TRUE KNOWLEDGE LEADS TO HUMILITY
“For it is love that I desire, not sacrifice, and knowledge of God rather than burn offerings.” -Hosea 6:6
Six years ago at a Vatican Lenten prayer service, there was a video of Pope Francis going to confession before hearing confessions himself, which moved many hearts at St. Peter’s Basilica and around the world. Seeing the pope kneel in humility signaled to everyone that no one is exempt from confronting their sins, and that God’s mercy is available to those who seek it with a sincere heart. The Holy Father’s posture of a penitent believer provides a concrete example of what God asks of us.
In today’s reading, the Prophet Hosea tells us exactly what God desires from us: knowledge of God and love. The pursuit of knowledge requires a thirst for the truth. To seek truth is to search for God himself. The 17th Century Jesuit spiritual director, St. Claude de la Colombière wrote, “I cannot know myself without knowing you. My imperfections will give me a great desire of knowing something better than creatures, and that can only be the Creator.” In the silent and sacred place of reflection and contemplation, we humble ourselves before the mystery of God. As tedious as it sometimes is, it is in the listening that we recognize God’s invitation for each of us to turn to him with awe and receptivity. The tax collector in today’s Gospel did just that. He turns his life over to God completely by acknowledging his sins and begging for God’s mercy. His love for God rests on what he knows as true, which is, I am a sinner and I need God’s grace.
We can at times be stubborn, prideful, and ungrateful. During those moments, we only depend on ourselves, as the pharisee in the parable proclaims to everyone who is willing to listen to him. His sacrifices and offerings are empty because they are solely based on performance, status, and appearance. They are not rooted in wanting a real relationship with God, but in displaying his ego and righteousness over others.
True knowledge requires humility. It encourages us to acknowledge our gifts and limitations, joys and sorrows, victories and challenges before God. It also invites us to let go of our own agenda and to bow our heads in prayer. We do so not in defeat, but in trust, knowing that God “will heal us… and bind our wounds” (Hos. 6:1).
Let us pray with St. Claude de la Colombière’s own words, “Open my eyes, O loving Jesus: ‘Lord, let me receive my sign’ (Lk 18:41). I do not ask now to see you and know you: give me light to know myself as I am, for if I know myself, I shall know you.”
Alex Llanera, SJ