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- Herausgeber: IVP Formatio
- Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
- Sprache: Englisch
- Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022
Outreach Resource of the Year, Spiritual Growth In a society where raging narcissism dominates the moral landscape, the virtue of humility is often dismissed as irrelevant. Not only is humility vanishing from contemporary culture, but we are also witnessing how destructive a lack of humility has become among our churches and ministry leaders. And yet, Richard Foster, the founder of Renovaré, insists that humility is central to the journey toward character formation and spiritual transformation. For this reason he decided to spend a year studying the virtue of humility. Using the Lakota calendar as a framework, Foster provides us with a look into the insights he gathered from sources ranging from Native American culture to Julian of Norwich to Scripture to personal friends. By engaging with both the spiritual classics and Foster's own experiences, Learning Humility provides profound insight into what humility can look like in our current cultural climate. Join Richard Foster on the journey toward a life of humility, which he says leads us into "freedom, joy, and holy hilarity."
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TO CAROLYNN, MY HEART,
We met for the first time fifty-six years ago and in that first meeting you stole my heart. I have never regretted the theft. Over these many years we have been through thick and thin, ups and downs. Sometimes we were taken where we did not want to go . . . especially so through The Cancer Years. But we faced it all, both the good and the bad, together.
I dedicated my first book, Celebration of Discipline, to you. Now, for this book (which might well be my last), I also dedicate it to you. I love you, dear Carolynn . . . more than words can ever tell. Yours for eternity,
—Richard
Contents
A Beginning Word
NEW YEAR’S EVE—A DIVINE NUDGE
Tonight I have been meditating on New Year’s resolutions, wondering if I need to undertake any for this next year. Actually, I dislike these attempts at self-improvement. For the most part they are simply humanly initiated efforts that usually last about two and a half weeks. Still, while I was holding the idea before myself, I sensed a nudge . . . perhaps a divine nudge. It came to me in two words: “learn humility.”
Hmm. I wonder, Should I give this next year to see what I can learn about humility by study and by experience? Both the Bible and the devotional masters give high priority to this virtue.
Yet it is a virtue that is not thought much of today.
Perhaps I could follow the calendar year and then maybe I can keep a journal record of my observations and musings. I’m not particularly good at journal writing . . . I probably have a dozen half-written journals sitting over there on my bookshelves. Still, I’d like to see how things develop here.
NEW YEAR’S DAY—THE LAKOTA CALENDAR
Thoughts about writing on the subject of humility keep pressing in on me. If I am going to use the calendar year as the organizing principle for this project, I think I would prefer to use one of the Native American calendars rather than using the traditional names for the months . . . January, February, etc. Their intentional rootedness in the natural world is a welcome departure from the scattered, patchwork nature of today’s social rhythms.
All of the Native American calendars have their merits; however, I like the Lakota Moon Calendar best, especially its close connection to the earth. There are two differences between the Latin/Gregorian and the Lakota calendars to be aware of. The most obvious difference is that the Lakota calendar is divided into thirteen moons (of twenty-eight days) rather than the twelve months we are acquainted with in the Latin/Gregorian calendar. Hence, there is a rough (though not exact) correspondence to the months most of us would recognize. Second, the Lakota calendar (like most Native American calendars) begins with spring since spring symbolizes the start of a new year through the birth of new plant and animal life. Instead, I will begin with winter and “The Hard Moon,” which roughly corresponds to January in the Latin/Gregorian calendar. This is when the idea of studying the topic of humility first came to me.
The Lakota are the northern plains people, and, while a part of my personal background is Ojibwa (my paternal grandmother, who died before I was born, was Native American—Ojibwa; also called Chippewa, self-named Anishinaabe), I find the Lakota calendar most attractive to me. Perhaps learning more about the culture that gave rise to it will yield some interesting insights. The reverence in Native American cultures for creation contrasts with a contemporary culture that presumes it can engineer human society to achieve more and better.
The Hard Moon
JANUARY 1–28
Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.
Because Christ had thus humbled Himself before God, and God was ever before Him, He found it possible to humble Himself before men too, and to be the Servant of all.
AN INHERENT CONTRADICTION?
It is a beautiful cold morning and the meteorologist says it is supposed to snow throughout the day. So, I build a warm fire and decide I’m in for the day.
By now it’s mid-afternoon and I know that Carolynn will be nervous about leaving the mail in the mailbox overnight; mail theft is a real possibility in our rural area. If I collect the mail now Carolynn will rest easier tonight. Our mailbox is half a mile down the road and with this snow (fully seven inches now and well on its way to ten, maybe twelve) driving will be difficult. Thus, I decide to walk down and secure the mail. Besides, I am wondering if this little task just might be a small act of humility for me. I layer my clothes, take my trekking poles, and set out.
The road is quite deserted of cars—plow trucks have yet to come through. After collecting the mail I decide to leave the road and make my way back home through the woods. This route is more difficult. The snow is wetter and deeper than I thought and I am wishing I had worn my snowshoes.
The stillness of the woods allows me to meditate a bit on my humility project. I realize these journals could one day become public. Writing on this particular topic while knowing that others might someday read it carries with it an inherent danger . . . perhaps an inherent contradiction. I think I’ll just hold the matter before the Lord for now.
READING SLOWLY
Today The Cloud of Unknowing comes to mind. I think I remember two or three chapters in it devoted to the subject of humility. I’ll look them up and see what I can learn. With The Cloud I will need to take it exceedingly slow, sitting with any one passage for an extended time. In my past excursions into The Cloud I have tended to breeze through a section and afterward walk away confused. Or worse yet, I would arrogantly assume that the book has nothing to teach me. So, I need to remember that here slow, slow, slow is the way forward.
THE SUPREME TOUCHSTONE
Biblical passages on humility abound, but the supreme touchstone has to be the example of Jesus. Paul describes it so wonderfully that it is best quoted in full:
Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross. (Phil 2:5-8)
Once we begin thinking of Jesus as the touchstone for an understanding of humility we see that everything is there.
Strength. Courage. Competence.
No domination. No self-centered arrogance. No easy pushover.
THE DIVINE PARADIGM
By meditating on Jesus’ life we see humility take on flesh and blood.
A humble birth in an obscure village.
The growing-up years in quiet obscurity.
Magnificent teachings to “the sat upon, the spat upon, the ratted on.”
The Twelve chosen without regard to position or status or title.
The wonder-filled miracles that did indeed draw enormous attention. And note carefully how Jesus handles all this fame without manipulation, without control, without domination.
The borrowed donkey for his entry into Jerusalem; the borrowed room for his Last Supper.
The disciplined silence throughout a mock trial and conviction.
The enormous courage of suffering for the sins of the whole world. This has to be the supreme example of humility.
The cry of abandonment, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani, My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?”
The cry of humble triumph, “It is finished.”
As I look at this all it begins to dawn on me that Jesus is indeed the divine paradigm for conjugating all the verbs of humility.
I’m also reading along in the many other Scripture passages on humility. So much to ponder—wow! I’m beginning to think I will need to take a private retreat in order to soak more completely in the biblical witness.
THIS LITTLE ACT OF LOVING
I found the pertinent section on humility from The Cloud. There are three key chapters—thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen. I think I will stay with them for a week or so and see what I learn. Here is a statement I especially like which connects loving contemplation to humility. I found it in chapter twenty-five: “As I said before, this little act of loving called contemplation mysteriously contains humility and charity, as well as all the other virtues.” I’ll need to sit with this one for a while.
STRUCK BY THREE THINGS
Coming back to The Cloud after several years away from it I am immediately struck by three things.
First, I am struck by the refreshing beauty of a non-self-promoting author. Today it seems that an author’s writing skills or whether they actually have something to say are far less important than the size of the author’s platform, how popularity can be increased, and how much coverage the author can garner. On and on ad nauseam. The Cloud’s language reveals an articulate and engaging author. But, while scholars have worked hard to discover the identity of this author, all efforts have failed. I rather imagine this is just the way our anonymous author wanted it.
I have no answer to our contemporary dilemma. But I am refreshed by the author’s complete freedom from human praise. Perhaps his/her personal obscurity is an important teaching in itself . . . teaching us that Christ should be the focus of attention and his followers become more unassuming, more kind, more humble. How would this teaching play in our narcissistic culture?
Second, I am struck by how dynamic and contemporary the message of The Cloud feels. The one specific detail we do know about this book is that our anonymous author is writing to a twenty-four-year-old who is also anonymous to us. Talk about speaking to the heart needs of Millennials! Here is a resource par excellence for the twenty-something person who wants to move beyond the superficialities of modern culture.
Third, I am struck by the gentle wisdom found in The Cloud. This is true for the entire volume, and never more so than when the author touches on the topic of humility. I wonder, What is the connection between wisdom and humility? I don’t know, I just wonder. I’d like to tease this out in the days ahead.
THE AWFUL RUST OF SIN
The Cloud’s guidance on humility is imminently practical and filled with pastoral care. It begins with the simple yet profound definition: “humility is seeing yourself as you really are. It’s that simple.” And I concur, “Yes, it is that simple.”
The word humility comes from the Latin humilitas, meaning “grounded” or “from the earth.” Think of our word humus (earth, soil). Hence, with humility we are brought back to earth. We don’t think of ourselves higher than we should. Nor do we think of ourselves lower than we should. No pride or haughtiness. No self-deprecation or feelings of unworthiness. Just an accurate assessment of who we actually are. Our strengths and competencies. And, yes, our weaknesses and shortcomings.
And this is exactly where The Cloud turns our attention. We have no idea if our anonymous author had read Aristotle, but he (could our author be she?) clearly understands the value of self-knowledge. “Self-knowledge is the only way to get and keep the virtue of humility.” The Cloud adds, “Don’t flinch in the face of the tremendous work involved. Get to know yourself. Yes, it is backbreaking labor. Embrace it. Through it, you’ll experience God as he is. I don’t mean you’ll know God completely. . . . But when you get to know yourself better as the mortal human you are, your soul grows in humility, and you’ll know God as fully as possible on earth.”
So, how do we experience this self-knowledge? The Cloud teaches that “self-reflection” is the best way for us to know ourselves as we truly are. In a posture of deep humility in itself our anonymous author states, “I will admit that those who sin on a regular basis (and I have and do) need this sort of self-reflection. We must be humbled by the memory of our sinfulness and past mistakes, until the awful rust of sin is scrubbed away.”
Right alongside The Cloud’s stress on the importance of self-knowledge is the qualification that self-knowledge is “an imperfect humility.” The author’s point being that a focus on knowing the self as fully as possible still leaves us with a focus on the self.
The move from an “imperfect humility” to “perfect humility” comes as we are enabled by divine grace to turn from ourselves to God alone. The author writes, “The best way to grow in humility is not through reflecting on our weaknesses but by remembering God’s goodness and love. . . . ‘Perfect’ humility comes when you experience God’s goodness and superabundant love.”
Our anonymous author does add a sobering note. In this life “perfect humility” is a temporary, almost fleeting experience. It comes “when, by grace, you allow the hidden love of your pure heart to press against the dark cloud of unknowing between you and God.” Even though our experience is “fleeting” our counselor/author speaks a word of encouragement: “I . . . want you to be able to recognize perfect humility so you can set it up in your heart as a sign of love. It becomes something to aim for. . . . I believe that the mere awareness of perfect humility will help you be more humble.”
SØREN KIERKEGAARD
Somewhere in his Journal I remember Søren Kierkegaard writing, “Now, with God’s help, I shall become myself.” I rather think this fits quite nicely with the teaching of The Cloud on humility.
A SIMPLE PRAYER
A simple prayer has been drifting in and out of my consciousness in recent days. I haven’t gotten the wording quite right and so decided that writing it out might help me articulate the inner yearnings.
Loving Lord Jesus, I humbly ask that you would . . .
Purify my heart,
Renew my mind,
Sanctify my imagination, and
Enlarge my soul.
Amen.
I think it would be good to stay with this prayer for a while.
THE HUMAN SIDE AND THE DIVINE SIDE
Took a hike today with my little prayer as my companion and sensed that there are two sides to its answer: the human side and the divine side.
On the human side
With regard to heart purity, I am to consider tenderly the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ. I am to see his heart as an open wound of love toward all humanity. And I am to feel the divine love pouring out of his wounded heart for me.
With regard to a renewed mind, I am to think on whatever is true and honorable and just and pure and pleasing and commendable (Phil 4:8). Not all the time, but whenever I am able.
With regard to a sanctified imagination, I am to picture the new heaven and the new earth, the new Jerusalem, the river of the water of life bright as crystal, and the tree of life on either side of the river whose leaves are for the healing of the nations (Rev 21–22). Imagine that! Picture this, not constantly, only as I can.
With regard to an enlarged soul, I am to find people I can serve. In small ways, and even large ways. Whenever possible.
On the divine side
With regard to heart purity, God alone purifies the heart. God alone will straighten out the twistedness of all desires. God alone will radiate light into every dark corner.
With regard to a renewed mind, God alone will train the mind into deep habit patterns of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Rom 14:17).
With regard to a sanctified imagination, God alone slowly, slowly, slowly channels all the imaginings into that pure stream which is comprised of the good and the true and the beautiful.
With regard to an enlarged soul, God alone will place deep within the subterranean chambers of the heart and the mind and the imagination an understanding of the overwhelming preciousness of every single person.
Then came this authoritative word: remember that God is . . .
quick to forgive
eager to heal
glad to restore
MY SEARCH FOR ELENA FERRANTE
Right now I am reading an essay Lar gave me from The Atlantic: “My Search for Elena Ferrante.” It is about an Italian pseudonymous author who goes to great lengths to hide her identity, maintaining only that her identity lies in her writing. Hmm. Does anonymity reflect an underlying humility?
CAPTIVATED MY MIND
At the church service this morning I was immediately struck by the last stanza in the processional hymn, “O God, Our Help in Ages Past.” The words captivated my mind and I heard little else. I decided that this stanza was what I needed to focus on at this time. It is a stanza that is omitted in the hymnbooks I have at home.
Time like an ever-rolling stream,
bears all our years away;
they fly forgotten, as a dream
dies at the op’ning day.
And what does this have to do with humility? Well, it most certainly puts all our “magnificent accomplishments” in their place! . . . “They fly forgotten, as a dream dies at the op’ning day.”
THE LAKOTA VIRTUES
Since I am using the Lakota calendar to frame these journal entries, I thought it might be useful to consider Lakota cultural ideals as I go along. The twelve Lakota virtues create a nice frame for a year of reflection, one for each of the next twelve months.
They are
Humility
Perseverance
Respect
Honor
Love
Sacrifice
Truth
Compassion
Bravery
Fortitude
Generosity
Wisdom
The Moon When Trees Crack from the Cold
What does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
All the virtues are interconnected; the truly humble man is also truthful and courageous.
THE FIRST VIRTUE
The first of the twelve Lakota virtues is Unsiiciyapi, “humility.” Honest. I did not change the order; humility is the first virtue of the twelve. Here are some comments about this virtue: “The first and most important step in life and especially on the spiritual path is humility which is the opposite of pride. In terms of spirituality, if the step of humility is skipped it results in delusions of grandeur. Humility is the foundation of all the other virtues. If you brag about your generosity then it spoils the generosity.”
I find these thoughts to be quite consistent with a Christian understanding of the moral life.
A ROARING FIRE
It began snowing this morning and is supposed to continue all day and into the night. There is no sense in clearing a way out to the road until tomorrow, hence this is a good day for me to stay in and turn the time into a one-day retreat. Hopefully, this can allow me to dwell on some of the many biblical passages that deal with the theme of humility. A couple days ago I brought in a good stock of firewood in anticipation of the snow coming. So, I have built a roaring fire downstairs in my study and went upstairs to let Carolynn know that I am in retreat for the day. She is delighted to leave me alone so she can give her full attention to income tax matters (bless her).
The snow comes down in absolute silence. No wind whatsoever. This, of course, quiets everything out in the woods. Outside my study window I can see the deer scratching and grazing. A layer of snow covers their backs but they seem oblivious to it all. The temperature is supposed to drop down to zero as the evening comes on. I am quite cozy with my fire warming the entire downstairs. Just now I take a cup of coffee and sit in my chair, which faces the fire. The logs pop and crackle a bit but even these sounds seem subdued. I sit still until the coffee cup is empty, quietly considering various passages on humility and arrogance and related themes. I wonder . . . where does arrogance rear its ugly head in my life? How may I cultivate humility of heart more fully? Can I learn simply to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God?
I end my retreat with my brain feeling fried and go to the treadmill for a little exercise. Today going out in the weather is not wise, though that is where I would rather be!
TWO SPECIAL WORDS
A special word enters our New Testament from a vast background in Greek philosophical thought and tradition. The word is aretē and the normal English translation is “virtue.” The apostle Peter, for example, uses aretē as he provides us with a progressive list of how we are to grow in grace: “add to your faith virtue (aretē); and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity” (2 Pet 1:5-7 KJV).
Another word that enters our New Testament is dikaiosynē and it is often translated as “righteousness.” In what we have come to call the Sermon on the Mount Jesus teaches us, “unless your righteousness (dikaiosynē) exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven” (Mt 5:20). Actually, both words mean the same thing: “to function well.” Plato tended to use dikaiosynē and Aristotle used aretē. Aristotle won the linguistic battle and even today we speak of “virtue ethics” to describe efforts to understand ethical or virtuous behavior.
Now, this understanding of aretē meaning “to function well” is genuinely important for us today because we have become so accustomed to the normality of “dysfunction.” Indeed, we can hardly even conceive of a person who functions well!
The concept of virtue was developed considerably in Greek thought, especially by Aristotle in his Nicomachean Ethics. Indeed Aristotle had an entire list of virtues. Interestingly, humility was not on his list.
THE PANTHEON OF VIRTUES
The idea that “humility” should be placed among the pantheon of virtues is deeply Hebraic and Christian in origin. In the Greek and Hellenistic world “humility” (tapeinos in Greek) was far from something to be valued, or even desired. Humility was almost universally used in a pejorative sense meaning “insignificant,” “servile,” “lowly.” Gerhard Kittel, in his exhaustive Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, writes, “The Greek view of humility exalts freedom and despises subjection. Hence it qualifies tapeinos negatively.”
However, the life and teachings of Jesus place humility in an entirely different light. Jesus declares, “The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted” (Mt 23:11-12). And Paul in his magnificent hymn in Philippians 2 writes about the signal action of Jesus who humbled himself unto death, even death on a cross. The New Testament writers use tapeinos some thirty-four times, always with a positive ring.
Early Christian scholars took this radical rethinking of humility and classified it under the notion of aretē, virtue. John Cassian, for example, calls humility “the mother and mistress of all the virtues.” He adds that, in contradistinction to the pagan understandings of virtue in his day, humility “is the precise and magnificent gift of the Savior.”
Our contemporary culture views humility in much the same negative manner as the ancient Greek and Hellenistic world. So, the Christian witness to the enormous value of humility as a central virtue is just as countercultural today as it was in the first century.
HUMILITY COMES FROM ELSEWHERE
Augustine of Hippo is the key theologian to insist on humility as a specifically Christian virtue. He explained that the other philosophical traditions of his day—Epicurean, Stoic, and Platonist—simply disregarded humility. Even the great Aristotle does not include humility in his list of virtues. Why? Well, Augustine’s answer is simple: “Humility comes from elsewhere, from the One who, being the Most High, wished to empty Himself for us.”
It is stunning to think that Christ, in his life and teachings, turned the human understanding about humility on its head. All the more important for we who seek to follow in his steps to value this central Christian virtue.
HUMILITY AND SERVICE
I will need to interact much more with the biblical witness, but already I am struck by the close connection between humility and service. Right after resolving a dispute among the Twelve over who is the greatest, Jesus states, “I am among you as one who serves” (Lk 22:27). And the wise apostle Paul writes, “For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned” (Rom 12:3). With this as a backdrop Paul then launches into a teaching on how we are to live in unity: “We, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are many members one of another” (Rom 12:5).
Anyway, this paring of humility and service feels like a helpful concept to consider. I think I shall experiment with it for a while and see what I can learn.
SERVICE AND ANGER DON’T MIX
Today I learned the hard lesson that service and anger don’t mix. I was working in the kitchen cleaning this and that. Indeed, I was rather proud of my little act of service!
Just then Carolynn made a remark that did not sit well with me. I quickly responded in anger . . . and, of course, I got back exactly what I deserved. Our anger only lasted a short time and we quickly made up. But by this point any thoughts of humility were out the window.
It did underscore for me how destructive anger is to any genuine service. The incident helped to solidify in my mind how the virtues are all interrelated. Kindness, patience, gentleness, humility, service, and more; they all work in concert.
SERVICE WITH CHILDREN
I am seeing that service with children often needs to take the form of play. Not doing things for them or teaching them, but simply playing with them. Also, singing with little ones. I rather imagine that humility grows more easily in this environment because of the absence of pretense that we experience with children. Perhaps we can say that the lack of pretense purifies our actions of service.
THE COURAGE TO SERVE
Humility, I think, has a way of giving us the courage to serve. Courage. At first I thought the word I really wanted was insight or wisdom or even strength. But, no, courage is the word I am after. I often hesitate to serve out of a concern about what others may think about my act of service. Anyway, I think it is humility of spirit that at times infuses us with the courage to serve in good and life-giving ways.
SERVICE AND MOTIVES
I think I am detecting a difference between acts of service that are done with mixed motives as opposed to service with more pure motives. Perhaps we could say, the purer the service the deeper the humility. Of course, we can never have completely pure motives about most anything. So, this is not something to fuss over. It is simply something to observe and step back from whenever the mixture of motives becomes too toxic.
A CRITICAL CONNECTION
In The Rule of St. Benedict we find his “twelve steps of humility.” I’ll plan to return to this material in due time, but right now I notice that many of these steps are working on service in one form or another. The focus is either on service to God or loving service to others in the community. So, even Benedict saw a critical connection between humility and service.
THE DANCE OF THE SNOWFLAKES
It is snowing lightly this afternoon. The flakes are quite individualized falling from the sky. Actually they seem to be not so much “falling” as “dancing” as a frosty breeze tosses them hither and yon. The breeze appears to reverse the descent of some flakes tossing them up higher and then permitting them to descend. Others are twirled around and around on a downward spiral. Every flake will eventually come to rest on the ground covering the pine needles, but they do seem to be taking their time. In my home office I have pulled up all the shades so I have a completely unobstructed view through all four windows of the dance of the snowflakes among the trees. I have yet to build a fire as I was out on errands with Carolynn in the morning hoping to return before the snow came . . . and we have succeeded! Now I have the afternoon and evening unencumbered to watch patiently as the snow, with various detours, descends.
The devotional masters always taught us to read two books: the Bible and the Book of Nature. I wonder if the Book of Nature has anything to teach me about humility. I don’t know, I’m just wondering.
