If you think about the stories we hear in the Gospels week after week about Jesus and his disciples, a lot of it involves Jesus’ interaction with the people of Ancient Israel and his sharing of meals with them. In fact, some Scripture scholars humorously report that Jesus ate his way through the Gospels. Scripture Scholar Father Robert Karris, a Franciscan priest at St Bonaventure University in New York states: “In Luke’s Gospel Jesus is either going to a meal, at a meal, or coming from a meal.” Elsewhere in Luke, the scribes and Pharisees accuse Jesus of being a glutton and a drunkard in the way they see him always eating with others, trying to discredit him and criticize his ministry. But, since sharing meals with others and inviting others to a meal are a part of Southern hospitality, perhaps we here in Mississippi can understand Jesus’ behavior. In many ways, Jesus reveals different facets of God’s kingdom in the way he shared meals with sinners and tax collectors, with the poor and the outcasts. In today’s Gospel, as Jesus’ conduct is being observed while he is dining with a leading Pharisee, Jesus presents a parable that addresses the Christian virtue of humility when he sees the Pharisees trying to grab the seat of honor when they sit down for a meal.
If you search the internet for quotes from the saints and different theologians about the virtue of humility, you will be overwhelmed with how many wonderful quotes on humility you find. St Augustine, Doctor of the Church from the 5th century, whose feast day we celebrated on Sunday, August 28, had this to say: "No one reaches the kingdom of Heaven except by humility”. The great mystic St Teresa of Avila, also a Doctor of the Church, saw humility as as the foundation of our growth in holiness, as she states: “Humility must always be doing its work in us like a bee making its honey in the hive: without humility, all will be lost.” Teresa’s protege and fellow Carmelite St John of the Cross had this to say about how God views greatness and humility: “To be taken with love for a soul, God does not look on its greatness, but the greatness of its humility.” Trappist priest Thomas Keating, one of the spiritual fathers of centering prayer who passed away in 2018, stated these profound words - ““Humility is an attitude of honesty with God, oneself, and of all reality. It enables us to be at peace in the presence of our powerlessness and to rest in the forgetfulness of self.”
But above all, Jesus’ journey here on earth is the greatest example of humility we can have. Jesus emptied himself. He came to us as a servant in his human likeness. By humbling himself, he became obedient to death. Jesus explains in today’s Gospel that we should follow that example. If we try to exalt ourselves, we will be humbled, but if we humble ourselves, we will be lifted up. We have many examples of humility all around us that can inspire us and encourage us on our journey of faith. These examples come not only from the famous saints whom we honor in our faith, but by those we meet in our everyday lives. I immediately thought of many of the religious sisters I knew in Ecuador. Sister Gemma. Sister Elena. Sister Julia. Sister Monserrat. Sister Celia. Sister Rosa. Their names still stay with me after more than 20 years. They served in the jungle with the poorest of the poor. They never asked for honors or accolades. They never asked for comfortable living quarters. They served in humility and generosity. They served others with love, compassion, and charity. They encouraged others and made them feel confident in themselves. Their very lives encouraged others to want to live their lives as Christians.
Like any of the valves of the Gospel, humility is not just an academic theory we discuss. It is not something that we can force into our lives. Humility is a fruit of the holy spirit, just like faithfulness, charity, and patience. By following the Gospel in our daily lives, by studying and growing and practicing our faith, values like humility will be fruits of that faith. I really love this quote by Franciscan priest Richard Rohr: “(The words) humility and human come from the Latin word, humus, dirt. A human being is someone . . . taken out of the dirt. A humble person is one who recognizes that and even rejoices in it!” Humility is called to be an integral part of the earthly, messy reality of our lives. Yes, we are called to find joy in our humble identity. We called to allow God to live in us and fill us with his spirit, to do his will throughout our journey of faith. In our humility, in our humble lives of service, may we always be instruments of God’s peace and goodness and graciousness.
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