Matthew 18: 1-5, 10, 12-14
At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a child, whom he put among them, and said, “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever becomes humble like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me.
“Take care that you do not despise one of these little ones; for, I tell you, in heaven their angels continually see the face of my Father in heaven.
“What do you think? If a shepherd has a hundred sheep, and one of them has gone astray, does he not leave the ninety-nine on the mountains and go in search of the one that went astray? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he rejoices over it more than over the ninety-nine that never went astray. So it is not the will of your Father in heaven that one of these little ones should be lost.”
New Revised Standard Version, copyright 1989, by the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. USCCB approved.
The Humility of a Child
Jesus tells us to humble ourselves like children, but leaves it up to us to figure out what all this means.
Humility is much more than having the right level of self-regard. Children are humble in many ways. They absolutely depend on help for everything; they must trust. They know and accept that most people are better than them at most things they do. Children are willing to be beginners every single day. They cannot live as easily with the illusions of knowledge and mastery that we adults cling to. They have the humility to be curious, to see awe and wonder in a world full of more than they hope to comprehend. Children live with the humility of knowing they are still learning and growing, and that the best of their lives is yet to come. Can we live with that humility?
How might we joyfully be more child-like today?
—David J. M. Herr, SJ, is a Jesuit scholastic teaching philosophy at Xavier University in Cincinnati.
Prayer
Jesus,
You entered the world as a child.
Teach me to humble myself as a child,
So that in this way I may be more like you.
Amen
—David J. M. Herr, SJ