St. Joseph's Catholic Church

Humility that welcomes God’s blessing

When Jesus went to dine in the house of a Pharisee, He noticed how people rushed for the best seats, the places of honor. His gentle story about choosing the lowest place was not simply about table manners; it was a lesson about life itself. Pride makes us strive for recognition, for visibility, for control. But humility teaches us to be at peace with who we are before God, to know that everything we have is His gift, and to treat others as equally loved by Him.

Humility does not mean pretending to be small or denying our talents. It means living in truth — recognizing that our gifts are not ours to boast about, but to serve others with. The humble person does not think less of himself; he simply thinks of himself less. And in that way, he makes space for God to lift him up in His time.

If we are honest, each of us has experienced that scramble for the “front seat” in one way or another. At work, we desire recognition. In our families, we want our voices to be the loudest. Even in the Church, we sometimes want our ministries, our choirs, our donations to be noticed. Jesus reminds us that when we live this way, we risk being humbled by life itself. Failures, sickness, disappointments — these remind us that we are not gods, but children dependent on the Father.

Today’s  Gospel invites us to examine ourselves. Do I secretly crave recognition more than service? Do I become defensive when corrected? Do I treat those who have nothing to give me with the same love and dignity as those who can offer something in return? Humility is not tested by how we behave before those above us, but by how we treat those who are below us in status, wealth, or influence.