Luke 18:9-14
The Parable of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector
9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other people—robbers, evildoers, adulterers—or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get.’
13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, have mercy on me, a sinner.’
14 “I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”
Jesus had to be the Most Humblest of People who has ever lived...A Divine One who spoke Divine Truth and yet many people did not recognize Him...Our Savior and Messiah who was sent by God to save us from our own sins with His life...He was with God in the beginning and had to have listened and learned from God is the Best of Ways...He could have done anything on earth that He wanted to do, since He is Divine...But He followed God's Will and God's Humble Ways...Jesus never sought power or go out of His Way to draw attention to Himself...The attention He got was humbly earned by what He was doing on earth...He was following God's Will and being Himself...
We know that the Bible and Jesus teaches us humility and humbleness...Jesus gives us the Parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector...In this parable, a Pharisee and a tax collector went to the temple to pray...The Pharisee prayed about how good he was and even compares himself with other people including the tax collector...But the tax collector simply asked for God's mercy as he knowingly knew himself as a sinner...Jesus said that it was the tax collector who went home justified before God...
Self-esteem is running amuck and many want to give their opinions in a non-humbling way...There is much evidence to suggest that humility is still a rare and most valuable trait...Yet, many are giving their opinions and thoughts and ideas in a less humble way...It seems the internet has allowed some, if not many people, in an effort to get people to watch and see themselves have disregarded and forgotten humility...They see self promotion as a stronger self esteem and have forgotten how their neighbor thinks and feels...They have forgotten the Greatest Commandment to love God and to love neighbor...Self promotion is not about humility, but a self promoting act that can be selfish and is not selfless in helping others...And it is not about loving your neighbor...
For example, studies have shown that people are becoming increasingly narcissistic and self-centered, and that social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok are exacerbating these tendencies...Additionally, the rise of populism and political polarization has led to an increase in intolerance and disrespect for differing viewpoints...
Bishop Robert Barron says that "Humility is recognized by all the spiritual masters as the great virtue...St. Bernard echoed Augustine when asked what are the three great things, and he said, ‘Humility, humility, humility.’...Because if pride is the first sin, the deadliest of the deadly sins, then the opposite of pride is the solution...And what it means is an openness to things as they really are...Thomas Aquinas said, humilitas est veritas – humility is truth...It’s truth about the way things really are...The trouble with pride is that we turn ourselves into God...Now, we might not do that explicitly, but we’re always doing it implicitly...Meaning, ‘I’m the center of the universe...The world revolves around me...I’m the most important reality in the world...And the key thing is making me happy, making me successful.’...But that’s out of step with reality...The truth of things is that God is God, and we exist only the measure that we are being created by God...And when you get that – not as an intellectual proposition, but you get it in your bones – your whole life changes...Because then you say, as all the great masters do, ‘My life is not about me...It’s my life, but it’s not about me, it’s about God and God’s purposes, and God working through me.’...And that’s humility, it’s the truth about how things are...And that’s why it’s the king of the virtues, in many ways, because it counteracts pride...Humility is getting deeply immersed in the truth of things, in reality, and not seeing the whole world through the lens of your own ego."...
Bishop Robert adds this about the Truth in this world today: “People in oppressive political situations are so afraid to give voice to their convictions that they lose confidence in the very category of truth and in the power of speech to bring clarity and liberation.”...“Love the life of the mind, and I’ve spent my whole life studying and reading...Yet because of where we are now, the ‘true’ and the ‘good’ are offensive in a culture that is so radically subjective and relativist, and the minute you say, ‘Hey, I’ve got the truth for you,’ every defense goes up, and even more if you say, ‘I’ve got what’s good for you.”...
With humility one can find Truth...With humility one can listen to another one's point of view and can disagree without a growing disdain for the person them humble one is listening to...Listening to another is a show of respect and humility, especially those with a differing opinion than our own...And self promotion must be carefully thought out to keep one humble...Let us remember Jesus' command to love one another...