Humility and Pride

The Place of Humility among Christian Virtues Jesus Christ began His Sermon on the Mount with the Beatitudes, the first of which is about humility: “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.” ‘Poor in spirit’ means to be humble and conscious of our spiritual poverty. Our Lord began His sermon with a call to humility because it is the first step on the ladder to perfection. Humility is rewarded with nothing less but the heavenly kingdom. On another occasion, when His disciples asked Him who amongst them was the greatest in heaven, Jesus called a little child and said: “Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus preaches humility as a prerequisite for entering the kingdom of heaven. This is because humility is the foundation on which we can re-build our spiritual being. Humility is the mother of all virtues. Without it, our love is superficial, our hope is impatient, and our faith is incomplete. Humility is the salt of a righteous life. Just as food goes bad without preservatives, righteousness loses its value without humility. Saint Cyprian of Carthage considered humility the “foundation of sainthood.” Saint Jerome referred to it as the “first Christian virtue.” Saint Gregory the Great called it “a mentor and a mother” and “the root and the source of all virtues.” Every virtue torn from its root—humility—fades away and loses its value. Some may object, however, claiming that faith is the foundation of spiritual growth—faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, which is also confirmed by St. Paul: “For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” When building a house, we first need to remove the soft and sandy dirt and only after reaching solid ground that can withstand the weight of the building, can we lay the foundation and start the construction. This solid ground is humility. First, we need to admit our weaknesses and imperfections and acknowledge that we need God’s help. Only then, can we place the foundation stone—faith. We need to first admit our spiritual poverty, humble ourselves, before we can begin our spiritual growth through faith. Another important construction rule is that if we want the building to be tall and magnificent, we should lay its foundations much deeper. Love is called the “queen of all virtues,” but even love becomes selfish and hypocritical if it is not grounded in humility. Love is the cement of the spiritual building. Without it, the building runs the risk of falling apart, no matter how skillfully the individual stones are assembled. Love helps us raise our spiritual building and makes it beautiful. At the same time, the more we realize that we owe everything to God—both our natural gifts and the success of our efforts—our love and gratitude towards our Benefactor become greater. Hope, on the other hand, is the vertical frame that keeps our spiritual building straight. Without a frame, the walls may bend and the building may collapse. The taller the building, the more it needs a vertical frame. Hope is also founded on humility since the more we realize that we cannot accomplish anything without God’s help, the greater is our hope in Him. A house built on solid and deep foundations will withstand all storms and floods. If we build our spiritual edifice—the new person in Christ—on the solid foundation of faith, hope and love supported by profound humility, we will succeed. St. Tikhon of Zadonsk said that humility is as important for those who want to learn to live a Christian life as the alphabet is for those learning to read. Just as the alphabet is the beginning of all learning, humility is the beginning and foundation of Christian wisdom. Humility is the wreath into which all Christian virtues are woven. Humility is the message of the Gospel, the message of the Apostles, of their successors and of the Fathers of the Church.