Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. Matthew 5:5
O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, hear me.
From the desire of being esteemed, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being loved, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being extolled, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being honored, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being praised, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being preferred to others, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being consulted, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the desire of being approved, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being humiliated, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being despised, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of suffering rebukes, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being calumniated, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being forgotten, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being ridiculed, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being wronged, deliver me, O Jesus.
From the fear of being suspected, deliver me, O Jesus.
That others may be loved more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be esteemed more than I, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That, in the opinion of the world, others may increase and I may decrease, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be chosen and I set aside, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be praised and I go unnoticed, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be preferred to me in everything, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should, Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
Rafael Merry del Val (1865-1930).
In my week with my mentor we talked about this litany and prayed it daily. Each day a different word or phrase stood out to me. We will explore it over the next week in sections and relate it to generosity.
For starters, let’s ponder the needfulness of humility. God cares about our hearts and motivations more than our external appearances and actions.
And the fact that Rafael framed it as a ‘litany’ sends a message to us.
In his thinking humility is so needful for the Christian life, we must list the ‘litany’ of things that will seek to undermine, short-circuit, or hinder it. He breaks them down in three categories.
The first category is disordered desires, the second is fears, and the third relates to putting others ahead of ourselves.
From the first two areas he beckons us to pray for deliverance. Linked to the third, he instructs us asks for grace to desire what is good. We will explore these sections in depth in the coming week.
For today, simply read it again, and if something stands out to you as needful, ask God to help you respond in obedience.
May God help each of us grow in humility, a needful trait for growing in Christian generosity.