pleasure prepared by God in heaven for his faithful servants.

If out of cowardice you stop using the means necessary to become humble, you will always feel oppressed, restless, unbearable to yourself and perhaps also to others, and what is worse, you will run the risk of being eternally lost.  At least, the door of perfection will be closed to you, since there is no door to enter it, other than humility.

Arm yourself with holy daring so that no one will dishearten you.  Look above and see Jesus Christ, laden with the Cross, teaching you the way of humility and patience; the way already trodden by many saints now reigning with him in heaven.  Hear how he is urging you to follow his road and that of the true imitators of his virtues.

See how the holy angels desire your salvation; notice how they implore you to take the narrow path, the only safe one, the only one leading to heaven, to those vacant seats of eternal glory emptied because of the pride of the rebellious angels.

Don’t you hear the blessed proclaim throughout paradise that the way of humiliations and suffering is the only way to be happy in heaven?  See how they rejoice and congratulate you for those first desires you conceived to imitate them; hear how they beg you not to lose heart.

Arm yourself with strength and courage to start this great work without delay.  Remember your baptismal oaths, and tremble at the thought of violating the sanctity of the promises you then made to God.

These are Christ’s words:  “The kingdom of God suffers violence, and the violent are taking it” (cf. Mt 11:12).  Blessed are you one thousand times if, convinced of this, you resolve to practice humility in order to deserve the eternal happiness of paradise.

60        Our divine Master recommended his disciples to say with those in the parable: “We are useless servants; we have only done our duty” (Lk 17:10). Likewise, when you will have observed these counsels uncompromisingly, acknowledge yourself as a useless servant.  Be convinced; you were able to keep them, not because of your merits, but because of the infinite mercy of God; thank him wholeheartedly for such a great benefit.

Ask him every day to keep this treasure in you until the last moment, when your soul, free from every tie which kept it attached to creatures, will be able to fly toward the bosom of its Creator to enjoy forever the glory prepared for the humble.

FOOTNOTES

1. Soliloquies, XV.

2. Book III, XXV.

8

Josemaría Escrivá

Christ Triumphs Through Humility

A homily given on December 24, 1963

The Blessed Monsignor Josemaria Escrivá de Balaguer was born in Spain on 9 January 1902.  He was ordained to the priesthood in 1925.

On 2 October 1928, he founded Opus Dei.  This institution has opened up a new way for the faithful to become saints in the midst of the world, through their ordinary work and the fulfillment of their personal, family and social duties.  Thus they become a leaven of fervent Christian life in all environments.

The Holy sacrifice of the Mass was the center and root of Msgr. Escrivá’s interior life.  He had a deep awareness of being a son of God, and maintained a continuous presence of God.  This led him to seek a complete identification with Jesus Christ in everything, to have a tender and deep devotion to the Blessed Virgin and to St Joseph, and a continual and confident friendship with the Holy Guardian Angels.  It also helped him to be a sower of peace and joy along all the paths of the earth.  He died in a saintly manner in Rome, on 26 June 1975.  The case for his canonization was introduced in 1981, and he was declared a blessed on May 15, 1992.

“This day shall light shine upon us; for the Lord is born to us,”#1 This is the great announcement which moves Christians today.  Through them it is addressed to all mankind.  God is here.  This truth should fill our lives, and every Christmas should be for us a new and special meeting with God, when we allow his light and grace to enter deep into our soul.

We stop in front of Mary, Joseph, and the Child, looking at the Son of God who has taken on our flesh.  I remember now a visit I made –for a very special reason– to the holy house of Loreto, Italy, on August 15, 1951.  I said Mass there.  I wanted to say it calmly and reverently, but I hadn’t counted on the crowd’s fervor.  I had forgotten that the faith of the people of the region and their love for the Madonna meant there would be a huge crowd for the feast of the Assumption.

Their piety was not always entirely correct in its expression, at least from the point of view of the Church’s liturgical regulations.  When I would kiss the altar in accordance with the rubrics, three or four local women would accompany me.  It was distracting, but certainly moving.  I also noticed that above the altar in that holy house, which tradition says was the home of Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, these words were written:  “Here the Word was made flesh.”  Here, on a bit of earth on which we live, in a house built by men, God dwelt.

Perfect God and Perfect Man

The Son of God became man, and he is perfectus Deus, perfectus homo: “perfect God, and perfect man.” #2  There is something in this mystery which should stir Christians.  I was and am moved.  I should like to go back to Loreto.  I go there now in thought and desire, to relive those years of Jesus’ childhood and consider once more those words:  “Here the Word was made flesh.”

Iesus Christus, Deus homo: Jesus Christ, God‑man.  This is one of “the mighty works of God,”#3  which we should reflect upon and thank him for.  He has come to bring “peace on earth to men of good will,”#4  to all men who want to unite their wills to the holy Will of God –not just the rich, not just the poor, but everyone:  all the brethren.  We are all brothers in Jesus, children of God, brothers of Christ.  His Mother is our mother.

There is only one race in the world:  the race of the children of God.  We should all speak the same language, taught us by our Father in heaven –the language Jesus spoke to his Father.  It is the language of heart and mind, which you are using now, in your prayer –the language of contemplation, used by men who are spiritual, because they realize they are children of God.  This language is expressed in a thousand motions of our will, in the clear insights of our minds, in the affections of our heart, in our commitment to lead a virtuous life, in goodness, happiness, and peace.

You must look at the Child in the manger.  He is our Love.  Look at him, realizing that the whole thing is a mystery.  We need to accept this mystery on faith and use our faith to explore it very deeply.  To do this, we must have the humble attitude of a Christian soul.  Let us not try to reduce the greatness of God to our own poor ideas and human explanations.  Let us try to understand that this mystery, for all its darkness, is a light to guide men’s lives.

As St John Chrysostom said:  “We see that Jesus has come from us, from our human substance, and has been born of a virgin mother; but we don’t know how this wonder came about.  Let us not waste our energies trying to understand it; rather, accept humbly what God has revealed to us.  Don’t try to probe what God has kept hidden.”#5  If we have this reverence, we will be able to understand and to love.  The mystery will be a splendid lesson for us, much more convincing than any human reasoning.

Why Jesus Came To Live with Us

Whenever I preach beside the crib, I try to see Christ our Lord as a child wrapped in swaddling clothes lying on straw in a manger.  Even though he is only a child, unable to speak, I see him as a master and a teacher.  I need to look at him in this way, because I must learn from him.  And to learn from him, you must try to know his life –reading the Gospel and meditating on the scenes of the New Testament– in order to understand the divine meaning of his life on earth.

In our own life we must reproduce Christ’s life.  We need to come to know him by reading and meditating on Scripture, and by praying, as we are doing now in front of the crib.  We must learn the lessons that Jesus teaches us, even when he is just a newly born child, from the very moment he opens his eyes on this blessed land of men.

The fact that Jesus grew up and lived just like us shows us that human existence and all the ordinary activity of men have a divine meaning.  No matter how much we may have reflected on all this, whenever we think about it, we should always marvel at the thirty years of obscurity which made up the greater part of Jesus’ life among men.  He lived in obscurity, but, for us, that period is full of light.  It illuminates our days and fills them with meaning, for we are ordinary Christians who lead an ordinary life, just like millions of other people all over the world.

That was the way Jesus lived for thirty years, as the “son of the carpenter.”#6  There followed three years of public life, spent among the crowds.  People were surprised:  “Who is this?” they asked. “Where has he learned these things?”  For he was just like them:  He had shared the life of ordinary people.  He was “the Carpenter, the Son of Mary.”#7  And  he was God; he was achieving the redemption of mankind and “drawing all things to himself.”#8

As with other events in his life, we should never contemplate Jesus’ hidden years without feeling moved.  We should realize that they are in themselves a call to shake off our selfishness and easy‑going ways.  Our Lord knows our limitations, our individualism, and our ambition.  He knows it is difficult for us to forget ourselves and give ourselves to others.  He knows very well what it feels like not to find love and to discover that those who say they follow him only do so in a halfhearted way.  Just think of those striking scenes, described to us by the evangelists, in which we see the apostles full of worldly ambitions and merely human plans.  Yet Jesus has chosen them; he keeps them close to him and entrusts them with the mission he has received from his Father.

He has called us too and asks us, as he asked James and John:  “Are you ready to drink the cup” –that cup which means giving yourself fully to the Will of the Father– “which I am going to drink?”  Possumus!:  “Yes!  We are ready!”#9  is the reply of John and James.  Are you and I really ready to carry out, in everything, the Will of our Father God?  Have we given our Lord our whole heart, or are we attached to ourselves and our interests and comfort and self‑love?  Is there anything in our lives out of keeping with our Christianity, something which makes us unwilling to mend our ways?  Today we are given a chance to set things straight.

But first of all, we must be convinced that Jesus is putting these questions to us personally.  He is the one who asks them, not I.  I wouldn’t dare even put them to myself.  I am praying aloud, and each of you, silently, is admitting to our Lord:  “Lord, how useless I am, what a coward I have been!  How many mistakes I’ve made, over and over again.”  And we can go further and say:  “It’s good, Lord, you have kept me up with your hand; for, left to myself, I am capable of the most disgraceful things.  Don’t let me go; keep on treating me as a little child.  I want to be strong, and brave, and manly.  But you must help me.  I am a clumsy creature.  Take me by the hand, Lord, and make sure your Mother is also by my side to guard me.  And so, possumus!  We can; we will be able to have you as our model.”

It is not presumptuous for us to say possumus.  Jesus Christ teaches us this divine way and wants us to follow it, for he has made it human and accessible to our weakness.  That is why he lowered himself so.  “Here is the reason why he brought himself so low, taking the nature of a slave; he, the Lord, who as God was equal to the Father; he lowered himself in majesty and power –but not in goodness or mercy.”#10

The goodness of God wants to make the way easy for us.  Let us not reject Jesus’ invitation; let’s not say “no” to him, turning a deaf ear to his voice.  There is no excuse, we can no longer think we aren’t able.  He has shown us by his example.  “Therefore, I ask you with all my heart, brothers, not to let this precious example go unheeded: rather, follow him and renew your soul in the spirit.”#11

He Went About Doing Good

Do you see how necessary it is to know Jesus and lovingly observe his life?  I have often gone to look for a definition or a biography of Jesus in Scripture.  And I have found it written by the Holy Spirit:  “He went about doing good.”#12  Every single day of Jesus Christ’s life on earth, from his birth until his death, can be summed up like that:  He filled them all doing good.  And in another place Scripture says, “He has done all things well,”#13  he finished everything well, he did nothing that wasn’t good.

What about you and me, then?  Let’s take a look to see if we have to put anything right.  I certainly can find plenty to improve.  I know that by myself I am incapable of doing good.  And, since Jesus has said that without him we can do nothing,#14 let us, you and me, go to our Lord and ask for his help, through his Mother, in one of those intimate conversations natural to souls who love God.  I will say no more, for it’s up to each of you to speak to him personally, about your own needs.  Do it interiorly, without the noise of words, now –while I for my part apply these counsels to my own sorry state.

What did Christ do to pour out so much good, and only good, wherever he went?  The Gospels give us the answer with another biography of Jesus:  “He was obedient to them.”#15  We must especially value obedience in the current environment of disobedience, rebellion and disunity.

Freedom is very close to my heart –that is precisely why I so love the Christian virtue of obedience.  We should all realize that we are children of God; we should want to fulfill the Will of our Father.  We should do things as God wants them done, because we feel like it, which is the most supernatural of reasons.

The spirit of Opus Dei, which I have tried to practice and to teach for more than thirty‑five years now, has made me understand and love personal freedom.  When God our Lord gives us his grace, when he calls us by a specific vocation, it is as if he were stretching out his hand to us, in a fatherly way.  A strong hand, full of love, because he seeks us out individually, as his own sons and daughters, knowing our weakness.  The Lord expects us to make the effort to take his hand, his helping hand.  He asks us to make an effort and show we are free.  To be able to do this, we must be humble and realize we are little children of God.  We must love the blessed obedience with which we respond to God’s marvelous fatherhood.

We should let our Lord get involved in our lives, admitting him confidently, removing from his way any obstacles or complications.  We tend to be on the defensive, to be attached to our selfishness.  We always want to be the top dog, even if it’s only to be on top of our wretchedness.  That is why we must go to Jesus, so that he will make us truly free.  Only then will we be able to serve God and all men.  This is the only way to realize the truth of St Paul’s words: “But now that you have been set free from sin, and have become slaves of God; the return you get is sanctification and its end, eternal life.  For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”#16

Let us be forewarned, then, for we will always tend to be selfish, and this temptation can occur in many ways.  God wants us to show our faith when we obey, for he doesn’t express his Will with drums and trumpets.  Sometimes he suggests his wishes in a whisper, deep in our conscience; and we must listen carefully to recognize his voice and be faithful.

He often speaks to us through other people.  But when we see their defects or doubt whether they are well informed –whether they have grasped all the aspects of the problem– we feel inclined to disobey.  All this may have a divine meaning, for God does not impose a blind obedience on us.  He wants us to obey intelligently, and we have to feel responsible for helping others with the intelligence we do have.  But let’s be sincere with ourselves; let’s examine, in every case, whether it is love for the truth which moves us or selfishness and attachment to our own judgment.  When our ideas separate us from other people, when they weaken our communion, our unity with our brothers, it is a sure sign that we are not doing what God wants.

Let’s not forget: We need humility if we are to obey.  Look again at the example Christ gives us: He obeys Joseph and Mary.  God has come to the world to obey, and to obey creatures.  Admittedly they are two very perfect creatures:  Holy Mary, our mother, greater than whom God alone; and that most chaste man, Joseph.  But they are only creatures, and yet Jesus, who is God, obeyed them.  We have to love God so as to love his Will and desire to respond to his calls.  They come to us through the ordinary duties in our lives:  duties of state, profession, work, family, social life, our own and other people’s difficulties, friendship, eagerness to do what is right and just.

Every time Christmas comes around, I love to look at representations of the Child Jesus.  Statues and pictures which show a God who lowered himself remind me that God is calling us.  The Almighty wants us to know that he is defenseless, that he needs men’s help.  From the cradle at Bethlehem, Christ tells you and me that he needs us.  He urges us to live a Christian life to the full –a life of self‑sacrifice, work, and joy.

We will never have genuine joy if we do not really try to imitate Jesus.  Like him we must be humble.  I repeat;  do you see where God’s greatness is hidden?  In a manger, in swaddling clothes, in a stable.  The redemptive power of our lives can only work through humility.  We must stop thinking about ourselves and feel the responsibility to help others.

It can sometimes happen that even well‑intentioned people create personal problems –really serious worries– which have no objective basis whatsoever.  These problems arise in persons whose lack of self‑knowledge leads to pride and a desire to be the center of attention, to be favored by everyone.  They want to appear always in a good light, to be personally secure.  They are not content simply to do good and disappear.  And so, many who could enjoy a wonderful peace of soul and great happiness become, through pride and presumption, unhappy and unfruitful.  Christ was humble of heart.#17  Throughout his life, he looked for no special consideration or privilege.  He began by spending nine months in his Mother’s womb, like the rest of men, following the natural course of events.  He knew that mankind needed him greatly.  He was longing to come into the world to save all souls, but he took his time.  He came in due course, just as every other child is born.  From conception to birth, no one –except our Lady, St Joseph and St Elizabeth– realized the marvelous truth that God was coming to live among men.

There is a great simplicity also about his birth.  Our Lord comes without any fanfare.  No one knows about him.  On earth, only Mary and Joseph share in the divine adventure.  And then the shepherds who received the message from the angels.  And later on, the wise men from the East.  They were the only witnesses of this transcendental event, which unites heaven and earth, God and man.

How can our hearts be so hard that we can get used to these scenes?  God humbled himself to allow us to get near him, so that we could give our love in exchange for his, so that our freedom might bow, not only at the sight of his power, but also before the wonder of his humility.

The greatness of this Child who is God!  His Father is the God who has made heaven and earth and there he is, in a manger, “because there was no room at the inn”#18 –there was nowhere else for the Lord of all creation.

He Did the Will of God His Father

I am not at all stretching the truth when I tell you that Jesus is still looking for a resting‑place in our hearts.  We have to ask him to forgive our personal blindness and ingratitude.  We must ask him to give us the grace never to close the door of our soul on him again.

Our Lord does not disguise the fact that his wholehearted obedience to God’s Will calls for renunciation and self‑sacrifice.  Love does not claim rights, it seeks to serve.  Jesus has led the way.  How did he obey?  “Unto death, death on the cross.”#19  You have to get out of yourself; you have to complicate your life, losing it for love of God and souls.  “So you wanted to live a quiet life.  But God wanted otherwise.  Two wills exist; your will should be corrected to become identified with God’s Will; you must not bend God’s Will to suit yours.”#20

It has made me very happy to see so many souls spend their lives –like you, Lord, “even unto death”– fulfilling what God was asking of them.  They have dedicated all their yearnings and their professional work to the service of the Church, for the good of all men.

Let us learn to obey, let us learn to serve.  There is no better leadership than wanting to give yourself freely, to be useful to others.  When we feel pride swell up within us, making us think we are supermen, the time has come to say “no”.  Our only triumph will be the triumph of humility.  In this way we will identify ourselves with Christ on the Cross –not unwillingly, or restlessly, or sullenly, but joyfully.  For the joy that comes from forgetting ourselves is the best proof of love.

Let me go back again to the openness and simplicity of Jesus’ life which I have brought to your attention so many times.  His hidden years are not without significance, nor were they simply a preparation for the years which were to come after –those of his public life.  Since 1928 I have understood clearly that God wants our Lord’s whole life to be an example for Christians.  I saw this with special reference to his hidden life, the years he spent working side by side with ordinary men.  Our Lord wants many people to ratify their vocation during years of quiet, unspectacular living.  Obeying God’s Will always means leaving our selfishness behind, but there is no reason why it should entail cutting ourselves off from the normal life of ordinary men who share the same status, work and social position as we.

I dream –and the dream has come true– of multitudes of God’s children, sanctifying themselves as ordinary citizens, sharing the ambitions and endeavors of their colleagues and friends.  I want to shout to them about this divine truth:  If you are there in the middle of ordinary life, it doesn’t mean Christ has forgotten about you, or hasn’t called you.  He has invited you to stay among the activities and concerns of the world.  He wants you to know that your human vocation, your profession, your talents, are not excluded from his divine plans.  He has sanctified them and made them a most acceptable offering to his Father.

To remind a Christian that his life is meaningless unless he obeys God’s Will does not mean separating him from other men.  On the contrary, the commandment God gives us is to love others as he has loved us,#21  which in most cases means living alongside the rest of men and being their equals, giving ourselves to the service of our Lord in the world so as to make everyone know better the love of God, telling them that the divine paths of the world have been opened up.

God has not just said that he loves us.  He has proved it with facts.  Let’s not forget that Jesus Christ became man in order to teach us to live as children of God.  Do you remember the introduction to the Acts of the Apostles, where St Luke says:  “I have spoken of all the most significant things Jesus did and taught”#22?  He came to teach us, but he taught us by doing things.  In teaching us, he was the model, being our teacher and setting us an example with his conduct.

Now, in front of the infant Jesus, we can continue our personal examination of conscience.

- Are we ready to try to make our life a model and an example to our brothers, the rest of men, our equals?

- Are we ready to be other Christs?

- It’s not enough to say that we are.  I am asking you now –as I ask myself: Can it be said also of you, you who have been called to be another Christ, that you have come to do and to teach, to do things as a son of God would?

- Are you attentive to the Father’s Will, so as to be able to encourage everyone else to share the good, noble, divine and human values of the Redemption?

- Are you living the life of Christ, in your everyday life in the middle of the world?

Doing God’s work is not just a pretty phrase.  It is an invitation to spend ourselves for Love’s sake.  We have to die to ourselves and be born again to a new life.  Jesus Christ obeyed in this way, even unto death on a Cross; that is why God exalted him.#23  If we obey God’s Will, the cross will mean our own resurrection and exaltation.  Christ’s life will be fulfilled step by step in our own lives.  It will be said of us that we have tried to be good children of God who went about doing good in spite of our weaknesses and personal shortcomings, no matter how many.

And when death comes as it undoubtedly will, we will greet it with joy, as I have seen so many people greet it in the ordinary circumstances of their life.  With joy; for if we have imitated Christ in doing good –in obeying and carrying the cross in spite of our personal deficiencies– we will rise like Christ; “for he has truly risen.”#24

Jesus, who became a child, overcame death.  Just think of it.  Through his annihilation, through his simplicity and obedience, by divinizing the everyday, common life of men, the Son of God conquered.

That is the triumph of Jesus Christ.  He has raised us to his level, the level of children of God, by coming down to our level, the level of the children of men.

Footnotes:

1. Is 9:2 (Introit of second Mass of Christmas Day):  Lux fulgebit hodie super nos, quia natus est Dominus.  2. Athanasian Creed.

3. Acts 2:11.

4. Lk 2:14.

5. In Matthaeum Homiliae, 4, 3 (PG 57, 43).

6. Mt 13:55: filiusfabri.

7. Mk 6:3:  faber, filius Mariae.

8. Jn 12:32.

9. Mt 20:22: Potestis bibere calicem quem ego bibiturus sum?  Possumus!

10. St Bernard, Sermo in Die Nativitatis, I, 1‑2 (PL 183, 115).

11. St Bernard, ibid., 1, 1.

12. Acts 10:38: Pertransiitbenefaciendo.

13. Mk 7:37: beneomnia fecit.

14. Cf. Jn 15:5.

15. Lk 2:51: eratsubditus illis.

16. Rom 6:22‑ 23.

17. Cf. Mt 11:29.

18. Lk 2:7: quia non erat eis locus in diversorio.

19. Phil 2:8: usque ad mortem, mortem autem crucis.

20. St Augustine, Enarrationes in Psalmos, Ps 31:2, 26 (PL 36, 274).

21. Cf. Jn 13:34‑35.

22. Acts 1:1: Primum quidem sermonem feci de omnibus, o Theophile, quae coepit Iesus facere et docere.

23. Phil 2:8‑9: Propter quod et Deus exaltavit illum.

24. Lk 24:34: Surrexit Dominus vere.

9

Josemaría Escrivá

Humility

A homily given on April 6, 1965

Let us consider for a moment the texts of today’s Mass, Tuesday in Passion Week, for they will help us to distinguish “true divinization” from “false divinization.”#1  We shall be speaking about humility, for this is the virtue which helps us to recognize, at one and the same time, both our wretchedness and our greatness.

Our wretchedness is all too evident.  I am not here referring to our natural limitations, to those great ambitions that people dream of but, in fact, never achieve, if only for lack of time.  I am thinking rather of the things we do badly, of our falls, of the mistakes that could have been avoided and were not.  We are continually experiencing our personal inadequacies.  Moreover, there are times when it seems as if all our failings come together, as if wanting to show themselves more clearly, to make us realize just how little we are worth.  When that happens, what are we to do?

Expecta Dominum,#2 “hope in the Lord.”  Live by hope, full of faith and love, the Church says to us, Viriliter age,#3  “be of good heart.”  What does it matter that we are made of clay, if all our hope is placed in God?  And if at a certain moment you should fall or suffer some setback (not that it has to happen), all you have to do is to apply the remedy, just as, in the normal course of events, you would do for the sake of your bodily health.  And then, off to a fresh start!

Haven’t you noticed the way families look after valuable ornaments or decorative pieces, a vase for example; how they take care lest it get broken?  Until one day the baby happens to be playing nearby and knocks it over.  The precious souvenir is dashed to pieces, and all the family are very upset.  But they immediately set about repairing it.  The pieces are gathered up and carefully glued together, and in the end it is restored to its former beauty.

However, when the broken object is a simple piece of crockery or just a piece of earthenware, it is usually enough to get some simple cramps, clips of iron or other metal, to bind the fragments together.  The pot or vessel thus repaired takes on an original charm of its own.

We can apply this lesson to our own interior life.  When we are faced with weaknesses and sins, with our mistakes –even though, by God’s grace, they be of little account– let us turn to God our Father in prayer and say to him, “Lord, here I am in my wretchedness and frailty, a broken vessel of clay.  Bind me together again, Lord, and then, helped by my sorrow and by your forgiveness, I shall be stronger and more attractive than before!”  What a consoling prayer, which we can say every time something fractures this miserable clay of which we are made.

Let us not be surprised to discover our frailty.  Let it not come as a shock to see how easily our good behavior breaks down, for little or no reason.  Have confidence in the Lord, whose help is always at hand.  “The Lord is my light and my salvation.  Whom shall I fear?”#4  No one.  If we approach our heavenly Father in this way, we will have no grounds for fearing anyone or anything.

Listening To God

If we turn to Sacred Scripture we will see that humility is absolutely necessary when we are making ready to listen to God.  “Where there is humility, there is wisdom,”#5 says the book of Proverbs.  Humility means looking at ourselves as we really are, honestly and without excuses.  And when we realize that we are worth hardly anything, we can then open ourselves to God’s greatness; it is there our greatness lies.

How well our Lady, Jesus’ Holy Mother, understood this!  She, the most exalted of all God’s creatures that have existed or ever will exist upon this earth!  Mary glorifies the power of our Lord, who “has put down the mighty from their thrones and has exalted the lowly.”#6  And she sings of how his divine providence has once again been fulfilled in her: “Because he has regarded the lowliness of his handmaid, behold henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.”#7

Mary becomes transformed in holiness in the depths of her most pure heart on seeing the humility of God:  “The Holy Spirit shall come upon you,and the power of the Most High shall overshadow you; and therefore the Holy One to be born of you shall be called the Son of God.”#8  The Blessed Virgin’s humility is a consequence of that unfathomable depth of grace which comes into operation with the Incarnation of the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity in the womb of his ever Immaculate Mother.

When St Paul considers this mystery he too breaks into a joyful hymn which we can savor today word by word: “Yours is to be the same mind which Christ Jesus showed.  Though being by nature God, he did not consider being equal to God a thing to be coveted,” for he was God by essence, “but emptied himself, and took the nature of a slave, fashioned in the likeness of men, presenting himself to us in human form; and then he humbled himself becoming obedient unto death, even to death on a Cross.”#9

In his preaching, our Lord Jesus Christ very often sets before our eyes the example of his own humility.  “Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart,”#10 so that you and I may know that there is no other way, and that only our sincere recognition of our nothingness is powerful enough to draw divine grace towards us.  St Augustine says: “It was for us that Jesus came to suffer hunger and to be our food, to suffer thirst and to be our drink, to be clothed with our mortality and to clothe us with immortality, to be poor so as to make us rich.”#11

“God resists the proud, but gives his grace to the humble,”#12 the apostle St Peter teaches.  In any age, in any human setting, there is no other way, to live a godly life, than that of humility.  Does this mean that God takes pleasure in our humiliation?  Not at all.  What would he, who created all things and governs them and maintains them in existence, gain from our prostration?  God only wants us to be humble and to empty ourselves, so that he can fill us.  He wants us not to put obstacles in his way so that, humanly speaking, there will be more room for his grace in our poor hearts.  For the God who inspires us to be humble is the same God who “will refashion the body of our lowliness, conforming it to the body of his glory, by exerting the power by which he is able also to subject all things to himself.”#13  Our Lord makes us his own, he makes us divine with a “true divinization.”

The Enemy Is Pride

What is it that impedes this humility, this “true divinization”?  It is pride.  Pride is the capital sin that leads to “false divinization.”  Pride encourages one, even perhaps in very trivial matters, to follow the subtle prompting which Satan made to our first parents: “Your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”#14  Elsewhere in the Scriptures we read that “the beginning of the pride of man is to draw away from God.”#15  Indeed this vice, once it has taken root, infects a man’s entire way of life, until it becomes what St John calls superbia vitae,#16 “the pride of life.”

Proud?  About what?  Sacred Scripture finds both tragic and comic expressions to stigmatize pride: “Why are you so proud, you who are but dust and ashes?  Even in life, you are vomiting your entrails.  A slight illness; the doctor smiles.  The king that reigns today will be dead tomorrow.”#17

When pride takes hold of a soul, it is no surprise to find it bringing along with it a whole string of other vices: greed, self‑indulgence, envy, injustice.  The proud man is always vainly striving to dethrone God, who is merciful to all his creatures, so as to make room for himself and his ever cruel ways.

We should beg God not to let us fall into this temptation.  Pride is the worst sin of all, and the most ridiculous.  If, with its multiple delusions, it manages to get a hold, the unfortunate victim begins to build up a facade, to fill himself with emptiness, and becomes conceited like the toad in the fable which,in order to show off, puffed itself up until it burst.  Pride is unpleasant, even from a human point of view.  The person who rates himself better than everyone and everything is constantly studying himself and looking down on other people, who in turn react by ridiculing his foolish vanity.

When we hear pride spoken of, perhaps we imagine it as despotic, domineering behavior.  We associate it with the clamor of the mob acclaiming the passing victor, who like a Roman emperor, bows his head lest his glorious brow graze the white marble of the high triumphal arches.

But let us be realistic.  This type of pride is found only in people with crazy imaginations.  We have to fight against other forms of pride that are more subtle, and more frequent: against the pride of preferring our own excellence to that of our neighbor; against vanity in our conversations, thoughts and gestures; against an almost sickly touchiness that takes offence at words and actions that are in no way meant to be insulting.

All this can be, and is, a common temptation.  A person can come to see himself as the sun and center of all those around him.  Everything must center around himself.  And to satisfy this unhealthy urge, the proud person will sometimes even fake pain, sadness or illness to attract attention so that others will make a fuss of him.

Most of the conflicts arising in the interior life of many people are products of their own imagination: “the things people have said, what they are thinking, whether I am appreciated...”  The poor soul suffers, through his pathetic foolishness, harboring suspicions that are unfounded.  In this miserable mood everything makes him bitter and he tries to upset others also.  All this because he doesn’t wish to be humble, because he hasn’t learned to forget himself in order to give himself generously in the service of others for the love of God.

A Donkey For His Throne

Let us turn once again to the Gospels, and look at ourselves in our model, in Jesus Christ.

James and John, through their mother, have asked Jesus for places at his right and at his left.  The other disciples are angry with them.  What is our Lord’s answer to all this?  “Whoever has a mind to be great among you, must be your servant; and whoever has a mind to be first among you, must be the slave of all; for the Son of Man has not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”#18

On another occasion they were going to Capernaum.  Jesus may have been walking ahead of them as he did on other days.  “And there, when they were in the house, he asked them, `What were you arguing about on the way?’ But they kept silence, for on the way they had,” once more, “been disputing among themselves which of them was the greatest.  Then he sat down, and called the twelve to him, and said, `If anyone has a mind to be the first, he must be the last of all, and the servant of all.’  And he took a little child, and set him in the midst of them; and taking him into his arms, he said to them, `Whoever welcomes such a child as this in my name, welcomes me; and whoever welcomes me, welcomes, not me but him who sent me.’“#19

Doesn’t this way Jesus have of doing things move us to love him?  He teaches them the doctrine and then, to enable them to understand it, he gives them a living example.  He calls a little child, one of the children running around the house, and he lovingly embraces him.  How eloquent our Lord’s silence is!  With it he has already said everything.  He loves those who become as little children.  He then adds that the reward for this simplicity, for this humility of spirit, is the joy of being able to embrace him and his Father who is in heaven.

When the time for his Passion draws near and Jesus wants to illustrate his kingship in a very vivid way, he makes a triumphant entry into Jerusalem, mounted on a donkey!  It had been written that the Messiah was to be a king of humility:  “Tell the daughter of Sion:  Behold your King comes to you, meek and seated on an ass, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.”#20

Now it is the Last Supper.  Christ has prepared everything to bid farewell to his disciples, while they, for the umpteenth time, have become embroiled in an argument about which one of the chosen group is to be considered the greatest.  Jesus then “rising from supper, laid his garments aside, took a towel and put it about him.  Then he poured water into a basin and began to wash the feet of his disciples, wiping them with the towel that girded him.”#21

Once again he preaches by example, by his deeds.  In the presence of the disciples, who are arguing out of pride and vanity, Jesus bows down and gladly carries out the task of a servant.  Afterwards, when he returns to the table, he explains to them:  “Do you understand what I have done to you?  You call me Master and Lord, and you are right, it is what I am.  Why then, if I have washed your feet, I who am the Master and the Lord, you in your turn ought to wash each other’s feet.”#22  This tactfulness of our Lord moves me deeply.  He does not say.  “If I do this, how much more ought you to?”  He puts himself at their level, and he lovingly chides these men for their lack of generosity.

As he did with the first twelve, so also with us, our Lord can and does whisper in our ear, time and again, exemplum dedi vobis,#23 I have given you an example of humility.  I have become a slave, so that you too may learn to serve all men with a meek and humble heart.

The Fruits of Humility

“The greater you are, the more in all things abase yourself, and you shall find favor with God.”#24  If we are humble, God will never abandon us.  He humbles the arrogance of the proud, but he saves the humble.  He frees the innocent man, who is rescued because his hands are clean.#25  The infinite mercy of our Lord is not slow in coming to the aid of those who humbly call upon him.  And then he acts as he truly is, as God Almighty.  Although there may be dangers, though the soul may feel harassed and find itself surrounded on all sides by the enemies of its salvation, it will not perish.  This is not merely something that was true in days gone by.  It continues to happen now.

As I read today’s Epistle, I pictured Daniel there surrounded by hungry lions and, without wishing to be pessimistic, for I cannot say that “old times were better,” since every age has its good and bad aspects, I was thinking that at the present time there are also many lions running loose, and that we have to live in this environment.  They are lions looking for someone to devour: tamquamleo rugiens, circuit quærens quem devoret.#26

What can we do to avoid these wild beasts?  Perhaps our lot won’t be the same as Daniel’s.  While I am not one for miraculous solutions, I love the wondrous greatness of God when he performs them, and I realize that it would have been easier for God to allay the prophet’s hunger, or to place food in front of him.  Yet God did not do it that way.  Rather he arranged for another prophet, Habakkuk, to be transported miraculously from Judaea to bring him food.  God did not mind working a great miracle here, because Daniel was in the lion’s den not through any fault of his own, but on account of the injustice of the devil’s hirelings, as a servant of God and a destroyer of idols.

We ourselves are also called to destroy many idols, not by doing anything spectacular but by living with the naturalness of an ordinary Christian, sowing peace and joy around us.  In this way we will topple the idols of misunderstanding, of injustice, of ignorance, and of those who claim to be self‑sufficient and arrogantly turn their backs on God.

Don’t be frightened; don’t fear any harm, even though the circumstances in which you work are terrible, worse even than those of Daniel in the pit with all those ferocious beasts.  God’s hand is as powerful as ever and, if necessary, he will work miracles.  Be faithful!  With a loving, responsible, and cheerful faithfulness to the teaching of Christ.  Be convinced that our times are no worse than those of other centuries, and that our Lord is always the same.

I knew an elderly priest who used to say with a smile: “As for me, I’m always calm and peaceful.”  That is how we should always be, immersed in the world, with hungry lions all around, yet never losing our peace, our calm.  Always loving believing, and hoping, and never forgetting that our Lord will work all the miracles we need, if and when we need them.

Let me remind you that if you are sincere, if you show yourselves as you really are, if you acquire that “true divinization” by being humble and not proud, then you and I will be safe in any environment.  We will always be able to talk of battles won and call ourselves the victors.  Ours will be the intimate victories of God’s love, which bring peace, understanding, and happiness to the soul.

Humility will spur us on to carry out great tasks, but only on condition that we never lose sight of our inadequacy, and helplessness.  St Ambrose says: “Admit without hesitation that you are a servant obliged to carry out a great number of tasks.  Do not swagger about because you are called a child of God.  Let us acknowledge the grace, but not forget our nature.  Do not become swollen‑headed if you have served well, because you have done what you were supposed to do.  The sun carries out its task and the moon obeys; the angels perform their duties.  The instrument chosen by God for the gentiles says: `I do not deserve the name of apostle, because I have persecuted the Church of God’ (1 Cor 15:9)....  May we also refrain from seeking praise for ourselves,”#27 for our own merits, which are always pitiful and small.

Humility and Joy

“Rescue me from what is deceitful and impious in man.”#28  Once again the text of the Mass brings us to “true divinization.”  It sets before our eyes the poor material of which we are made and all our evil inclinations.  And then it begs God: emittelucem tuam,#29 send forth your light and your truth, which have led me and brought me to your holy mountain.  I don’t mind telling you that I have been deeply moved while praying these words of the Gradual.

How then are we to behave in order to acquire this “true divinization”?  In the Gospel we read that Jesus “did not wish to go about in Judaea because the Jews were seeking to put him to death.”#30  He, who could have eliminated his enemies with a simple desire of his will, also used human means.  He, who was God and could change circumstances with a mere wish, has left us a marvelous lesson here: He did not go to Judaea.  “His brethren said to him, `Leave here and go to Judaea that your disciples also may see the works that you do.’“#31  They would have him do something spectacular.  Do you see?  Do you see that this is a lesson in “true divinization” and “false divinization”?

“True divinization.”  Today’s Offertory prayer proclaims: “All who know thy name, O Lord, hope in thee, for you forsake not those who seek thee.”#32  And we who are but mended vessels of clay rejoice, “for he has not forgotten the prayers of the poor in spirit,”#33 the prayers of the humble.

Put not the slightest trust in those who present the virtue of humility as something degrading, or as a virtue condemning us to a permanent state of dejection.  To know we are made of clay, like pieces of earthenware broken and held together again with metal cramps, is a continual source of joy.  It means acknowledging our littleness in the eyes of God; a little child, a son.  Can there be any joy to compare with that of the person who, knowing himself to be poor and weak, knows also that he is a son of God?  Why do we men become dejected?  It is because life on earth does not go the way we had hoped or because obstacles arise which prevent us from satisfying our personal ambitions.

Nothing like this happens when a person lives the supernatural reality of his divine filiation.  “If God is for us, who can be against us?”#34  As I never tire of repeating: let them be sad who are determined not to recognize that they are children of God!

Finally, we find in today’s liturgy two petitions which should spring like arrows from our lips and hearts: “O almighty God, may our ceaseless celebration of these divine mysteries help us to merit the gifts of heaven.”#35  And, “O Lord, grant that we may constantly serve you in accordance with your will.”#36  Service, my children, service; that is our role; to be “servants to all, so that in our days the faithful people may grow in merit and in number.”#37

Let us turn our eyes towards Mary.  No creature ever surrendered herself to the plans of God more humbly than she.  The humility of the ancilla Domini,#38 the handmaid of the Lord, is the reason we invoke her as causanostræ lætitiæ, cause of our joy.  After Eve had sinned through her foolish desire to be equal to God, she hid herself from the Lord and was ashamed; she was sad.  Mary, in confessing herself the handmaid of the Lord, becomes the Mother of the divine Word, and is filled with joy.  May the rejoicing that is hers, the joy of our good Mother, spread to all of us, so that with it we become more like Christ, her Son.

FOOTNOTES:

1.  The author writes endiosamientobueno and endiosamientomalo.  Endiosamiento is a rich concept.  In the good sense, it expresses the soul’s becoming clothed by, filled with, totally immersed in God, “divinized”, “deified.”  In the bad sense, it refers to pride, a false divinization, in defiance of God and in complicity with the tempter’s words, “You will be like God” (Gen 3:5). (Translator’s note).

2. Ps 26:14 (Introit of the Mass).

3. Ibid.

4. Ps 26:1 (Introit of the Mass).

5. Prov 11:2.

6. Luke 1:52.

7. Luke 1:48.

8. Luke 1:35.

9. Phil 2:5‑8.

10. Mt 11:29.

11. St Augustine, Enarrationes in Psalmos, 49, 19 (PL 36, 577).

12. 1 Pet 5:5.

13. Phil 3:21.

14. Gen 3:5.

15. Sirach 10:14.

16. 1 John 2:16.

17. Cf. Sirach 10:9, 11‑12.

18. Mark 10:43‑45.

19. Mark 9:32‑36.

20. Mt 21:5; Zach 9:9.

21. John 13:4‑5.

22. John 13:12‑14.

23. John 13:15.

24. Sirach 3:20.

25. Cf. Job 22:29‑30.

26. “He goes about like a roaring lion, to find his prey” (1 Pet 5:8).

27. St Ambrose, Expositio Evangelii Secundum Lucam, 8, 32 (PL 15, 1774).

28. Cf. Ps 42:1 (Gradual of the Mass).

29. Ps 42:3 (Gradual of the Mass).

30. John 7:1.

31. John 7:3.

32. Ps 9:11.

33. Ps 9:13.

34. Rom 8:31.

35. Postcommunion of the Mass.

36. Prayer Super Populum.

37. Ibid.

38. Luke 1:38.

Part III

Anthology of Texts On Humility

10

Humility: Its Nature and Necessity

Humility: The Foundation of the Interior Life and the Guardian of All Virtues

*              If you ask me what is most essential in the discipline of Christ, I shall answer: The first is humility, the second humility, and the third humility.  (St Augustine, Letter 118)

*              Prayer is the humility of the man who acknowledges his profound wretchedness and the greatness of God.  He addresses and adores God as one who expects everything from Him and nothing from himself.

Faith is the humility of the mind that renounces its own judgment and surrenders to the verdict and authority of the Church.

Obedience is the humility of the will that subjects itself to the will of another, for God’s sake.

Chastity is the humility of the flesh, which subjects itself to the spirit.

Exterior mortification is the humility of the senses.

Penance is the humility of all the passions, immolated to the Lord.

Humility is truth on the road to the ascetic struggle. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 259)

*              This is the foundation of humility:  To consider oneself a sinner and to believe oneself incapable of doing anything good before God.

This is the practice of humility: To love silence, not to compare oneself with anyone, not to contradict, to be submissive, to guard one’s eyes, to have death always in view, to abhor lies, to flee from vain and boastful talk, not to oppose authority, not to persist in one’s own opinion, to endure insults, to hate vice, to avoid idleness, and to be watchful.

My brother, observe these precepts; otherwise your soul will become a den of vicious affections.  Strive hard to fulfill each one of them; thus, the short span of your life will not become empty and barren.  (St John Damascene, Sacra Parallela, lib. III, ch. 84)

*              Man is related to nothingness, but only in his origin, not in his destiny.  Some men get back to nothingness through despair; they put nothingness as their end.  The Christian knows nothingness only through self-denial, which is humility; he puts nothingness at the beginning, for man was created from nothing.

The more the pagan “nothings” himself, the closer he gets to the hell of despair and suicide.  The more the Christian “nothings” himself, the closer he gets to God.

Mary went so deep down into nothingness that she became exalted. Respexithumilitatem ancillae suae.  And her exaltation was also her Assumption.  (Cf. F. Sheen, The World’s First Love)

*              Humility is the rejection of appearances and superficiality; it is the expression of the depth of a man’s soul; it is a condition for his greatness. (John Paul II, Angelus, March 4, 1979)

*              My little children, be humble, be lowly.  (St Philip Neri)

*              Do you want to be great?  Become little.  Do you plan to erect a building of colossal height?  Apply yourself first to set a solid foundation –the higher your building, the deeper the foundation should be.  The building will be going up; it will soar high; but first someone must dig the foundations, sink in the depths.  Before going up, buildings go down; they humble themselves.  The finials and pinnacles gracefully stand up only after the humiliation. (St Augustine, Sermon 142)

*              Don’t aspire to be like the gilded weather vane on top of a great building.  However much it may glitter, however high it may be, it adds nothing to the firmness of the structure.

Rather be like an old stone block hidden in the foundations, under the ground where no one can see you.  Because of you, the house will not fall. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 590)

*              Pay no attention to the matters in which you are better than others, but to those in which you are worse.  Keep before you the example of those that are better than you, and, through humility, you will ascend to greater things, with God’s help. (St Gregory the Great, Homily 7 on the Gospel)

*              Love humility; it is the foundation and sentinel of all virtues.  (St Bernard, Sermon 1, on Our Lord’s Nativity)

Fruits of Humility

Peace is a consequence of humility. The humble man is a realist; he knows that he makes mistakes, and he admits them readily. He attributes his supernatural effectiveness to God alone. His peace is a prelude to an eternal peace in heaven.

*              The path of humility takes you everywhere ... but above all to Heaven. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 282)

*              Whoever does not want to humble himself cannot be saved.  (St Bede, Commentary On the Gospel of St Luke, 1)

*              You can do so much good, and yet also so much harm!

You will do good if you are humble, and give yourself cheerfully, with a spirit of sacrifice; you will do good for yourself and for your fellow men, and for the Church, this good Mother of ours.

But how much harm you will do, if you are led by your pride. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 935)

*              This is the sure way: through humiliation, to the Cross; from the Cross –with Christ– to the immortal Glory of the Father. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 1020)

*              How much I savored the epistle of that day!  The Holy Spirit, through Saint Paul, teaches us the secret of immortality and of Glory.  All of us human beings yearn to live on.

We wish to make the happy moments of our lives last forever.  We wish to glorify our memory forever.  We wish immortality for our cherished ideals.  Thus, when we seem to be happy, when something consoles us in our distress, we all naturally say and desire: forever, forever.

Oh the wisdom of the devil!  How well he knew the human heart!  “You will be like gods,” he said to our first parents.  That was a cruel deception.  St Paul in his Epistle to the Philippians teaches us a divine secret to attain immortality and Glory: “Jesus ... humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on the Cross.  Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him a name which is above every other name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in Heaven and on earth and under the earth....” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 1021)

The Struggle against Pride

Pride makes us live falsely, out of touch with reality.  When we think we are able to do something on our own, the sad experience of failure fills our soul with uneasiness, unrest, and lack of peace.

Pride and sensuality, sources of most of our problems, have their common root in an excessive love for self; both may be overcome by prayer, mortification, thinking of others, and forgetting about ourselves.

*              It is important to remember that humility is truth; a man is humble to the same degree that he is truthful, to the same degree that he sees the truth.

Again it is necessary to insist on the subtle difference between understanding and seeing. For instance, we could understand perfectly the argument of a mathematical proposition, and still not be able to see it. Everyone understands that he is a creature, and however little he thinks, he also understands the consequences that follow. Nevertheless, those who can fathom the tremendous depths of this truth are very few. One can have eyes and not see, ears and not hear, intelligence and not be able to reason correctly; for there is also a close relationship between humility and sight, between pride and blindness.

The man who is humble sees. There are certain things that are revealed only to children and to those who are like children, things that are hidden from the wise men of this world.

Pride destroys in man the capacity to see ultimate realities, realities of the supernatural world that, because of their depth, require great penetration. Pride distorts reality because, seen through a veil, reality becomes deformed and blurred. Pride makes us lose all sense of proportion, because it completely disrupts our sense of measure and distance. The tree in the wood that is nearest to us may seem the biggest, but that does not mean that it is the biggest, something that a normal person realizes perfectly. If one acts according to what seems and not according to what is, one gets involved in all kinds of absurdities.

It is a very old problem. St Paul, during the clash between Christianity and the pagan world, saw very vividly the monstrosities produced by pride–that is, blindness–in these haughty sages of the ancient world. The words he uses describe this phenomenon, although written centuries ago, are still applicable today.

“For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them.  For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities –his eternal power and divine nature– have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.

“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.  Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles.

“Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.  The exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served created things rather than the Creator –who is blessed for ever. Amen.

“Because of this, God gave them over to shameful affections. Even their women have exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones.  In the same way the men abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another.  Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

“Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done.  They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed, and depravity.  They are full of envy, murder, strife, and malice.  They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant, and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents.  They are foolish, dissolute; without affection, without fidelity, without mercy” (Rom 1:18-31). (F. Suarez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              You don’t conquer yourself, you aren’t mortified, because you are proud.  You lead a life of penance?  Remember: Pride can exist with penance.

Furthermore, your sorrow, after your falls, after your failures in generosity, is it really sorrow, or is it the frustration of seeing yourself so small and weak?

How far are you from Jesus if you are not humble ... even if new roses blossom every day from your disciplines! (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 200)

*              The proud –poor creatures!– have to suffer a thousand silly little things which their self‑love makes out to be enormous but are unnoticed by others. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 714)

*              Christ (cf. Mt 22:39) and St Paul the Apostle (cf. Rom 13:10) tell us that “love is the fullness of the law,” but humility is the nurse of love, and pride is the mother of hatred.  Thus, humility is the root of every good, and pride of every evil.  (St John Chrysostom, Hom. X in Evang. sec. Matth.)

*              Pride was the root and fountain spring of man’s wickedness.  Against pride, God lays humility as a firm foundation; once humility is set underneath, all other virtues can be erected solidly.  But if humility is not at the base, whatever is built –no matter how good– will be destroyed. (St John Chrysostom, Hom. on St Matthew, 15)

*              Peace is like a stream and cannot flow upwards, over obstacles.  For we know that streams flow down the slopes of the mountains, along the beds of valleys, as it is written: “You shall send forth springs in the vales.”  Learn this lesson of charity, because “God resists the proud and gives his grace to the humble.”  For the waters of a stream never rise to a higher level than that of its source or origin.

Every proud creature is falsely lifted up above God.  God wants His Will to be done, and the proud man wants his own will to be done.  These two elements appear to be equal, but they are not.  God wishes His Will to be done; and this is always according to reason. The proud man wishes his will to be done with reason or without it.  See now how high the proud man makes himself comparing himself with God; the waters of grace cannot flow up such heights.       “Unless you be converted,” Christ says, “and become as this little child you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven” –here we can understand Christ Himself, the Child whom we must all take as our model.  He is the source of life, in whom resides, and from whom flows the fullness of all graces.  Thus, prepare the channels; cast down the obstacles of your proud and earthly thoughts; conform yourselves to the Son of Man, for the streams of grace cannot enter into the heart of the proud and carnal, worldly-minded man. (St Bernard, Sermon on Christmas Eve, n. 9)

*              A cartful of virtues pulled by pride leads to hell; a cartful of vices pulled by humility leads to heaven. (Attributed to St Bernard)

*              Bring me two chariots, with two horses each.  The horses of the first chariot should be Justice and Pride; those of the second, Sin and Humility.

Outrunning Justice’s chariot, Sin’s chariot will win; not by its own strength, but by that of its companion, Humility.  And the other chariot is beaten, not by the weakness of Justice, but by the weight and size of Pride. (St John Chrysostom, De Incomprehensibile, 5)

*              Pride dulls the edge of charity.  Ask our Lord each day for the virtue of humility, for you and for everyone.  Because as the years go by, pride increases if it is not corrected in time. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 596)

*              Pride sooner or later ends up humiliating a man in front of others, however much of “a man” he is, for he will have been acting like a vain and brainless puppet, moved by Satan’s strings. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 703)

*              Once lust is present, it would be strange if one were not also dominated by pride. (J. Urteaga, AhoraComienzo!)

Signs of Lack of Humility

*              Allow me to remind you that among other evident signs of a lack of humility are:

‑ Thinking that what you do or say is better than what others do or say;

‑ Always wanting to get your own way;

‑ Arguing when you are not right or –when you are– insisting stubbornly or with bad manners;

‑ Giving your opinion without being asked for it, when charity does not demand you to do so;

‑ Despising the point of view of others;

‑ Not being aware that all the gifts and qualities you have are on loan;

‑ Not acknowledging that you are unworthy of all honor or esteem; unworthy of the ground you are treading on; unworthy of the things you own;

‑ Mentioning yourself as an example in conversation;

‑ Speaking badly about yourself, so that they may form a good opinion of you, or contradict you;

‑ Making excuses when rebuked;

‑ Hiding some humiliating faults from your director, so that he may not lose the good opinion he has of you;

‑ Hearing praise with satisfaction, or being glad that others have spoken well of you;

‑ Being hurt that others are held in greater esteem than you;

‑ Refusing to carry out menial tasks;

‑ Seeking or wanting to be singled out;

‑ Letting drop words of self‑praise in conversation, or words that might show your honesty, your wit or skill, your professional prestige...;

‑ Being ashamed of not having certain possessions.... (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 263)

*              The greatest obstacles to the soul’s trying to follow Christ and to help others have their origin in a disordered love of self.  At times, this leads us to overestimate our strength.  At other times, it brings discouragement and pessimism as a result of our own weaknesses and errors.

Pride often reveals itself in an interior monologue, in which we exaggerate the importance of our own interests and get them out of proportion.  We end up praising ourselves.  In any conversation, pride leads us to talk about ourselves and our affairs, and to want people to have a good opinion of us at any price.

Some people stick to their own opinion, whether it be right or wrong.  They seize any chance to point out another’s mistakes, and make it hard to maintain a friendly atmosphere.  The most reprehensible way of emphasizing our own worth is by putting down someone else.  The proud do not like to hear praise for another person and are always ready to reveal the defects of anyone who stands out from the crowd.

A characteristic note of pride is an impatient dislike of being contradicted or corrected.  (E. Boylan, This Tremendous Lover)

*              Pride makes itself felt in every aspect of life.  In dealings with one’s neighbor, self-love makes us exaggerate our ego and our rights, be cold, indifferent, unjust in our judgments and words.

One delights in speaking about one’s actions, of one’s insights and experiences, of difficulties, of sufferings, even when there is no need to do so.

In practices of piety, one takes pleasure in looking at others, observing and judging them.  One is inclined to make comparisons with them, and to believe oneself better; to see only defects in them and deny their good qualities; to attribute to them intentions and aims that are not noble, and even to wish them ill.

Self-love... leads us to feel offended when we are humiliated, insulted, or passed over, or when we are not considered, esteemed, or paid tribute, as we had hoped for.  (B. Baur, In Silence with God)

How to Grow in Humility

We can grow in humility by using these means: prayer and mortification.  These should help us rid ourselves of the desire to seem important to others; to accept the most unpleasant jobs; to surmount the difficulties, sparing others from facing them; to take the last place, fruit of an interior attitude of self-denial; to serve others, thinking of their needs and how we can be of use to them; in sum, to pass unnoticed, making something great out of what seems small and useless.

*              When others give you praise and honor, unite yourself to the scorn, mockeries, and affronts that the Son of God suffered.  Be certain that a truly humble soul finds the way to be humble in honor as in contempt; he acts like a bee, which makes its honey not only from the dew fallen on the wormwood but also from that bathing the rose.  (St Vincent de Paul)

*              Sisters, if one is really humble, I do not think the devil will dare to tempt her to take even the slightest interest in matters of precedence and rights.

If a humble soul is tempted in this way by the devil, her humility will even grow in strength and with deeds.  For clearly she will look into her life; she will compare the services she has rendered with what she owes the Lord; she will consider the marvelous way in which the Lord abased himself to give us an example of humility; she will think over her sins and remember where she deserves to be, on account of them.

Considerations like these bring the soul such profit that, on the following day, Satan will not dare to come back again lest he should get his head crushed. (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 12, 6)

*              There are three ways to arrive at a sincere humility of heart:

A. TO ASK GOD FOR IT CONSTANTLY.

“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights” (James 1:17).  Perfect humility is a gift of God; he grants it to those who ask for it with fervent and constant prayer.  This should be one of our most frequent petitions.

B. TO IMITATE CHRIST, THE INCOMPARABLE MODEL OF HUMILITY.

The splendid examples of humility left by the Divine Master are very useful for us.  We should practice this virtue, against the resistance offered by our inordinate self-love.  Jesus himself invites us to look at him: “Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart” (Mt 11:29).

We may consider Jesus’ humility in the four periods of his life:

1. In his hidden life:

a) Before he was born: Jesus became man. While in Mary’s womb, he submitted himself to a whimsical decree of Caesar, to the consequences of poverty (“there was no place for them at the inn”), to the ingratitude of men (“his own did not receive him”).

b) At his birth: He was born poor and unknown, at night in a manger among shepherds and animals.

c) In Nazareth: He led an obscure life. He was a manual worker, a poor peasant, without a title or degree, without manifesting a glimpse of his divinity; he always obeyed his parents (“he was subject to them”).  “Pride, come and die of shame!” (Bossuet).

2. In his public life:

a) Jesus chose his disciples from among the more ignorant and rude; he chose fishermen and a publican.

b) He did not discriminate against anyone; he sought also the poor, the sinners, the afflicted, the children, and the forsaken.

c) He lived poorly but not miserably; he preached with simplicity.  He placed himself at the level of the listeners; he used humble comparisons easily understood by the people.  He did not want to draw attention unnecessarily.

d) He performed miracles only to prove his divine nature; he did so without fanfare, demanded silence, and escaped when they tried to make him a king.

e) He taught us to be humble in whatever situation; thus, the parable of the Pharisee and the publican, the simplicity of the dove, like children, “I do not seek my own glory,” “I have not come to be served but to serve.”

3. In his Passion:

a) Jesus lived simplicity amid success.  During his triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, all he had was a poor donkey, some olive branches, and cloaks spread along his path, with simple folk acclaiming him, and the Pharisees protesting.

b) He lived a spirit of service and loyalty toward his friends. Thus he washed the feet of the disciples, even those of Judas.  In Gethsemani, he calmly asked Judas, “My friend, on what errand have you come?”  Then he was tied up like a dangerous bandit, abandoned by the disciples.

c) He lived patience and endurance in adversity while they mocked him, scorned him, spat upon him, struck him, buffeted him with open hands, scourged him, crowned him with thorns, put a white garment on him like a mad man. Barabbas was preferred to Jesus.

d) He accepted God’s Will, and on the Cross suffered blasphemies and scorn: “If you are the Son of God, come down!”. He could have commanded the earth to open up and swallow them, but he remained silent and accepted the horrible human failure.

4. In the Eucharist:

a) Jesus is, at the will of the ministers, exposed, enclosed, visited, forsaken.

b) Hidden: “In cruce latebat sola deitas” (“Only his divine nature was hidden on the Cross”), here even his human nature is unseen.

c) Jesus remains subject to our lack of refinement, to outrages, to sacrilege, to appalling profanations.

C. TO IMITATE MARY, THE QUEEN OF THE HUMBLE.

After Jesus, Mary is the most marvelous example of humility.#1

FOOTNOTE:

1. Cf. A. Royo Marin, Teologia de la Perfeccion Cristiana, no. 468.

11

True and False Humility

Humility is false if, instead of relying on God, it results in an inferiority complex in view of the realization of our own defects; if, out of cowardice and egoism, it makes us shirk high goals in our interior life and in our work.

*              Avoid being bashful with God, as some people are, in the belief that they are humble.  Yes; it would not be humility on your part if the King were to grant you a favor and you refused to accept it; humility is taking the favor, and being pleased with it, yet realizing how far you are from deserving it.

A sham humility it would be if I had the Emperor of Heaven and earth in my house, coming to it to grant me a favor and to delight in my company, and I were so “humble” that I would not answer his questions, or remain with him, or accept what he gave me, but left him alone.  Fake humility, indeed, if he were to tell me to ask for what I wanted, and I were so “humble” that I preferred to remain poor and even let him go away, remaining uncommitted.

Have nothing to do with that kind of humility, daughters. (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 28, 3)

*              One must realize that humility is not a negative virtue. It does not deny, it affirms; truth is never a negation. There arises a subtle falsity when, under the appearances of humility, one denies what is evident and true.

It is not humility to believe that God does not give us gifts; St Teresa of Avila warns us: “Let us understand it perfectly, as it is, that God gives us gifts without our meriting them. Let us give thanks to God for this. Otherwise, we frighten the soul into thinking that it is not capable of receiving great gifts if, when God begins to give them, the soul begins to tremble in fear of becoming proud.”

It is evident that the essence of humility does not consist in despising oneself. No one could imagine for a moment that the Virgin Mary ever despised herself. Christ himself was humble and how could he have despised himself? Self-contempt is, at best, a consequence; it is an impulse of the heart stemming from acknowledgment of the truth that we are sinners, capable of any treachery, or any bitterness, of any baseness, of everything that is low and contemptible, if God does not sustain us by his grace.

Just as there is a deformation of humility that concerns the intelligence, rejecting the true, objective progress of the soul through the action of God, there is another deformation which concerns the will: conventionalism in conduct.

This defect stems from a divorce between thought and life. It is based on the belief that humility consists of acts, when, in reality, humility is reflected in acts, creating and shaping them.

This deformity always ends in a splitting of the personality, in hypocrisy, and consequently, in falsehood and pride. “Naturalness and simplicity are two wonderful human virtues which enable man to receive the message of Christ. And, on the contrary, everything which is entangled and complicated, which twists and turns around oneself, builds a wall which often prevents one from hearing the voice of our Lord.”#1

This false humility is the exact opposite of spontaneity; it is far from being an expression of truth. Those who always speak badly of themselves, keeping their eyes to the ground, those who are shy, those who are cowards, those who do not stand up for their rights (remember St. Paul’s declaration of Roman citizenship, Acts 22:25-29), those who cover themselves with insults and defamations–how often we are insulted when others tell us we are what we say we are–and manifest many other like traits of conduct, all those people are not humble and have nothing to do with humility; all their acts are mere theatrics.

Those under the influence of this false humility have a dissociation between their inner being and their external surface. The face they show to the world never expresses their real convictions; it is severed from their inner self, and owes its origin to purely artificial calculation. They pay attention only to appearances, to exterior behavior, but leave untouched the depths of their being, the source of all activity. This is hypocrisy, the basic sin of the Pharisees. (F. Suarez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              Let us flee from the false humility which is called comfort‑seeking. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 265)

*              Those periods of depression, because you see your defects or because others discover them, have no foundation....

Ask for true humility. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 262)

*              To be humble does not mean to feel anxiety or fear. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 264)

*              You understand the work that is being carried out..., you have nothing against it (!).  But you are very careful not to take part in it, and even more careful to ensure that others do not see or suspect you are lending a hand.

You told me that you were afraid that people might think you are better than you are!  Is it not rather that you are afraid God and men might ask you to be more consistent? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 40)

*              “Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart...”  The humility of Jesus!... What a lesson for you who are a poor earthenware vessel.  He –always merciful– has raised you up, and made the light of the sun of grace shine upon your baseness, which has now been freely exalted.  And you, how often you have covered your pride under a cloak of dignity or justice!... And how many chances to learn from the Master you have wasted by not knowing how to supernaturalize them! (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 261)

*              It is Peter who speaks: “Lord, do you wash my feet?”  Jesus answers: “You do not understand what I am doing now; you will understand it later.”  Peter insists: “You will never wash my feet.”  And Jesus explains: “If I do not wash your feet, you will have no part with me.”  Simon Peter surrenders: “Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head.”

Faced by the call to total self‑giving, complete and without any hesitation, we often oppose it with false modesty like Peter’s.... May we also be men with a heart like the Apostle’s!  Peter allows no one to love Jesus more than he does.  That love leads us to reply thus: “Here I am!  Wash me, head, hands, and feet!  Purify me completely, for I want to give myself to you without holding anything back.” (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 266)

*              I quote from a letter: “I am enchanted by evangelical humility.  But I rebel against the timid and thoughtless way some Christians shrink away.  They discredit the Church.  That atheist author must have had them in mind when he wrote that Christian morality is the morality of slaves.”  In fact we are servants: servants raised to the rank of children of God, who do not wish to behave as men enslaved by their passions. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 267)

*              It would be a very sad thing if anyone looking at the way Catholics in society behave, concluded that they were sheepish and easily imposed upon.

Never forget that our Master was, indeed is, perfectus Homo –perfect Man. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 421)

*              Cassian relates how a young monk came to Abbot Serapion.  He was making a great show of humility with the poverty of his worn-out habit and his self-contempt.  He would never stop speaking badly of himself; he always sat down on the ground.

As customary, Abbot Serapion received each of the monks and gave them paternal advice.  When the young monk came, the abbot encouraged him to stay in his cell, work, earn his bread, according to the rule of the monks, and stop idly going round the others’ cells.

The young monk resented the admonition so much that he externally showed his disgust.  The abbot replied, “My son, why did you feel insulted and change countenance?  Were you expecting us to tell you, `The holy man is the first accuser of himself (Prov 18:17); that is why he speaks badly of himself’?  Did you want us to praise you, and take you for a holy man?”

*              Fight courageously against that false humility –you should call it spirit of comfort– which stops you from behaving like a mature son of God.  You must grow!

Are you not ashamed seeing that your elder brothers have years of dedicated work, and you are not yet able –you do not want to be able– to lift a finger to help them? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 627)

*              That friend of ours with no false humility used to say:  “I haven’t needed to learn how to forgive, because the Lord has taught me how to love.” (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 804)

*              It seems incredible that a man like you –who say you know you’re nothing– should dare to place obstacles in the way of God’s grace.

Yet this is what you’re doing with your false humility, your “objectivity,” your pessimism. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 246)

*              That false humility is laziness.  Such a “humbleness” leads you to give up rights that really are duties. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 603)

*              Humility –if you look up that word in the Latin dictionary, you will get a surprise.  You will find that it means “lowness, meanness, insignificance, littleness of mind, baseness, abjectness,” and it had no other sense until you come on to the Christian authors.  And yet how instinctively we recognize the worth of it today, even those who wouldn’t call themselves in any sense Christians!

To be sure, there are all sort of inferior substitutes for humility which owe little or nothing to the influence of Bethlehem.  There is the mock modesty which prompts us to underrate our own achievements simply as a matter of good manners; we don’t want to make a bad impression of boastfulness on the people we meet.  There is the calculating, affected humility; you demean yourself before important people because you know which side your bread is buttered.

But real humility, how it shines when it catches the light!  The man who can take an affront and feel it is no more than he deserves; who takes it for granted that his successful rival was the better candidate; who can work to other men’s plans when they run contrary to his own advice, the advice which was not asked for, or went unregarded– how we admire such a man, even when we think that he carries his good qualities to a fault!

The reason for our admiration –the historical reason for our admiration– is because we have been told about a God who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven, and took upon himself the nature of a slave for our sakes. (R. Knox, The Effect of Christmas)

Some Qualities of True Humility

*              Pay great attention, daughters, to this point that I shall now make: Thinking yourselves wicked may sometimes be humility and virtue, but it may also be a great temptation.  I have had experience of this, so I know it is true.

Humility, however deep it may be, neither disquiets nor troubles nor disturbs the soul; it is accompanied by peace, joy, and tranquility.  On realizing how wicked we are, we may sense that we deserve hell, and may be distressed by this; we may rightly think that everyone should hate us; we may not even dare to ask for mercy.  Yet, if our humility is true, this distress is accompanied by an interior peace and joy of which we would not like to be deprived.  Far from disturbing or depressing the soul, true humility enlarges it and makes it fit to serve God better.

The other kind of distress only disturbs and upsets the mind and troubles the soul. So grievous is it. (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 39, 2)

*              These two virtues, humility and detachment from self, it is true, have the property of hiding themselves from the one who possesses them;  he never sees them nor can believe that he has any of them, even if he be told so.  But he has them, for he is forever trying to keep them, and perfecting them in himself more and more.  (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 10, 4)

*              I really believe that true humility consists –to a great extent– in being available for whatever the Lord desires to do with you, in being happy that he should do it, and in always considering yourselves unworthy to be called his servants. (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 17, 6)

*              The Lord sometimes gives one of those solid virtues that bring all the other virtues in its train; that is a very well-known fact.  But I advise you once more, even if you think you possess it, to suspect that you may be mistaken; for the person who is truly humble is always doubtful about his own virtues; very often they seem more genuine and of greater worth when he sees them in his neighbors. (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 38,9)

*              The humble heart enjoys undisturbed peace of mind, while the proud one is swept by gusts of envy and resentment. (Imitation of Christ, I, 7, 3)

*              Even if you have done great things, say: “We are useless servants.”  Our natural tendency is the opposite: to show off as in a display window.  We should be humble, sincerely humble.  Humility is the most useful Christian virtue for us. (John Paul I, Speech, 6-IX-1978)

*              When I pray, often I look at myself and say: “Lord, I don’t know why you listen to me, I don’t know why you are in me and inside me.”  And I place myself, not within me, but on top of me; I stamp my foot on myself many times: “You are nothing, are worth nothing, can do nothing, know nothing, have nothing....”  Yet, we are tabernacles of the Blessed Trinity, because the Holy Spirit is within our soul in grace; he makes our life not that of an animal, but that of a son of God. (Quote of St. J. Escrivá in A. Vazquez de Prada, El Fundador del Opus Dei)

*              Your firm defense of the spirit and norms of the apostolate in which you work should never falter through false humility.  That firmness is not pride:  It’s the cardinal virtue of fortitude. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 610)

FOOTNOTE:

1. St. J. Escrivá, Human Virtues, p. 18.

12

Basis of Humility

Humility has a double basis:  truth and justice.  Truth facilitates seeing ourselves as we really are; justice leads us to act according to that perception.

These two elements appear in the classical definition of St Teresa of Avila, “Humildades andar en verdad” –”Humility is to walk in truth.”

(a)  Humility is truth: the truth about ourselves, and our dependence on God.

(b)  Humility is to walk; to walk means to act as we should.  After acknowledging the truth about ourselves, we must be consistent, making our actions match the reality of our condition.

In the years before he founded Opus Dei, Blesed Josemaria Escrivá felt intimations from the Holy Spirit but didn’t know yet what were God’s plans.  “The Lord wants something; but what?” he asked himself.  And he began to repeat these two invocations with humility:

-  “Domine, ut videam!” –”Lord, that I may see!”  “The cry of Bartimeus, the blind man in the Gospel, became Msgr Escrivá’s leitmotif.  Hundred of times a day he would ask for light.”#1  “Lord, what do you want me to do?  And we may also say, “that I may find the truth about my life, my vocation, my mission.”

-  “Ut sit!” –”That it may be!”  “And Msgr Escrivá would add, again taking his inspiration from the Bible, `Here I am, because You have called me’ (1 Sam 3:5).”#2  Once we know our vocation, we, too, must accomplish it.

Our Lady is the humblest of all human beings.  When God asked for her cooperation in the work of Redemption, her answer, a paragon of humility, was:

-  “Ecce ancilla Domini” –”Behold the handmaid of the Lord.”  She was manifesting the truth about herself, and her relationship to God.

-  “Fiat mihi secundum verbum tuum” –”Be done unto me according to your word.”  Her humility came to full bloom in her desire to do the Will of God, to walk in truth.

HUMILITY AND TRUTH

Humility Is Truth

The following was the frequent prayer of St Augustine: “May I know Thee; may I know myself.”  By this prayer, he asked for humility, which is true knowledge of God and of oneself.

Humility means to be aware of our worth before God and before men; to know that we have nothing good in ourselves, but only misery and nothingness.  Humility means to empty ourselves and to allow God to work in us with his grace.

*              Humility is born of knowing God and knowing oneself. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 184)

*              It is very difficult to define humility, but perhaps if we examine the words of our Lady and their deep significance, we may–within the limits of our understanding–be able to deduce some fundamental elements. First of all there are two special traits, two great coordinates, as it were, that immediately strike us in the Magnificat:

(a) Acknowledgment of a truth, of a fact, namely, that God had done great things to her, and

(b) Thankfulness for the gift, for the grace, implied in the truth.

That is to say, there is first of all an attitude of mind, and then an act of the will derived from this attitude.

The will is moved by the intelligence; thus, we can see that, in regard to humility, the first and most important thing, the thing which we may call the essence of humility, is that it must be based on truth. That is precisely the definition given by St Teresa: “Once I was considering why our Lord attached so much importance to humility. Without seeking it, the answer suddenly enlightened my mind: Because God is the absolute Truth, and humility is to walk in truth. It is a fact that nothing good comes from us, only misery and nothingness; whoever does not understand this walks in lies. The one who understands this best walks in truth and pleases God who is All Truth.”#3

But there is an even higher authority than St Teresa. Christ defined himself as “the way, and the truth, and the life” (Jn 14:6). And he also said: “Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart” (Mt 11:29). Thus, the Lord is humble; there is a relationship–of essence–between truth and humility. This relationship can be put to the test. If the essential relationship between humility and truth–it has been demonstrated–does exist, then there must be a similar relationship between their respective opposites: pride and falsehood. If we say that humility is truth–which is correct–then it must be also correct to say–as it is–that pride is falsehood.

We know from theology that the devil is characterized by pride. It was pride that gave him his demoniac mark, that transformed him from an angel full of grace to an angel full of sin. There is a passage in St John which describes a discussion between our Lord and the Pharisees, one of the most heated and violent discussions our Lord ever had. In the course of it, Christ said: “You are of your father the devil.... He was a murderer from the beginning, and he stood not in the truth, because truth is not in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own; for he is a liar, and the father thereof” (Jn 14:6).

There is, then, a strange and mysterious relationship between lying and pride; both these sins –which are fundamentally the same thing–are related to injustice; in the same way that humility and truth are directly related with sense of justice. (F. Suarez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              Nothing but humility is of any use here; humility is not acquired by the intellect alone, but through a clear perception of the truth, which helps it to understand that we are nothing and that God is everything.  (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 32, 13)

*              Humility makes a man subject to the rule of reason in every field.  It prepares him to get free access to spiritual and divine blessings.  (St Thomas of Aquinas, Summa Theologica, 2-2, q. 161. a.5)

*              Humility has nothing to do with self-deprecation.  It is not thinking little of oneself, it is rather not thinking of self at all.  As long as we can feel humiliated, we are not perfectly humble.  For the feeling of humiliation arises from our conceiving ourselves to be in a state or situation inferior to what we consider suited to our dignity.  And there is nothing in us belonging to ourselves for which we can claim esteem or consideration.  “What have you that you have not received?” (1 Cor 4:7).

All good comes from God; all evil comes from the instability of the created will.  To realize this is to be in the truth;  to be consistent with such realization is to be rightly disposed.

To make claims to consideration and special treatment–not consonant with this disposition of ours–is to step outside the true order of things; it is to stand in error.  Of Satan, the personification of pride, our Lord uses these words:  “He stood not in the truth” (Jn 8:44).

There is a close affinity between truth and humility, as between pride and ignorance.  Progress in real intelligence is always progress in humility.  To be humble is to be in rectitude; the Old Testament calls the perfect fulfillment of God’s Will serving him in truth (cf. 1 Sam 12:24).#4

*              Imitate the example of John the Baptist.  The Jews thought he was Christ; he denied it; he did not take on the honor they mistakenly ascribed to him.

If he had said, “I am Christ,” they would have accepted; they went to him with this opinion in mind.

John didn’t say so.  He acknowledged what he was; he explained the difference between Christ and him; he humbled himself.

He saw where salvation was; he understood he was merely a torch; he feared being put out by the wind of pride.  (St Augustine, Sermon 293)

*              Be filled with wonder at God’s goodness, for Christ wants to live in you.  Be filled with wonder too when you are aware of all the weight of your poor flesh, of your wretched flesh, and all the vileness of the poor clay you are made of.

Yes, but then remember too that call from God, and say: Jesus Christ, who is God and Man, understands me and looks after me, for he is my Brother and my Friend. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 182)

*              As, sooner or later, you are surely bound to stumble upon the evidence of your own personal wretchedness, I wish to forewarn you about some of the temptations that the devil will suggest to you and which you should reject straight away: the thought that God has forgotten about you, that your call to the apostolate is in vain, and that the weight of sorrow and of the sins of the world is greater than your strength as an apostle.

None of this is true! (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 141)

*              Gold, silver, jewels:  dirt, piles of manure.  Delights, sensual pleasures, satisfactions of the appetites:  like a beast, like a mule, like a hog, like a cock, like a bull...

Honors, distinctions, titles:  things of air, puffs of pride, lies, nothingness. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 677)

*              You are dust, fallen and dirty.  Even though the breath of the Holy Spirit should lift you above all earthly things and make you shine like gold –your misery reflecting in those heights the sovereign rays of the Sun of Justice– don’t forget the lowliness of your state.

An instant of pride would cast you back to the ground; and having been light, you would again become dirt. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 599)

*              You ... proud?  About what? (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 600)

*              So that you’ll be humble –you who are so self‑satisfied and empty– it’s enough to consider these words of Isaiah:  “You’re a drop of water or dew that falls on the earth and is scarcely seen.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 613)

Humility and Self-knowledge

We are born in sin, inclined to sin, and ever ready to fall into sin.  At times, we need not be tempted by the devil to sin; our own concupiscence is the trigger.  If God were to withdraw from us his helping hand, we would fall headlong.

In our spiritual combat, there will be no lack of failures; we must not be afraid of them, but react immediately with an act of contrition, and keep on.

He who thinks he is humble is no longer so.  To recognize that we are proud is the beginning of humility.

*              Self‑knowledge leads us by the hand, as it were, to humility. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 609)

*              It is a great thing to know oneself to be nothing before God, because that is how things are. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 260)

*              Lord, I ask for a gift from you: Love, a Love that will cleanse me.  And another gift as well: self‑knowledge so that I may be filled with humility. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 185)

*              Don’t forget that you are just a trash can.  So, if by any chance the divine gardener should lay his hands on you, and scrub and clean you, and fill you with magnificent flowers, neither the scent nor the colors that beautify your ugliness should make you proud.

Humble yourself; don’t you know that you are a trash can? (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 592)

*              Putting yourself in the presence of God, and with your forehead flat against the ground, consider how (for that’s the way it is) you are more filthy and despicable than the sweepings swept up by a broom.

And in spite of this, the Lord has chosen you. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 363)

*              What are you so proud of?  Every impulse that moves you comes from Him.  Act accordingly. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 33)

*              In one of his travels, St Francis of Borgia met a gentleman who, seeing the saint’s poverty and the lack of comfort, pitied him.  St Francis answered him cheerfully, “Do not worry or think that I am so badly off as I look.  I’ll tell you, I always send before me a courier to have my lodging ready.”  The gentleman asked, “Who is this courier?”  He replied, “It is my knowledge of myself and the consideration of what I deserve, which is hell for my sins.  Thus, when I enter any lodging, however uncomfortable it may be, I always think that it is more comfortable than what I deserve.”

*              Whoever believes that he is capable of doing something alone and unaided is simply a monster blinded by pride, unjust with God; he is blind. He does not see that in order to live from minute to minute, in order to breathe, to move, to think, he needs action on the part of God. He does not see that he would return to nothingness if God did not maintain him in existence every second. Boylan explains that we are like the sound of a man’s voice; if he stops speaking the sound ceases to exist.

The proud man also fails to see the wounds left by original sin in his soul: His understanding is subject to error; his will is at the mercy of every impulse. He does not see his own essential instability, his impotence, his freedom enslaved by sin. He relies on himself, on his own intelligence, on his own ability, his own strength, his own power, his own talents, as if he had given these things to himself, as if he were not indebted to anyone for them.

The proud man, in this also, is essentially unjust. Such a man thanks no one, withholding what belongs to another, refusing to give God what is His: “Or what hast thou that thou has not received? And, if thou hast received, why dost thou glory, as if thou hadst not received it?”

Since pride blinds one, the proud man is unable to see his own weakness; he has a completely false idea of himself and he believes he is self-sufficient. Since he thinks thus, he feels he does not need God, and he does not ask Him for help. He is like a man who starves himself.

The proud man’s weakness increases and finally he falls into the deepest abysses, trying to justify himself, but never recognizing his own misery. He deceives himself treating as truth what in fact are lies, treating as merit what is really shame, treating as virtue what is downright vice, denying sin and ignoring grace.

Thus, the proud man makes himself the measure of all things; he tries to make himself a superman, but ends up lower than any man, almost reduced to the irrationality of an animal. Humanly he does not know himself because he ignores, on principle, what he is in essence: the image and likeness of God.

It has been repeated endlessly–and Blessed J. Escrivá in The Way, no. 609, reminds us of it –that “self-knowledge leads us by the hand as it were, to humility,” But we must not think that this exercise of self-knowledge is limited to philosophical reflection on our own ego. St Teresa of Avila, a woman with little formal learning, but with deep wisdom derived precisely from her humility, settles this point: “....in my opinion, we can never completely know ourselves without knowing God; looking at his grandeur, let us consider our own lowliness.”

Lowliness is a relative concept; one’s height is determined in relation to something, or someone, that serves as a comparison. In the Magnificat there is a constant reference from God to creatures and from creatures to God, a chain of contrasts, a continuous coming and going from greatness to lowliness and from lowliness to greatness. Gradually the attention is focused little by little on the greatness of God, more and more intensely and more permanently, until eventually one reaches the most perfect expression of humility: forgetting oneself and depending completely on God. This is a dependence that makes us want to disappear so that God may appear, to renounce all glory in order that only God may be glorified. (F. Suarez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              How humble Jesus is.  What a shame, in contrast, that I, who am nothing but dust from a dung‑heap, should so often have disguised my pride under the cloak of dignity, or justice.  And as a result, how many opportunities to follow the Master I have missed or wasted, by failing to supernaturalize them. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 56)

*              You must never treat anyone unmercifully.  If you think someone is not worthy of your mercy, you should realize that you don’t deserve mercy either.

You do not deserve to have been created, or to be Christian, or to be a son of God, or to have the family you have.... (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 145)

*              When that priest, our good friend, signed calling himself “the sinner,” he did so, convinced that it was true.

My God, purify me too! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 171)

*              A priest is no more a man or a Christian more than any ordinary person.  Hence it is very important for a priest to be deeply humble.  He must understand that these words of St Paul also apply to him, in a special way: “What have you that you did not receive?” (1 Cor 4:7).  What he has received ... is God!  He has received the power to celebrate the Holy Eucharist, the Holy Mass –the principal purpose of the priestly ordination– to forgive sins, to administer the other sacraments, and to preach with authority the word of God, directing the rest of the faithful in matters referring to the kingdom of heaven.  (J. Escrivá, A Priest for Ever)

*              “Father,” you told me, “I have committed many errors; I have made so many mistakes.”

“I know,” I replied. “God our Lord also knows all that; he has taken it into account.  He only asks you to be humble enough to admit it; he asks that you struggle to make amends, so as to serve him better each day with more interior life, with continual prayer, with piety, and making use of the proper means to sanctify your work.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 379)

*              You want to be strong?  Then first realize that you are very weak.  After that, trust in Christ, your Father, your Brother, your Teacher.  He makes us strong, entrusting to us the means with which to conquer –the sacraments.  Live them! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 643)

*              You were very hurt at being slighted.  That means you are forgetting too easily who you are. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 794)

*              You were one of those “all or nothing” types.  And as you could do nothing... What a disgrace!

Begin to fight with humility, to make real that personal surrender of yours, which is so stingy, until it becomes “all” active. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 20)

*              It is too easy to say:  “I’m useless; nothing turns out right for me –for us.”  Apart from not being true, that pessimism masks a great deal of laziness.  There are things you do well, and things you do badly.  Fill yourself with joy and with hope on account of the former; and face up to the latter –without losing heart– in order to put things right; and they will work out. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 68)

*              Where the devil can do great harm without our realizing it is in making us believe that we possess virtues that we do not; that is pestilential. (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 38, 5)

*              Humility is like a torch that allows us to see our defects under a clear light.  Thus, it is not merely words or actions; it is self-knowledge, whereby we discover a pile of defects in ourselves, until then hidden by our pride.  (St John Vianney, Sermon on Pride)

*              The day you see yourself as you are, you will think it natural to be despised by others. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 593)

*              Everything down here is a handful of dust.  Consider the millions of “important” people who have “recently” died and nobody remembers at all. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 886)

*              Realize that you are ashes and dust; that you will return to dust soon, thus, you will never swell in pride.  After having reflected on the eternity of God, consider this speck of time which is human life, thus have always death before your eyes, and you will be humble and docile.

Our corruptible body makes our soul heavy; our spirit, attracted by many things of the earth, is overwhelmed by this earthly vessel.  Let us say, therefore, with all humility:  “Lord, my heart is not proud, my eyes are not haughty;  I am not busy with great matters, I am not concerned with things beyond my scope” (Ps 131:1).

Humility should be not so much in our speech as in our mind.  We should be interiorly convinced that we are nothing, that we are worth nothing.  (St Jerome, In exposit. Epist. ad Ephes., ch.IV)

HUMILITY AND JUSTICE

Prayer is not enough, nor is thanksgiving, nor the acknowledgment of the gifts we have received from God.  These gifts must be used; they must yield fruits. Then we may kneel down and say: “We are unprofitable servants; we have done no more than our duty” (Lk 17:10).

We, Christians, like the Lord, have been sent.  We, too, have a divine mission –His mission– which is the whole reason for our life.  Our mission is to sanctify our own work, to sanctify ourselves in doing it, and to sanctify others through it. We must refer all things to God.

The truth of our existence and its justice lies in seeking the glory of God in everything; all creatures were created for this purpose. In using our gifts, justice demands that we render to God, and to him alone, all the honor and all the glory, “To the eternal King, immortal, invisible and only God, be honor and glory....” (1 Tim 1:17).

For sure, there is some goodness in us; humility leads us to see and admire our talents, and give thanks to God for these, just as when we admire an excellent painting, we give credit to the artist, not to the canvass.

*              “Deoomnis gloria” –” All glory to God.”  It is an emphatic confession of our nothingness.  He, Jesus, is everything.  We, without him, are worth nothing:  Nothing.

Our vainglory would be just that: vain glory;  it would be a sacrilegious theft. The “I” should not appear anywhere. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 780)

*              In the Magnificat, the Virgin made a clear distinction between Creator and creature, God and herself. All generations will call her blessed “because he that is mighty hath done great things to me” (Lk 1:49). She did not find in herself anything that deserved praise, or merited being remembered until the end of time; and she could not find in herself the reason why God performed such great things in her. The only reason she could find for God having so favored her is “because he hath regarded the humility of his handmaid.”

Mary acknowledged that she was nothing more than a handmaid of the Lord, the ancilla Domini, whose only distinction in the eyes of the Creator is her humility, her lowliness, her insignificance, her nothingness, her helplessness, her weakness, the fact that she was a creature dependent on God with nothing that God had not given her.

The Magnificat is also an acknowledgment of grace; she had not done anything; it is God who had done great things to her, because He had regarded her lowliness.

It is difficult to express adequately in common language the profundity of this distinction made by the Virgin between Creator and creature. In the Virgin’s words, there is a kind of surprise, an amazement before the mystery of God’s free choice, a clear consciousness, a terrifying consciousness of the absolute and immeasurable disproportion between the miracles that God had worked in her and what she herself was; she expresses an overwhelming sensation of her own insignificance before the power and goodness of the Father.

An irrepressible torrent of thankfulness sprang from the depths of our Lady’s soul and overflowed into spontaneous expression, interlacing her song with verses from Scripture, that in the past served her people to praise and give thanks to God. She stressed the suggestion that she owed everything to God, that everything was given freely to her as a gift, a gift freely given for no other reason than that God so wished. (F. Suarez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              Among the virtues especially demanded of the priests must be a disposition of mind by which they are always prepared to seek not their own will but the will of Him who has sent them (cf. Jn 4:34; 5:30; and 6:38).  They have been set apart by the Holy Spirit to fulfil a task; this divine task transcends all human strength and human wisdom.  “God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong” (1 Cor 1:27).

The true minister of Christ is conscious of his own weakness; thus, he labors in humility.  He seeks what is pleasing to God; bound as it were in the Spirit, he is guided in all things by the will of God, who wishes all men to be saved.  The true minister discovers and carries out the will of God in the course of his daily routine by humbly placing himself at the service of all those who are entrusted to his care by God; he seeks the will of God in the task committed to him and the variety of events that make up his life. (Second Vatican Council, Decree PresbyterorumOrdinis, 15)

*              If you were to obey the impulse of your heart and the dictates of reason, you would always lie flat on the ground, prostrate, a vile worm, ugly and miserable in the sight of that God who puts up with so much from you! (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 597)

*              Get accustomed to referring everything to God. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 675)

*              Msgr Escrivá, the Founder of Opus Dei, used to recollect himself in prayer; with humility, he often considered what he had mentioned on other occasions: “I am a dirty rag, garbage; and God our Lord has chosen me; he wants to show that Opus Dei is his.” (A. Vazquez de Prada, El Fundador del Opus Dei)

*              You must be careful; don’t let your professional success or failure – which will certainly come– make you forget, even for a moment, what the true aim of work is: the glory of God! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 704)

*              We do not live for the world, or for our own honor, but for the honor of God, for the glory of God, for the service of God.  This should be our motive! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 851)

*              Rectitude of intention consists in seeking only and in all things the glory of God. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 921)

*              “If only they could see the good things I do.”  But don’t you realize that you are carrying them around like trinkets in a basket for people to see how good you are?

Furthermore, you must not forget the second part of Jesus’ command: “that they may glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 718)

*              When one works wholly and exclusively for the glory of God, one does everything with naturalness and simplicity, like someone who is in a hurry and will not be delayed by “making a great show of things.”  Thus, one does not interrupt the unique and incomparable conversation with the Lord. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 555)

*              It is indiscreet, childish, and silly to say nice things about others and praise their good qualities in front of them.

Vanity is encouraged, with the risk of stealing glory from God, to whom everything is due. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 721)

*              We will dedicate all the exertions of our life, great and small, to the honor of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.

I am moved deeply when I recall the work of those brilliant professionals –two engineers and two architects– cheerfully moving furniture into a student residence.  When they had put a blackboard into a classroom, the first thing those four artists wrote was: Deoomnis gloria! –all the glory of God.

Jesus, I know that this pleased you greatly. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 611)

*              Regnare Christum volumus!: We want Christ to reign. Deoomnis gloria!: All the glory to God.

This ideal of warring–and winning–with Christ’s weapons will only become a reality through prayer and sacrifice, through faith and Love.

Well, then... pray, believe, suffer, Love! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 639)

*              From clay I come, and the earth is the inheritance of all my lineage.

Who but God deserves praise? (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 1053)

*              All the things of this world are no more than dirt.  Place them in a heap under your feet and you’ll be so much nearer to heaven. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 676)

*              All the time it is you, you, you.  And you will never be effective until it is Him, Him, Him, so that you act in nomine Domini –in the name and with the strength of God. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 699)

Footnotes:

1. D. Helming, Footprints in the Snow.

2. François Gondrand, At God’s Pace.

3. St Teresa, InteriorCastle, 6, 10.

4. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2,2.

13

Degrees of Humility

Like any other virtue, humility grows with God’s grace and our effort. St Benedict speaks of twelve degrees of humility.#1 “The way is rough,” he says, “but it leads us to the heights of Divine Love.”

The following list shows the practice of humility, from its most basic form to its most perfect degree: the personal surrender to God’s Will in everything that happens to us. Obedience to God’s Will in all things is an expression of our dependence on God.

HUMILITY IN EXTERNAL ACTIONS

In bodily gestures:

1. Modesty of behavior. Humility is manifested in one’s actions, such as in guarding one’s eyes. The proud person, wanting to know everything about everybody, falls prey to undue curiosity.

2. Moderation in expressing joy; not to frivolously engage in wild, boisterous laughter. The revelry of the proud is a shrill kind of humor that thrives on the defects of others–it lays itself and its practitioner open to ridicule.

In speech

3. Reserve in conversation; to speak few but sensible words; not to be loud of voice. The proud person is shallow in his conversation because of lack of depth in prayer, in thoughts, and in deeds.

4. Silence; to maintain silence until one is asked to speak; and then, to avoid boasting. There is a lot of vanity in one’s eagerness to talk.

In deeds

5. To curb one’s desire to stand out; to be accommodating and to compromise in things open to personal opinion; to adapt oneself to legitimate customs while living with others; not to be an exception. One should not seek to be in the foreground, or to be conspicuous.

HUMILITY IN THE AWARENESS OF ONE’S WEAKNESSES AND SHORTCOMINGS

6. To recognize oneself as one among the wretched and miserable on account of one’s hidden faults; this is the opposite of arrogance. The humble person does not unduly impose his will on his subordinates.

7. To recognize oneself to be –in a sense– as one among the most worthless and useless for all purposes; one’s sufficiency comes from God. A humble person accepts menial tasks and a lower status; he accepts deprivation when it comes.

8. Sincerity. To admit and confess one’s sins. The humble person does not hide his defects at Confession or in spiritual direction. In his dealings with friends and colleagues, he readily admits his mistakes.

HUMILITY IN ONE’S DESIRE FOR ACHIEVEMENTS

9. To live the virtues of patience and obedience by being ready to undertake hard and unattractive tasks. A humble person is a team worker.

10. To willingly accept instructions from a superior, and to obey out of love of God. Faith helps in seeing God acting through one’s superior.

11. Not to indulge oneself in fulfilling one’s own likings and inclinations.

THE CORE OF HUMILITY

12. To have a filial fear of the Lord and to be always mindful of his commandments; it leads one to accept and love God’s Will in everything and, thus, to perfect adoration of God.

FOOTNOTE:

1. Regula; cf. St Thomas of Aquinas, S. Th., II-II, q. 161.

14

Our Lord’s Example of Humility

At His Incarnation

*              At his Incarnation, our Lord, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity, assumed a human nature –body and soul. Jesus received into his soul all that can be known by any created nature. He saw clearly with his human intelligence that his own human nature was something created.

Jesus’ human will, being perfect and unimpeded in its operations by any play of the passions, found no difficulty in conducting itself in a manner befitting its state: that of a created will that owes all to God. The Will of his Father was the rule of conduct to which Jesus unswervingly conformed.

Our Lord’s relations with his heavenly Father were characterized by the most profound humility, stamped with the profoundest reverence.

Reverence toward one’s Creator is essential in man’s dealings with God; such reverence was the great passion of our Lord’s life: “Zelusdomus tuae comedit me”–”For the zeal of thy house hath eaten me up” (Jn 2:17). While sin and ignorance found him ever compassionate and merciful, irreverence toward God roused him to stern and terrible anger, for he saw in it the subversion of the order of truth and of justice.

As reverence begets humility, so does irreverence nurture pride. “Humility is the just and truthful expression in our thought, sense, and conduct of our nature, our position and our dependence as the subjects of God; it is the order arising out of that subjection and dependence.”#1

This reverence toward God demands submission not only to God’s Will but also to God’s Providence. In his submission to the Providence of God, Jesus is the standard and exemplar of humility. He has given the highest possible expression of this virtue by accepting, without complaint, all the consequences that followed from his taking his place among fallen creatures.

Inspired by a love for us that reached beyond the limits of sacrifice, Jesus made, for the sake of our salvation, a deliberate choice in his entry into this world. What was that choice? He chose to be like a creature –though perfectly just and holy– among fallen creatures in a fallen world, to be a man among sinful men, and to submit to all the consequences flowing from such a condition. He could not renounce his personal holiness, he could not commit sin, but he accepted all the living conditions of a sinful man (cf. Phil 2:5-8).

Nevertheless, our Lord’s humility did not consist in this particular choice of his –that was dictated by infinite love, not by humility. Neither did his humility consist in the poverty, obscurity, and pain of his life on earth –a person may be in the most humble circumstances without being in the least bit humble. It consisted entirely in the inner disposition of his will toward all these things.

Having chosen the condition of a sinful creature, Jesus accepted whatever might befall him as a consequence of that choice; he did not rebel against God’s plan of salvation. This was his humility: not clinging to what was his by nature but to what was his by choice. By nature, in virtue both of his divine nature and his sinless earthly origin, he was not subject to mortality. By choice, he made his own the lot of fallen humanity.#2

*              Brothers, we should be humble in mind, putting aside all arrogance, pride, and foolish anger. Let us fulfill what is written.... For Christ belongs to the humble and not to those who exalt themselves above His flock. The Lord Jesus Christ, having the scepter of God’s greatness, did not come into the world with pomp and arrogance, although he could have come thus. He came in a spirit of humility, as the Holy Spirit said of him: “I am a worm, not a man; the scorn of men, despised by people.” Dearly beloved, look at the example he gives us. If the Lord humbled himself to his extent, what should we do, who–through him–have placed ourselves under the influence of his grace? (St Clement of Rome, Epist. to the Cor., 13 and 16)

*              Jesus lived for nine months in the virginal womb of Mary, concealing his divine attributes: “He emptied himself” (Phil 2:7).

Together with Mary and Joseph, Jesus practiced self-effacement by submitting to Caesar’s edict; by enduring the rude refusals they had to face, without a complaint: “There was no room for them in the inn” (Lk 2:7).

But above all, Jesus suffered humiliation by being the object of the ingratitude of men, who did not make a place for him in their hearts: “He came unto his own, and his own received him not” (John 1:11). (A. Tanqueray, The Spiritual Life, 1141)

*              He who is greater than the universe enclosed himself in a Virgin’s womb. (St John Chrysostom, Catena Aurea, 1, p. 437)

*              In the genealogy of his Gospel, St Matthew included, among our Lord’s ancestors, four women who led less than virtuous lives.#3

These women are one sign among many others of God’s design to save all men. Born of sinners, Jesus came to take away the sins of all.

Our Lord did not refuse even a stained ancestry, so that his Church would not be ashamed of being composed of sinners. By mentioning sinful people among Christ’s ancestors, the Gospel shows that God’s ways are different from man’s. God will sometimes carry out his plan of salvation by means of people whose conduct has not been just. God saves us, sanctifies us, and chooses us to do good despite our sins and infidelities.

Jesus also showed that a stain in one’s lineage is not an obstacle for virtue, and that no one should boast of his patrician roots. (Cf. St Ambrose, Comment on the Gospel of St Luke, 3; St Jerome, Catena Aurea, 1, 45-46)

Humility at His Birth

*              Jesus was born a poor infant, wrapped in swaddling clothes, placed in a manger, and laid upon a bit of straw. And this little Child is the Son of God, co-equal with the Father, uncreated Wisdom! (A. Tanqueray, The Spiritual Life, 1141)

*              Learn, o man, and acknowledge how far God has gone for you. Here, in Bethlehem, you have a teacher teaching without being able to speak; learn his lesson of humility. In paradise, you gave name to every kind of animal; here, your Creator has become a little child, unable to call even his own Mother. In that vast wood, you were lost by disobedience; in this narrow dwelling, he has become a mortal man to seek, by dying, you, who were dead. You, man, wanted to be like God, and perished; he, God, wanted to become a man, and saved you. Such was the outcome of human pride that it needed divine humility to be cured! (St Augustine, Sermon 183)

*              Consider what is most beautiful and most noble on earth, what pleases the mind and the other faculties, and what delights the flesh and the senses. Consider the world, and the other worlds that shine in the night–the whole universe.

And this, along with all the satisfied follies of the heart, is worth nothing, is nothing and less than nothing, compared with this God of mine! –of yours! Infinite treasure, most beautiful pearl ... humbled, become a slave, reduced to nothingness in the form of a servant in the stable where he willed to be born ... in Joseph’s workshop, in his passion and in his ignominious death, and in the frenzy of Love–the Blessed Eucharist. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 432 )

*              Whoever makes himself one of our race enters into our condition. And this our Lord did. Having chosen to be like a sinful creature among sinful and imperfect creatures, he never for one single instant sought to emancipate himself from the consequences of that condition. Since that was his condition before God and man, he firmly abided in it and conducted himself accordingly.

When his life was sought by a powerful prince, he did not use his divine power, as he could have done, to escape the hatred of his enemy; he did simply what any human being would do: to find refuge in a foreign country. The poverty, powerlessness, want of influence accompanying his life left him without any other means of saving himself from death, except flight and trust in the guiding protection of God.

He was not embittered at the cruelty and wickedness of his enemy. For wrongdoing, injustice, tyranny and the persecution of the good are in the order of Providence.

He submitted meekly to all these because they were the consequences of the condition he had put himself in, and in this lies his humility. And in this he asks us to imitate him, while at the same time encouraging us by the thought that our souls can find rest and peace by imitating him.#4

*              “You shall find,” says the angel, “the Infant wrapped in swaddling clothes and laid in a manger.”  How is it that only humility, that is , the Child, seems to have been mentioned by the angel, when in fact more than humility was to be found by the shepherds?  Perhaps the angel emphasizes humility alone because, when the other angels fell through pride, he himself stood firm in his humility.  Or perhaps because humility is a heavenly virtue and most adequate to the Divine Majesty.

But humility cannot be found alone, it is always found accompanied by many other graces and virtues, thus the Gospel describes later on: “They came with haste, and found Mary and Joseph, and the Infant lying in the manger.”  Just as the infancy of the Savior is the example of humility, Mary is the example of purity and Joseph of justice.

When there is no humility, there is no purity, and no justice.

The impure man disgraces himself; the unjust man offends his neighbor; the proud man, who thinks himself great and important, dishonors God.

Humility reconciles us to God, makes us subject to him, pleasing to him; as the Blessed Virgin says: “He has regarded the humility of his handmaid.” (St Bernard, Sermon on Christmas Day, n. 2)

Jesus’ Life in Nazareth

*              After his birth, Jesus was circumcised, like any ordinary Jewish boy. He had to flee to Egypt to escape from the hand of Herod, even though, with one word, Jesus could have reduced the wicked king to dust.

Jesus’ life at Nazareth was one of continued self-effacement. Hidden away in a small Galilean village, he at first helped his mother in her household duties, then he became an apprentice, a workman, and spent thirty years in obedience to two human beings. He, the Lord of the World, was known only as a carpenter, the son of a carpenter, and nothing more. (A. Tanqueray, The Spiritual Life, 1141)

*              Jesus came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them (Lk 2:51).

Christ, to whom the universe submits, becomes obedient to his own. (St Augustine, Sermon 51)

*              Who was subject to whom?  A God to men.  God, I repeat, to whom the angels are subject, was subject to Mary.  And not alone to Mary, but to Joseph also, because of Mary.  Admire and revere both the one and the other, and choose which you admire the more, the most sweet deference of the Son or the sublime dignity of the Mother.  That God should obey a woman is humility without compare; that a woman should have rule over God is a dignity without equal. (St Bernard, Homily on the Feast of the Holy Family)

*              “Are you hurt for being abased by humility?” the Lord asks us. “Look at me; consider the examples I have given you, and you will see the greatness of this virtue.” (St John Chrysostom, Hom. on St Matthew, 38)

*              Jesus, humble, did not do anything out of ostentation. (Theophilactus, Comment. on the Gospel of St Mark)

*              We will never achieve true supernatural and human cheerfulness, real good humor, if we don’t really imitate Jesus; if we aren’t humble, as he was. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 590)

The Public Life of Jesus

*              Christ in his humility is the way to heaven.  After forty days of penance in the desert our Lord was tempted by the devil.  Jesus was hungry; he lowered himself to this level because this too was part of his humiliation.  Christ, the Bread, was hungry, the Way was lost, our Medicine was wounded, and Life died.  He was thirsty, he was weary, he slept; he was seized, beaten, and put to death.

This is His way: walk in humility if you want to reach eternal life.  Christ as God is the land toward which we are going, Christ as man is the way to go there.  To him we go; by him we go.  Undivided from the Father, yet he came to us.  Nursed at the breast, yet he holds the world in his hand.  Laying in the manger, yet he sustains the angels in existence.  God and Man; the same is God who is Man.

Here on earth he is destitute, poor.  Having suffered in his lowliness, having died, and been buried, he has risen, ascended into heaven, and there he abides, sitting at the right hand of the Father. (St Augustine, Sermon 123)

*              Jesus chose to be baptized in water by John, not to be washed of any sin but to manifest his great humility.  For baptism certainly found nothing in him that needed to be washed away, just as death found nothing in him that needed to be punished. (St Augustine, Faith, Hope and Charity, 14)

*              During his public life, Jesus practiced humility, making it compatible with his mission. He had to proclaim, by word and deeds, that he is the Son of God; yet, he did so in a discreet way, with sufficient clarity so as to reach the minds of men of good will, but not with such evidence as to force assent. His humility appeared in everything he did.

Jesus surrounded himself with apostles, ignorant and uncouth, little esteemed–eleven fishermen and a publican. He showed a marked preference for those whom the world either paid little attention to or despised: the poor, sinners, the afflicted, little children, those disowned by all. He had no place to lay his head.

His teaching was plain and simple, within the reach of all, and his parables were taken from ordinary life. He did not seek to elicit the admiration of men, but instead sought to instruct them and to touch their hearts.

Jesus’ miracles were rare occurrences. He performed them only to manifest his divine nature; thus, he often charged bystanders to tell no man. There was no studied austerity in his life; he ate like everyone else, attended a wedding feast at Cana, and was invited to some banquets.

Jesus shunned popularity, and did not hesitate to displease his disciples when it was necessary to do so. He escaped when the people wanted to make him a king.

As for his innermost sentiments, he lived in complete dependence upon his Father God. He spoke only to teach the doctrine of his Father, who sent him. He did not seek his own glory, but that of his Father; he came to earth for this cause.

The Lord of Creation became the servant of men: “The Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve” (Mt 20:28). (A. Tanqueray, The Spiritual Life, 1141)

*              Jesus wanted to be baptized, to recommend, by his humility, what was a necessity for us. (St Augustine, Sermon 51)

*              We read in the Scripture: “The just will blossom like a lily” (Hos 14:6). But who is just if he is not humble?

If we are humble, we will also blossom like the lily and thrive eternally in the house of the Lord. We will be like Jesus, for he “will transform this lowly body of ours into copies of his glorious body” (Phil 3:21). Sacred Scripture does not say, “our body,” but “this lowly body of ours,” meaning that only the humble will be glorified and clothed with the marvelous whiteness of the lily.

We also read: “I am the rose of Sharon, the lily of the valleys” (Song of Songs 2:1).

The Lord, Jesus Christ, bowed down to a servant, St John, to be baptized; the Baptist tried to dissuade him. “Give in for now,” Jesus told him, “we must do this” (Mt 3:15). He confirmed that humility is the culmination of justice. Thus, the just person is humble; he is like a valley.

Let this be said to understand that Jesus, the Bridegroom of the Song of Songs, is the rose of Sharon and the lily of the valley. (St Bernard, Super Cantica, Serm. 47)

*              See how humble our Jesus is: A donkey was his throne in Jerusalem! (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 606)

*              Humility is one of the good ways to achieve interior peace. He has said so: “Learn of me, for I am meek and humble of heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 607)

Jesus’ Passion and Death

*              After the fall of man, sin conquered the world. Original sin turned the world into an unsupernatural world, one from which the divinity was banished. It had to be reconquered for the divine realm by our Lord Jesus Christ.

When he came to the world, Jesus faced an irreconcilable opposition from all its forces. He stood for the divine; the world stood for the anti-divine. From the first instant of his earthly existence, he was involved in conflict. It was the conflict of light against darkness, of truth against falsehood, of the redeeming God against unredeemed men. St Paul speaks of the kingdom of sin arrayed against the kingdom of justice. St John contrasts the two as darkness and light. In the psalms, reference is also made to this inevitable war: “Why have the Gentiles raged and the people desired vain things?” (Ps 2:1).

There could be only one outcome from this combat: Jesus’ conquest, though his humanity would undergo death in the struggle. If Jesus’ humanity once yielded to impatience or irritation, sin would have conquered; but no, that humanity stood firm unto death. Jesus conquered by suffering death.

Jesus died in so far as God could die, that is, in Jesus’ human nature. Our Lord’s death was no accident; it was a consequence of his life and teaching. He stood in a world arrayed in hostility against him. He was the only Divine Being in a world that was undivine. He was the only light in a world of darkness, and that world hated to be illuminated and therefore strove to extinguish the light. “And this is the judgment; because the light has come into the world, and men have loved darkness rather than the light, for their works were evil” (Jn 2:19).

There was no truce possible: “What fellowship hath light with darkness?” (2 Cor 6:14-15). Our Lord knew what was to be his fate if he chose to live his life according to the conditions of man. He resented nothing that happened to him, accepting all as the inevitable condition of his lot, neither striving to lift himself above it, nor using his divine power to escape it. This was his humility.

Jesus achieved the victory and secured the supremacy of the divine in the world, “blotting out the handwriting of the decree that was against us, which was contrary to us. He has done away with it by nailing it to the Cross; despoiling the principalities and powers. He paraded them in public, behind him in his triumphal procession” (Col 2:14-15).#5

*              Jesus’ humility was even more apparent in his Passion. He, who knew no sin, suffered the penalty of the guilty.

He bore the crushing load of our sins in Gethsemane; betrayed by Judas, he had only friendly words for him; deserted by the apostles, he continued loving them. Arrested and bound like a common criminal, he cured Malchus. Slandered, he did not defend himself. In danger of death, he spoke only the truth. Treated like a fool by Herod, he kept silence. Rejected by the people in favor of Barabbas, he still suffered for their conversion. Condemned by Pilate, he kept his peace. Scourged, crowned with thorns, vilified, he accepted the heavy Cross.

Deprived of all heavenly comfort, deserted by his disciples, Jesus could say: “I am a worm, not a man, scorned by men and despised by the people” (Ps 22:7). “When he was insulted, he did not retaliate with insults; when he was tortured, he made no threats. Instead, he entrusted himself to him who judges justly” (1 Pet 2:23). How then can we, who are so full of guilt, ever complain, even if we were unjustly accused? (Cf. A. Tanqueray, The Spiritual Life, 1141)

*              Jesus interceded for our sins as if they were his own.  When a man commits a heinous crime, his friends and relatives disavow him and desert him to avoid being implicated in the crime.  If there is a father or friend willing to help, he always begins repudiating the evil deed and showing himself free from guilt and not connected with the crime.

But our merciful Lord, lover of our souls, took all the blame of our sins upon himself, and covered his face with shame.  He acknowledged and recognized us before the tribunal of God, not only as his friends and relatives, but as his brothers and sons, and even as members of his own Body–the Church– of which he is the Head.

Jesus not only interceded for our forgiveness, but also offered himself to pay the penalty that we deserved, as if he were the malefactor.

Yet the sorrows of our Lord could have been lesser, had they not been increased by our ingratitude and neglect to return his love. (L. de la Palma, History of the Sacred Passion, 8)

*              Among the calumnies and accusations of false witnesses, our Lord kept silence before the Sanhedrin as if they were not speaking of him.  His first reply had been ill-received; it was manifest that the judges would not listen to the truth.  The court was a tribunal only in appearance, in truth a seat of violence and a robbers’ den.  Jesus sought to benefit all the absent and all to come after him by keeping silence and giving an admirable example of meekness and humility.

He taught us that silence gives perfection and beauty to patience, and that it is great to persevere and suffer in silence in the midst of injuries, hatred, and insults; the more false and full of prejudices the accusation is, the greater the merit gained. (L. de la Palma, History of the Sacred Passion, 12)

*              “Jesus remained silent.”–Iesus autem tacebat. Why do you speak, to console yourself or to explain yourself?

Say nothing. Seek joy in contempt; you’ll always receive less contempt than you deserve. Can you, by any chance, ask, Quid enim mali feci? –”What evil have I done?” (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 671)

*              The Creator of the world, offended by man, offered his own Blood as compensation for man’s sins. From the day of his birth in Bethlehem until the end of his Passion, this mystery of our salvation was largely accomplished by his humility. (St Leo the Great, Sermon 72, On the Lord’s Ascension)

*              The devil’s pride was the cause of our ruin; God’s humility, the foundation of our redemption. (St Gregory the Great, RegulaPastoralis, 3, 18)

*              Are you looking for an example of humility? Look at the Man on the Cross. Being God, he wanted to be judged under the power of Pontius Pilate, and to die. (St Thomas of Aquinas, On the Creed, 6, 1)

*              Let the humble know that our Redeemer “humbled himself, obediently accepting even death, death on a Cross” (Phil 2:8); let the proud know that this is written of their leader, the devil: “He is king over all proud beasts” (Job 41:26). The origin of our ruin was the pride of the devil; the source of our redemption was the humility of God.

Though created by God as all other creatures, our enemy wanted to excel above all; our Redeemer, the greatest among all, deigned to become the least among all. Let the humble know that the more they lower themselves, the more they resemble God. Let the proud know that the more they extol themselves, the faster they crash to the ground like the apostate angel.

What can be worse than pride? The higher the proud raises himself, the further he falls from the heights of true sublimity. What can be more glorious than humility? The lower the humble sinks, the closer he becomes to his Creator, who dwells in the highest. (St Gregory the Great, Past., III, Adm. XVIII)

In the Eucharist, Jesus’ Divine Nature Is Veiled

*              The humility of Jesus was manifest in Bethlehem, in Nazareth, and on Calvary. Yet, our Lord undergoes still more humiliation and more self‑abasement in the most sacred host; more than in the stable, more than in Nazareth, and more than on the Cross.

That is why I must love the Mass so! –our Mass, Jesus. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 533)

*              There he is: King of Kings and Lord of Lords, hidden in the Bread.

To this extreme has he humbled himself for love of you. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 538)

*              This Lord tells any soul who visits him in the Blessed Sacrament: “I am here to enrich you with graces; arise from your miseries. Hurry up; come to me; don’t be afraid of my majesty because it is subdued in this Sacrament to allay your fears and give you confidence.” (St Alphonsus de Liguori, Visits to the Blessed Sacrament, 8)

Litany of Humility

O Jesus, meek and humble of heart.                                R. Hear me.

From the desire of being esteemed.                  R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being loved                          R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being extolled.                    R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being honored.                    R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being praised.      R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being preferred to others.  R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desire of being consulted. R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the desired of being approved.               R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being humiliated.  R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being despised.      R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of suffering rebukes. R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being slandered.    R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being forgotten.     R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being ridiculed.      R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being wronged.      R. Deliver me, Jesus.

From the fear of being suspected.    R. Deliver me, Jesus.

That others may be loved more than I.          R. Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be esteemed more than I.   R. Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That in the opinion of the world others may increase and I may decrease.            R. Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be chosen and I set aside.   R. Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be praised and I unnoticed.                R. Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may be preferred to me in everything.       R. Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

That others may become holier than I, provided that I become as holy as I should.            R. Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.

FOOTNOTES:

1. Ullathorne, Humility.

2. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2, 2.

3. Tamar (cf. Gen 38:1; 1 Chr 2:4), Rahab (Cf. Josh 2:6,17), Bathsheba (cf. 2 Sam 11:12,24), and Ruth (cf. Book of Ruth).

4. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2, 2.

5. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2, 2.

15

Our Lady’s Humility

After Jesus, Mary is the most marvelous example of humility. She always lived as the little handmaid of the Lord: “Ecce ancilla Domini.” She hardly spoke, did not call attention to herself in anything, and devoted herself to the tasks proper to a housewife in the humble home of Nazareth. She appeared in Calvary as the Mother of the One-who-Failed. She lived–unknown and in the background–under the care of St John after the Lord’s Ascension; there, she performed no spectacular miracle; we do not know exactly where she finished her life on earth.#1

*          The most striking thing about Mary’s attitude at the Annunciation was her calm reserve, the preservation of her freedom of action.  The glories of this and the other world were spread out before her; she was to be the Mother of the Son of the Most High, and Jesus, her Son, was to ascend David’s throne, and of his kingdom there was to be no end.  Man is by nature receptive to praise and honors; and a woman especially is receptive to flattery.  Furthermore, it was the highest dream of a Jewish maiden to be the mother of the Messiah, yes, even to be the handmaid of that chosen woman.  And now the sparkling diadem of this greatest of honors is so near to Mary.  Millions of hands would have reached out for it in an ecstasy of happiness.  Mary did not move.  All the splendor of this diadem did not overpower her.  The highest dignity and the praise of heaven and earth could not make her lose her thoughtful calm reserve and humility.  She had only the calm response to Gabriel’s unheard of greeting and message: “How shall this happen?”

One does not know what to marvel at more, the tremendous import of Gabriel’s message, or Mary’s unique composure.  With deepest humility she held herself back from an honor which would raise her above all women. (O. Hophan, Mary, Our Most Blessed Lady)

*          The purity, humility, and generosity of Mary are in sharp contrast to our wretchedness and selfishness.  To the extent that we realize this, we should feel moved to imitate her.  We, too, are creatures of God, and if we strive to imitate her fidelity, God will surely do great things in us.  Our little worth is no obstacle, because God chooses what is of little value so that the power of his love may be more manifest. (J. Escrivá, Christ Is Passing By, 172)

*          It made me think, that hard but true saying from a man of God, when he observed the haughtiness of a miserable creature: “He wears the same skin as the devil –pride.”

And there came to my mind, in contrast, a sincere desire to wrap myself in the virtue taught by Jesus Christ: Quiamitis sum et humilis corde –I am meek and humble of heart.

It was the virtue that attracted the gaze of the Most Holy Trinity to his Mother and our Mother: the humility of being aware and convinced of our nothingness. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 726)

*          “Behold,” she said, “the handmaid of the Lord.” Mary’s humility is neither overcome by honor, nor puffed up in her glory. Elected as Mother of God, she calls herself a slave-girl.

To be humble in destitution is not a great feat; to be humble in glory is rare and sublime. (St Bernard, Hom. On the Virgin Mother, 4, 9).

*          Mary, who at the Annunciation called herself the “handmaid of the Lord,” remained throughout her earthly life faithful to what this name expresses.  In this she confirmed that she was a true disciple of Christ; our Lord strongly emphasized that his mission was one of service: the Son of man “came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mt 20:28).  Thus, Mary became the first of those who “serving Christ also in others with humility and patience lead their brothers and sisters to that King whom to serve is to reign,”#2 and she fully obtained that “state of royal freedom” proper to Christ’s disciples: to serve means to reign! (John Paul II, Enc. Redemptoris Mater, n. 41)

*          A handmaid is without pretensions, without special distinction, without presumption.  A handmaid knows no will of her own, only the will of the master.  “As the eyes of servants are on the hands of their masters,” so were Mary’s eyes “on the Lord” (Ps 123:2).  In the Gospel passage of the Annunciation the name “handmaid” seems out of place.  Gabriel had spoken of great, glorious things.  In contrast to all the promised glory Mary set the plain, unadorned words: “Behold the handmaid!”  St Ambrose exclaims: “What humility, what submissiveness!  The one who has been chosen to be his Mother calls herself the handmaid of the Lord!  She did not allow herself to be seduced to self-glorification by the wholly unexpected promises.  By calling herself a handmaid she made no pretensions to pre-eminence on account of such a prerogative of grace; she simply wished to do what was asked of her.”#3

“Be it done to me!”  In these words Mary expressed not only a readiness, but a longing to do the Will of the Most High.  She opened wide all the chambers of her soul and with joyful expectation awaited the coming of the divine Guest.  “Be it done to me according to thy word!”  Thy word!  Mary did not make her own word the measure of her surrender to God, but His word.  She did not decide the measure of her giving, God himself was to do that.  She preserved her profound sense of humility.

God will ask the yes of his chosen maiden again and again, at the cost of ever greater pain and sorrow.  And Mary will always give her yes again and again.  At the Annunciation she surrendered herself to God for her entire life and for every moment of it.  And she remained true to this complete surrender. (O. Hophan, Mary, Our Most Blessed Lady)

*          When our friends praise us for our deeds, we thank them for their kindness.  At the Visitation, when Elizabeth extols Mary, Mary glorifies God.  Mary receives praise as a mirror receives light; she stores it not, nor even acknowledges it, but makes it pass from her to God, to whom is due all praise, all honor and thanksgiving. The shortened form of Mary’s song–the Magnificat–is: “Thank God.”

The love of God is reflected in the soul of the humble, as the light of the sun is reflected by a mirror. So Mary’s Son is the Sun; she is the moon. She is the nest; he is the Fledgling who–after his life on earth–will fly to a higher Tree, and then will call it home. She calls him her Lord and Savior, even though she is preserved free from the stain of original sin, for this is due entirely to the merits of the Passion and Death of her Divine Son.

In herself she is nothing, and she has nothing; he is everything. And “he has done great things for me,” she said, because “he who is Mighty, he whose name is Holy, has looked graciously upon the lowliness of his handmaid.”

The humble are necessarily the joyful; for where there is no pride, there is no self-centeredness, which makes joy impossible.

Mary’s song has these two notes: humility and joy. Her spirit rejoices because God has looked down on her humility. A box that is filled with sand cannot be filled with gold; a soul that is bursting with its own ego can never be filled with God.

There is no limit on God’s part to his possession of a soul; it is the soul alone that can limit God’s welcome, as a window curtain limits the light. The emptier the soul is of self, the greater room in it for God. There is an intrinsic relation between the humility of Mary and the incarnation of the Son of God within her. Mary’s self-emptying alone, would not have been enough, had not he who is her God, her Lord and Savior, “humbled himself.” Though the cup be empty, it cannot hold the ocean. And the Ocean became small.

After the honor is received, Mary, instead of standing in her privilege, becomes a servant of her aged cousin and, in the midst of that service, sings a song in which she calls herself the Lord’s handmaid–or better a slave who is simply God’s property and one who has no personal will except God’s own. (Cf. F. Sheen, The World’s First Love)

*          When Mary learned of the miracle of Elizabeth’s conception, she went to visit her.  The Virgin Mary greeted Elizabeth, and John the Baptist jumped for joy in his mother’s womb. After her initial surprise, Elizabeth exclaimed, “Blessed art thou among women!”

It is easy to understand Mary’s reaction to the testimony given to her mission by the Holy Spirit, through Elizabeth. Mary, without uttering a word, without in any way betraying the fact that she possessed a great secret, witnessed to Elizabeth’s greeting, which was like a confirmation of the words of the angel, a confirmation she neither asked for nor wished, but which she received with great joy. She rejoiced because it came from God, and also because it implied a recognition of the great message on the part of God’s creatures.

Up to that point, the revelation, as far as humanity was concerned, was known only to the Virgin herself, who was the principal person involved in the event, the protagonist, the subject in whom all the revelation was to be fulfilled. Now that limit was extended to Elizabeth; it is as if the Virgin had been the subject of a double revelation, as if God–in order that the two levels of existence might participate in it–wished to communicate his plans by means of creatures from both worlds: from the superior or supernatural world, the angel; and also from the lower or natural world, Elizabeth.  Thus, God bestowed blessings on Mary from all sides: “For to everyone that hath shall be given, and he shall abound” (Mt 25:29).

Mary had sufficient faith, and she neither needed nor asked for proofs; but God, who never lets himself be surpassed in generosity, gave her a conclusive proof by using one of his creatures to confirm the miracle taking place in her.

Full of happiness, transported by joy, the Virgin burst into song. The Magnificat is a spontaneous and poetic manifestation of the interior feelings that filled her and also an expression of the innermost core of her being and her relations with God. It is really amazing to see the simplicity and the facility with which our Lady did and said these things, which, when we consider them more closely, we find are complex and difficult from our level of understanding; how quickly she penetrated to the very bottom of things.

She also was inspired by the Holy Spirit to give expression to her exaltation.  Most of the verses of the Magnificat are taken from Scripture, mainly from the Psalms, and our Lady herself added very little.  As Elizabeth, inspired by the Holy Spirit, praised her cousin’s faith, Mary answered with a joyful song in praise of humility.

The Magnificat is above all a wonderful praise of Almighty God, an act of thanksgiving for the goodness of the Creator.  To be sure, the Virgin Mary spoke of herself, and in terms that may at first surprise us: “for, behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed” (Lk 1:48).

On her own initiative, Mary would never have said such a thing, nor would such an outlandish thought ever have occurred to her. Who would think that a little, unknown country girl from Palestine, with no great future to look forward to, would solemnly proclaim that she was to be remembered by all future generations until the end of the world?  How could she see into the future?  But the Holy Spirit is God and God does see into the future, and it was He who gave her justifiable motives for making it.

God did great things to the Virgin Mary because he saw the humility of his handmaid. He will hardly do great things in us if he does not find us also humble. (F. Suarez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*          Since humility is allied with truth, it is possible to have the full perfection of humility and yet be perfectly aware of one’s gifts, whether in the order of grace or in the order of nature.

Our Lord did not ignore his own sanctity. “Which of you,” he said to his enemies, “shall convince [convict] me of sin?” (Jn 8:46).

Neither did the Blessed Virgin quarrel with the angel’s salutation when she was hailed “full of grace.” Our Lady was perfectly aware of the fullness of her perfection, but she would have considered it absurd to take for herself any credit for her marvelous gifts. Hence the Magnificat.#4

*          What must Jesus’ cheerful gaze have been like? It must have been the same that shone from the eyes of his Mother who could not contain her joy –Magnificat anima mea Dominum!– and her soul glorified the Lord while she carried him within her and by her side.

Oh, Mother! May we, like you, rejoice to be with him and to hold him. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 95)

*          Mary’s humble song of joy, the Magnificat, recalls to our minds the infinite generosity of the Lord toward those who become like children, toward those who abase themselves and are sincerely aware that they are nothing. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 608)

*          Imitate the Blessed Virgin. Only by openly admitting that we are nothing can we become precious in the eyes of our Creator. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 588)

*          How great is the value of humility! “Quiarespexit humilitatem....” –”Because he gazed upon my humility....” It is not of her faith, nor of her charity, nor of her immaculate purity that our Mother spoke of in the house of Zechariah. Her joyful hymn sings:      “Because he gazed upon my humility, behold, henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 598)

*          Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae –because he has looked graciously upon the lowliness of his slave-girl....

Every day I am more convinced that authentic humility is the supernatural basis for all virtues!

Talk to Our Lady, so that she may train us to walk along that path. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 289)

*          Selflessness is shown as the true self in Bethlehem. “There was no room in the inn,” because the inn was filled; there was room in the stable, because there were no egos there–only an ox and a donkey.

God looked over the world for an empty heart–but not a lonely heart!–a heart that was empty like a flute, on which he might pipe a tune–not a lonely tune like an empty abyss, which is filled by death. And the emptiest heart he could find was the heart of a Lady. Since there was no self there, he filled it with his very Self. (Cf. F. Sheen, The World’s First Love)

[At the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple]

*          Even though Mary deserved every privilege in heaven and on earth, she went to the Temple as any other woman would go.  She could have laid claim to her extraordinary merits as Mother of the Messiah, or as the Virgin who conceived the Son of God.  None of this; she fulfilled the slightest indications of God’s law.  She hid her greatness beneath her ordinary actions and did what all the other women of Israel did; she let God’s power do the work.

Because we are instruments for doing wonderful, divine things, we are prey to the temptation of hidden pride.  If we fall under its influence, we must react immediately.  With Mary, we must learn to spurn the applause of men and every vain attempt to attract attention; we must be eager and attentive to preserve the treasure of humility.

We Christians must joyfully fulfill all the obligations proper to our state in life and our position in society, without trying to exempt ourselves from any obligations or seeking excuses to lessen them. Even though we may be tired, we must not excuse ourselves from contributing to family life or the atmosphere of friendship of our professional environment.

[At the finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple]

*          “Why hast thou done so to us?” (Lk 2:48).

Helpless with grief and yet serene with motherly gentleness Mary asked this question.  Mary did not ask for a justification, an excuse, she pleaded only for an explanation.  She did not reproach or blame or threaten him, she begged only for one little word explaining his conduct.

Mary did not describe herself as a victim; she did not give a long drawn out account of the helpless anguish of the past three days.  All the anguish and bitterness she had suffered she buried in the one little word: “so.”  “Why hast thou done so to us?”  There is a very touching humility in this question.

*          Having deserved to be the Mother of the Son of God Almighty, Mary was humblest.  She did not mention herself ahead of her husband, saying: “I and your father.”  But she said: “Your father and I.”  She did not mind her personal dignity but the conjugal hierarchy; justly so, Christ’s humility could not be a school of pride for his Mother. (St Augustine, Sermon 51)

*          After the episode of the Child Jesus at the Temple, a long time –eighteen years– was given to Mary to ponder the words and events she had witnessed.  “His mother treasured all these things in her heart” (Lk 2:51).  St Luke makes it plain that Mary was ready and anxious to understand, to accept humbly and willingly the plans of God.

She did not cast aside, as the apostles did, the hard words of Jesus as something beyond comprehension, she received them into her heart.  A thousand times she must have said to herself: “He must be about his Father’s business.”  Not about her business.  Jesus’ words were like the seed that she willingly, gladly let sink into her heart, there to take root and sprout.

*          Do you want to be daring in a holy way, so that God may act through you?  Have recourse to Mary, and she will accompany you along the path of humility. Thus, facing what seems impossible to the human mind, you shall answer with a fiat! –be it done!–which unites the earth to Heaven. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 124)

*          Your modesty and decorum will be a living lesson and appealing example to lead souls to sanctity.  But you must live these virtues with Mary’s humility.  An expert teacher in all virtues, Mary listened to all like a disciple and apprentice. (St Ambrose, On Virgins, 2, 9)

*          Mary, teacher of the hidden and silent sacrifice!

See her, nearly always in the background, cooperating with her Son; she knows and remains silent. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 509)

*          “They have no wine” (Jn 2:3).  Mary knows how to speak not only to angels; she has thoughts and words for human beings.  She has concern for the embarrassments and little troubles of their everyday life.  Nothing is too small for her, nothing so insignificant that she would brush it aside unconcerned.

At Cana, Mary noticed with a womanly delicacy that the young couple were facing a very humiliating predicament.  She herself, otherwise so reserved, took the initiative and spoke up fearlessly.  Yet she spoke humbly, without that attitude of self-importance which so often creeps into works of charity and spoils them.  Her simple statement is a plea without a plea; it is only a tactful statement of a fact.  There is no rashness, no vanity, no importunity, no presumption in Mary’s words.

Mary’s words at Cana revealed her humility, her simple trust and submission to God.

“Dear woman, why turn to me?” Jesus replied, “My time has not yet come” (Jn 2:4).  Jesus’ reaction indicated that although in principle it was not part of God’s plan for him to use his power to solve the problem, our Lady’s request would move him to do precisely that.  It was part of God’s plan that Jesus should work his first miracle at his Mother’s request.

Like a good mother, the Virgin Mary knew perfectly well what her Son’s reply meant.  Hearing his answer she knew that he would perform the suggested miracle, that she would get his help.  She humbly accepted the apparent rebuff but still was confident that Jesus would come to the rescue.  She had pleaded, not for herself, but for others; her plea was justified.  She said to the waiters: “Do whatever He tells you” (Jn 2:5).

To Mary’s complete submission to the Father’s Will she thus united her humble trust in God.  In her solicitude for human beings, she brings their needs within the radius of Christ.  In her humility as an instrument of God, she places herself between her Son and mankind in the reality of their wants and sufferings.  “She put herself `in the middle,’ that is to say acts as a mediatrix not as an outsider, but in her position as a mother.  She knows that as such she can point out to her Son the needs of mankind, and in fact she `has the right’ to do so.  Her mediation is thus in the nature of intercession: Mary `intercedes’ for mankind.”#5

*          Before Cana Mary had spoken but little; now, as soon as her Son began his preaching of the kingdom of God, she sank into humble silence.  Her modest way of living can be deduced from the sneering remark of the Nazarenes when Jesus preached for the first time in their synagogue: “Is not this the carpenter’s son?  Is not his mother called Mary?” (Mt 13:55).  One feels that these words were intended to humiliate him on account of the poverty and modest social standing of his parents.

Mary’s actions, words, and silence sum up the only concern of her heart: not her own glory, but that of her Son; the glorification of Jesus by obedience and faith.

*          What humility, that of my holy Mother Mary!  She’s not to be seen amidst the palms of Jerusalem, nor–except that first one at Cana–at the hour of great miracles.

But she doesn’t flee from the scorn of Golgotha; there his Mother stands, juxtacrucem Iesu–”by the Cross of Jesus.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 507)

*          Mary did not speak a single word in Calvary; she was all silence.  Not the silence of stubbornness or of stone-like insensitivity, but of calm consent which is a profession of faith.  Her lips were sealed by the immensity of her suffering so that she could not utter her fiat audibly as in that happy Nazareth hour.  All that was left to her was the speech of her soul: “she stood by the Cross.”  This meant more than words; with this, Mary said everything she had to say.

Many women would have stood by the son, but not by the cross.  But Mary did not only stand by her Son, she also stood by the Cross of her Son.

With her fiat in Nazareth she had given the fullest disposition of her life to God, carte blanche, so to say.  She had undersigned whatever God willed to write on the white pages of her life.  And when the hand of God began to write with letters of blood, Mary did not cry or complain:  “Now it is enough.  It is too much!”  Silently she waited, not for her Son’s death, but for the salvation of mankind.  (Cf. O. Hophan, Mary, Our Most Blessed Lady)

FOOTNOTES:

1. Cf. A. Royo Marin, Teologia de la Perfeccion Cristiana, no. 468

2. Second Vatican Council, Dogm. Const. Lumen Gentium, n. 36.

3. In Lucam, 2.

4. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2, 2.

5. John Paul II, Enc. Redemptoris Mater, 21.

16

Humility toward God

Humility is based on truth, and above all on the great truth that the distance between the creature and the Creator is infinite. Thus, humility results in our abandonment to God, putting all our trust in him, not in ourselves. When we try to be humble, God comes and fills us with his strength.

We must rely on God and in the means he uses for our sanctification and training: the sacraments and the Church’s Magisterium.  Otherwise, we will be like the false doctors denounced by St Paul who “do not endure the sound doctrine; but, having itching ears, heap up to themselves teachers according to their own lusts” (2 Tim 4:3).

PIETY

Humility toward God is manifested first of all by piety and reverence, whereby we honor God as the fullness of perfection.  Piety results in acts of adoration, praise, filial fear, and filial love.

Humility Prepares a Soul to Get Closer to God

*              Through piety, saints become humble.  (St Augustine, On the Sermon of the Mountain, 1, 18)

*              Be aware of this: Nothing is more excellent, nothing more amiable than humility.  It is the chief preserver of virtues, a sort of guardian of all of them.  Being great through the achievements of our life, nothing else makes us more acceptable to men and God than making ourselves little through humility.  (St Jerome, Letter 148, 20)

*              The glory of man is God.  (St Irenaeus, AdversusHaereses, 3, 20)

*              Humility prepares a person to achieve, without constraints, spiritual and divine goods. (St Augustine, Tr. on Virginity, 51)

*              If at any time you feel uneasy at the thought of our sister death because you see yourself to be such a poor creature, take heart –heaven awaits us.  Consider what it will be like when all the infinite beauty, greatness, happiness, and Love of God is poured into the poor clay vessel that the human being is, satisfying it eternally with the freshness of an ever new joy. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 891)

*              It’s not lack of humility to be aware of your soul’s progress.  That way you can thank God for it.

But don’t forget that you are a beggar, wearing a good suit.... on loan. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 608)

*              Make this firm and determined resolution: To recall, when you receive honors and praise, everything that brings you shame and embarrassment.

The shame and embarrassment are yours;  the praise and the glory are God’s. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 252)

*              Pride is the root of all vices; humility the source of all virtues.  Humility is the entrance gate for all the graces God sends us; it seasons our actions, making them valuable and pleasing to God; it makes us –in a figurative sense– masters of God’s heart, for God never resists a humble heart. (St John Vianney, Sermon on Pride)

*              “I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you, and given to a people yielding its fruits” (Mt 21:43).  The vineyard was given to somebody else, as it happens with the gift of grace; the proud spurn grace and it is gathered by the humble.  (Raban Maurus, Catena Aurea, 3, p. 48)

*              The gift of grace, rejected by the proud man, enriches the humble.  (St Bede, Catena Aurea, 6, p. 337)

*              When our vision is clouded, when our eyes have lost their clarity, we need to go to the light.  And Jesus Christ has told us that he is the Light of the world and that he has come to heal the sick.

That is why your weaknesses and your falls –when God allows them– should not separate you from Christ, but rather draw you closer to him. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 158)

*              If you have done something wrong, be it big or small, go running back to God.

Savor those words of the psalm, corcontritum et humiliatum, Deus, non despicies –the Lord will never despise or ignore a contrite and humbled heart. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 172)

*              In the story of the Tower of Babel, the exclusion of God from human affairs is presented not so much under the aspect of opposition to him as under that of simply leaving him out of account, out of indifference toward him, as if God were of no relevance in the sphere of man’s cooperative undertakings. But in both cases, that of our first parents and that of the constructors of the Tower, the relationship to God is severed with violence.

Why did the ambitious project fail?  Why did “the builders build in vain”?  They failed because they had set up, as a sign and guarantee of the unity they desired, a work that was to be of their own hands alone, and had forgotten the action of the Lord.  (John Paul II, Apostolic Exhortation Reconciliatio et Poenitentia, 14 and 13)

*              You are like the little pauper who suddenly finds out that he is the son of the King.  That is why now the only thing that concerns you on this earth is the glory of your Father God, his glory in everything. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 334)

*              We commit sins out of ignorance, weakness, indifference, or hardness of heart.... but I wish that you and I would never be stubborn; that we would not sin against Light.  God resists the proud; “even though all vices separate us from God, only pride is directly against him.”#1

Are you shut off from God by your pride?

The impressive mercy of God cannot do anything within you, if you do not open yourself to God:

- Open up to Light;

- Open up to Love;

- Open up to the Almighty Power;

- Open up to Forgiveness;

- Open up to the Savior.

Pride has sealed off your eyes, your ears, the window and gate of your soul.  “Even though he can enter, God does not want to break in rudely; he does not want to force anyone against one’s will.”#2

Did you know that God’s love, God’s passion for man’s freedom, went thus far?  By closing your windows, you are in darkness within your hell, while the space around you is flooded with light.  God gives you his hand; and you –rotten with pride– reject it.

Ask our Lady –this is a friend’s advice– the grace to tear down the great wall of your pride, and open your heart to God with humility.  God’s compassionate love “changes the sinner’s heart.  This is not humiliating or traumatic; it is liberating.  Pride is the only obstacle.”#3

Realize that the Lord can forgive anyone, except those who do not want to ask for pardon.  (J. Urteaga, AhoraComienzo!)

Humility and Faith

*              The proud person and the unbelieving person have more in common than might appear. A person without faith is like a blind man who travels the world and sees created things without discovering God. A proud person discovers and sees God in nature, but fails to discover him and see him in his own self. If you discover God in yourself you will be humble and you will attribute to him whatever good is in you. (S. Canals, Jesus as Friend)

*              Faith is not found among the proud, but among the humble.  (St Augustine, Catena Aurea, vol. 6, p. 297)

*              True faith shows itself in humility.

Dicebat enim intra se –that poor woman said to herself: Si tetigero tantum vestimentum eius, salva ero –if I can but touch the hem of his garment, I shall be healed.

What humility she showed.  It was both a result and a sign of her faith. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 324)

*              Only he who accepts his own moral and intellectual limits, and acknowledges he is in need of salvation, can be opened to faith; then, in faith, he can find in Christ his Redeemer.  (John Paul II, Hom. 21-I-1980)

*              Faith is ultimately a grace, a gratuitous gift, something freely extended to us by God; and God gives this grace in direct proportion to one’s humility.

A humble man without faith, but who sincerely desires to have faith, will certainly end up by receiving the gift, because God refuses no one. On the other hand, just as pride increases, faith diminishes.

The man who is humble and clearly realizes what it means to be a creature weakened by original sin does not rely on himself; he does not trust himself. The more clearly he sees how untrustworthy he is, the more he relies on Revelation.

The most humble of all creatures, our Lady, immediately believed the message of the angel. The fact that it is difficult to see the Will of God in matters of vocation is frequently due to a hidden pride that weakens a man’s faith and prevents him from taking the risk. I refer to vocation because, after all, it is the keystone to everyone’s existence. (F. Suárez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              Certainly you can go to Hell.  You are convinced it could happen, for in your heart you find the seeds of all kinds of evil.

But if you become a child before God, that fact will bring you close to your Father God, and to your Mother, Holy Mary.  And neither will Saint Joseph nor your Angel leave you unprotected when they see that you are a child.

Have faith.  Do as much as you can –penance and Love!– and they will supply the rest. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 598)

Humility and Knowledge of God

*              You find yourself in a position that seems rather strange: On the one hand, you feel fainthearted as you look inward; on the other, sure, encouraged as you look upward.

Don’t worry; it is a sign that you are beginning to know yourself better and –more important– that you are beginning to know Him better. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 122)

*              That Christ you see is not Jesus.  At best it is only the pitiful image that your blurred eyes are able to form....

Purify yourself.  Make your sight cleaner with humility and penance.  Then the pure light of love will not fail you.  And you will have perfect vision.  The image you see will really be his:  Jesus himself. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 212)

Humility and Prayer

“We have sinned, we are guilty.... Listen, my God, listen to us; open your eyes and look at our ruins and the city that bears your name.... We rely not on our just deeds, but on your great mercy” (Dan 9:15,18).  The humble prayer of prophet Daniel was based not on his own merits, but on God’s compassion; his prayer was answered.

*              Jesus retired with his disciples to the lands of the Gentiles, in the region of Sidon and Tyre. There, a woman came to them shouting loudly: “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on me! My daughter is cruelly tormented by the devil.” Jesus heard her, but did not respond. St Augustine comments that Jesus did not answer her because he knew what she was to receive. He did not remain silent in order to refuse her, but so that she –through her humble persevering prayer– would merit the favor.

The woman insisted for a long time, and her persistence led our Lord to answer her using an image that she understood at once: “It is not right to take the children’s bread and cast it to the dogs.” He was telling her that he had been sent to the sons of Israel, and should not show preference for pagans.

With great humility, the woman replied: “It is true, Lord, but even the dogs can eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” She recognized her true place; she confessed as her lords those whom Jesus called children. The woman was transformed by humility, and deserved to sit at the table with the children. She conquered the heart of God. (F. Fernandez, In Conversation with God, 4, 51)

*              My God, teach me how to love; my God, teach me how to pray. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 66)

*              We must ask God for faith, hope, and charity, with humility, with persevering prayer, with upright behavior and a clean life. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 67)

*              God grants the humble man everything that he asks for in his prayer.  (St Basil, Admonitions to His Spiritual Children)

*              O Lord, my God, you are all my good; who am I, to dare speak to you?  I am the least, the poorest of your servants, nothing but a wretched little worm, far poorer and more insignificant than I know or dare to say.

Remember, O Lord, that I am nothing, have nothing, and can do nothing.

You alone are good, just, and holy.  You can do all things; grant all things; fill all things; leaving only the sinner empty of your graces.

Remember your mercies; fill my heart with your grace, for you do not want your works to remain empty.

How can I bear this wretched life, if you do not support me with your compassion and grace?

Do not turn your face away from me; do not delay in coming to me; do not take away your consolation from me, so that my soul may not be like a parched land, thirsty for you.

Lord, teach me to do your Will.  Teach me to live worthily and humbly in your presence.  You are my wisdom; you know me as I really am, and you knew me before the world was made, and before I was born into this world.  (Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, book 3, ch. 3)

THANKFULNESS

Humility toward God is also manifested by thankfulness, seeing God as the source of all the natural and supernatural gifts in us and in others.  Instead of crediting these gifts to ourselves, we refer all honor to God and also acknowledge that we have often misused these gifts.

The Humble Shall Be Exalted

*              Elizabeth praised Mary’s faith; our Lady sang a canticle in praise of humility. The first impression that one gets on reading the Magnificat is that everything it contains is true; its truth is quite obvious. It is only just that she should give thanks to God because He had done great things for her.

Why should Mary have been chosen from among millions of women to be –full of grace– the mother of the Messiah? It had never even occurred to her that she might be counted among the ancestors of the God made man, and she was unable to understand the mystery fully, although she knew what the mystery was.

She had not willed herself into existence, nor chosen to be a woman, nor chosen the race to which she would belong. God had arranged everything according to His own Will, and she, seeing this clearly, could hardly find words to show the extent of her thankfulness; she had to take them from Scripture.

Mary’s thankfulness was justified. It was true that God had done great things; it was her duty to recognize this, and be thankful for it. (F. Suárez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              There are many proud men who sit at the last places; with pride filling their hearts, they see themselves at the head of the others.  There are also many humble men seated in the first places who are convinced that they should be in the last seats.  (St John Chrysostom, Catena Aurea, 3, p. 106)

*              God exalts those who carry out his Will in the very same things in which he humbled them. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 771)

*              “He who exalts himself shall be humbled, and he who humbles himself shall be exalted.”  Not everyone who exalts himself before men is humbled, neither is everyone who humbles himself before men praised by them.  But he who boasts of his merit shall be humiliated by the Lord; and he who becomes humble by considering God’s benefits shall be exalted by him.  (St Bede, Catena Aurea, 6, p. 167)

*              All vices lead to hell, especially pride; all virtues lead to heaven, especially humility.  Thus, we understand why he who humbles himself is exalted.  (St John Chrysostom, Hom. On St Matthew, 15)

*              My son, strive after humility; it is the most sublime virtue, the ladder to ascend to the summit of perfection.  Resolutions are carried out only through humility; the labors of many years are reduced to nothing through pride.

The humble man resembles God, and carries him in the temple of his soul; the proud resembles the devil, and is hateful to God.

Even under a vile and insignificant appearance, the humble is glorious in virtue; even under a neat and exquisite appearance, the proud is fruitless in deeds.

The proud man is easily detected; his gait and gestures reveal his pride; his words disclose his superficiality.  He is always begging for praises; though poor in every virtue, he pretends to abound in them.  He hardly bears being subject to anyone; he always aims at being in the first place, and vies to rise still higher.  What he cannot obtain by merit, he grabs through ambition.  He always walks inflated, like a balloon; he is aimless, like a pilotless ship tossed by waves.

The humble person, on the contrary, eludes earthly honors, and holds himself as the least of men.  Although he looks unimportant, he is of great value in the eyes of God.  When he has done everything that God commanded him, he affirms that he has done nothing.  He is prompt to hide all the virtues of his soul, but the Lord unveils and discloses his works, and makes all his wonderful deeds known.  God will answer all his prayers and will glorify him.  (St Basil the Great, Admonitions to His Spiritual Children.)

*              The lower a heart drops through humility, the higher it rises toward perfection.  (St Augustine, Sermon on Humility and Fear of the Lord)

*              “Every valley is to be bridged, and every mountain and hill leveled” –the gifts rejected from the hearts of the proud enrich the humble ones.  (St Gregory the Great, Hom. 20 on the Gospels)

*              The more I am exalted, my Jesus, the more you must humble me in my heart, showing me what I’ve been and what I’ll be if you forsake me. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 591)

*              There is never a man richer, none with greater power, and greater freedom, than he who knows how to renounce himself and everything else, setting himself in the lowest place.  (Imitation of Christ, 2, 11, 5)

*              This building of ours is entirely founded on humility; thus, the closer one is to God, the humbler one should be.  Otherwise everything else is wasted.  (St Teresa, Life, 12, 2)

DEPENDENCE ON GOD

Humility toward God is manifested by a sense of dependence on him, seeing ourselves unable to do any good, without his help.  Thus, we implore God’s grace. Sanctity implies abandonment in God’s Will.

The Lord Is the Custodian of the Humble

*              Humility mainly implies a man’s subjection to God; for him, one also submits oneself to others.  (St Thomas of Aquinas, Summa Theologica, 2-2, q. 161. a.1)

*              Each day, O my God, I am less sure of myself and more sure of you! (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 729)

*              You, who see yourself so badly lacking in virtues, in talents, in abilities.... Do you not feel the desire to cry out like the blind Bartimaeus, “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me”?

What a beautiful aspiration for you to say very often, “Lord, have pity on me!”

He will hear you, and come to your aid. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 197)

*              Let us be humble if we do anything good; our good deeds should not fill us with pride.

God tells the humble through the words of the psalmist: “The Lord is the protector of the humble” (Ps 114:6).  (St Gregory the Great, Hom. 28 On the Gospels)

*              The truth is that, if we serve the Lord with humility, he will sooner or later assist us in our needs.  But, if we lack this virtue, the Lord will leave us to ourselves, as they say, at every step.  This is a great favor on his part, for it helps us to realize fully that we have nothing which has not been given us.  (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 38, 7)

*              Without the Lord you will not be able to take one sure step forward.  This conviction that you need his help will lead you to be more united to him with a strong, enduring confidence, accompanied by joy and peace, even though the road might become hard and steep. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 770)

*              God replies to the attitude which each person adopts to him; his reply depends directly on the person’s attitude, and is provoked by it.

The second part of the Magnificat refers to this clearly: “He hath showed might in his arm: he hath scattered the proud in the conceit of their heart. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble. He hath filled the hungry with good things; and the rich he hath sent empty away.”

God is attracted by the humble and repelled by the proud. Whoever is emptied of himself is capable of being filled completely by God; but whoever lives for himself and is filled with his own ego has no room for God.  God cannot fill him because he is already full.

When the apostle St James says: “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace to the humble,” he expresses that incompatibility between God and the proud. The point of contact between God and man is grace; and grace can enter only where there is room for it, and where it is invited. (F. Suárez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              It’s humble people God protects and preserves, whom he loves and comforts; he stoops down and gives them his grace lavishly, raising the humble man to heights of glory, as soon as humiliation has done its work.  Such a man he chooses for his confidant, beckons to him gently, and shares his life.  Only a humble man takes it calmly when he is out to the blush –what does it matter?  It is God, not the world, that gives him peace.  (Imitation of Christ, 2, 2, 3)

*              Whoever does not want to humble himself cannot be saved.  (St Bede, Comment. on the Gospel of St Luke, 1)

*              The designs of God –what he chooses to do, his Will, his actions, and his grace– are all one and the same thing. All these work together to enable us to reach perfection –as perfection is the soul’s faithful cooperation with God.

To become perfect we need not understand the designs of God, but only obey them.  If a person accepts God’s Will with all simplicity, he will reach perfection without ever realizing it –just as a sick man who swallows his medicine obediently will be cured, although he neither knows nor cares about medicine.  We need not know about the chemistry of combustion to enjoy the warmth of a fire.

Holiness is produced in us by the Will of God and our humble acceptance of it.  We must put all speculation aside and, with childlike willingness, accept all that God presents to us.  What God arranges for us to experience at each moment is the best and holiest thing that could happen to us. (J. de la Caussade, Abandonment to Divine Providence)

*              To be good and humble it is necessary to be in the right position before God, before our neighbor, and before ourselves.

Before God, the right position is that of Abraham, who said: “I am only dust and ashes before you, O Lord!”  We must feel small before God.

When I say, “Lord, I believe,” I am not ashamed to feel like a child before his mother; I believe in the Lord, in what He has revealed to me.  The commandments are at times a little difficult to observe; but God gave them to us not to satisfy a whim, not in His own interest, but solely in our interest.  We must be humble and fulfil them.

Once a man went to buy a car from the dealer.  The latter talked to him plainly: “Look here, it’s a good car; mind that you treat it well; premium gas in the tank, and oil of good quality for the engine.”

But the buyer replied: “Oh, no, for your information, I can’t stand the smell of gasoline, or oil; I’ll put champagne, which I like so much, in the tank and I’ll oil the engine with jam.”  “Do what you like; but don’t come and complain if you end up junking the car in a ditch!”

The Lord did something similar with us: He gave us this body, animated by an intelligent soul and a good will.  God said, “this machine is a good one, but treat it well...”  The commandments are for us what gasoline and oil for a car. If we are humble and observe the commandments, we will be better off, and so would the world.  (John Paul I, General Audience, September 6, 1978)

Divinization in the Good Sense: Becoming God-like

Humility is the basis of divinization (in the proper sense of the word): “A man becomes God,” writes St Clement of Alexandria, “because he loves whatever God loves.”#4  This divinization prevents us from falling into discouragement upon seeing our miseries, and allows us to begin again with the clear awareness of being children of God.

*              Christian existence should develop under the “umbrella” of God’s mercy. Ever mindful of that, the Christian should strive to behave as a child of God.

I am talking about the interior life of ordinary Christians who habitually find themselves in the hubbub of the city, in the light of day, in the street, at work, with their families or simply relaxing; they are centered on Jesus all day long. And what is this except a life of continuous prayer?

Isn’t it true that you have seen the need to become a soul of prayer, to reach intimacy with God that leads to divinization? (J. Escrivá, Christ Is Passing By, 8)

*              Together with humility, the realization of the greatness of man’s dignity –and the overwhelming fact that, by grace, we are made children of God– forms a single attitude. It is not our own forces that save us and give us life; it is the grace of God. This is a truth that can never be forgotten. If it were, the divinization of our life would be perverted and would become presumption, pride. And this would lead, sooner or later, to a breakdown of spiritual life, when the soul came face to face with its own weakness and wretchedness. (J. Escrivá, Christ Is Passing By, 133)

*              Shall I dare to say, “I am holy?”

If I mean by “holy” that I bring holiness and that I need no one to make me holy, I would be a liar and full of pride.

But if by “holy” I understand one who is made holy, as we read in Leviticus, “You will be holy, because I, God, am holy,” then the whole Body of Christ, down to the last man living at the ends of the earth, may dare say, together with its Head and under Him, “I am holy.” (St Augustine, Enarrationes in Psalmos, 85,4 PL 37,1084)

*              “Father,” said that big fellow, a good student at the Central#5 –I wonder what has become of him– “I was thinking of what you told me, that I’m a son of God!, and I found myself walking along the street, head up, chin out, and a feeling of pride inside –a son of God!”

With sure conscience I advised him to foster that “pride.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 274)

*              Give in?  Be just commonplace?  You, a sheep‑like follower?  You were born to be a leader!

Among us there is no place for the lukewarm.  Humble yourself and Christ will kindle in you again the fire of Love. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 16)

*              Dark clouds cover the sky of your life; you don’t feel like doing anything; then there is nothing to which you look forward.  A heavy downpour of sadness fell, and you experienced a strong sensation of being hemmed in.  And, to crown it all, discouragement set in, which grew out of a more or less objective fact; you have been struggling for so many years, and you are still so far behind, so far.

All this is necessary, and God is using these means; to attain gaudium cum pace, true peace and joy, we have to combine the realization of our personal weakness with the conviction of our divine filiation, which fills us with optimism. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 78)

*              When we’re working for God, we have to have a superiority complex –I told you.

But isn’t that a sign of pride? you asked me.  No.  It is a consequence of humility; the humility that makes me say, “Lord, you are who you are.  I am nothingness itself.  You have all the perfections: power, strength, love, glory, wisdom, authority, dignity.... If I unite myself to you, like a child who goes to the strong embrace of his father or sits on his dear mother’s knee, I will feel the warmth of your divinity, I will experience the light of your wisdom, I will sense your strength running through my veins.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 342)

*              If you feel, for whatever reason, that you cannot manage to go on, abandon yourself to God, telling him, “Lord, I trust in you, I abandon myself in you, but do help me in my weakness!”

And filled with confidence, repeat, “See, Jesus, what a filthy rag I am.  My life seems to me so miserable. I am not worthy to be a son of yours.”  Tell him all this...; and tell him so over and over again.

It will not be long before you hear him say, Ne timeas!, do not be afraid; and also, Surge et ambula!, rise up and walk! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 287)

Without God, Nothing

*              Depend on Jesus for everything.  You have nothing, are worth nothing, are capable of nothing.  He will act, if you abandon yourself to him. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 731)

*              No one can reach sanctity except through genuine humility.

Each one must show this humility, first toward his brothers, but also toward God.   You aspire to sanctity and run toward it; be convinced then, if God does not protect and help you at every instant, you will not possibly reach this goal.  (Cassian, Institutions, 12, 23)

*              A Christian always triumphs when he begins from the Cross, from his self‑renunciation, because he allows God’s omnipotence to act. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 995)

*              Our reason and other faculties are worthwhile only when they are used as instruments of God’s activity.

God’s action is boundless in its scope and power, but it can only fill our soul if we empty it of all false confidence in our own ability.  This false confidence can hinder the activity of God within us.

If it pleases him, God can change all obstacles into aids for our spiritual progress. (J. de la Caussade, Abandonment to Divine Providence)

*              Without God, all that remains of man’s greatness is that little pile of dust, in a dish, at one side of the altar, on Ash Wednesday.  It is what the Church marks us with –as though with our own substance– on our forehead. (J. Leclerq, A Year with the Liturgy)

*              Humility endows us with dignity; it inspires us with boldness, enterprise, and courage in the service of God.  Not being afraid to face the confusion and humiliation that accompany failure, we are always ready to undertake great enterprises for God’s glory. To attempt these enterprises while relying on our own powers alone would be the height of folly; to undertake them with confidence in the power of God is to exercise faith.

By ignoring our ego and placing ourselves entirely under the influence of what is divine, we become good instruments in the hands of the Holy Spirit for effecting his plans in ourselves, in others, and in the world. The more a man subjects himself to God, the more efficient he becomes.#6

*              Cast away that despair produced by the realization of your misery.  It’s true; financially you are a zero, and socially another zero, and another in virtues, and another in talent....

But to the left of these zeroes is Christ....  And what an immeasurable figure it turns out to be! (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 473)

*              When you want to do things well, really well, it’s then you do them worse.  Humble yourself before Jesus, saying to him, “Don’t you see how I do everything wrong?   Well, if you don’t help me very much, I’ll do it all even worse!

“Have compassion on your child; you see, I want to write a great page each day in the book of my life.  But I’m so clumsy that if the Master doesn’t guide my hand, instead of graceful strokes, my pen leaves behind blots and scratches that can’t be shown to anyone.

“From now on, Jesus, the writing will always be done by both of us together.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 882)

*              It was because of pride –you thought you were already capable of everything, all by yourself.

He left you for a moment, and you fell –headlong.

Be humble, and his extraordinary aid will not fail you. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 611)

*              They said: “It is madness to trust in God...!”

And is it not greater madness to trust in oneself, or in other men? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 44)

*              Why feel hurt by the unjust things people say of you?  You would be even worse, if God ever left you.

Keep on doing good, and shrug your shoulders. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 45)

*              You realize you are weak.  And so, indeed, you are.  In spite of all that –rather, because of it– God has sought you.

He always uses inadequate instruments so that the “work” may be seen to be his.

From you he asks only docility. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 475)

*              Although you say you follow him, in one way or another you always make sure that it is you who do things, according to your plans, relying on your strength alone.  But the Lord said: Sine me nihil! –Without me you can do nothing. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 697)

Magnanimity: Striving Higher

*              Some ask if magnanimity –having a valiant spirit– is compatible with humility.

Only a false humility shrinks the spirit and quenches the great desires that the Lord wants us to harbor.  Genuine humility is always crowned with magnanimity, daring to strive higher.

Humility shows itself in Jesus’ coming to serve, not to be served.  And magnanimity shows itself in the Lord’ coming to save all and each man; he gave his life as a ransom for all (cf. Mt 20:28).

Mary, Mother of God and our mother, is humble and magnanimous.  While she declares to be the “little slave girl of the Lord,” she acknowledges that all generations shall call her “blessed” for all the great things that the Mighty One did in her.  Mary will convince us that “nothing is impossible with God” (Lk 1:37).

Our humility is that of the donkey in the streets of Jerusalem carrying Christ, without deserving it.  The donkey is not an exceptional mount itself, yet it must admit that God is riding on its saddle.

If ever humility makes us feel clumsy and powerless to accomplish a noble act, magnanimity will make us feel all powerful, like St Paul shouting that he can do all things in Jesus.

Humility has its foundations in the honest appraisal of our own worth.  Reverence toward God and a right attitude toward neighbor both sprout from humility.  With the logic of the saints, the humble makes use of all the talents received from the Lord; trusting in him, he puts himself at the service of all men, with the eagerness to reach higher goals.  (J. Urteaga, AhoraComienzo!)

*              You told me, in confidence, that in your prayer you would open your heart to God with these words: “I think of my wretchedness, which seems to be increasing despite the graces you send me.  It must be due to my lack of correspondence. I acknowledge my lack of preparation for the enterprise you are asking of me.  By contrast, I read in the newspapers of so very many highly qualified and respected men, with formidable talents, and no lack of financial resources, speaking, writing, organizing in defense of your kingdom...

“I look at myself, and see that I’m a nobody –ignorant, poor– so little; this would fill me with shame if I did not know that you want me to be so.  But Lord Jesus, you know that I gladly put my ambition at your feet....

“In Faith and Love, to be loving, believing, suffering; in these things I do want to be rich and learned; but no more rich nor learned than you –in your limitless Mercy– have wanted me to be.  I desire to invest all my prestige and honor into fulfilling your most just and lovable Will.”

I then advised you: Don’t leave this merely as a wishful thinking. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 822)

*              Work with humility.  I mean, count first on God’s blessings, which will not fail you; then, on your good desires, on the plans you have for working –and on your difficulties!  Do not forget that you must always include among those difficulties your own lack of holiness.

You will be a good instrument if every day you struggle to be better. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 821)

FOOTNOTES:

1. St Thomas of Aquinas, S.Th., II-IIae, q.162, a. 6.

2. St Ambrose, De Exposit. In Ps. 118

3. John Paul II, Speech in Massabielle, Lourdes, 14-VIII-1983.

4. Paedagogus, 3, I, I, 5, PG 8,556.

5. The Central: This is how the Complutense University of Madrid was called at the time The Way was written.

6. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2, 2.

17

Humility toward Neighbor

We must value in others all the natural and supernatural qualities that the Lord has endowed them with; we must admire these qualities without envy or jealousy.

We must pray for them and help them in whatever way we can.  If advisable, we must practice fraternal correction; but we must disregard their defects, if it is not our duty to correct them.

It is easy to love our neighbor once the way to love has been opened by humility. The humble person will not be scandalized even by the obvious defects of others. He will be astonished at nothing; he will be able to understand everything.

*              What happened to Christ happens to his followers.  “All who want to live piously in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution” (2 Tim 3:12). To live piously in Jesus is to develop what is divine in our souls. This straightway leads to conflict with the opposing elements:

(a) what is undivine in others (external conflict); and,

(b) what is undivine in ourselves (internal conflict).

Thus, we have to suffer from ourselves and also from others.

The internal conflict ceases only when there is perfect conformity in our souls with Jesus through the entire sacrifice of ourselves to God.  Then what is divine will have completely invaded and taken possession of our souls. This is the peace–the crowning grace–prayed for in every Mass.

The external conflict will never cease until Jesus reigns absolutely over the world.  This will be attained only at the end of time.

We are bound to suffer in our relations with others, because, to the extent that God has not possessed their souls, they will act on the basis of principles that St Paul calls carnal.  These are principles of self-love and, therefore, of injustice; they cause wounds in others. To the extent that we are not for Christ, we too will act in a similar manner.

This natural world is the kingdom of darkness and of Satan, and, therefore, of disorder, conflict, and suffering.

To exist in the midst of this conflict is the condition of our fallen nature.  It is irrational to rebel against it; it is irrational to expect that we will not feel the effects of it every day and every hour of the day.

It is proper to the virtue of humility not to give way to bitterness; not to resent the wounds we receive in our relations with others; but rather to maintain our composure without complaining or murmuring about our condition.

The saints exercise humility thus, after the manner and example of the divine Master.  They look at everything that happens to them as being deserved; they look at it as being the logical outcome of things as they are.

Seeking order and justice themselves, the saints are not bitter when they encounter disorder and injustice in their world. While they strive to remedy it, they do not indulge in a passionate revolt against it.  Their resistance to disorder is not a self-indulgent giving way to their own feelings of anger and bitterness. The saints do not allow the disorder they fight against to provoke disorder in themselves.

Is there no truce to this disorder, no period of peace possible?  Yes, there is when what is divine in ourselves encounters what is divine in others; here there can be no conflict.  God cannot be in opposition with himself.  Between those in whom charity reigns there can be no opposition, no conflict.  This was St Paul’s ambition for his followers: “I ... exhort you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all humility and mildness, with patience, supporting one another in charity, careful to keep the unity of the Spirit, in the bond of peace” (Eph 4:1-3).#1

REJOICE AT YOUR NEIGHBOR’S SUCCESS

We rejoice at the virtues and success of others; these give glory to God.  We may desire to possess the spiritual goods (virtues) of our neighbor.

*              We shall tell the good Christian by his detachment from himself, from his deeds, and by the good opinion he has about the actions or words of his neighbor. (St John Vianney, Sermon on Pride)

*              The Lord upbraids our pride because we do not learn to appreciate a man for what he is; we only appreciate what is around him; we do not consider his interior worth, and fail to see the image of God in him.

A person proud of transient honors and attached to fleeting things does not esteem what is lasting and permanent in his neighbor.  (St Gregory the Great, Hom. 28, on the Gospels)

*              When they are in power, mediocre men –mediocre in mind and in Christian spirit– surround themselves with stupid people.  Their vanity persuades them falsely that thus, they will never lose control.

Sensible men, however, surround themselves with learned people who live a clean life; through their help, these learned people become men who can really govern.  Sensible men are not deceived by humility for, in making others great, they make themselves great. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 968)

HELPING YOUR NEIGHBOR

True humility is reflected in an attitude of service; out of charity, a Christian must give a hand to his brother to help him become better.

Humility leads us to listen to our neighbor and to respect his legitimate opinion.

If we see our neighbor committing some fault, instead of becoming indignant, we must pray for his repentance.  At that moment we should realize that, were it not for God’s grace, we will be committing greater sins ourselves.

Humility and Charity

*              These two virtues, humility and charity, are inseparable and indivisible; whoever is established in one necessarily acquires the other.  Humility is a part of charity, as charity is part of humility.

If you look at actions that, if done without charity, the Apostle called barren, you will notice that these are also fruitless if done without humility (cf. 1 Cor 13:1-3).

And right so; what fruit can science coupled with pride yield?  What conclusion faith with human glory?  What result alms with ostentation?  What merit martyrdom with conceit?

Humility and charity tend likewise to conquer pride; what has been said of one applies to the other.  (St Ambrose, Epist., Lib. X, Ad Demetriadem)

*              Humility is the dwelling place of charity.  (St Augustine, On Virginity, 51)

*              The most excellent way is that of love, but only the humble can walk along it.  (St Augustine, Comment. on Ps 141)

*              Humility preserves charity; pride destroys charity at once.  Thus, the Lord did not say:  “Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn from me, for I raised from the sepulcher those who were four days dead, and expelled demons from the bodies of men; I cured their diseases and work other similar wonders,” but rather said:  “Take my yoke upon your shoulders and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble of heart” (Mt 11:29).  Those miracles were signs of Christ’s divinity; charity is kept secure with a humble and meek attitude; this is something anyone can do.  (St Augustine, Comment. on the Ep. to the Galatians)

*              To be good and humble it is necessary to be in the right position before God, before our neighbor, and before ourselves.

We have seen how to behave with regard to God.  Then there is our neighbor.... But our neighbor is at three levels: some are above us; some are at our level; some are below.

Above, there are our parents.  The catechism says: Respect them, love them, obey them.  Giving them food and lodging is not enough, there is the heart; we must think of the heart of our old people.

And besides our parents, there is the state, there are superiors.  May the Pope recommend obedience?  Bossuet, who was a great bishop, wrote: “Where no one commands, everyone commands.  Where everyone commands, no one commands any longer; there is only chaos.”  So let us be humble and respect those who are our superiors.

Then there is the second level of humility with our equals.  Here, there are two virtues to observe: justice and charity.  But charity is the soul of justice.  We must love our neighbor, the Lord recommended it so much. I always recommend not only great acts of charity, but little ones. I read in a book, written by Carnegie, an American, entitled How To Make Friends, the following little episode.

A lady had four men in the house: her husband, a brother, and two grown-up sons.  She alone had to do the shopping, the washing, the ironing and the cooking: everything all alone.  One Sunday they come home.  The table is laid for dinner, but on the plate there is only a handful of hay.  “Oh!” the others protest and say:  “What! Hay!”  And she says, “No, everything is ready.  Let me tell you: I prepare food; I keep you clean; I do everything.  Never once have you said: `That was a good dinner you made for us.’  Say something! I’m not made of stone.”

People work more willingly when their work is recognized.  There are the little acts of charity.  In our home we all have someone who is waiting for a compliment.

The third level is that of those who are smaller than we are; they are the children, the sick, even those who do not believe in God.  I formed the idea that the unbelievers often combat not God, but the mistaken idea they have of God.  How much mercy it is necessary to have! And even with those who err.... (John Paul I, General Audience, September 6, 1978)

*              Do you feel as if goodness and absolute truth have been entrusted to you, and that, therefore, you have been invested with a personal title or right to uproot evil at all costs?

With that approach, you will never solve anything; only through Love and with love will you go anywhere; remember that Love has forgiven you and still forgives you so much. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 824)

*              How very insistent the Apostle Saint John was in preaching the mandatumnovum –the new commandment that we should love one another.

I would fall on my knees, without putting on any act –this is what my heart dictates– and ask you, for the love of God, to love one another, to help one another, to reconcile with one another, to know how to forgive one another.

Thus, reject all pride, be compassionate, show charity; help each other with prayer and sincere friendship. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 454)

Touchiness, Concern over One’s Rights

Humility is perfected by simplicity.  Manifestations of lack of simplicity are:  Touchiness, human respects (What will they think?), bad stubbornness in the interior life (one becomes closed as a clam), desiring always to give a good impression, to please others at all cost.

We must oppose those traits of our temperament, those personal inclinations, that impede our responding fully to all that God asks of us.

*              Why do you always think that everything they say has a hidden meaning?  By being so touchy, you are limiting the action of grace all the time.  And do not doubt that grace comes to you by means of those who fight to match their deeds to Christ’s ideal.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 711)

*              They ignored what you call your “rights,” which I translated for you as your “right to be proud.”  What a grotesque figure you cut.

Your attacker was powerful; you could not defend yourself; and you felt the pain of a hundred blows.

And despite it all, you have not learned to humble yourself.

Now your conscience accuses you; it calls you proud ...  and cowardly.

Give thanks to God because you are beginning to catch a glimpse of your “duty to be humble.” (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 698)

*              Don’t be touchy.  The least thing offends you.  People have to weigh their words to talk to you even about the most trivial matter.

Don’t feel hurt if I tell you that you are ...  unbearable.  Unless you change, you’ll never be of any use.  (J. Escrivá, The Way, 43)

The following quotation is directed to a religious community primarily, not to a Christian living in the middle of the world.  We all should be patient and fulfill our duties in earnest; nevertheless, an ordinary Christian should claim his civil rights using legitimate means.

*              I often tell you, sisters, and now I want to leave it in writing so that you will not forget, that everyone in this house–and for that matter anyone who wants to be perfect–must flee a thousand miles from saying: “I was right;” “They had no right to do this to me;” “The person who treated me like this was not right.”   May God deliver us from such a false idea of rights!

Do you think that it was right for our good Jesus to suffer so many offenses?  That those who heaped them on Him were right?  And that they had any right to do Him those wrongs?

If anyone here is not willing to endure the Cross–I do not know what she is doing in a monastery–if anyone wants to bear only the crosses that seem reasonable, she should go away from us; there outside, she will not have these rights safeguarded either.

May God keep us from being like that!   Let the sister who thinks she is counted the least among all, consider herself the happiest and most fortunate, as indeed she is, if she takes it as she should.  She will not be lacking honor either in this life or in the next.

Let us, my daughters, in some small degree, imitate the great humility of the most sacred Virgin.  I say, “in some degree,” because, however much we may seem to humble ourselves, we fall short of being the daughters of such a Mother, and the brides of such a Spouse, our Lord Jesus.

If, then, the thoughts I have described are not sternly checked, what seems nothing today, will perhaps be a venial sin tomorrow.  This sin is difficult to digest; if you don’t fight it, soon it will have company.  That is a very bad thing for a community.  (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 13, 1-3)

Humility and Service

All earthly ambitions must take second place to a continual concern of serving. Nothing is worthwhile, nothing has any substance, nothing is worth the effort in comparison to the mission of serving Christ our Lord, and serving him in others.

*              The world admire only the spectacular sacrifice, because it does not realize the value of hidden and silent sacrifice.  (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 185)

*              In your interior life, have you taken the time to consider the beauty of serving with actual willingness? (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 293)

*              The greater you think you are, the humbler you must be; and seek not only your own interest, but that of the others.  (St Clement, Letter to the Corinthians, 46)

*              The husband ought not to seek only his own interests, but also those of his wife; and she, those of her husband.  Parents must look after the interests of their children, and these in turn must look after the interests of their parents.

The family is the only community in which man is loved for himself, for what he is, and not for what he has.... Respect this fundamental norm; thus, nothing should be done out of spirit of rivalry, or for vainglory, but rather through humility, because of love, as the Apostle himself teaches.  And this love, which is opened up to others, makes members of the family true servants of the domestic church, where each and every one gives life to this love with an urgent search for good and happiness.  (John Paul II, Homily of the Mass for families, Nov. 2, 1982)

*              Being God and Lord, he is not ashamed of being called our Father.  What about us?  Are we available even to those of our own level? (St Gregory of Nazianzen, Dissertation 14)

*              If the Lord has given you some talent or skill, you should not just enjoy it yourself or boast about it; you should use it charitably in the service of your neighbor.

And what better occasion than now will you find to serve, since you live with so many souls who share the same ideal as yourself? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 422)

*              You feel you have been chosen by God to sustain others and to co‑redeem –I say, don’t forget that you are ... wretched and utterly so.  Now, your humility should lead you to place yourself under the feet –at the service– of all.  This is how the foundations of a building are set.

But foundations need to be strong.  Fortitude is an indispensable virtue for someone who has to sustain or encourage others.

Say this to Jesus with determination: “May I never, through false humility, stop practicing the cardinal virtue of fortitude.  Make me know how to separate, my God, the dross from the gold.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 473)

*              If you feel an impulse to be a leader, this should be your aim: to be the last among your brothers and the first among all others. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 365)

*              Positions–high or low–what does it matter to you?  You have come, you tell me, to be useful, to serve, with complete availability.  Behave accordingly. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 705)

Instruments in the Apostolate

The Lord has sent us like the servants of the parable to share in his work of redemption; he has made us his instruments to save men. And God wants to reward our cooperation even if the fruit is all his. Thus, to be effective, we need to be very united to God; and this requires humility.

The apostolate of a lay person is based on friendship with his peers. Without humility, our effectiveness will be in jeopardy; pride will set us apart from the others and prevent our understanding and helping the others.

*              God always uses humble people as his instruments. (St John Chrysostom, Hom. on St Matthew, 15)

*              “Vain is the builder’s toil, if the house is not of the Lord’s building” (Ps 127:1).  The Lord is the real builder of the house.  There are many working in the construction, but if the Lord is not building, the bricklayers’ toil is useless.

Who are the bricklayers?  All who spread the word of God in the Church and administer God’s sacraments.  We all labor, all work, all build; before us, others have also labored, worked, and built; but if the Lord is not the real builder, the workers’ effort is useless.  (St Augustine, Comment. on Ps 126)

*              Looking at the immense panorama of souls who are awaiting us, and being struck by the wonderful and awesome responsibility before us, you may have asked yourself, as I have: “Can I contribute anything, when the task is so vast? I, who am so puny?”

Open, then, the Gospel and contemplate how Jesus cures the man born blind: with mud made from the dust of the earth and saliva.  This is the medicine that brings light to those blind eyes!

That is what you and I are.  Though fully aware of our weaknesses and our worthlessness, with the grace of God and our good will, we can be medicine that gives light, that provides strength to others and to ourselves. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 370)

*              An apostolic soul said: “Jesus, take care of it all; you know what needs to be done.... I am not working for myself.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 371)

*              You insist on doing things your own way, and so your work is barren.

Obey; be docile.  Each cog in a machine must be put in its place.  If not, the machine stops, or its parts get damaged.  It will surely not produce anything, or if it does, then very little.  In the same way, a man or a woman outside his or her proper field of action will be more of a hindrance than an instrument of apostolate. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 666)

*              When you really trample on your own self and live for others, you will become a good instrument in God’s hands.

He called –and is calling– his disciples, commanding them uteatis! –”Go and seek all men.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 915)

*              Three important things that help draw people to God:

- To forget about yourself, and think only of the glory of your Father God;

- To subject your will filially to the Will of Heaven, as Jesus Christ taught you;

- To follow with docility the lights of the Holy Spirit. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 793)

*              Jesus says: “He who hears you hears me” (Lk 10:16).

Do you still think it is your words that convince people?  Don’t forget either that the Holy Spirit can carry out his plans with the most useless instrument. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 671)

*              “Don’t help the Holy Spirit so much!” a friend of mine said, jokingly but sounding very scared.

I answered: I think we “help him” very little. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 120)

*              The way Jesus called the first twelve could not have been simpler: “Come and follow me.”  The human knowledge of those first apostles was very poor, and yet what an impact they made on those who listened to them!

This consideration should fit you like a glove; you who are always looking for excuses not to keep on with your task.

Never forget this: It is He who keeps on doing the work through each one of us. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 189)

*              When you consider how many people do not take advantage of that wonderful opportunity, and let Jesus pass by, think:  Where did this clear calling –so providential– that showed me my way come from?

Meditate upon this every day:  An apostle always has to be another Christ, Christ himself. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 200)

*              A sure way to be humble is to contemplate how, even without talents, fame, or fortune, we can be effective instruments if we go to the Holy Spirit so that he may grant us his gifts.

The apostles, though they had been taught by Jesus for three years, fled in terror from the enemies of Christ.  But after Pentecost, they let themselves be flogged and imprisoned, and ended up giving their lives in witness to their faith. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 283)

*              Although you don’t amount to much, God has made use of you, and he continues to make use of you to perform fruitful works for his glory.

Don’t put on airs.  Think what an instrument of iron or steel would say about itself, when a craftsman uses it to set golden jewelry with precious stones? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 285)

*              What is of more value, a pound weight of gold or a pound of copper?... And yet in many cases, copper is more useful and better than gold. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 286)

*              Your vocation –God’s calling– is to direct, to draw others, to serve, to lead.  If through a false or ill‑conceived humility you isolate yourself, all huddled up in a corner, you are failing in your duty of being a divine instrument. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 287)

*              When the Lord makes use of you to pour his grace into souls, remember that you are only the wrapping round the gift, the paper that is torn up and thrown away. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 288)

*              It is true that some who become enthusiastic leave later on.  Don’t worry: They are the needle God makes use of to draw the thread through the cloth.

Oh, and pray for them, because perhaps one can manage to get them to keep giving an impetus to others. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 348)

*              When you are preparing for a work of apostolate, make your own these words of a man who was seeking God:  “Today I start to preach a retreat for priests.  Would that all of us draw profit from it –but, first of all, myself!”

And later: “I have been on this retreat for several days now.  There are a hundred and twenty on it.  I am sure that our Lord will do good work in our souls.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 662)

*              In their apostolate, the children of God have to be like those great lighting systems that fill the world with light, even if the lamp is not seen. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 670)

*              Dear Jesus, if I am to be an apostle, you will have to make me very humble.

Everything the sun touches is bathed in light.  Lord, fill me with your clarity, make me share in your divinity so that I may identify my will with your adorable Will and become the instrument you wish me to be.  Give me the madness of humiliation you underwent, which led you to be born poor, to work in obscurity, to the shame of dying sewn with nails to a piece of wood, to your self‑effacement in the Blessed Sacrament.

May I know myself; may I know myself and know you.  I will then never lose sight of my nothingness. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 273)

Fraternal Correction

We work surrounded by human beings with defects and failings.  Yet we must not be scandalized by anything, or be discouraged by other people’s shortcomings –for we also have defects. Humility leads us to understand, to forgive, and, if opportune, to help with fraternal correction.

*              If a brother commits some fault that needs correction, he should be corrected.  This must be done with charity and humility; the medicine applied to a sick person –perhaps with just a slight fever– should not cause in him a worse disease: blindness.  (Cassian, Institutiones, 8, 5)

*              The Lord did not prohibit us from denouncing and correcting the faults of others; he merely forbade us to minimize and forget our own sins when correcting those of our neighbor.  Thus, we should first examine our own defects carefully; then, we may correct those of the others.  (St John Chrysostom, Catena Aurea, 1, p. 421)

*              Fraternal correction results in improvement for the humble, but becomes intolerable for the proud.  (St Cyril, Catena Aurea, 6, p. 52)

*              When you have to make a fraternal correction, do it with great kindness –with charity– in what you say and in the way you say it, for at that moment you are God’s instrument. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 147)

*              A friend of yours, loyally and charitably, points out to you, on his own, certain things that tend to mar your behavior.  You are convinced that he is mistaken; that he does not understand you.  If that false conviction –born of your pride– remains, you will never change.

I pity you; you lack the determination to seek holiness.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 707)

*              What harm can it do, other people knowing about your weaknesses and correcting you?  Often it’s the best possible thing for you; it helps to keep you humble. (Imitation of Christ, II, 2, 1)

CONSIDERING ONESELF INFERIOR

Humility is based on reverence toward God; through that reverence we submit ourselves to those in authority. Humility demands our subjection to God directly, and our subjection to authority only on account of God.

“In humility, esteem the other person better than yourself” (Phil 2:3).  By judging ourselves severely, and others leniently, we learn to consider ourselves inferior to others.

*              We find it hard to be humble if we are conscious of the possession of any gifts; we have an incurable tendency to identify them with ourselves and rob God of his title to them. We shall learn to hold our gifts without harm to ourselves if we come to look upon them objectively, if I might be permitted to use the term.

What is the meaning of this? To hold our gifts objectively is to hold them as something independent of ourselves; to regard them with the same esteem in others as in ourselves. If gifts arouse in us the same emotions when seen in others as when they are in our own possession, then we have a correct attitude toward them.

Humility demands our subjection to God directly, and our subjection to man only on account of God. Loss of dignity would be involved in submitting ourselves to man as such, by reason of his qualities, personality, or our own weakness. This would be servility. Nothing is so opposed to servility as humility, and nothing is so protective of dignity.

Humility is based on reverence toward God, and it is through that sense of reverence that we submit ourselves to what is divine, whether in persons or in the order of things around us. Our attitude of respect and submission is dictated by our sense of the presence of God in men and things. Thus, we maintain our independence of men and owe subjection only to God; this is perfect freedom and true dignity.

Our obedience will be faithful, prompt and joyous, without trace of servility, if we look at the authority exercised by superiors as being exercised for God and coming from him; if we execute their directives influenced by this consideration solely. The superior who looks at his authority in the same way can be firm in demanding unquestioning submission, without lacking humility.

We can and should always be dignified, through awareness of the divine in ourselves, realizing that nothing from outside can harm or impair our dignity as children of God. On the contrary, all unjust ill treatment serves to enhance this dignity, for it develops the divine in us. Hence, if we are really humble, cherishing only what is of God, and not treasuring what is of self, we can never be humiliated. Our Lord suffered untold humiliations but never felt humiliated; in the midst of all he endured, he maintained his divine calm, dignity, and majesty.#2

*              You say that he is full of defects.  Very well ... but, apart from the fact that people who are perfect are found only in heaven, you too have defects, yet others put up with you and, what is more, hold you in esteem. That is because they love you with the love Jesus Christ had for his own, and they had a fair number of shortcomings.

Learn from this. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 758)

*              It is very helpful, for keeping ourselves in greater humility, that others know and correct our defects.

When a man humbles himself because of his defects, he sows peace around him, and easily satisfies those who are angry with him.

God protects and delivers the humble man; He listens to him; He loves and comforts him; He bestows abundant graces on him; and, after the humiliation, He raises him up to glory.  God reveals His secrets to the humble, and sweetly draws and invites him to Himself.

The humble man remains in great peace in the midst of reproach, for he depends on God, and not on the world.

Do not think that you have made any progress if you don’t consider yourself inferior to all.  (Thomas a Kempis, The Imitation of Christ, book 2, ch. 2)

*              Each one of you should consider his friends wiser and holier than himself; each one of you should be convinced that true and perfect discretion is more easily found in somebody else’s judgment than in his own. (Cassian, Collationes, 16, 11)

*              The defects you see in others are perhaps your own.  Si oculus tuus fuerit simplex ... ‑ If your eye is clear, the whole of the body will be lit up; whereas if the eye is diseased, the whole of the body will be in darkness.

Moreover, “how is it that you can see the speck of dust in your brother’s eye, and are not aware of the beam that is in your own?”

Examine yourself. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 328)

“I acknowledge my transgression,” says David (Ps 51:3; cf. 2 Sam 12:13).  If I admit my fault, then you, Lord, will pardon it.

Let us never assume that if we live good lives we will be without sin; our lives should be praised only when we continue to beg for pardon.  But men are hopeless creatures, and the less they concentrate on their own sins, the more interested they become in the sins of others.  They seek to criticize, not to correct.  Unable to excuse themselves, they are ready to accuse others.  This was not the way that David showed us how to pray and make amends to God, when he said: “I acknowledge my transgression, and my sin is ever before me.”  He did not concentrate on others’ sins; he turned his thoughts upon himself.  He did not merely stroke the surface, but he plunged inside and went deep down within himself, and therefore was not arrogant in asking to be spared. (St Augustine, Sermon, 19)

*              Claim nothing for yourself, think of others kindly and with admiration; that is the height of wisdom and perfection.  Never think of yourself better than the next man, however glaring his faults, however grievous his offenses; you are in good dispositions now, but how will they last?  Tell yourself, “We are frail, all of us, but none so frail as I.” (Imitation of Christ, 1, 2, 4)

*              Sisters, be very careful about your thoughts, especially if they have to do with precedence.  May God, by his Passion, keep us from expressing, or dwelling upon, such thoughts as these: “But I am her senior [in the Order];” “But I am older;” “But I have worked harder;” “But that other sister is being better treated than I am.”  If these thoughts come, you must quickly reject them.  If you dwell on them, or introduce them into your conversation, they will create havoc in your souls, like the worst plague.  (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 12, 4)

*              If you receive some insults, bear them patiently; this will help you to increase your love for the person despising you.  This is the acid test for knowing if a person is humble and holy.  He might work miracles, but if he feels disgusted, he is like a reed swaying in the breeze.

Father B. Alvarez used to say that the time of humiliations is the time to acquire treasures.  You will gain more by bearing an insult peacefully than by ten days fasting with bread and water.

The humiliations we inflict upon ourselves in front of others are good; to accept the humiliations we did not expect from others is better; here, there is less of ourselves and more of God–thus, greater profit if we endure them.

What sort of Christian is one incapable of enduring contempt for love of God?  How much scorn has Jesus suffered for us: slaps, mockeries, scourges, spittle on his face.  If we really love Jesus Christ, we will not feel indignant about humiliations, but will rejoice over them, seeing ourselves despised as Jesus was.  (St Alphonsus de Liguori, Spiritual Works)

*              Having a position of high authority, you would be imprudent to interpret the silence of those who listen to you as a sign of acquiescence.  Ask yourself whether you allow them to make suggestions, or whether you take offense if they actually let you know what they think.  You must change your ways.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 919)

*              Make sure that your good intentions are always accompanied by humility.  For good intentions often go together with harsh judgments, almost amounting to an incapacity to yield, and a certain personal, national, or sectarian pride. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 722)

*              You make such a mess of your own life; how can you be surprised if other people are not angels? (J. Escrivá, The Forge, n. 844)

*              Jesus, may I be the last in everything ... and the first in Love. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 430)

*              If you have so many defects, why are you surprised to find defects in others? (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 446)

*              Those who enjoy privilege –thanks to money, ancestry, rank, position, or intelligence– and abuse it by humiliating those who are less fortunate show that they are fatuous and proud. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 702)

*              You comment and criticize.  Without you, it seems, nothing is done properly.

Don’t be angry if I tell you that you are behaving like an arrogant despot. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 706)

*              For as long as you are convinced that others should always live as if they depended on you, and for as long as you delay the decision to serve –to hide yourself and disappear from view– your dealings with your brothers, colleagues, and friends will be a constant source of disappointment, ill humor, and pride. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 712)

*              Anyone who has a task of government should bear in mind that humility is his best exercise.  A physician in charge of several wounded is there to cure them all, without discrimination; his position should not make him domineering.  Likewise, one in charge of curing the souls of his brothers is there to serve them; he must discharge his assignment in earnest, because he will have to give an account of each of his brothers.  Thus, the greatest should become like the lowest. (St Basil, Catena Aurea, 6, p. 444)

*              If your imagination bubbles over with thoughts about yourself; if it creates fanciful situations and circumstances that would not normally find a place in your way; then these will foolishly distract you; they will dampen your ardor and separate you from the presence of God.  This is vanity.

If your imagination revolves around others, you will easily fall into the defect of passing judgment, when this is not your responsibility; you will interpret their behavior not at all objectively but in a mean way.  This is rash judgment.

If your imagination concerns itself with your own talents and ways of speaking, or with the general admiration that you inspire in others, then you will be in danger of losing your rectitude of intention, and of providing fodder for your pride.

Generally, letting your imagination loose is a waste of time, and, if it is not controlled, it opens the door to a host of voluntary temptations.

Do not leave off the practice of interior mortification for even a single day! (J. Escrivá, Furrow, n. 135)

*              For all your learning, all your fame, all your eloquence and power, if you’re not humble, you’re worth nothing.  Cut out that ego that dominates you so completely –root it out.  God will help you.  And then you’ll be able to begin to work for Christ in the lowest place in his army of apostles. (J. Escrivá, The Way, n. 602)

*              I suffered when I detected their good opinion of me; for I knew myself too well. (St Teresa, Life, 7, 1)

FOOTNOTES:

1. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2,2.

2. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2,2.

18

Humility toward Ourselves: Humility of Mind

In the practice of humility with regard to ourselves, we must take account of the talents we have received from God and thank him for them.  Taking account of our defects, our nothingness, sinfulness, and helplessness results in humility.

As Blessed J. Escrivá always taught, humility of mind does not mean remaining in a state of mediocrity in our profession, ordinary work, or spiritual life.  We must go as far as we can, with an upright intention, and without seeking ourselves.  We do not live for this world or for our own honor, but for God’s honor, for God’s glory, for God’s service; this should be our motivation!

Distrust of Self

Humility of mind implies a certain detachment from oneself, a distrust of self; in this way, we will not overrate our capabilities.  To reach this detachment, we must fight against pride, the desire of imposing upon other people, pettiness of character, and stubbornness.

*              I tremble out of Love.  Looking at my life, I see quite honestly that I myself am nothing, am worth nothing, and have nothing, that I can do nothing and, even more, that I am nothingness itself!  But he is everything and, at the same time, he belongs to me and I to him because he does not reject me and has given himself up for me.  Have you ever seen a greater love than this?

I tremble also out of sorrow, because when I look back at what I have done, I am amazed at the extent of my failings.  All I have done is to examine my behavior in the few hours since I woke up this morning to discover so much lack of love, so little faithful correspondence.  This truly saddens me, but it does not take away my peace of mind.  I prostrate myself before God and I state my situation clearly.  (J. Escrivá, Friends of God, 215)

*              In speaking, no one should trust in himself; in hardships, no one should rely on his strength.  When we speak with rectitude and prudence, our wisdom comes from God; when we endure suffering with fortitude, our patience is also his gift. (St Augustine, Sermon 276)

*              You wrote what I am now copying out: “Domine, tu scis quia amo te! –Lord, you know that I love you!  How very often, Jesus, I repeat again and again those words your dear Cephas uttered, as a bitter sweet litany.  For I know that I love you, and yet I am so very unsure of myself that I cannot bring myself to say it to you clearly.  There are so many denials in my wicked life.  Tu scis, Domine! –You know that I love you.  May my actions, Jesus, never go against these yearnings of my heart.”

Keep up this prayer of yours, and he will certainly hear you. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 176)

*              In a letter addressed to his spiritual director on matters of conscience, Blessed J. Escrivá, the Founder of Opus Dei, wrote: “... As days go by, I see more clearly that this is what our Lord wants for me: to remain hidden and to disappear.”  Thus, he set his own motto: “My part is to remain hidden and to disappear;” and, “My part is to remain hidden and to disappear, and to let Jesus alone shine.”

Humility pervaded his soul, as if soaking his entire being.  Thus, he contemplated the donkey as the embodiment of virtues that one must carry to the level of Christian life.

The donkey, a patient and obedient animal, reminded him of hard work, faithful obedience to the suggestions of divine grace, and silent and hidden mortification.  Even more, before God, Msgr. Escrivá saw himself as a hawker’s crippled donkey, covered with scabs and saddle galls.  In his humility, he signed his personal notes or letters to his confessor adding to his name the letters “s.d.” (“scabby donkey”).  He did not trust himself. (A. Vázquez Prada, El Fundador del Opus Dei)

*              Ask the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, and your Mother to make you know yourself and weep for all those foul things that have passed through you, and which, alas, have left such dregs behind...  And at the same time, without wishing to stop considering all that, say to him: “Jesus, give me a Love, like a purifying fire, in which my miserable flesh, my miserable heart, my miserable soul, my miserable body may be consumed and cleansed of all earthly wretchedness.  And when I have been emptied of my ego, fill me with yourself.  May I never become attached to anything here below.  May Love always sustain me.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 41)

*              One day, it is said, St Thomas Aquinas was reprimanded for a supposed grammatical error.  He corrected it as indicated.  Later, his companions asked him why he had introduced the correction since he himself knew that the original text was faultless.  “Before God,” the saint replied, “better a fault of grammar than a fault of obedience and of humility.” (F. Fernandez, In Conversation with God, 4,51)

*              How difficult it is to live humility!  As the popular wisdom of Christianity says, “Pride dies twenty‑four hours after its owner.”

So when you think you’re right, but you are told you’re wrong by someone who has been given God’s grace to guide your soul, convince yourself that you are completely wrong.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 599)

*              Is there anything more displeasing than a child acting the grown‑up?  How can a poor man –a child– be pleasing to God if he “acts grown‑up,” puffed up by pride, sure that he’s worth something and trusting only in himself? (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 597)

*              Here is a good way of doing an examination of conscience:

- Have I accepted in a spirit of atonement the difficulties that have come to me this day from the hand of God, or those that came from the behavior of my colleagues, or from my own wretchedness?

- Have I managed to offer our Lord in expiation the very sorrow I feel for having offended him so many times?  Have I offered him the shame of all my inner embarrassment and humiliation at seeing how little progress I make along the path of virtue? (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 153)

Humility in Spiritual Direction

The humble prepare themselves to receive the grace of God; they use the ordinary means of sanctification.  For them the grace of God is effective.  The sure way of making personal problems fade away, of recovering interior peace, and of finding lights in our interior life is to be humble and sincere in spiritual direction; we must docilely follow the advice we are given.

*              Go to spiritual direction with greater humility each time.  And go punctually, for that is also humility.

See yourself –and you will not be mistaken, because God speaks to you there– as a very sincere little child who is being taught to speak, to read, to know the names of flowers and birds, to experience joys and sorrows, to notice the ground he is treading on. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 270)

*              Do all you can to discuss your interior life with someone who can give you light; hide no secrets from him. (St Teresa, The Way of Perfection, 39, 5)

*              We may experience times when the Lord seems hidden from our view.  He probably wants us to look for him with greater love, with greater humility, with greater abandonment to the counsels of our spiritual director.  If we make the effort required we will always come to discover the most lovable face of Christ. (F. Fernandez Carvajal, In Conversation with God, 4, 31)

*              If the outlook in your interior life and in your soul is darkened, allow yourself to be led along by the hand, as a blind man does.

In time, the Lord will reward this humble surrendering of your own judgment by giving you clarity of mind.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 241)

*              How shall we be able to overcome our meanness?  Let me make the point again because it is so important: by being humble and by being sincere in spiritual direction and in the sacrament of penance.  Go to those who direct your souls, with your hearts open wide.  Do not close your hearts, for if the dumb devil gets in, it is very difficult to get rid of him.

Forgive me for insisting on these points, but I believe it is absolutely necessary for you to have deeply impressed on your minds the fact that humility, together with its immediate consequence, sincerity, is the thread that links the other means together.  These two virtues act as a foundation on which a solid victory can be built.  If the dumb devil gets inside a soul, he ruins everything.  On the other hand, if he is cast out immediately, everything turns out well; we are happy and life goes forward properly.  Let us always be brutally sincere, but in a good mannered way.

I want one thing to be clear: I am not as worried about the heart or the flesh as I am about pride.  Be humble.  If ever you think you are completely and utterly right, you are not right at all.  Go to spiritual direction with your soul wide open.  Don’t close it, I repeat, the dumb devil will get in, and it is difficult to get him out again.  (J. Escrivá, Friends of God, 188)

*              Humility is the virtue that helps us to know at the same time our weakness and our greatness.  There is no spiritual book, no saint, that has not stressed the extreme importance of humility, since it is the magnet which irresistibly attracts God.  It is imperative, then, to acquire humility.  But how?

Perhaps the simplest way to learn to be humble is the same way as one learns to walk.  Children learn to walk simply... by walking.  Since humility is truth, we will be humble according as we are truthful; and the surest way–perhaps the shortest and fastest way–is to be sincere.

Sincerity is a subject discussed rather infrequently, but nevertheless we must say something of it here.  To be sincere means always to tell the truth; not only the truth, but the whole truth.  This is very difficult at times, and often needs bravery and courage bordering on heroism.  This in no exaggeration.

Sincerity often makes us reveal many little things about ourselves that often make us more ashamed than bigger, but less intimate, matters.  We must be sincere, above all, with God; but also with ourselves, in the depths of our own conscience.  There is a very human tendency in all of us, too exclusively human to be completely good–to make a good impression and not a bad impression.  That is why we are so clever at inventing excuses, justifications, explanations, mitigations.  “You never want `to get to the bottom of things.’ At times, because of politeness.  But always because of fear!”#1

Most of the time we lie because of the fear of being caught in something not quite perfect, to hide the things that make us ashamed or embarrassed or might provoke criticism from others.  Since lying is a direct attack on humility, because it causes a deep falsification of truth deep within us, only a ruthless sincerity, without fear of anyone or anything, can lead us directly to true humility.

It does not matter that we cannot always keep up appearances; after all, we are what we are and it is foolish to try to fool anyone.  What is important is that God should be satisfied with us and that we remain on good terms with him.

There is an intimate connection between the concept of humility and justice.  No one has the right to keep what is not his; and if with an excuse, with a cunning explanation, we hide what should be revealed, we may appear good in the eyes of men, but have still kept something that is not ours, that we do not deserve; we have been unjust.  “Look at the clear jewel of truthfulness.  Could it be true that it has fallen into disuse? Has the practice of compromise, of covering up and putting on triumphed definitely? People fear the truth.  For this reason they have recourse to a petty way out: They say that no one lives or tells the truth, that everyone resorts to simulation and lies.”#2

It is not men, but God, who will judge us.  How easy it is, however, for subtle temptations to spring from the depths of our nature, to smooth over what is rough.  We have a strange tendency not to admit with any clarity the things that displease us.

The man who is not sincere is like a sick man who is developing cancer and says nothing about it, trying to convince himself that there is nothing wrong with him.  At times it is a mere insignificant detail which tinges our acts; nothing to worry about, we think.  It may be, but the sooner we accept and recognize it, the better.  The harder a thing is to say, the more determined we should be to reveal it–to the right person, of course: God, ourselves, our confessor or spiritual director.

Then we will really begin to know ourselves, and to see the unfathomable capacity we have for evil.  Then, when we turn our sins over and over in our minds, like dirty clothes pulled out of the bottom of our souls to be thrown away, we realize how few motives we have for being vain; what would happen if the rest of the world knew what we and God know about ourselves!

Of all the human virtues, sincerity is clearly the most important, and the one which requires most attention.  It is so important because, from its very essence, it leads directly to the supernatural virtue of humility, and humility is the necessary and indispensable foundation for all interior growth, since this growth is the work of grace.  (F. Suárez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

Forgetting Oneself

In using our talents, we must not show off our abilities, seeking to be praised, and hunting for human compensations; we must try to pass unnoticed and disappear, to be useful and serve.

Service must in no way be considered burdensome; it must be joyful.  At times, we may be tempted to think that we are not progressing in the spiritual life; a humble person rejects these appraisals and abandons himself in God.

*              Don’t miss a chance to “give in.”   It’s hard –but how pleasing in the eyes of God! (J. Escrivá, The Way, 177)

*              Give thanks, as for a very special favor, for that holy abhorrence that you feel toward yourself.  (J. Escrivá, The Way, 207)

*              After losing those human consolations, you are left with a feeling of loneliness, as if you were hanging by a thin thread over the emptiness of a black abyss.  And your cries, your shouts for help, seem to go unheard by anybody.

The truth is you deserve to be so forlorn.  Be humble;  don’t seek yourself; don’t seek your own satisfaction.  Love the cross –to bear it is little– and our Lord will hear your prayer.  And in time, calm will be restored to your senses.  And your heart will heal, and you will have peace.  (J. Escrivá, The Way, 726)

*              Now that you’ve got a lot to do, your “problems” have disappeared.  Be honest; since you have made up your mind to work for Him, you no longer have time to think about your own selfish interests.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 515)

*              Each day renew the effective desire to humble yourself, to deny yourself, to forget yourself, to walk in novitatesensus, with a new life, exchanging this misery of ours for all the hidden and eternal grandeur of God.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 97)

*              Lord, rescue me from myself! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 120)

*              Make sure you practice the mortification of not making your conversation revolve around yourself.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 152)

*              “To myself, with the admiration I deserve,” he wrote on the first page of a book.  Many other miserable souls might easily write the same thing on the last page of their life.

What a pity if you and I were to live or end up like this–let us make a serious examination of conscience.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 719)

*              Don’t be anxious for people to sympathize with you.  That is often a sign of pride or vanity.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 478)

*              Make a resolution: unless I really have to, never to speak of my personal concerns.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 601)

*              You are not happy because you make everything revolve around yourself as if you were always the center; you have a stomachache, or you are tired, or you have been told this or that.

Have you ever tried thinking about Him, and through Him, about others? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 74)

*              You said: “The self has to be decapitated...”  But it’s hard, isn’t it? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 279)

*              Sadness and uneasiness grow in proportion to the time you waste.  When you feel a holy impatience to use every minute, you will be filled with joy and peace, because you will not be thinking of yourself.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 510)

*              Worries?...  I have no worries, for I have enough concerns to keep me busy.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 511)

*              Most people with personal problems “have them” because they selfishly think of themselves.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 310)

*              How anxious people are to get out of place!  Imagine what would happen if each bone and each muscle of the human body wanted to occupy some position other than its own.

There is no other reason for the world’s unhappiness.  Continue where you are, my son; right where you are...  How much you’ll be able to work for the true kingdom of our Lord! (J. Escrivá, The Way, 832)

[At the presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple]

*              It did not matter at all to St Joseph whether he fulfilled a role which seemed to place him in obscurity or, indeed, any other role, if it came to that, so long as it was what God wanted of him.

His attitude–habitual in him, one would say–of remaining in silence, of quietly contemplating from the shadows all that concerned the Son and the Mother, also carries a lesson for us from which we may profit, if we know how to apply it to our own lives.

This humble man never did anything to attract attention to himself (something that we–at least most of us–cannot say of ourselves), nor was he in the slightest concerned about whether posterity would hear anything of him or not.  Attending to what he had to do, he did not have time for immature preoccupations with himself.  His humility freed him from that type of leprosy which attacks men, or some men, to the point of disfigurement; the disease of obsessive preoccupation with one’s own doings or one’s own reputation.  To what lengths will some people not go to preserve intact and untarnished their artificial “image”?

Joseph: a man indistinguishable from the others, the last person to attract the attention of his contemporaries; a man who passed unnoticed among other men, and was happy to be no more than he was.

This is what really matters.  There are men who need to be perpetually on display; they have to make a show of their talents, their courage, their intelligence, their abilities, their character, or their competence; they are incapable of believing themselves of some worth unless others affirm this by means of public recognition and applause.  They do not appear to be completely convinced of their own existence unless they see their names in the paper, or unless everybody is speaking about them.  They need to see themselves reflected in others, as in a mirror, in order to assure themselves that they indeed are–as if their very personalities were dependent on advertising.  A man’s personality, however, resides in what he is, not in what he possesses, much less in what others think or say of him.  Personality does not lie outside of oneself but in the center of one’s being.  (Federico Suárez, Joseph of Nazareth, 9)

*              It is sad that you do not want to remain hidden as a foundation stone and support the building.  But to become a stumbling block for others? I think that is villainous! (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 533)

*              Forget about yourself.  May your ambition be to live for your brothers alone, for souls, for the Church; in one word, for God.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 630)

*              How can you pretend to follow Christ, if you only revolve around yourself? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 700)

*              You feel lonely; everything annoys you, and you complain.  That is because you are isolated from your brothers by your selfishness, and because you do not come closer to God.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 709)

*              You fulfill a demanding plan of life; you rise early, pray, frequent the sacraments, work or study a lot, are sober, and mortified ...  but you feel that something is missing.

Consider this in your conversation with God:  Holiness–or the struggle to achieve it–is the fullness of charity; thus, you must look again at your love of God and your love of others for His sake.  Then you may discover, hidden in your soul, great defects that you have not even been fighting against.  You may not be a good son, a good brother, a good companion, a good friend, a good colleague.  And, if you love “your own holiness” in a disordered manner, you are envious.

You “sacrifice” yourself in many small “personal” details, but in this way, you are attached to your ego, to your own person.  Deep down you do not live for God or for others, but only for yourself.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 739)

*              Sometimes you try to rationalize, saying that you are distracted or absent‑minded, or that it is your character to be dry and reserved.  That, you add, is why you don’t even know very well the people you live with.

Listen, isn’t it true that this excuse doesn’t really satisfy you? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 755)

*              It was hard for you to get rid of those trivial worries of yours, and forget about those desires for personal achievements; paltry and sparse desires, but deeply rooted.

In exchange, you are sure now that you are interested and concerned about your brothers, and only about them, for you have learned to discover Jesus Christ in your neighbor.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 765)

*              May you acquire the custom of helping others every day, and give yourself to this task to the extent that you forget you even exist.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 947)

*              This is the true humility of the faithful Christian:   Be proud of nothing, criticize no one, do not be ungrateful, and do not protest or complain.  Thank God, and praise him always for everything that happens to you.  (St Anselm, Comm.  in 1 Thess., ch. 5)

*              Do you entertain a spirit of opposition, of contradiction?  Very well, exercise it by opposing and contradicting yourself.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 998)

*              Uproot self‑love, and plant love for Jesus Christ.  That is the secret of effectiveness and happiness.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 696)

*              When a person really lives charity, there is no time left for self‑seeking.  There is no room left for pride.  We will not find occasion for anything but service! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 683)

*              Lord, grant me the grace to give up everything that has to do with myself.  I should have no other concern than your Glory –in other words, your Love.  Everything for Love! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 247)

*              Many who would let themselves be nailed to a cross, before the astonished gaze of thousands of spectators, won’t bear the pinpricks of each day with a Christian spirit!

But think, which is the more heroic? (J. Escrivá, The Way, 204)

*              Don’t expect people’s applause for your work.

What is more, sometimes you mustn’t even expect other people and institutions who also work for Christ to understand you.

Seek only the glory of God and, while loving everyone, don’t worry if there are some who don’t understand you.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 255)

*              You saw it quite clearly; while so many people do not know God, he has looked at you.  He wants you to be part of the foundations, a firm stone upon which the life of the Church can rest.

Meditate upon this reality and you will draw many practical consequences for your ordinary behavior; the foundations, made of blocks of stone –hidden and possibly rather dull– have to be solid, not fragile.  They have to serve as a support for the building.  If not, they are useless.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 472)

*              Our humiliation, our self‑effacement, our disappearing and passing unnoticed, should be complete, entire, total.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 592)

*              Our lives can effectively coredeem, in an eternal way, only if we act with humility, passing unnoticed, so that others can discover Him.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 669)

*              Renew in your own soul the resolution that friend of ours made long ago: “Lord, what I want is suffering, not exhibitionism.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 765)

*              I advise you not to look for praise, even when you deserve it.  It is better to pass unnoticed, and to let the most beautiful and noble aspects of our actions, of our lives, remain hidden.  What a great thing it is to become little!  Deoomnis gloria!–all the glory for God.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 1051)

*              After a day’s work, the Founder of Opus Dei used to take an incredibly meager supper; he attended the evening get-together and afterward immediately began the examination of conscience.  “When night comes and I do my examination of conscience,” he told his children, “I finish my accounting and tally the balance.  Do you want to know the result?  Pauper servus et humilis!”–a poor and humble servant.  (A. Vázquez de Prada, El Fundador del Opus Dei)

We Are Instruments.

A humble person works only to please God, without being ambitious for human glory.  Some see work as a way of winning honors, of acquiring power or wealth to satisfy their personal ambition, or as a way of indulging their pride by showing their capacity for work.  We must see work and apostolate as an opportunity to please God and serve men for love of God; we are God’s instruments.

Social relations and friendships spring up in the course of our work.  We can be certain of our rectitude of intention if we make use of these occasions to bring souls closer to God.

*              The entire biography of Msgr Escrivá can only be explained and understood considering a precise plan of God.  God went across his existence and configured him as His instrument, chosen to remind mankind what He Himself engraved in his soul.  And this is the deep conviction that the Holy Spirit engraved in him: to seek personal sanctity in the middle of the world.

Full of sincerity, Blessed Josemaría Escrivá used to say, “I am a sinner who loves Jesus Christ.” This expression revealed his humility and lack of self-love.  His awareness of being an instrument was as far from pride as from false humility.  He rejected false humility–an inordinate self-depreciation, a caricature of virtue–calling it humildad de garabato; it was irreconcilable with his right perception of the dignity of man. Influenced by his realistic theological sense, he used to repeat that he did not give any credit to an idea of humility understood as human faintheartedness or as a perpetual condemnation to sadness: “If we accept the responsibility of being children of God, we will realize that God wants us to be very human.  Our heads should indeed be touching heaven, but our feet should be firmly on the ground.  The price of living as Christians is not that of ceasing to be human or of abandoning the effort to acquire those virtues which some have even without knowing Christ.#3

I seem to hear Msgr. Escrivá’s repeating always with convinced persuasion: “I have nothing, I am worthy of nothing, I can do nothing, I know nothing, I am nothing; nothing!”  He entrusted everything to God, seeing Him as a very good Father.

But he never forgot the duty –common to all of us– of preparing ourselves to be better instruments in the hands of this our most lovable God.  God has chosen us as free cooperators in his work of redemption.

Instrument of God, only an instrument of God; it is worthwhile to emphasize this profound conviction of Msgr. Escrivá when speaking of his humility.  St Paul’s teaching on this matter was always present in his preaching: “God has chosen the foolish things of the world to put to shame the `wise,’ and the weak things of the world has God chosen to put to shame the strong, and the base things of the world and the despised has God chosen, and the things that are not, to bring to naught the things that are; lest any flesh should pride itself before him” (1 Cor 1:27-28).

“Thus, my daughters and sons, when you think you have worked a lot at the service of God, repeat the words he taught us: serviinutiles sumus; quod debuimus facere, fecimus–we are useless servants, we have done what was our duty to do (Lk 17:10).”#4

Hardly three years ago, facing the regrettable crisis of obedience present in not a few Catholics, he again insisted: “Especially in the things of God, when one has the clear awareness of working for a supernatural undertaking, it is natural and not at all humiliating –it is spontaneous– to feel oneself like an instrument; one does his best to follow the divine promptings, without being willing to do one’s will.  As I wrote to you in the first years, we are like the brush in the hands of the artist.”#5

I just read, “To do all our best to follow the divine promptings;”  our Father’s humility and love have generously been at work in that effort during more than fifty years: “After these fifty years –he told us on the eve of the anniversary his priestly ordination, March 27 1975– I feel I am babbling like a small child. Every day I am beginning and beginning again.  And thus until the end of my days: always beginning again.  God wants it this way, so that none of us will have any motive for pride, or foolish vanity.  We must be attentive to God, to His lips; our ears must be alert to hear, our will ready to respond, ready to follow the divine promptings.”#6

Love and humility were the two components always present in the holy life of Msgr Escrivá; these infused his prayer and his action with a filial daring.  The result was that continuous beginning and beginning again of his interior life; he went through his life pursuing the route of the prodigal son: always going back –with absolute confidence– to the mercy of God the Father.  This is how the instrument gives all the glory to God; Deoomnis gloria!–All the glory to God! he used to repeat.  This is the magnificent horizon opened clear for the instrument who knows he is nothing and for whom God is everything.  (A. del Portillo, Academic Lecture Instrumento de Dios, June 26 1976)

*              A journalist from Rhodesia [Zimbabwe] was converted upon hearing Msgr J. Escrivá’s preaching.  On February 4, 1975, when the Founder of Opus Dei was about to fly to Venezuela, the newsman boarded the plane to thank the prelate for his conversion.

“Give thanks to the Lord, not to me,” the Founder replied.  Since the journalist insisted, Msgr Escrivá continued:  “Do not thank me.  God writes a letter, puts it in an envelope.  Then the letter is taken out of the envelope, and the envelope is thrown to the trash can.”  (A. Vázquez de Prada, El Fundador del Opus Dei)

*              The more a tree is laden with fruit, the more it bends its branches to the ground.  So too with us; the more abundant our good deeds, the deeper we should humble ourselves, feeling unworthy of being instruments of God to do good.  A good Christian can be recognized only by his humility.  (St John Vianney, Sermon on Pride)

*              Be an instrument of gold or of steel, of platinum or of iron –big or small, delicate or rough.  Each one is useful.  Each serves its purpose.  Who would dare say that the carpenter’s saw is any less useful than the surgeon’s scalpel?

Your duty is to be an instrument.  (J. Escrivá, The Way, 484)

*              My son, you can do nothing on the supernatural level through your own strength; whereas when you become God’s instrument, you can do everything.  Omnia possum in eo qui me confortat!–I can do all things in him who strengthens me.  For in his goodness, he wishes to use inadequate instruments, like you and like me.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 232)

*              “We are useless” is a pessimistic and false statement.  If we want to, with the help of God, which is the first and fundamental requirement, we can become useful, as a good instrument, for many enterprises.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 725)

*              My child, my little donkey: If the Lord, with Love, has washed your grimy back, so accustomed to the muck, and has laid a satin harness upon you, and covered you with dazzling jewels, don’t forget, poor donkey, that with your faults you could throw that beautiful load on to the ground...  But on your own, you couldn’t put it back on again.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 330)

*              I understood you very well when you ended up saying: “Quite honestly, I haven’t even made the grade of being a donkey–the donkey that was the throne of Jesus when he entered Jerusalem.  I’m just part of a disgusting heap of dirty tatters that the poorest rag‑picker would ignore.”

But I told you: “All the same, God has chosen you and wants you to be his instrument.  Seeing yourself so miserable–a genuine fact–should be one more reason for you to thank God for his calling.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 607)

*              When human beings have work to do, they try to use the right tools for the job.

If I had lived in another century, I would have written with a quill pen; now I use a fountain pen.

But when God wants to carry out some piece of work, he uses unsuitable means, so that it can be seen that the work is his.  You have heard me say this very often.

So you and I, who are aware of the massive weight of our failings, should tell him: “Lord, wretched as I am, I still understand that, in your hands, I am a divine instrument.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 610)

*              Get rid of those proud thoughts!  You are but the brush in the hand of the artist, and nothing more.

Tell me, what is a brush good for if it doesn’t let the artist do his work? (J. Escrivá, The Way, 612)

*              It is proper of humility and of Christian responsibility not to transmit our own opinions to our successors, but to preserve and transmit what we have received from our ancestors.  (St Vincent of Lerins, Commonitorium, 6)

*              Faced with the marvels of God, and with all our human failures, we have to make this admission: “You are everything to me.  Use me as you wish!”

Then, for you–for us–there will be no more loneliness.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 751)

[Interview with Mother Teresa of Calcutta:]

Q.  What did you do this morning?

- Pray.

Q.  When did you start?

- Half past four.

Q.  And after prayer?

- We try to pray through our work by doing it with Jesus, for Jesus, to Jesus.  That helps us put our whole heart and soul into doing it.  The dying, the crippled, the mentally ill, the unwanted, the unloved–they are Jesus in disguise.

Q.  Does the fact that you are a woman make your message more understandable?

- I never think like that.

Q.  Humble as you are, it must be an extraordinary thing to be a vehicle of God’s grace in the world.

- But it is his work.  I think God wants to show his greatness by using nothingness.

Q.  You feel you have no special qualities?

- I don’t think so.  I don’t claim anything of the work.  It is God’s work.  I am like a little pencil in his hand.  That is all.  He does the thinking.  He does the writing.  The pencil has nothing to do with it.  The pencil has only to be allowed to be used.  In human terms, the success of our work should not have happened, no?

Q.  What is God’s greatest gift to you?

- The poor people.

Q.  How are they a gift to you?

- I have an opportunity to be 24 hours a day with Jesus.

Q.  What are your plans for the future?

- I just take one day.  Yesterday is gone.  Tomorrow has not come.  We have only today to love Jesus.

Q.  And the future of the order?

- It is his concern. (Time, December 4, 1989, pp. 48-49)

[Msgr J. Escrivá, speaking with a group of older members of Opus Dei in Brazil, reminded them of their grave responsibility as cofounders of the Work.]

*              When we write, we use a pen.  Our Lord, however, writes with a table leg, and he writes marvelously, so that it can be seen that it is his doing, not the table leg’s...

I am making it quite plain that I am nothing but a poor instrument–ut iumentum factus sum apud te–like a little donkey before God, a little donkey pulling the cart...

You must really put your shoulders to the task, cheerfully and enthusiastically.  And even when you do not feel enthusiastic, just the same.

“Father, have you often felt enthusiastic?” At this moment, it is as if God was giving me enthusiasm; I was looking at you...  But for the greater part of these forty-seven years, I have worked without enthusiasm, because the work had to be done and it was my duty to be his instrument; a bad one, but an instrument.  I had to allow God to work and so I could not abandon the task.  I couldn’t step aside and say: “I don’t feel like it.” Nor can you.  You must be constant, you must concern yourselves for your brothers and give your lives for them. (S.  Bernal, A Profile of Msgr J. Escrivá)

Humility and Simplicity

Christ loves simplicity and spiritual childhood; he directed us toward them: “Whoever humbles himself like this little child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 18:4).  Humility is learned in the school of spiritual childhood.

*              Simplicity leads man to remain silent about his own excellence. (St Thomas of Aquinas, Summa Th., 2-2, q. 109, a. 4)

*              The humble of heart thinks lowly of himself.  The proud thinks highly of himself, and does not fulfill the commandment of Christ:  “Unless you change and become like little children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 18:3).  Whoever becomes like a child is poor in spirit. (St John Chrysostom, Hom. X in Evang. sec. Matth.)

*              The people of Jerusalem were about to receive Jesus.  He knew what they concealed deep in their hearts; thus, he did not go to them riding a carriage pulled by finely harnessed horses with silver stirrups, covered with fur, and with gold rivets.  He rode a humble donkey; the apostles spread their cloaks on it–and I do not think those were precious.  (St Bernard, Sermon on Palm Sunday, 2, 4)

*              This is how we should walk along the Way of Light: Love God who created you ...; be simple at heart but rich in spiritual treasure ....  Do not exalt yourself, be humble in all circumstances; do not claim glory for yourself. (Epist. of Barnabas, 19, 1-3)

*              Only the person who truly loves God does not think of himself. (St Gregory the Great, Hom. 38 on the Gospels)

*              Ideologically, you are very Catholic. You like the atmosphere of the residence hall...  You think: A pity the Mass is not at twelve, and the classes are not in the afternoon, so you can study late in the evening after one or two drinks.

That “Catholicism” of yours does not come up to the real thing; it remains simply bourgeois.

Don’t you see that you can’t think like that at your age?  Leave behind your laziness and your self‑worship..., and adapt to the needs of others, to the reality around you, then you will be taking your Catholicism seriously. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 716)

Cheerfulness and Humility

A humble person desires the best for the others; he wants them to be holy and happy.  He rejoices at his own good, as much as he does at the gifts that others have.

*              Giving oneself sincerely to others is so effective that God rewards it with a humility filled with cheerfulness. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 591)

*              Lord, in my youth, you were giving no joy to my ears, nor cheerfulness to my heart; my bones were not delighted because they were not humiliated. (St Augustine, Confessions, 4, 5)

*              If we find the sweet yoke of the Lord bitter, couldn’t it be due to our lack of correspondence which renders it acrid?  If we find the joyous lightness of the divine commitment burdensome, couldn’t it be that due to our pride we have rejected Him who can help us to carry on?  (Cassian, Collationes, 24, 24)

*              You see yourself as a poor man whose master has stripped him of his gold-trimmed uniform; just a sinner!  Now you understand the nakedness felt by our first parents.

You should be weeping all the time.  And you have wept; you have suffered a great deal.  Yet you are very happy; you wouldn’t change places with anyone.  For many years now, you have not lost your gaudium cum pace–your peaceful joy.  You thank God for this and would like to let everyone into the secret of your happiness.

Yes, I can see why people have often said of you–though you couldn’t care less about “what people say”–that you are “a man of peace.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 174)

*              Your life is happy, very happy, though on occasions you feel a pang of sadness, and even experience almost constantly a real sense of distress.

Joy and affliction can go hand in hand like this, each in its own “man;” the former in the new man, the latter in the old. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 183)

*              Once again you had gone back to your old follies!  And afterwards, when you returned, you didn’t feel very cheerful, because you lacked humility.

It seems as if you obstinately refuse to learn from the second part of the parable of the prodigal son; you still feel attached to the wretched happiness of the pig‑swill.  With your pride wounded by your weakness, you have not made up your mind to ask for pardon, and you have not realized that, if you humble yourself, the joyful welcome of your Father God awaits you, with a feast to mark your return and your new beginning. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 65)

*              “Father, following your advice, I laugh at my weaknesses–without forgetting that I can’t give in–and then I feel much happier.

But when I am silly enough to become sad, it seems to me that I am losing the way.” (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 69)

*              It is true: We are worth nothing, we are nothing, we can do nothing, we have nothing.  And at the same time, in the midst of your daily struggle, obstacles and temptations are not lacking.  But the cheerfulness of your brothers will banish all difficulties, as soon as you are back with them; because you will see them firmly relying on him –Quiatu es Deus fortitudo mea –because you, Lord, are our strength.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 66)

*              Sometimes you feel overwhelmed by a fit of discouragement.  It kills your good desires, and you can hardly manage to overcome the feeling even by making acts of hope.

Never mind; this is a good time to ask God for more grace.  Then, go on!  Renew your joy for the struggle, even though you might lose the odd skirmish.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 77)

No One Is Indispensable

*              These words reveal Msgr J. Escrivá’s faith and humility:

“We do not keep for ourselves what we know; that will be making ourselves indispensable.  In Opus Dei, no one is indispensable.  Not even I, the Founder, am indispensable.”  (A. Vázquez de Prada, El Fundador del Opus Dei)

*              Pride?  Why?  Before long (maybe years, maybe days), you’ll be a heap of rotting flesh , worms, foul‑smelling fluids, your shroud in filthy shreds ...  and no one on earth will remember you.  (J. Escrivá, The Way, 601)

Not to Be Singular

Humility toward ourselves must lead us to avoid wanting to become singular, unique, one of a kind; this is vanity and pride.

*              Do you think that no one else has ever been twenty years old?  Do you think they were never restricted by their parents when they were under age?  Do you think they avoided the problems, however great or small, that you come up against?  No.  They went through the same things that you are going through now, and they matured, with the help of grace.  They trod down their selfishness with generous perseverance, gave in when they should, and remained loyal–with calm humility–without being arrogant or hurting anyone when they should not have done so.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 715)

*              You are always trying to draw public attention.  Above all you want more notice to be taken of you than of others.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 710)

*              The higher a statue is raised, the harder and more dangerous the impact when it falls.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 269)

*              “If anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself” (Gal 6:3).  Vain glory would have disappeared from the world, had this proposition of the Apostle been properly understood.

“The pride of those who hate you, Lord, rises continually” (Ps 74:23).  Why is it that so many become prouder each day?  Because their blindness impedes their self-knowledge.  They think they are something, and they are nothing.

If anyone–it applies to all–thinks he is something–it does not say something great, but something.

This is the great truth you must accept: that you are nothing, nihiles.  Why?  Because by yourself, you have nothing but sin, the greatest evil.  Everything else you have, other than sin, comes from God.

To achieve true humility one must be plunged into this knowledge.  Although the essence of humility–modest self-abasement–is an act of the will, the will must receive from the intellect the direction and measure of lowering itself.  (Fr. Paul Segneri, Man. dell’an.)

*              Whoever has more charity will enjoy more glory.  This glory will be given only to the humble of heart, since true charity begins from the little things to ascend on high.

Why do you become proud in the midst of earthly vanity, you, dust and ashes, heap of rottenness, food of worms?  Know yourself well, if you wish to be ashamed and confused.

Charity is the root of all goods; pride that of every evil.  You cannot plant the former, unless you uproot the latter.  Use charity to uproot pride; it alone will teach you to withstand the spirit of pride.  You will resist pride if you conceal your virtues and manifest your defects.

Pay much attention, this is pride: not to accept criticisms from others on things that you would willingly criticize about yourself.  (Cardinal Bona, The Art of Divine Love, ch. 19)

*              Through presumption or simply through vanity, many people run a black market to raise their own personal worth artificially.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 704)

*              Detest showing off.  Reject vanity.  Fight against pride, every day, at every moment.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 713)

*              The Pharisees were frauds.  Their vainglory separated them from God; it made them look for another theater–another public–for their fights; and they were defeated.  We are engaged in a battle; if one tries to please the spectators, who see what each one of us does, attention to the impression one makes on such onlookers will be the kind of combat one is really engaged in.  (St John Chrysostom, Homilies on St Matthew, 72,1)

Intellectual Docility

A humble man obeys; a proud man cannot obey, he accepts no other will but his own.  He thinks he is self-sufficient and acts accordingly.

Sometimes he will apparently accept instructions, but he will not take them to heart.  Instead, he will subject them to criticism in the light of his own ideas, thus limiting the scope of his obedience.

On the other hand, we are not inert or passive instruments; without coercion, we must apply our intelligence and will to do what God wants us to do.

Personal formation must be an ongoing concern; we need to hear doctrinal points repeated often to incorporate them into our life.  Thus, humility will bring us new lights from the Lord to help us live better our Christian vocation.

*              The first integral element of humility is the attitude of mind, the grasp of truth.  The second element is the expression of that attitude.  The first element belongs to the intelligence, the second is the action of the will.  There is a word that defines this second element, this expression of the attitude of mind: the word submission, or, if you like, docility.

In The Diary of a Country Priest, the old and stalwart priest of Torcy says the following to his young colleague: “Miracles are the pictures–the pretty pictures in the book.  But remember this, lad, our Lady knew neither triumph nor miracle.  Her Son preserved her from the least tip-touch of the savage wing of human glory.  No one has ever lived, suffered, died in such simplicity, in such deep ignorance of her own dignity, a dignity crowning her above angels.  For she was born without sin–in what amazing isolation! A pool so clear, so pure, that even her own image–created only for the sacred joy of the Father–was not to be reflected.”

Mary knew nothing of her own dignity.  Because of this, in her own eyes, she had not the slightest importance.  She never depended on herself; she depended entirely on God, on His Will.  Thus, she was able to judge the extent of her lowliness, her secure condition as a creature, feeling herself incapable of anything, and sustained only by the goodness of God.  As a result of this selflessness, she surrendered herself completely to God, and lived solely for him.

The second condition for being an efficacious instrument of God is docility.  Only the humble can be docile.  Those who lack humility follow the dictates of their own will, relying on their own ability; they have faith in themselves, they act on their own initiative, because they believe they are self-sufficient and they trust their own judgment; thus, they can do great harm, because they put last things first; instead of building, they destroy.

Proud persons do not adapt themselves to God’s plan–if they know it–because they will not tolerate being relegated to positions inferior to those which they think they deserve.  They forget these words: “Whosoever will be the greater among you, let him be your servant” (Mt 20:26).  Their ego is so strong that it leaves no room for anything else, not even for grace, and considers only itself.

Those who lack humility do not occupy the place designated for them by God; they do not fulfill their mission.  They do not help others to occupy their respective places properly and grow closer to God.  They disturb the divine action by getting out of place, seeking only their own glory and personal vanity.

In the Mystical Body of Christ, this is very serious; as if some important organ of the body, instead of fulfilling its own function in relation to the rest of the organism, were to develop disproportionately at the expense of the rest.  This may easily hurt other members, deforming them, diminishing them, atrophying them, retarding their development, making them do the work intended for itself but which it neglects in its efforts to outgrow all the others.  It is like a corroding cancer.  (F. Suárez, Mary of Nazareth, 2)

*              Only the stupid are obstinate; the very stupid, very obstinate.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 274)

*              Rather than commit a fault against charity, give in, offer no resistance, whenever you have the chance.  Show the humility of the grass, which yields without needing to know whose foot is stepping on it. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 277)

*              Your obedience is not worthy of the name unless you are ready to abandon your most flourishing work whenever someone with authority so commands. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 625)

*              What eagerness many show for reform!

Would it not be better to reform ourselves, each one of us, so as to fulfill faithfully what is laid down? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 131)

*              If you are sensible and humble, you will realize that one never stops learning.  This happens in every field; even the wisest will always have something to learn, until the end of their lives; if they don’t, they cease to be wise.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 272)

Submit to the Church’s Judgment

Confidence in God means to trust Him–not our own judgment–and to trust the manner God has set for our sanctification: through the Church.

The Magisterium of the Church is a guarantee of sure doctrine: “Anyone who listens to you, listens to me; anyone who rejects you, rejects me” (Lk 10:16).  We receive the right doctrine from those placed by Christ to direct the Church throughout the centuries.

*              The Church, endowed with the gifts of her Founder and faithfully observing His precepts of charity, humility, and self-denial, received the mission of proclaiming and establishing among all peoples the kingdom of Christ and of God: she is, on earth, the seed of that kingdom. (Second Vatican Council, Dogm. Cons. Lumen Gentium, n. 5)

*              Following the path of Christ... the Church, although she needs human resources to carry out her mission, is not set up to seek earthly glory, but to proclaim humility, and self-denial, and this by her own example. (Second Vatican Council, Dogm. Cons. Lumen Gentium, n. 8)

*              Christ communicated his power to his disciples; he wanted them to be constituted in royal liberty, and overcome the reign of sin in themselves by self-denial of a holy life (cf. Rom 6:12).  By serving Christ in others every Christian must–in humility and patience– bring their brethren to Christ the King; to serve Him is to reign. (Second Vatican Council, Dogm. Cons. Lumen Gentium, n. 36)

*              Humility and obedience are the indispensable conditions for acquiring good doctrine.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 132)

*              Try to make “intellectual humility” an axiom for yourself.

Think about it carefully.  Isn’t it true that it just doesn’t make sense to be “intellectually proud”?  That saint and doctor of the Church put it very well:  “It is a detestable disorder for a man to see God become a little child, and still want to appear great in this world.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 142)

*              Some people make mistakes through weakness–on account of the fragile clay we are all made of–but retain the Church’s doctrine in its integrity.

These, with the grace of God, display courage and humility in acknowledging their mistakes and defending the truth firmly.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 42)

*              Do not forget that in human affairs other people may also be right; they see the same question as you, but from a different point of view, under another light, with other shades, with other contours.

Only in faith and morals is there an indisputable standard: that of our Mother the Church.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 275)

*              Never adopt a superior air toward Church matters, or toward your fellow human beings–your brothers.  On the other hand, that attitude might be necessary in your social behavior, when it is a matter of defending the interests of God and those of souls.  Then, you would not be acting out of superiority, but out of faith and fortitude, which we practice with a calm and humble confidence.  (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 720)

*              You must always have, in everything, the same “instinct” as the Church.  For this, you must acquire the spiritual and doctrinal training that you need, which will make you a person of sound judgment in temporal matters; humble and quick to correct yourself when you realize you have made a mistake.

Correcting your own mistakes nobly is a very human and very supernatural way of using your freedom.  (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 840)

FOOTNOTES:

1. The Way, no. 33.

2. J. Escrivá, Human Virtues, p. 10.

3. J. Escrivá, Friends of God, 75.

4. Letter, 9-I-1932, n. 89 and 90.

5. Letter, 17-VI-1973, n. 31.

6. Meditation Consumados en la Unidad, 17-III-1975.

19

Humility toward Ourselves: Humility of Heart

Humility of heart results in our being contented with our situation, loving being unknown and being reputed as nothing.  The humble man knows the value of humiliations and bears them patiently. The more just we are, the more injustice we are likely to endure.

Sometimes God gives us a glimpse of our lack of personal worth; this should not discourage us; to see one’s defects is a grace from the Lord.

We should not allow self-pity to take hold of our soul.  In order to serve, we need to be humble and learn to suffer cheerfully, without complain.  Without the cross, there is no true growth in humility.

When we are humble, our interior life is no longer a lonely fight against our defects, or an exercise in “perfecting oneself,” but rather the abandonment of oneself in the hands of God, whose children we truly are.

Reputed as Nothing

*              We are by nature what our Lord was by choice, namely, children of a fallen race, in a fallen world, and subject to the consequences of the fall.

All men are plunged in error–and the best among them are those who are forcing their way slowly and painfully out of the darkness into the light of truth. Where there is error, there are mistakes, suffering, conflict, and want of harmony.  We are sinners: “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 Jn 1:8).

God does not will sin; but he willed the world, the present condition of things in which sin is possible; thus, the disorder that arises from sin is within his Providence.

The reign of sin means the reign of injustice.  Whoever exists under the reign of sin is necessarily involved in a system where wrongdoing predominates and where each must suffer from the effects of that wrongdoing.  In the real world, we must continually suffer from others; it is the condition of our being that we shall be the victims of others’ abuse of their free wills; it is our lot that our desires and inclinations should be continually thwarted and that we should be at the mercy of circumstances.

It is our duty to bear that, without resentment and without rebellion.  To rebel is to assert that such things are not our due, that they are undeserved. It is refusing to recognize that we are fallen members of a fallen race.  When we resent suffering that results from the actions of men or things, at that moment we resent God’s Providence.

We are, thus, really protesting against God’s eternal determination to create free beings; for these sufferings that we endure are a consequence of man’s free will. If we expect a mode of existence in which we shall not endure harshness, unkindness, misunderstanding, and injustice, we are really rebelling against God’s Providence; we are claiming a position that does not belong to us as creatures.  This is to sin against humility. It is pride.

Even if we ourselves are never unjust, if we never hurt or injure others, if we never contribute to the existing disorder, we must not claim that we should be exempted from the consequences of the disorder of others. It would be claiming to be above, or beyond, or outside an order of things permitted by divine Providence; it would mean a refusal to abide in our rightful position as members of a fallen race. And, as we have seen, humility is nothing else than a practical determination to abide in this position.

Moreover, the claim to be exempted from the consequences of others’ sins is a refusal to learn from Jesus.  St Paul directs us to contemplate Christ’s mode of acting; in Jesus, we will find the stimulus to reject our proud rebelliousness against our own weakness. “Consider Jesus,” he says, “who endured such opposition from sinners against himself, so that you may not grow weary and lose heart” (Heb 12:3).  Even if we ourselves were free from guilt, we should, without resentment, after the manner of our Lord, suffer contradiction and injustice.

We will not resent anything that happens to us, if we consider our own sinfulness. Anyone who looks into his own heart will discover there, if not actual sin, at least such vile tendencies toward sin, out of pride, envy, jealousy, untruthfulness, and meanness, that he should not, in justice, demand any consideration from others.

But still we do.  Our wickedness impels us to demand an exemption from the consequences of sin; as our sinfulness is great, our humility is small. We demand the most minute perfection from the others in their dealings with us, while we readily excuse and even justify our own shortcomings in our dealings with them.  We are indulgent with our own faults; we are intolerant with those of others.  We, as it were, claim the privilege of being the only sinners in the world, and demand that all the world should be just.

This preposterous claim is implied in our every deliberate act of resentment upon seeing that others are wrongdoers and their wrongdoing affect us adversely.  This claim is aimed at a condition that is not ours, and, thus, is a failure in humility.

The more just we are, the more injustice we are likely to endure. Our efforts to reach sanctity do not exclude us from the operation of this law; quite the contrary.  Our Lord’s life is the example of this assertion.

On the other hand, we should do our best to correct the injustice of the others and protect ourselves legitimately against it. We have the duty to establish the reign of justice in ourselves and in others. But it is wrong for us to cherish a spirit of sullen revolt against our condition as fallen creatures, and to demand for ourselves the conditions of an unfallen world as our due.#1

*              Maintain always true humility of heart; it consists, not in demonstrations and artificial speech, but in a profound abasement of the soul.  This humility is revealed through patience, which is its consequence and its most evident sign.  I am not talking of being patient when others accuse you of crimes that no one would believe, but of remaining calm when you face insolent accusations, and of enduring offenses with meekness and serenity. (Cassian, Collationes, 18, 11)

*              Patience is the way that leads to peace; study is the way to knowledge; humiliation is the only way to reach humility.

Our supernatural reaction to humiliation, should be an act of deep gratitude: “I thank you Lord, for you have humbled me.”  Thus, that interior humiliation, that external failure, will leave our soul soaked in humility, and will give greater holiness to our life – and very probably an unsuspected effectiveness to our activity.

What, then, should our spiritual dispositions be toward these interior humiliations and these external failures that threaten the peace and tranquillity of our interior life?

Our first reaction to all this must be one of humility; accepting the humiliation or the failure with true humility, with what is called humility of heart, because there it has its roots, and it is from the heart that it gets all its strength.  And not just accepting the humiliation, but loving it  –loving our own wretchedness and thanking our Lord for letting us really know ourselves.  As a consequence, we will avoid anything that is or might be a kind of interior rebellion against these humiliations or failures.

We should also avoid any kind of self-justifications or offering excuses.  If we are not truly humble, we will find lots of ways to justify ourselves, to feed our pride. Our high idea of ourselves will produce excuses with no difficulty; that is the sure way of nipping in the bud all the humility and effectiveness that God was reserving for our soul.

Don’t make excuses for yourself!  Don’t justify yourself to your soul when it is alone and humbled!  Drown in humility that proud reasoning; it will only close up a wound which is healing badly.  Have the courage to repel the counter-attack of pride which is trying to recover the ground your self-love has lost.  Turn your back on the insidious caress of pride.  Be convinced that this is the time to turn to God.  Be happy to be misunderstood and to be despised.  (S. Canals, Jesus as Friend)

*              Are you ready to undergo those humiliations which God asks of you, in matters of no importance, matters where the truth is not obscured?

You are not?  Then you don’t love the virtue of humility. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 595)

*              Many may not find it too burdensome to despise food and drink, and a soft bed; however, not many, but only a few, suffer patiently an offense, endure an abuse, or tolerate an insult. (St John Chrysostom, Hom. 3 on Priesthood)

*              How clearly I see now that “holy shamelessness” is rooted very deeply in the Gospel.  Fulfill the Will of God..., think of Jesus falsely accused, of Jesus spat upon and buffeted, of Jesus brought before the shabby courts of men..., and of Jesus silent!

A resolution: to bow our head when insulted, and persevere in the divine task that the merciful Love of Our Lord has entrusted to us, even though you know that humiliations will inevitably follow. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 35)

*              You, who for an earthly love have endured so many degradations, do you really believe that you love Christ, when you are not willing to suffer–for him!–that humiliation? (J. Escrivá, The Way, 165)

*              When you hear the plaudits of triumph, let there also sound in your ears the laughter you provoked with your failures. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 589)

*              You’re not humble when you humble yourself, but when you are humbled by others and you bear it for Christ. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 594)

*              So you’ve been hauled over the coals?  Don’t follow the advice of pride and lose your temper.  Think:  How charitable they are toward me!  The things they’ve left unsaid! (J. Escrivá, The Way, 698)

*              Serving and forming children, caring lovingly for the sick.

To make ourselves understood by simple souls, we have to humble our intellect; to understand poor sick people, we have to humble our heart.  In this way, on our knees in both body and mind, it is easy to reach Jesus, along that tried and true way of human misery, of our own misery.  It will lead us to self-denial, to let God build on our nothingness. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 600)

*              Listen to me, my child, you must be happy when you are ill treated and dishonored; when many come out against you and it becomes fashionable to spit on you, because you are omniumperipsema, like the refuse of the world.

It’s hard, it’s very hard.  It is hard, until at last one goes to the Tabernacle, seeing oneself thought of as the scum of the earth, like a wretched worm, and says with all one’s heart: “Lord, if you don’t need my good name, what do I want it for?”

Until one does so, until he gets to that point of nakedness and self-surrender, even a child of God does not know what happiness is.  It is a self-surrender of love, but it is founded on mortification, on sorrow. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 803)

*              Tell him: “Jesus, I cannot see even a single perfect flower in my garden, all are blighted; it seems that all have lost their color and aroma.  Poor me!  My face in the muck, on the ground: that’s my place.”

When you humble yourself this way, he will triumph in you, and you will attain victory. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 606)

*              If you really knew yourself, you would rejoice at being despised, and your heart would weep in the face of honors and praise. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 595)

Weaknesses and Discouragement

We begin to be humble by not being upset by our failures. The awareness of our weaknesses must lead us to keep on fighting; there should be sorrow. but not discouragement; that would suggest a confidence in ourselves that is not linked to confidence in God.

Besides, Christ’s sacrifice was perfect and overflowing; he tells us: “My grace is sufficient for you” (2 Cor 12:9). Persecutions, inner trials, old habits, and a bad temperament can be overcome with God’s grace. The humble man knows that no matter how difficult the struggle, there is no reason for discouragement. God has not left us alone; he will not delay in coming to our aid; we should put our trust in his promises.

There is a cure for everything in our interior life, as long as there is humility. The only fatal mistake is to resign oneself to defeat and not to know how to fight with a sporting spirit.

*              After denying our Lord, Peter heard the noise of the guards and servants who were transferring our Lord from one room to another.  Our Lord looked upon Peter, and that look was so loving and effective, that the disciple understood immediately all that his Master wanted to say.  Peter entered into himself and remembered our Lord’s words which in his pride he did not then believe: “Before the cock crows twice you will have denied me three times” (Mk 15:72).

Peter’s soul was pierced with sorrow and filled with contrition; yet he did not attempt to make a public retractation, but went to weep in secret.

His fall had left him more humble and less confident in his own strength; he did not want to expose himself to further risk or show further proof of his weakness.

St Peter taught the weak to flee from occasions of sin, and to avoid exposing themselves to danger until they are fortified and clothed with strength from God.  Full of shame and humility, he allowed his prayers and tears to plead for him and obtain pardon.  He prayed and was silent, but he did not excuse his fault.  He went out because the tumult of the palace was not suitable for penance.  And to whom should he go for consolation but to the Blessed Virgin, the only refuge of sinners, to tell her all about his sorrow, and his bitter grief?  And then, encouraged by her most sweet words, he wept with the firm hope of obtaining pardon.  (L. de la Palma, History of the Sacred Passion, 13)

*              We must really be in place with ourselves.  I will just recommend one virtue so dear to the Lord.  He said, “Learn  from me who am meek and humble of heart.”

I run the risk of making a blunder, but I will say it: the Lord loves humility so much that, sometimes, He permits serious sins.  Why?  In order that those who committed these sins may, after repenting, remain humble.  One does not feel inclined to think oneself half a saint, half an angel, when one knows that one has committed serious faults.

The Lord recommended it so much: be humble.  Even if you have done great things, say: “We are useless servants.”  On the contrary, the tendency in all of us is rather the opposite: to show off.  Lowly, lowly: this is the Christian virtue of humility that concerns ourselves. (John Paul I, General Audience, September 6, 1978)

*              Well, so what?  Unless your motive is hidden pride (you think you’re perfect), I don’t understand how you can give up that work for souls just because the fire of God that first attracted you, besides giving the light and warmth that aroused your enthusiasm, should also at times produce the smoke that results from the weakness of the instrument! (J. Escrivá, The Way, 485)

*              Do not become alarmed or discouraged upon discovering that you have miseries–and such miseries!

Struggle to uproot them.  And as you do so, be convinced that it is even a good thing to be aware of all those weaknesses, for otherwise you would be proud.  And pride separates us from God. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 181)

*              Beware also, daughters, of certain kinds of humility which the devil inculcates in us and which make us very uneasy about the gravity of our past sins.  There are many ways in which he depresses us; sometimes he discourages us from going to Communion or doing mental prayer by suggesting to us that we are not worthy to engage in these.

Pay great attention to this point; thinking yourselves so wicked may be humility and virtue...or a very great temptation.  I have had experience of this, so I know it is true.  Humility, however deep it may be, neither disquiets nor troubles nor disturbs the soul; it is accompanied by peace, joy, and tranquillity.  Although, on realizing how wicked we are, we can see clearly that we deserve to be in hell, and are distressed by our sinfulness, and rightly think that everyone should hate us, yet, if our humility is true, this distress is accompanied by an interior peace and joy of which we should not like to be deprived.  Far from disturbing or depressing the soul, it enlarges it and makes it fit to serve God better.

The other kind of distress–false humility–only disturbs and upsets the mind, and troubles the soul, so grievous is it....  When you find yourselves in this state, cease thinking of your own wretchedness, and think of the mercy of God, of his love, and his sufferings for us. (St Teresa of Avila, The Way of Perfection, 39)

*              Humility teaches each soul not to lose heart in the face of its own blunders.

True humility leads us to ask for forgiveness. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 189)

*              Do not be disheartened when you become aware of your mistakes.  React against them.

Fruitlessness is a consequence not so much of one’s faults (especially if one repents) as of one’s pride. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 723)

*              If you have fallen, get up with greater hope.  Only self‑love alone is incapable of understanding that an error, when put right, helps us to know and to humble ourselves. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 724)

*              While the battle is raging, a soldier may receive a wound and fall back briefly. Yet, no one is so ignorant about warfare who thinks that this is a big crime.

Only those who so not fight, do not receive wounds; those who advance toward the enemy more courageously receive more blows. (St John Chrysostom, Exort. 2 to Theodore, 5)

*              There is a mythological tale about the giant Antaeus, son of the goddess Earth.  Each time that he was thrown down to earth while wrestling with Hercules, Antaeus drew new strength from his mother, and so he could not be overcome.  Hercules, taking account of the fact, lifted the giant up, and, keeping him aloft, cut off his head.

The devil tries likewise to lift us up with praises and honors, to make us heady with pride and crash with greater force.  The humble man casts himself on the earth of his self-knowledge, does not seek the esteem of the world, and finds fresh strength for the struggle. (A. Rodriguez, Practice of Perfection)

*              We should receive the Communion of the Lord, even though we know we are poor sinners.  This is an added reason for us to go to Communion more eagerly: to find in it sanctity for our soul and purity for our spirit.  We should nevertheless go to it with thoughts of humility and faith, judging ourselves unworthy of such grace, and seeking nothing but the remedy for our wounds.

If we wait to be worthy of it, we will not take Communion even once a year. (Cassian, Collationes, 23, 21).

*              Why is it that some people are preserved from grave temptation, yet fight a losing battle all the time against their petty, day-to-day faults?  Surely it is to keep them humble; with such proof of their frailty in things of little moment, they are not likely to err through self-confidence where great issues are at stake. (Imitation of Christ, 1, 13, 8).

*              You are ashamed before God, and before the others.  You have discovered filth within yourself, both old and recurrent; there is no evil instinct or tendency that you do not feel under your skin.  And you also carry a cloud of uncertainty in your heart.  Furthermore, temptation arises when you least want it or expect it, when your will is weakened by tiredness.

You no longer know if it really humiliates you, although it hurts you to see yourself like this. Let it hurt you because of Him, and for Love of Him; this contrition of love will help you to remain vigilant, for the fight will last as long as we live. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 174)

*              The saints are those who struggle right to the end of their lives; they always get up each time they stumble, each time they fall, and courageously continue on their way once more with humility, love, and hope. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 186)

*              “Immaculate Virgin, I know very well that I am only a miserable wretch; each day, I keep on increasing the number of my sins....”  You told me that you spoke thus to our Mother the other day.

And I advised you, with assurance, to pray the Holy Rosary.  Blessed be that monotony of Hail Marys that purifies the monotony of your sins! (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 475)

*              You say you are unworthy?  Well, try to become worthy.  And leave it at that. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 564)

*              You remind me of Pilate: Quod scripsi, scripsi!–what I have written shall not be changed–after he had allowed the most horrible of crimes.  You may be immovable, but you should have adopted that attitude before, not afterwards! (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 604)

*              Only the weak and the patient can join God’s combats. (Cassian, Collationes, 7, 5)

*              Jesus, my Love, to think that I could offend you again! Tuus ego sum ... salvum me fac!–I am yours, save me. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 196)

*              Virgin Immaculate, my Mother, do not abandon me.  See how my poor heart is filled with tears.  I do not want to offend my God.

I already know, and I believe I shall never forget, that I am worth nothing.  How my smallness and my loneliness weigh upon me!  But ... I am not alone.  You, sweet Lady, and my Father God will never leave me.

Faced with the rebellion of my flesh and all manner of diabolical arguments against my Faith, I love Jesus and I believe–I do Love and do Believe. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 215)

*              Sanctity consists in struggling, in knowing that we have defects, and in heroically trying to overcome them.

Sanctity, I insist, consists in overcoming those defects–although we will still have defects when we die; if we think we will not die with defects–as I have told you–we will be proud. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 312)

*              Say slowly and in all earnestness: Nunccoepi–now I begin!

Don’t get discouraged if, unfortunately, you don’t see any great change in yourself brought about by the Lord’s right hand.  From your lowliness you can cry out: “Help me, my Jesus, because I want to fulfill your Will–your most lovable Will.” (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 398)

*              It seems an excellent idea to me that you should tell the Lord often about your great and ardent desire to be a saint, even though you see yourself filled with wretchedness....

Tell him so, precisely for that reason! (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 419)

*              Yes, you’re right; how deep your wretchedness is!  Left alone, where would you be now?  How low would you have sunk?

You admitted: “Only a Love that is full of mercy could still love me.”

Cheer up.  He will not deny you his Love or his Mercy, if you seek Him. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 897)

*              When you feel self‑love–pride!–boiling within you, making you believe you are a superman, it is time to cry out:  No!  Thus, you will savor the cheerfulness of the good son of God who goes through life with errors, but doing good. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 1054)

*              Live by Love and you will conquer always–even when you are defeated–in the Navas#2 and the Lepantos#3 of your interior life. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 433)

*              Don’t feel hurt when others see your faults.  What should really distress you is the offense against God and the scandal you may give.

Apart from that, may you be known for what you are and be despised.  Don’t be sorry if you are nothing, because then Jesus will have to put everything into you. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 596)

*              Another fall ... and what a fall!  Despair?  No!  Humble yourself and through Mary, your Mother, have recourse to the merciful love of Jesus.  A miserere–”have mercy on me”–and lift up your heart!  And now, begin again. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 711)

*              How low you have fallen this time!  Begin the foundations from down there.  Be humble.  “Cor contritum et humiliatum, Deus, non despicies”–”a contrite and humbled heart, O God, you will not despise.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, 712)

*              If your mistakes make you more humble, if they make you reach out more urgently for God’s helping hand, then they are a road to sanctity. Felix culpa–O happy fault!, the Church sings. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 187)

*              Humility rescues a man from the abyss of his sins. (St John Chrysostom, Catena Aurea, 6, p. 303)

*              We have to foster in our souls a true horror for sin.  “Lord,” say it with a contrite heart, “may I never offend you again!”

But don’t be frightened when you notice the heavy ballast of your poor body and of human passions; it would be silly and childishly naive to find out now that “this” exists.  Your wretchedness is not an obstacle, but a spur for you to become more united to God, and seek him constantly, because he purifies us. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 134)

*              “I am still a poor creature,” you tell me.

Before, when you realized it, you felt very bad about it!  Now, without getting used to it, or giving in to it, you are making a habit of smiling, and of beginning your fight again with growing joy. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 271)

FOOTNOTES:

1. Cf. E. Leen, In the Likeness of Christ, 2,2.

2. Las Navas de Tolosa: A famous battle that occurred in 1212 in southern Spain, won by the armies of the Christian kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula over the Moslems of Andalusia and northern Africa.

3. Lepanto: A naval battle that took place in the Mediterranean Sea in 1571 between a Turkish and a Christian squadron.  It was won by the Christian fleet.

20

Humility toward Ourselves: External Humility

Our acts of external humility must be the outward echo of our interior sentiments.  These acts bounce back; they solidify and intensify our dispositions of humility, as well as all other virtues; thus, the soul must be humbled together with the body.

It is one thing to be humiliated, and another to be humble.  The proud man receives humiliations with anger, doing all he can to escape from them; he remains proud.  The humble man converts all humiliations into humility; he thanks God for having been humbled.

*              Reject any ambition for honors.  Think instead about your duties, how to do them well, and the instruments you need to accomplish them.  Thus, you will not hanker for position, and, if one comes, you will see it for what it is: a burden to bear in the service of souls. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 976)

*              When contemplating the scene of the Incarnation, strengthen in your soul the resolve to be “humble in practice.” See how he abased himself, taking on our poor nature.

That is why, every day, you need to react, right away, with God’s grace, accepting–and wanting–the humiliations the Lord may send you. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 139)

*              You are full of anxieties because you do not love as you ought.  Everything annoys you.  And the enemy does all he can to make you show your bad temper.

I realize you feel very humiliated.  Precisely because of this, you must react earnestly and without delay. (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 392)

*              You have been insulted.... Convince yourself that you are made of “poor stuff.”  Know yourself and you will react to events supernaturally.  Joy and peace will take a firmer root in your soul, in the face of humiliations, calumnies, spite....

In these cases, after saying, “Fiat”–Lord whatever you want–you should think: “Is that all he said? He obviously does not know me, otherwise he wouldn’t have left it at that.”

Being convinced that you deserve worse treatment, you will feel grateful to that person, and rejoice at what might have made everybody else suffer. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 268)

*              Your flesh is tender and raw.  That’s how you are.  Everything seems to make you suffer in your mind and in your senses.  And everything is a temptation to you....

Be humble, I insist.  You will see how quickly all this passes.  The pain will turn into joy, and the temptation into firm purpose.

But meanwhile, strengthen your faith; fill yourself with hope; and make constant acts of love, even though you think they come only from your lips. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 727)

*              One often has to do violence to oneself, to humble oneself, and to say repeatedly to the Lord in earnest: “Serviam!”–I will serve you. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 280)

*              Memento, homo, quia pulvis es ...–remember, man, that you are dust... If you are dust, why should you find it irksome to be trodden upon? (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 281)

*              John the Baptist does not hesitate to proclaim that he is of no importance, compared with Jesus.  He does not even identify himself according to his priestly parentage; he did not say, “I am John, son of Zechariah, of the priestly tribe of....” On the contrary, when they ask him, “Who are you?,” John says, “I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness; prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight” (Jn 1:22-23).

John is no more than that: the voice, the voice that announces Jesus.  That is his mission, his life, his personality.  His whole being is defined by Jesus, as should be the case in our own lives, in the life of any Christian.  What is important in our lives is Jesus.

A desire to draw attention to oneself would leave no room for Jesus.  God asks us to live without ostentation, without wanting to be heroes.  He wants us to lead simple, ordinary lives, trying to do good to everyone, and carrying out our duties honestly.  Without humility, we could not bring our friends closer to God; our life would then become empty. (F. Fernandez, In Conversation with God, I, 8.2)

*              Sincere humility.  What can upset a person who delights in being insulted because he knows that he deserves nothing better? (J. Escrivá, The Forge, 593)

*              Never give your opinion if you’re not asked for it, even though you may think it is the best one.  (J. Escrivá, The Way, 674)

Humility Leads One to Confess One’s Sins

Humility leads to contrition; the soul sees its lack of love and sincerely asks for forgiveness.  Yet this sorrow never becomes desperation; it always remains a sorrow born of love, a sorrow full of confidence in God; it leads one to confess one’s sins before God’s tribunal (cf. Mt 16:19).

*              Humbly acknowledge your weakness.  Then you can say with the Apostle: “Cum enim infirmor, tunc potens sum”–”for when I am weak, then I am strong.” (J. Escrivá, The Way, 604)

*              Woe to me, Lord! Have mercy on me! I do not hide my wounds from you.  You are a physician, and I am sick; you are compassionate, and I am miserable. (St Augustine, Confessions, 10)

*              How good it is to know how to put things right with yourself. And how few learn that art! (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 276)

*              To be converted, you must climb via humility, along the path of self‑abasement. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 278)

*              You wrote to me that, at last, you went to confession; and that you tasted the humiliation of having to open the sewer–that is what you say–of your life to “a man.”

When will you get rid of that feeling of vain self‑esteem? You will then go to confession happy to show yourself as you are to “that man,” who, having been anointed, is another Christ–Christ himself–and gives you absolution, God’s forgiveness. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 45)

*              “Father, how can you stand such filth?” you asked me after a contrite confession.  I said nothing, thinking that if your humility makes you feel like that–like filth, a heap of filth!–then we may yet turn all your weakness into something really great. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 605)

*              Out of humility, holy men always earnestly disclaim their own good deeds–one by one–narrated in their presence.  Men without right intention always make others believe–by excusing themselves–that they do not have faults, or that these are small and few. (Origen, Catena Aurea, 3, p. 247)

*              “ And a leper came to Jesus, and kneeling down, he pleaded, `If you want, you can make me clean’“ (Mk 1:40).

That man knelt down on the ground–this is a sign of humility and shame–so that each one of us may be ashamed of the stains of our sins.  But shame must not impede the confession of sin.  The leper bared his wounds and begged to be cured.  His confession was full of piety and faith.  “If you want,” he said, “you can;” he recognized that the possibility of his cure was in the hands of the Lord. (St Bede, Comment. on St Mark)

*              Remember this: Never will we be overcome by our foe more easily than when we imitate him in his pride; never will we beat him down with more force than when we imitate our Lord’s humility; never will our blows be more painful and harder for the devil than when we heal our sins through confession and penance. (St Augustine, Sermon 351, 6)

*              Without even a reproach, but with a look full of Love, the Lord converted Peter, who had denied him three times.

Jesus looks at us with those same eyes, after we have fallen.  May we also be able to say to him, as Peter did: “Lord, you know all things, you know that I love you,” and amend our lives. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 964)

*              If they have witnessed your weaknesses and faults, does it matter if they witness your penance, too? (J. Escrivá, The Way, 197)

*              Do penance; bury your negligences, offenses, and sins in the deep pit dug by your humility.  Thus does the farmer bury rotten fruit, dead twigs, and fallen leaves at the foot of the tree that bore them.  And what was unfruitful, even harmful, makes a real contribution to a new fertility.

Learn to draw from your falls a new impulse; from death, life. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 211)

Humility and Other Supernatural Virtues

*              Humility, the guide of all virtues, is the immovable foundation of the supernatural edifice, the gift par excellence, and the greatest grace we can receive from our Savior. (Cassian, Collationes, 15, 7)

*              Humility is the mother and mistress of all virtues. (St Gregory the Great, Moralia, 23, 23)

*              True patience and tranquility of soul can only be acquired and consolidated with a profound humility of heart.  Virtues flowing from such a spring need not be kept in the retirement of a cell or in the shelter of solitude.  In fact, they do not need an external buttress if they are internally supported by humility, the mother and safeguard of all virtues.  But if we feel offended when provoked, it is a sign that the foundations of our humility are not stable. (Cassian, Collationes, 18, 13)

*              Even good actions lack value if they are not seasoned with the virtue of humility.  The greatest virtues, if practiced with pride, debase man, instead of exalting him.  A man who accumulates virtues without humility throws dust into the wind; he seems to advance in merit, but he acquires the most pitiful blindness.  Thus, my brothers, maintain humility in all you do. (St Gregory the Great, Hom. 7 on the Gospels)

*              If obedience doesn’t give you peace, it’s because you’re proud. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 620)

*              God grants holy purity when it is asked for with humility. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 118)

*              Holy purity is the humility of the flesh.  You asked the Lord for seven bolts on your heart.  And I advised you to ask for seven bolts for your heart, and eighty years of gravity as well, for your youth.

And be watchful, for a spark is much easier to extinguish than a fire.  Take flight, for in this it is sheer cowardice to be “brave”; a roving eye does not mean a lively spirit, but turns out to be a snare of Satan.

Yet human diligence, with mortification, the cilice, disciplines, and fasting are all worthless without you, my God. (J. Escrivá, Furrow, 834)

*              Charity is the guardian of virginity; humility is the castle of this guardian. (St Augustine, Treat, on Virginity, 33, 51)

*              One may be saved without virginity, but not without humility.  Crying for one’s lost virginity may be pleasing to God; without humility–I dare say–not even Mary’s virginity would have been pleasing to God.

The fusion of virginity and humility is beautiful.  God is greatly pleased with a soul whose virginity is enhanced by humility, and whose humility is adorned by virginity. (St Bernard, Hom. on the Virgin Mother, 1,5)

Humility and Human Virtues

*              Your manly spirit–simple and straightforward–is crushed when you find yourself entangled in gossip and scandalous talk.  You don’t understand how it could happen; besides, you never wished to be involved in it anyway.  Suffer the humiliation that such talk causes you and let the experience urge you to greater discretion. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 51)

*              With that self‑satisfied air, you’re becoming an unbearable and repulsive character.  You’re making a fool of yourself, and what is worse, you’re diminishing the effectiveness of your work as an apostle.

Don’t forget that even the mediocre can sin by being too scholarly. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 351 )

*              Your very inexperience leads you to presumption, to vanity, and to all that you imagine gives you an air of importance.

Correct yourself, please! Foolish and all, you may come to occupy a post of responsibility (it’s happened more than once), and if you’re not convinced of your lack of ability, you will refuse to listen to those who have the gift of counsel.  And it’s frightening to think of the harm your mismanagement will do. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 352)

*              What an example of discretion the Mother of God has given us! Not even to St Joseph does she communicate the mystery.

Ask our Lady for the discretion you lack. (J. Escrivá, The Way, 653)

Table of Contents

Preface

God Speaks on Humility

All about Humility

God, Neighbor, Ourselves

St Augustine: On the Fear of God and True Humility

St Francis of Sales: Introduction to the Devout Life

St John M. Vianney, Priest of Ars: Homily on Humility

J. Pecci (later Pope Leo XIII): The Practice of Humility

Josemaria Escriva: Christ Triumphs through Humility

Josemaria Escriva: Humility

Humility: Its Nature and Necessity

True and False Humility

Basis of Humility

Degrees of Humility

Our Lord's Example of Humility

Our Lady's Humility

Humility toward God

Humility toward Neighbor

Humility toward Ourselves: Humility of Mind

Humility toward Ourselves: Humility of Heart

Humility toward Ourselves: External Humility