"Be clothed in humility"

“Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector.  The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, ‘O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity—greedy, dishonest, adulterous—or even like this tax collector.’”  Luke 18:10–11

The Pharisee looks righteous on the outside and is even proud enough to speak about how good he is in his prayer to God when he says that he is grateful he is not like the rest of humanity. 

The tax collector, however, is truthful, humble and sincere.  He cried out, “Oh God, be merciful to me a sinner.”  Jesus makes it clear that the tax collector, with this humble prayer, went home justified but the Pharisee did not. (Luke 18:9-14)

We all carry the heavy burden of self-righteousness, at least to some extent.  It’s hard to sincerely arrive at the level of humility that this tax collector had.  And it’s so very easy to fall into the trap of justifying our own sin and, as a result, becoming defensive and self-absorbed.  But this is all pride.  Pride disappears when we do two things well.

First, we have to understand God’s mercy.  Understanding the mercy of God frees us to take our eyes off ourselves and set aside self-righteousness and self-justification.  It frees us from being defensive and enables us to see ourselves in the light of the truth.  When we recognize God’s mercy for what it is, we also realize that even our sins cannot keep us from God.  In fact, the greater the sinner, the more that sinner is deserving of God’s mercy!  So understanding God’s mercy actually enables us to acknowledge our sin.

Acknowledging our sin is the second important step we must take if we want our pride to disappear.  We have to know that it’s OK to admit our sin.  We don’t have to stand on the street corner and tell everyone about the details of our sin, but we have to acknowledge it to ourselves and to God, especially in the confessional.  Even in the midst of the ‘stay in place’ orders and closed churches, we can still call to make an appointment for the Sacrament.  And, at times, it will be necessary to acknowledge our sins to others so that we can ask for their forgiveness and mercy.  This depth of humility is attractive and easily wins the hearts of others.  It inspires and produces the good fruits of peace and joy in our hearts. 

During this sacred Lenten season, as Hosea instructs us: “Let us know, let us strive to know the LORD; as certain as the dawn is coming, and his judgment shines forth like the light of day HE will come to us like the rain, like spring rain that waters the earth.” (Hosea 6:1-6)   

Don’t be afraid to follow the example of the tax collector.  Take his prayer today and say it over and over.  Let it become your prayer and you’ll see the good fruits of this prayer in your life!