One of the many noble facets of Catholicism is that its teachings hold the answers to life’s most difficult challenges, if we only take the time to seek, understand and embrace them.
Let’s face it, our world has some really daunting issues. We cannot rely on secular values alone to save us, because they are subject to constant change, and sadly at times even outright rejection and mockery. Sometimes these values seek to destroy the good.
Each day, news reports are full of examples of diverse forms of human arrogance, from the politically hypocritical, to the vain, narcissistic celebrity, to the vile hatred of those who murder with diabolical intent. Pride takes on many forms and too often resonates in those who are in prestigious positions or who have attained a certain power, whether in government, business, media or entertainment. All of us are susceptible to pride and possess it to some degree, as it is the most deceptive and subtle form of sin.
Adding to this is the reality that we routinely consume, through the media, a highly emotionalized cocktail of self-gratifying sensory inputs. Over time this has influenced us more than we may realize. It is one of the reasons why our nation is so divided politically, and it is at times a cause of division within the Church. We seem to be weakening our ability to gather facts, reason and debate rationally and objectively, and choose instead to argue on a hyper-emotionalized level. As long as we do this, we will continue to erode our foundations.
We must look to our faith. Part of the solution lies in an unlikely, simple virtue that seems like a well-kept secret in our confusing times: humility.
The great St. Augustine, known as the Doctor of Grace, said: “Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues hence, in the soul in which this virtue does not exist there cannot be any other virtue except in mere appearance.”
The challenge is that in our modernized, progressive mindset, humility is no longer praised as a strength. However, humility is an indomitable strength if authentically inculcated, and it is essential to our spiritual lives.
In a practical sense, humility can be best thought of as recognition of reality, or truth, and then behaving in a manner that optimally corresponds to that reality, for the greatest good. Christ on earth was humility incarnate, and the greatest example because He was truthful in His actions, words and thoughts, and He behaved in a perfect manner for completion of His salvific mission.
We misunderstand humility if we view it as something timid or lethargic. The virtue has nothing to do with diffidence or lack of zeal; it has to do with facts and reality. We humble ourselves before God whenever we recognize we are less than God and did not invent ourselves, and He has the power, not us. We are humble in a pragmatic sense whenever we do our best to properly assess facts of any given situation, and process those in a way that does not allow our egos to drive a biased outcome that does not yield the greatest good. We are humble when we respect legitimate authority in all of its forms.
Pride is a terrible end game because as it says in scripture, “Pride goeth before the fall” (Proverbs 16:18). When we look back across history, where now are all those proud men who knew such great power, such adulation, such glory, in the flashing few moments of their lives, but all of whom met a devastating end? Attila the Hun, Nero, Caligula, Napoleon, Stalin, Mussolini, Hitler, to name a few among many? Their memories reek of terrible evils, and their contribution was destruction. Pride does not discriminate its prey, and it can be found in the rich, the middle class and the poor. It sows negativity and darkness wherever it dwells, and must be attacked directly with the right tactics. We first start and always conquer that which within us is proud. Our greatest caution should be toward our own inner self that tends to seek its glorification.
Humility, in all of its forms, is a key antidote and veritable weapon to counter the many evils of our present times. We must ask God’s help daily in receiving it. It is never too late to begin, and if we desire success in our spiritual journey and other aspects of our lives, we must take this foundational virtue to heart and strive to practice it. As another great Doctor of the Church, St. Teresa of Avila, once said, “There is more value in a little study of humility and in a single act of it than in all the knowledge in the world.”
Fred Berretta is a member of St. Matthew Church in Charlotte.