“Though He was in the very nature of God, He did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but rather divested Himself of all privilege . . . and humbled Himself and became obedient even unto the point of death.”  (Philippians 2)

“When you have descended into the valley with Him, and with Him have been raised upon the Tree; When the tears of joyful, liberating pain flood your eyes, And you taste the sweetness and perfect freedom of dying to this life . . . then you know.” (Taken from:  Christ the Eternal Tao)

Where does one see the broken wholeness of humility?  It is not common in our culture or country, which places great value on ego, pride and the accumulation of possessions, all of which foster a false sense of security and temporarily feed the shallow self.  Unfortunately one seldom sees it in the communities that congregate for spiritual purposes as well, as far too often congregations and the people that lead them take their clue from the surrounding culture and thus appear to be just like every other celebrity, just like every other business, the only difference being that they are covered with a thin layer of religiosity.

In order to find a pure picture of humility one must walk the uncommon paths of the uncommon people, and search the ancient aisles of the eccentric followers of the narrow way who walked that way before us.  There were many, but one whose feast day is being observed this week is Clare.  One of the first followers of Francis of Assisi, Clare gave up the inheritance to which she was entitled from her wealthy father and instead claimed a much greater prize; Community in Christ.  She started a convent for like-minded, like-hearted, like-spirited women.  In time they came to be known as “The Poor Clare’s”, an order which lives on to this day.  Divesting themselves of their worldly wealth, they devoted themselves to prayer and to providing for the poor.  Here is one of many examples of the broken wholeness of humility.  There are many more like her, all of which patterned themselves after the One who divested Himself not only of possessions, not only of His privilege, but of His very Person; Jesus the Christ.

This passage from Philippians is perhaps the most succinct we can find in the sacred scriptures which describe the self-abasement that the savior underwent on the way to His ultimate suffering.  In the Gospel descriptions of His earthly life we see one who did not insist on garnering goods, gaining adulation or pursuing praise and possessions that provide a temporary boost to one’s pride and gives the illusion of having “arrived”.  Rather He emptied Himself.  In theological terms this is referred to as the state of His humiliation, and covers the days of his earthly life, from his conception to crucifixion.  But it’s not only WHAT He did that matters, but the manner in which He did it; with genuine, not false, humility.  He was truly Himself.  He lived in a way that was fully human.  He did not try to please or impress others, nor did He attempt to be something greater than what He was called to be.  He engaged with others without pretense or presupposition.  He sought neither fame nor acclaim.  He purposed Himself to give, not get.  He did not receive recognition or rewards, at least not in the worldly sense, but rather achieved a different type of recognition that was the result of cloaking Himself in humility as He was covered in the shame of the cross.

This is where Clare, and so many others like her, saw humility as well.  This is what she patterned her life after.  This is whom she embraced in the depths of her very being.  And this is the Way that she intentionally, deliberately chose to follow into the Valley, shaded by the Tree of Humility; the Way of Life.