humility - 26th week Monday 2013

Humility is the root of all virtues as its opposite pride is the root of all vices.  When a person is not humble, when a person is full of himself he cannot truly serve others for he will always be thinking about what’s in it for him.  When a person is full of himself he cannot truly love others because he will always prioritize his desires rather than sacrifice for the sake of the other.  When a person is not humble, when a person is full of himself he cannot tell the truth except when the truth is to his advantage.  Otherwise he lies.  When a person is full of himself he cannot have real friends.  He will try to buy them, he will try to bribe them but they will not stay for long, for real friendship requires an emptying of self, when a person begins to think of the good of the other. 

Today the Lord gathers his disciples to teach them the humility.  Humility is a virtue because there is in us an undying desire for greatness, a desire for popularity, a desire to become the center of attention.  But true greatness is not something that we do or something that we acquire on our own, but something which the Lord confers in us, something the Lord alone can do for us.  Mary realized this in her magnificat – the Lord has done great things for me, holy is his name.  Today we celebrate the feast of St. Jerome.  He reminds of the book of one who is humble, one who is willing to be taught and to be guided.  He reminds us of the importance of the bible in our lives.