"Some are displeased with the physician who cures them by reproof, and are not angry with the man who wounds them by flattery." -St. Bernard
The Scripture is prevaded with the theme of humility. Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val composed a prayer that he would recite after every Mass he celebrated called Litany of Humility. It is an irony of Divine Providence that he was chosen as Secretary of State by our last canonized pope- St. Pius X. Every day he would pray, “From the desire of being honored and from the desire of being preferred to others…Deliver me Jesus.” Yet the Lord rewarded him with a position of being the right hand man of a saintly pope. No one can outdo the Lord in generosity.
Cardinal Merry de Val, being of stature at the Vatican, did not think it beneath him to teach the Catholic Faith in the slums of Rome; for that is what he did. Like Pope St. Pius X, he was very generous with those in need. He would often slip money underneath the doors of poor households. For him, a state dignitary deserved no more of his attention than the street sweeper.
In dealing with opponents of the Church- whether it be powerful men from without or modernist theologians from within -he did not flinch from confrontation or conflict. He saw himself as a “watchman” (Ez 33:7) of the Church; jealous for the salvation of souls and the glory of God.
Upon his death in 1930, he was found wearing a hair shirt. His penitential spirituality and the Litany of Humility he composed for himself bore for him abundant fruit. Indeed, he was a man of God who was unmoved by honor and was at peace with humiliations.
Following the death of St. Pius X, the cardinal wrote a book called, The Memoirs of Pope Pius X. In it, he recounts that the adulation and deference that came with being a pope was a burden to St. Pius X. Indeed, for a Saint, such special treatment is a cross to be carried. Like the Jesus Christ, they avoid human praise so that they can merit the approbation of God.
Yet, many today long to be famous; and when their dreams are realized, they often become disillusioned with that fame. Not too long ago people looked up to heroes. Today they admire celebrities. For the first time in history, studies show that young people prefer being famous over being rich. Human praise and applause is coveted more than ever.
Sometimes we too struggle vanity and pride. For instance, when we do not get the recognition we think we deserve, we may get discouraged or saddened. Or it may happen that when people find fault with us, we become indignant and lose our peace. As St. Gregory the Great said, "We have known many who, when no one accuses them, confess themselves sinners; but when they have been corrected for a fault, they endeavor with all their might to defend themselves, and to remove the imputation of guilt." Indeed, being silent when criticized is worth more to God than ten days of fasting. What is more paradoxical is that this same virtue which gives strength to us for keeping silent when criticized, is the same virtue that gives us strength for speaking the truth when no one else will.
The good news is this: When the grace of God's humility is given the chance work within the soul, then true joy and happiness takes root and the foretaste of heaven begins. Honors and human applause lose their appeal; in place of that, the desire to please God grows stronger. There is something to be said for holy obscurity and exclusion; it leads to purification, and ironically, it brings true and lasting joy to the soul. Our Lord said as much in the Beatitudes.
In light of these considerations, you may want to consider praying the Litany of Humility. You will find it to be repugnant to your pride, but if you should taste the deliverance for which you pray, you will enjoy a kind of freedom few people enjoy. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." (II Cor. 3:17) And where freedom is, there is humility!
Litany of Humility
Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930),
Secretary of State for Pope Saint Pius X
O Jesus! meek and humble of heart, Hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed, Deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being loved...
From the desire of being extolled ...
From the desire of being honored ...
From the desire of being praised ...
From the desire of being preferred to others...
From the desire of being consulted ...
From the desire of being approved ...
From the fear of being humiliated ... Deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being despised...
From the fear of suffering rebukes ...
From the fear of being calumniated ...
From the fear of being forgotten ...
From the fear of being ridiculed ...
From the fear of being wronged ...
From the fear of being suspected ...
That others may be loved more than I…Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be esteemed more than I ...
That, in the opinion of the world,
others may increase and I may decrease ...
That others may be chosen and I set aside ...
That others may be praised and I unnoticed ...
That others may be preferred to me in everything...
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should…
To sum up: Humility is the foundation on which discipleship rests. Like Cardinal Merry de Val and St. Pius X, St. John Baptist knew humility (we will be celebrating his martyrdom on August 29th this year). Just as the public ministry of Jesus was beginning, St. John's mission was coming to an end. As our Lord was walking towards the horizon, St. John said, “He must increase while I must decrease.” This is the vocation of every follower of Christ. To the extent that we decrease, Jesus increases in us so as to give glory to God. But first we have to be pruned. That is, we must “put to death the parts of us that are earthly." (Colossians 3:5). And if we fail to do just that, God will mercifully compensate our derelictions by sending us trials. There is no getting around the fact that liberation of spirit requires a kind of death to self.
The Litany of Humility, frequently prayed and meditated on, not only hastens a death to self but it gives greater expression to the life of Christ that dwells within us.
