I’m not sure I have the capacity to be a person of humility
all the time, or even most of the time.
It’s easy to blame the hubris of being among a more fortunate economic
class, or the consumerism or hedonism or any other of the -isms that are too
prevalent in our world. But the truth
runs much deeper than those excuses. So
I pray and wonder... Does trying to be a
person of humility count? Does living
out what my grandmother and mother taught me so well count: that I am special
in God’s eyes, but no more special than any of my loud, crazy siblings and cousins
and certainly no more so than any other child of God? Am I humble when I serve, or accept the help
of others, or break bread with a family of very modest means – so much so that
guilt creeps even as I’m humbled by their generosity? Have I truly turned myself over to God?
Perhaps you, too, have seen the face of God in a chance
encounter that called you (us) to nearly drop to your knees in gratitude. Perhaps you, too, have wondered at the many,
many blessings you enjoy, knowing that your (our) sins, if matched
line-by-line, would cause the balance sheet to tip toward the measure of
‘unworthy.’ Perhaps you, too, have felt
shame for the moments that you (we) exalted, through words or deeds, self above
other. If yes, then we are a pretty huge
amalgamation of like-hearted souls.
So during the rest of this Lenten season, I want to endeavor
to behave less often like the Pharisee who was self-aggrandizing, and more
often like the tax collector, justified and exalted because of his acts of
humility at the Temple. Thanks be to
God!
************************
The Highs and Lows and Ups and Downs of the Most Holy
Rosary:
The Sorrowful mysteries
IV. The Carrying of
the Cross
Brief meditation:
In this mystery, we contemplate Our Lord Jesus Christ falling down for the third time under the weight of his own
cross but he rises up and continues forward. We ask the Blessed Virgin Mary to inspire us
with this scene so that every time we find ourselves overwhelmed by our own
crosses that we may never give up, that we may always
rise up, embrace our cross and continue forward with more determination
than before.
Scriptural meditations:
1. As they led
[Jesus] away they took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in
from the country; and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it
behind Jesus. (Luke 23:26)- Hail Mary…
2. A large crowd of
people followed Jesus, including many women who mourned
and lamented him. (Luke 23:27)- Hail Mary ...
3. Jesus turned to
them and said, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not
weep for me; weep instead for yourselves and for your children. (Luke
23:28)- Hail Mary ...
4. "The days
are coming when people will say, 'Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never
bore and the breasts that never nursed.'" (Luke 23: 29)- Hail Mary ...
5. "At that
time people will say to the mountains, Fall upon us!'
and to the hills, Cover us!'" (Luke 23:30)- Hail Mary ...
6. "For if
these things are done when the wood is green what will happen when it is
dry?" (Luke 23:31)- Hail Mary ...
7. [Jesus said,]
"Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me." (Mark 8:34)- Hail
Mary ...
8. This, rather, is
the fasting that I wish: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of
the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking every yoke. (Isaiah 58:6)- Hail
Mary ...
9. Sharing your bread with the hungry, sheltering the oppressed
and the homeless. Clothing the naked when you see them,
and not turning your back on your own. (Isaiah
58:7)- Hail Mary ...
10. Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed. Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say: Here I am! (Isaiah 58:8-9)- Hail Mary ...
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