Inspired by Scholastica

 

Virtue of Humility

We don’t often think of praying for the virtue of humility. It might seem degrading or self-negating. Yet we admire people who are humble, like Mother Teresa, Nelson Mandela, and Mary, mother of God. They are models of goodness and simplicity.

St. Benedict thought so much of humility that he put 12 steps to attain it in his Rule. The first step is to keep the fear of God always before his eyes. That is hard to do in this age of instant communication and myriad distractions. So it’s a goal, but not easily achieved. The second step is that a person loves not his own will nor takes pleasure in the satisfaction of his desires.  Another difficult step. We are reluctant to give up our independence and want to have our pleasures.

There is value in practicing humility. One value is to listen to another’s point of view and not to think we have all the answers. This is extremely difficult in the current world with fake news and distortions of the truth. Yet we must try to find common ground and accept every person as a child of God.

Humility is putting others’ needs before our own. When we pass someone who is begging for money, perhaps homeless and hungry, we can give generously. When someone needs a listening ear, we can give them time even if we are busy. Also, a humble person can rejoice in others’ accomplishments even if he/she feels overlooked.  This doesn’t mean we need be subservient or put ourselves down. We just need to put others’ needs before our own.

 We are often too self-absorbed and seeking the best place at the table instead of the last. But we can become more conscious of ways to be humbler. Maybe we can’t be a Mother Teresa, but we can become the best person we can be if we are” meek and humble of heart.” In his letter to the Hebrews, St. Paul urges his followers “with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bear with one another in love.”