Pope at Angelus: Be humble so that God may raise you up

By Thaddeus Jones

Speaking to the crowds gathered in Saint Peter's Square for the Sunday Angelus prayer, Pope Francis offered his customary reflections on the Sunday Gospel that today tells us about the Pharisee and the publican who to go the Temple to pray. The publican, an avowed sinner, acknowledges his sinfulness before God and presents himself as he is in his own poverty, without any embellishment, the Pope explained, saying this parable presents two movements: one of rising and the other of descending.

Rise and seek the Lord

The first movement of rising up, said the Pope, is often found in the Bible, where to encounter the Lord one rises up: like Abraham going up the mountain to offer sacrifice, Moses going up to Mount Sinai to receive the Commandments, and Jesus going up the mountain to be transfigured. 

Going down to go up

To rise above ourselves to encounter the Lord, we need to descend, the Pope went on to say, and this means going down into ourselves to honestly look in the mirror to see and admit our own frailties, sins, and wounds that weigh on us. He said in this way we can "cultivate sincerity and humility of heart" so that we can humbly invoke God's mercy, which can heal, restore and raise us up.

Beware of pride

The Pharisee described in the parable instead showed spiritual arrogance by praising himself and his good religious works, while disdaining and dismissing others, said the Pope, pointing out that this adoration of the ego led him to assume his own righteousness and judge others, thereby closing himself off to God. The Pope said we also should examine our lives and consider if we might have a bit of the Pharisee's attitude in us, convinced of our own righteousness, judgemental of others, and trapped by narcissism and exhibitionism. He added that we need to remember "where there is too much 'I', there is too little God."