Grounded in Greatness: The Radical Realism of Humility
Michiel Peeters - Today's readings speak about humility. "Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted," says the Lord.
Elsewhere, he says: "Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; whoever wishes to be first among you shall be your slave. Just so, the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Matt 20:26-28).
First of all, we have a desire to be great. Each of us has a desire to be great. This desire is part of our nature; it has been put into us by the One who has made us.
Jesus, obviously, does not speak against this desire.
What Jesus says is that greatness is not the result of the accumulation of certain goods or the acquisition of specific skills. Greatness cannot be constructed from the outside. Great are those who are fully human. Greatness is a characteristic of the person, whatever skills or goods this person possesses or does not possess. If we look at our experience, remembering and realizing who has been really great for our lives, we know that this is true. Omnis gloria filiae regis ab intus, says the Bible: the beauty of the princess comes from inside (Ps 44:14 Vulgate). It is what in Christianity is called "holiness." But we must not think of saints as if they are museum pieces with haloes around their heads. Saints are true human beings, men and women whose humanity is fully realized; therefore, they are radiant, glorious, great.
This greatness, this glory, this holiness, does not begin or develop with the accumulation of exterior goods, crumbles of power, people's esteem, etcetera.
It commences with humility. Let us look at the etymological meaning of the concept of "humility." Humility comes from Latin humus, which means "earth,"
"ground." Humility means being grounded, having both feet firmly on the ground-as opposed to hovering, dreaming. Humility lies within the semantic field of the word "realism." Humility does not mean talking yourself down or beating yourself up. It means realism.
What is realism? Realism is the attitude that desires to know how things are and accepts them as they are. It is the first condition of knowledge, which is the first condition of reasonable action. What is the first property of anything that enters our horizon, anything, and we ourselves? That the things, including ourselves, are given. That we do not give being to ourselves, we do not make ourselves. The things, including ourselves, are made.
How are we made? With an infinite desire. Any realism always points to the Mystery, to God: as our origin, and as our destiny. When we realize God as our origin and destiny, when we realize His presence, we can experience a third "attack" of realism: realizing that we are a gift; that we are made for a relationship with the infinite, which speaks through all things and indeed through our infinite desire; then we can be ashamed of our lack of awareness, of our ordinary, daily, constant distraction. As Peter said, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man" (Luke 5:8). But in that very moment, the Lord tells us not to be afraid, reaches out his hand to lift us up and walk with us through this life, supporting us in a growing humility, that is, realism.
Unrevised notes and translation by the author. - 22nd Sunday in Ordinary Time C (Sir 3:17–18, 20, 28–29; Luke 14:1, 7–14) (Homily by Fr Michiel Peeters, Tilburg University Chaplaincy)
