“At the heart of this celebration, which seems so festive, are the words we heard in the hymn of the Letter to the Philippians: “He humbled Himself” (2:8). Jesus’ humiliation. These words show us God’s way and the way of Christians: it is humility. A way which constantly amazes and disturbs us: we will never get used to a humble God…
This is God’s way, the way of humility. It is the way of Jesus; there is no other. And there can be no humility without humiliation. Following this path to the full, the Son of God took on the “form of a slave” (cf. Philippians 2:7). In the end, humility means service. It means making room for God by stripping oneself, “emptying oneself”, as Scripture says (v. 7). This is the greatest humiliation of all.
There is another way, however, opposed to the way of Christ. It is worldliness, the way of the world. The world proposes the way of vanity, pride, success…the other way. The evil one proposed this way to Jesus too, during His forty days in the desert. But Jesus immediately rejected it. With Him, we too can overcome this temptation, not only at significant moments, but in daily life as well.
In this, we are helped and comforted by the example of so many men and women who, in silence and hiddenness, sacrifice themselves daily to serve others: a sick relative, an elderly person living alone, a disabled person…
We think too of the humiliation endured by all those who, for their lives of fidelity to the Gospel, encounter discrimination and pay a personal price. We think too of our brothers and sisters who are persecuted because they are Christians, the martyrs of our own time. They refuse to deny Jesus and they endure insult and injury with dignity. They follow Him on his way. We can speak of a “cloud of witnesses” (cf. Hebrews 12:1).
Let us set about with determination along this same path, with immense love for Him, our Lord and Savior. Love will guide us and give us strength. For where He is, we too shall be (cf. John 12:26). Amen.”
Pope Francis in Palm Sunday Homily delivered at St. Peter’s Square on 29 March 2015 (Vatican Radio).
Pope Francis points us to a powerful text. Let us meditate on Philippians 2:1-11 today, Holy Week Saturday. Therein, the Apostle Paul announces that Jesus was “obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Do we imitate Christ’s humility, service, and obedience? Or do we conform to the pattern of the world (cf. Romans 12:1-2)?
Take ten minutes today and pray for Christians around the world. Many imitate Christ’s humility through serving the sick or the elderly. Some have wandered down the path of worldliness. Others, for naming Jesus as “Lord and Savior,” are suffering martyrdom. What about you? In life after Lent, what path will you take, humility or worldliness?