Reflection on the Readings

A man received a promotion to the position of Vice President of the company he worked for. The promotion went to his head, and for weeks on end he bragged to anyone and everyone that he was now the “VP.”

Well, his bragging came to an abrupt halt when his wife, so embarrassed by his behavior, said, “Listen Bob, it’s not that big a deal. These days everyone’s a vice president. Why, they even have a vice president of peas down at the supermarket!”

Feeling somewhat deflated, Bob called the local supermarket to find out if this was true. “Can I speak to the Vice President of peas please?” he asked, to which the reply came: “of fresh or frozen?”

Humility is the kind of virtue that doesn’t have a good name.

• That’s because it may conjure up images of degradation and abjection
• Or we may think that humility means becoming a doormat for others to step on.

But those ideas are both off-target. As we see up and down the Bible, God obviously thinks that true humility is vital: in fact, he tells us so in the readings this weekend.

Friends, it’s important to understand what humility means; and it means seeing ourselves through God’s eyes.

• To belittle the gifts God has given us would actually be a subtle form of pride.
• St. Benedict used to say that if a monk had a wonderful singing voice and degraded his own ability it would be displeasing to God. So, we should recognize the good and thank God for it.
• When St. Theresa of Avila asked Christ what true humility meant, He replied: “To know what you can do, and what God can do.”

The first reading today, from the Book of Sirach, exhorts us: “Child, conduct your affairs with humility… Humble yourself the more, the greater you are, and you will find favor with God.”

Jesus echoes this idea in the gospel and declares that “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” My fellow pride-ridden followers of Christ, our Lord is calling us to see ourselves as God sees us: sinners infinitely loved by God, and in desperate need of His mercy.

Fr. David C. Santos, Pastor