Pride

Beloved: Clothe yourselves with humility in your dealings with one another, for: God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble. So, humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time. Cast all your worries upon him because he cares for you. 

Be sober and vigilant. Your opponent the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in faith, knowing that your brothers and sisters throughout the world undergo the same sufferings.

The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ Jesus will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you after you have suffered a little. To him be dominion forever.  Amen.

I write you this briefly through Silvanus, whom I consider a faithful brother, exhorting you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Remain firm in it. The chosen one at Babylon sends you greeting, as does Mark, my son. Greet one another with a loving kiss. Peace to all of you who are in Christ. (1 Peter 5:5-14)

God opposes the proud but bestows favor on the humble.  Ouch and Oy Vey! Most of us are opposed by God, therefore.  We all tend to be proud, with few exceptions.  After all, we are human, and humility is not one of our virtues – if we are honest about ourselves.  

Because humility is in short supply, we are fair game for the devil.  Peter tells us: “Your opponent the Devil is prowling around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”  Feel those teeth?  

Oh, oh, I hear a roar in the distance and it’s getting louder because I tend to be proud.  Then again, what’s the definition of pride?  I know pride comes before a fall.  Still, isn’t there a definition you and I can favor?  Pride is a “feeling of deep pleasure or satisfaction derived from one's own achievements, the achievements of those with whom one is closely associated, or from qualities or possessions that are widely admired.”  That doesn’t sound too bad.  

So, what’s so bad about being proud? The Catholic definition is: “Pride is the excessive love of one's own excellence. It is ordinarily accounted one of the seven capital sins. St. Thomas, however, endorsing the appreciation of St. Gregory, considers it the queen of all vices, and puts vainglory in its place as one of the deadly sins.” Well then, I guess we should not be “excessive.”

I suppose the trap we can fall into is this consideration: “It is the frame of mind in which a man, through the love of his own worth, aims to withdraw himself from subjection to Almighty God.”  With this reference I suspect most of us prideful ones don’t have to worry about roaring lions [unless you are one of the Proud Boys].  We don’t withdraw from God even though at times we may wonder about God’s presence.  

We may feel abandoned especially when we are suffering.  No, God is always with us especially in the hearts and minds of those who love and care for us. That's a needed divine presence.

Deacon David Pierce