Twenty-second Sunday in Ordinary Time
By Rev. Joe McCloskey, S.J.
Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favor with God. Sirach 3:18
“For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” Luke 14:11
PietyPrayer for Humility
Lord Jesus Christ, I pray that you may fortify me with the grace of your Holy Spirit, and give your peace to my soul, that I may be free from all needless anxiety and worry. Help me to desire always that which is pleasing and acceptable to you, so that your will may be my will.
Grant that I may be free from unholy desires, and that, for your love, I may remain obscure and unknown in this world, to be known only to you.
Do not permit me to attribute to myself the good that you perform in me and through me, but rather, referring all honor to you, may I admit only to my infirmities, so that renouncing sincerely all vainglory which comes from the world, I may aspire to that true and lasting glory that comes from you. Amen
Studyhttp://www.usccb.org/nab/090207.shtml
“Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
The first will be last and the last will be first. Humility has always been considered important for the
Yet humility for it to be t rue must be just that. I can consider myself the least of all by realizing if I had the graces of others I might not do half of what they do. If they had my graces, they might do twice as much as I would do. Humility is without pretense. The ultimate humility is recognition that all the good we have is from God. Without God I would not be able to be. It is God’s love that holds us in being and it is God’s love that makes it possible for us to do what we do. True piety sees everything we have in relationship to God.
Humility gives us a plan of life to live. It tells us what is necessary to be with God; that is a life without serious sin. I have to accept and live the values of God to be without serious sin. I have to be willing to love the Lord my God with all my mind and heart. I can not make a God of anything. That is the basic first level of humility. I live God’s values in how I live my life. I would rather die than disobey the prime directives of my God. That is what the 10 commandments of God teach us -- how God expects us to live our lives for him.
A higher form of humility is called indifference. It frees us from the trap of riches, power and honor. It means we would accept whatever the condition of life we had rather than commit a venial sin. It frees us from unruly passions. It opens our heart up to the inclinations of goodness. It means that we would not do anything that is even venially sinful. It brings a discipline of life that protects us from overuse of anything. Moderation becomes a way of life. We would not do anything even slightly wrong for the sake of possessing the whole world. No treat would have any power over us because we are wedded to God’s goodness.
ActionThe highest of all the forms of humility is a life like Christ. I would want and prefer his choices so that I would be poor with Christ poor, I would put of with insult and outrage and accept being thought a fool because it would make me more like Christ. I would gratefully embrace all my crosses of life because it would give me a brotherhood with Christ. This highest form of humility brings with it the ultimate freedom to be a Christ in all I think and do. Preferring to be the last, the lowest and the least, I am now free to be myself in his name. This degree of humility is in loving Christ with all my mind and heart and soul and brings the discovery of what it means to be created in the image and the likeness of Christ. This humility grows because of our closeness to Christ’s poor. It promises the resurrection as its reward. This humility finds favor with God because it reflects Christ truly and boldly.
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