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30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C
Sacred Heart Church, Island Park
October 27, 2019
Merton and Humility
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato
There was an American priest named Thomas Merton.
Merton died in 1968 at the age of fifty-three. Many of you may know that he was a contemplative monk – a member of the Trappist monastery in Kentucky.
Merton wrote a number of books on spirituality and the spiritual life. These have had a significant impact on Catholics, other Christians and persons of all faith traditions.
Merton often reflects on the importance of the virtue of humility, on our being humble persons. In one place, he says this – just two sentences!
“Humility is absolutely necessary, if one is going to avoid acting like a baby all one’s life. To grow up, in fact, means to become humble, to throw away the illusion that I am the center of everything.”
Jesus and Humility
Jesus also talks about humility in today’s Gospel.
He tells a parable about two people in the temple. The contrast between their attitudes and words and body postures is absolutely dramatic.
And then Jesus draws his teaching from this image by saying: “Those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
These words at first sound nice, pious, but also unrealistic. After all we do live in a culture where we have to promote or “exalt” ourselves, to use Jesus’ word, if we are going to get ahead or even just stay afloat.
And yet, the words remain – that we need to “humble ourselves,” to embrace humility, if we are to become the kind of persons Jesus calls us to flourish or grow in age and grace. We need to do this, if we are going to “grow up,” as Thomas Merton says, and become mature persons.
Today I don’t want to give a definition of humility, but I do want to try to describe it from our own experience of it. As I see it, here are some of the things that this virtue can mean for us.
We Are Humble When…
We are humble:
Ø When we are like the tax collector in Jesus’ story and can admit our weaknesses and mistakes, things that we did that were wrong, harsh, or rash,
OR:
Ø When we can laugh at ourselves, at our own idiosyncrasies and foibles.
We are humble:
Ø When we are not like the Pharisee in Jesus’ story and do not look down on others and see ourselves as better than they,
OR:
Ø When we look at those who are different from us – in race or religion or culture or nationality or whatever – and see them as persons, as human beings with needs and feelings and hopes like our own.
We are humble:
Ø When we are willing to look at our part in the breakdown of a relationship – and there is almost always an “our” part – and we do whatever we can on our side to work things out,
OR:
Ø When I, as a priest or we as a Church, do not judge those who no longer come here and instead look at ourselves and ask how we could do ministry better to bring God more effectively to the twenty-first century.
And finally, we are humble:
Ø When we listen to others while they are speaking and try to take in their ideas and feelings,
OR:
Ø When we pause to think before we speak and not have to be first or the loudest in saying something.
Conclusion
I am sure there are more things we could say to describe humility in terms of our own experience of it.
Admittedly, this is not a popular or easy virtue. But I believe it is a personal trait we need to work at embracing, if we are to be disciples of Jesus and even, for that matter, if we are to become mature persons.
Let’s just remember: Whether they be the words of Merton,“To grow up means to become humble and throw away the illusion that I am the center of everything” or the words of Jesus,“Those who humble themselves will be exalted,
… both are sound pieces of advice!
