Pride Goes Before A Fall

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For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled” (Luke 14:11)

Pride is giving ourselves credit for that which is not ours. To be proud is to assume that we are what we are by our power. It is underestimating the grace of God as the source of our positive qualities.

For St. Paul, pride is like being drunk with wine. It was pride that made the Israelites (the chosen race) reject Jesus Christ. St. Paul says: “God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that should not see and ears that should not hear, down to this very day.” Even David had prophesied, saying: “Let their table become a snare and a trap, a pitfall and a retribution for them; let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever.”

The moment we see ourselves as better than others, we start going down. In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus, having put the Pharisees to shame by healing a man with dropsy, taught us a lesson in humility. Jesus described pride as taking a seat at the high table (when invited for a ceremony) only for the host to politely ask you to step down for a more important guest.

_Saint of the Day:_ Today, we remember St. Charles Borromeo. He was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a Cardinal of the Catholic Church. He is known as a loving reformer. He was a leading figure in the Counter-Reformation combat against the Protestant Reformation with St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. Philip Neri.

St. Charles Borromeo was responsible for significant reforms in the Catholic Church, including the founding of seminaries for the education of priests. He vigorously enforced the decrees of the Council of Trent and fought tirelessly for peace in the wake of the storm caused by Martin Luther. He founded schools for the poor hospitals for the sick, conducted synods, instituted children’s Sunday school and led the diocese of Milan by example.

Let us pray: Almighty, ever-living God, without your grace, I am nothing. Teach me to be humble always and never look down on others. Through Jesus Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

Bible Study: Romans 11:1-2,11-12,25-29, Ps. 94:12-15,17-18, Luke 14:1,7-11).*

@Rev. Fr. Evaristus E. Abu

 

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