Volume II, Treatise III, Chapter XXXIII

A Further Explanation of the Third Degree of Humility; and Whence at Comes, that They Who Are Truly Humble Stall Look Upon Themselves as the Least and Worst of All

Tuat we may conceive yet better, the excellence of this third. degree of humility, and fortify ourselves in it, we must ascend higher, to take a view of things. We have already shewn, that we hold our natural being and faculties from God; because of ourselves we were nothing, and therefore incapable either of the operations of our senses, or of those of our memory, will, or understanding; it being God alone that has made us capable of them, by giving us. our being; and consequently it is to him we ought to ascribe both. the being we have, and the natural faculties which accompany it.. The same may be said of our supernatural being, and of the operations of grace; and with so much the more reason, as grace is. infinitely above nature; for we hojd not from ourselves supernatural being, but from God; which is a being of grace, that he has freely added to our natural being, “By nature we were the children of wrath,” (Ephesians 2:8), born in sin, and enemies of God. ‘God has. called you out of darkness to his marvellous light.”” (1 Peter 2:9).

Of enemies, he has made us friends; and of slaves, children; of Objects of hatred and anger, which we were, he has rendered us acceptable in his sight. Nor was he moved thereunto, either in. consideration of our former merits, or future services; but out of his own pure mercy and the merits of our only mediator, Jesus Christ; since, according to the words of the apostle, “we are justified freely by the grace of God, and by the redemption that is in Jesus Christ.’”’ (Romans 3:14). Now, as we cannot make ourselves out of nothing, nor give ourselves the natural faculties we enjoy, all which are the pure gift of the liberality of God, to whom alone we owe entirely the glory thereof—so cannot we of ourselves, get out of the darkness of sin, in which we were, and in which we have been conceived, except God by his infinite goodness, draws us out of it; and it is impossible to do any meritorious action for the gaining everlasting life, if he gives us not the grace to do it. For it is the grace of God which stamps a merit upon our actions; as the coin of the prince, gives value to money.

Thus ought we to ascribe all the glory to God alone, who is the author of grace, 4s well as of nature; and to have always in our mouths and hearts these words of the apostle, “by the grace of God I am what I am.”

Moreover, as we have shewn, that in the order of nature it is God, who has not only given us our being, but continually preserves us in #it—who sustaining us by his Almighty hand, hinders us from relapsing into the abyss of nothing, out of which he has drawn us; so also in the order of grace, it is not only God who has drawn us out of the darkness of sin, to the marvellous light of his grace; but it is he who holds us continually by the hand, to hinder us from falling back into the abyss, So that should he withdraw his hand but one moment, and permit the devil to tempt us at his pleasure, we should at the same instant relapse into our. former sins, and-into several other more heinous ones. ‘ Because the Lord is at my right hand,” says David, “nothing can be able to move me.” (Psalms 15:8) It is thy grace, O Lord, which draws: us out of our sins, and it is that hinders us from relapsing into them. If I have risen again, it is because thou hast reached out thy hand to me; and if I now stand, it is because thou upholdest me.

Now as I have shewn, that this consideration is sufficient to convince us, in natural things, that we are nothing; because in reality we are and were nothing of ourselves, and should be still so, did not God preserve us every moment; so ought the same consideration suffice in the things of grace, to convince us that we are still sinners. Because we really are, and were nothing of ourselves, but sinners; nor should we be any thing else, if God did not always hold us by the hand.

Albertus Magnus therefore says, that he who will acquire humility ought to plant the root of it in his heart; that is, he ought to make it his study, to find out his own weakness and misery, and to comprehend not only how weak and miserable he is; but to what a degree of weakness he would be reduced, even in the very moment of his reflecting upon himself, did not God, through his infinite goodness, turn him from the occasions of sin, and help and succour him in temptations. Into what sins should notI have fallen, O my God, if by thy mercy thou hadst not delivered me? How many times hast thou removed from me the occasions of sin, which might have overcome me, since David himself yielded to them, if thou, who knowest my weakness, hadst not put them out.

of my way? How many times hast thou tied up the hands of the devil, to hinder him from tempting me, so far as he could; or that he should not tempt me at least beyond my power to resist? How often might I have said with the prophet, “unless the Lord had helped me, my soul had almost descended into hell.” (Psalms 93:17) How often, when I was attacked, and staggered, have I been upheld by thy Almighty hand; “if I said, my foot slips, thy mercy, O Lord, succoured me.” (Psalms 93:18) How often, alas! should I have been destroyed, had not God by his goodness and infinite mercy preserved me! These are the thoughts we ought to have of our weakness and misery, as we are nothing of ourselves. but weakness and misery; and should fall into all manner of disorders, if God did abandon us, or withdraw his hand from us, but for a moment.

Hence it is, that many holy men have sought occasions to enter into such thoughts of so profound humility, that not content to be reckoned barely wicked, they have looked upon themselves as the greatest sinners upon the face of the earth. God raised St. Francis to so high a degree of perfection, and designed so eminent a seat in glory for him, that he one day shewed that saint’s companion, the place he had reserved for him in heaven, among the seraphims; yet the same religious asking the saint afterwards, ‘‘ what opinion he had of himself?” -“TI think,” answered he, “that there is not in the world a greater sinner than myself.” St. Paul believed the same thing of himself; “Jesus Christ came into the world,” says he, “to save sinners, of which I am the chief.’’ (1 Timothy 1:15) Thus he teaches us, to abide in the same sentiments of humility as he did, to value ourselves less than any body, and to prefer every body to ourselves. ‘For the apostle deceives us not in this,” says St. Austin, “nor teaches us flatteries, when he writes to the Philippians, that every one of them should in humility esteem others better than themselves;” and to the Romans also, “that they should in honour prevent one another.”—-(Romans 12:10) It was not out of feigned humility, that the saints styled themselves the greatest sinners, upon earth; it was because they really thought so; and when they recommend to us the practice of this exercise, it is because they wish us to think seriously that we are great sinners; and not to be content with pretending to think that we are 80..

St. Bernard, examining these words of our Saviour, “‘ when thou shalt be invited to a marriage, sit down in the lowest place;”

observes, that he says not, sit down in one of the middle places, or in one of the lowest, but “sit down in the last place;” in order, says the saint, that you may not pretend, not only, not to prefer yourself, but not so much as to equal yourself to any body, he orders you to take the last place, that is to say, to look upon yourself as the most unworthy of all, and as the greatest sinner. Nor do you expose yourself to any danger in thus giving place to all; but you would run a great hazard, by preferring yourself to anyone. For as in passing through a low door there is no danger in stooping too much; but you may easily break your head, should you stoop ever so little less than you ought; so there is no hazard in much humbling yourself; but a great deal in not doing it enough, and j in preferring yourself to anyone whomsoever.

How know you, but that he whom you do not only think more wicked than yourself, but whom you look upon as the worst of all men, may become a better man than you, or any one else; or whether he be not go already in the sight of God? How know you whether God may not change his hand, and prefer him to you; as Jacob did, when he blessed Ephraim the younger brother, before Manasses the elder? How know you what God may have wrought in his heart since yesterday; nay, since the very last moment? ‘For in an instant he can easily enrich the poor.” (Ecclesiasticus 11:23) He needs only to look with an eye of mercy upon him. Of a publican, and persecutor of his church, he can make an apostle and preacher of his name; “of stones he can raise up children to Abraham;” (Mat. iii. 9), and in a moment make hardened sinners become his own children. How much was the Pharisee mistaken, who judged so ill of St. Mary Magdalen? The parable which our Saviour made use of, to reprove him for the censuring of her, made him sensible, that she whom he believed a public sinner, was become more righteous than himself. Wherefore St. Bennet, St. Thomas, and several other saints say, that one of the twelve degrees of humility, is to believe, and to own one’s sélf the least of all; and it is not sufficient only to express it with our lips, but it must also come from our very heart. ‘“‘ Believe not,” says the author of the Imitation of Christ, “that you are a proficient in virtue, if you look not on yourself as the least of all your brethren.”’—(Lib. ii. c. 2.)

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