In this Sunday’s first reading we read: “Conduct your affairs with humility, and you will be loved more than a giver of gifts. Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favor with God.” In today’s Gospel, we hear the same message from Jesus: “the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Why is humility an integral part of Christian life? Undoubtedly, the virtue of humility places us, Christians, far away from the mainstream of this world. This world values those who are successful, strong, first, beautiful, rich, skillful, intelligent and knowledgeable. This world encourages us to be outspoken, vocal and loud regarding our qualifications and attributes of the body, brain, heart and pocketbook.
Considering the above statements, humility looks like a 19th century sewing machine that is nice and intriguing but is completely outdated and useless now. On the contrary, humility is a necessary element of our earthly journey since it is a recognition of our true worth in Christ. As Fr. Walter Farrell, O.P. wrote: “It is a calm, clear-sighted virtue, not to be seduced by the tempting prospect of earthly greatness at the cost of spiritual greatness. . . humility does give us this spiritual common sense, enabling us to see and to act towards things as they are.”
Swiss theologian, Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar, pointed out that there may be a problem with giving a definition of humility as a virtue. He explains that if one really strivesfor humility, then he is not humble, he is trying to be something. If one really practiceshumility, then he is trying to attain something.
Von Balthasar continues: “No one who has humility can know or establish that fact. One can only express it negatively: a man ought not to seek anything for himself. For if he does not, then he will not place himself in the most prestigious place where he can be seen, held in respect, and valued highly.”
For example, a humble person will not invite guests to a banquet just so they will invite him back. In the same way, if he takes the lower place at an event, he does not do this in a calculating way. If he is asked to move to a higher place, his joy is not for himself. He is joyful because he experiences the host’s goodwill.
Von Balthasar explains further:
“If the Lord tells him that his attitude ‘will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous,’ presumably to him this means simply that he will be present with God.” Only this concerns the humble person: that God is so infinitely higher in goodness, power, and majesty than we are.
Fr. Mark Jurzyk