Humility tells us we are not better

Rev. Marcel Divine Emeka Okwara, CSsR

Homily for the 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year C

St. Gerard Majella Church

Sunday, October 27, 2013

A story is told of a king who once visited a prison and talked with each of the inmates. There were endless tales of innocence, misunderstood of motives, and of exploitation. Every prisoner claimed innocent of the actions that brought them to jail: “I am innocent, I didn’t do it” every one of them said. Finally, the king stopped by the cell of a convict who remained silent. The king said to him, “Well, I suppose you are an innocent victim too?” “No sir, I am not, I am guilty and deserve my punishment,” replied the man. Now turning to the prison warder the king said, “Release this rogue immediately before he corrupts all these fine innocent people here.”

Dearest beloved, today’s gospel is the story of two believers- a Pharisee and a tax collector who went to the temple to pray. Both men took part in the temple worship and said their prayers. At the end of worship, one of them- the tax collector went home at peace with God, but the pharisee did not. The Pharisees were disciplined and devout men of religion. They were serious-minded believers who committed themselves to a life of regular prayer and observance of God’s law. In fact, they went beyond the requirements of the law. They fasted twice a week even though the law only required people to fast once a year, on the Day of Atonement. The Pharisees paid tithes of all their income duly, not just of the required parts. So when the Pharisee in today’s gospel said, “O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity- greedy, dishonest, adulterous or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income” (Luke 18: 11-12), he was not lying. Tax collections, on the other hand, was included in the list of occupation regarded as “occupation of robbers,” which no father encouraged his son to practice. Tax collectors were especially singled out because the opportunity to cheat others was always there. Again, they collected taxes for the Romans- the Jews hated oppressors. As far as the religion of that time was concerned, tax collectors were public sinners on the highway to hell. But the tax collector in today’s gospel knew that the voice of the people is not always the voice of God. He believed he would be saved not on the merit of any religious achievements but on the unlimited mercy of God.

The two men who went to the temple to pray believed in God. But believing in God is not enough, after all, terrorists who destroy human life and human wealth also believe in God. The epistle of James 2:19 even says: “You believe that there is one God; you do well, but the devils also believe that and tremble.” What really matters is what people believe about God and how their faith in God affects their view of themselves and of others. The Pharisees believed in a discriminating God who loves only good people and hates bad people. People behave like the God they believe in. So the Pharisees quickly learn to love only good people like themselves and look down with contempt on sinners like the tax collectors.

The Pharisee did not really go to the temple to pray to God, he prayed to himself. True prayer is always offered to God and to God alone. He was only giving himself a thumb-up before God. The tax collector, on the other hand, trusted not in himself or in anything he had done but only in God’s mercy. Standing far off, he would not even look up to heaven, but beat his chest and prayed, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” He was the man who went home at peace with God and not the self-righteous Pharisee.

Today’s gospel teaches us that no proud person can pray. Secondly, it teaches us that no one who despises a fellow human being can be at peace with God. In prayer we do not lift ourselves above others. True prayer reveals to us that we are all in this together, that we all are sinners in desperate need of God’s mercy. Thirdly, true prayer comes from setting our lives beside the life of Jesus. No doubt, all that the Pharisee said was true. He did fast; he did give tithes; he was not like the tax collector. But in his pride, he compared himself depends with a fellow man. That what pride does! It compares us with others and tells us that we are better than them. But when the virtue of humility compares us with God, it tells us the truth- “We aren’t better.” When we set our lives beside the life of Jesus and beside the holiness of God, all that we can honestly say is, “Be merciful to me O God a sinner.” 

Humility is a truth teller. In it one knows the truth of himself or herself. Humility does not deceive; it does not flatter; it does not tell us who we are not. It opens our eyes, hearts and minds of who we really are. Despite the praises and commendations we get from people, who only see the outside of us or what we allow them to know of us, humility sets all aside and tells us the bitter of ourselves. Humility does not only see the outside of us, it also sees the inside. And we embrace humility and its true assessment of us, all we can we do is fall at the feet of the Lord and say, “Be merciful to me O God for I am a sinner.” What tells us that we are better and holier than others is pride. But humility tells us we are not holier and not better. We all like a sheep have gone astray. All have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God. You, me, all of us have sinned! We need God’s mercy!