Simple Humility

     In today’s Gospel we hear the proud Pharisee pray, “God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.” In his prayer he compares himself to many other people and contrasts himself with all the great things he has done. This Pharisee was obsessed with finding his self-worth in comparing his life to others. He had a higher standing, so he thought, because he was supposedly more faithful than everyone else. In comparing ourselves to others, we lose who we truly are. We become so focused on others, on their lives, and we become egotistic.

     To contrast this attitude, Jesus presents us with the example of the same tax collector mentioned above, who was so ashamed of his sins that he could only muster up the words, “ God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” He had come to God in prayer, not in pride and self-acclamation, but in being who he was at that very moment, in a humble way and with a heart on fire for forgiveness.

     So often, like that Pharisee, We forget that each of us are individually created by God and are all on different paths. We quickly forget that each of us are at different places in our journey as Disciples of Christ and on this journey of life. Before God, each of us are humbled, loved, and exalted by our loving merciful God. In this humility, we realize that we are in constant need of God, and that each of us are on our own journey of faith and growth. Thus, it does not make any sense to compare our lives and our actions to anyone else’s. For we indeed find our true selves through a rich, humble and honest dialogue with God. Let us truly turn ourselves to God today, and pray as the tax collector did. May we come to focus our lives on God, our center, and begin the process of not constantly comparing ourselves to others.

Prayer:

Take away from our hearts, O Christ, all over-confidence and boasting, all high and vain thoughts, all desire to excuse ourselves from sin, or to compare ourselves proudly with others; and grant us rather to take as Master and King you who chose to be crowned with thorns and to die in shame for us all, Jesus our Lord. AMEN!