Saint Bonaventure

True humility

Conclusions from the writings of Saint Bonaventure

Whoever wants to scrutinize his own defects with the eyes of his heart must humble himself under the powerful hand of God. When you have obtained knowledge of your defects, I urge you to deeply humiliate your spirit and mortify yourself. You must learn this virtue from the son of God, because He says: Learn from me who am meek and humble of heart.

Because "he who wants to achieve virtue without humility throws dust towards the wind". Thus says Saint Gregory. In fact, if the principle of every sin is pride, equally the foundation of every virtue is humility. Learn to be humble not in appearance like the hypocrites do, because the truly humble refuses praise.

Therefore, if you want to reach perfect humility, it is best for you to walk along the triple path.

• The first path is the consideration of God. You must consider that God is the author of all goods and not works of our hands, which is why we must not make it a reason for boasting or pride. This pride drove Lucifer from celestial glory, he no longer thought he was made from nothing; he considered only his honor, his beauty, his dress embellished with precious stones; the pride of his heart exalted him, but since pride is followed by humiliation, he was immediately hurled from his most noble seat into extreme humiliation and he who had been the most excellent angel became the most unhappy of demons.
  
  
• How many of these Lucifers are there today! How many followers and imitators of Lucifer, sons of pride, whom the Lord patiently endures.
  
  
• The second path is the remembrance of Christ. You must remember that Christ was humiliated to the point of an ignominious death. His humiliation was so great, and he humbled himself so much that no one believed him to be the son of God. Therefore, if our Lord and Master said: There is no servant who surpasses the Master, you too must become humble and feel unworthy if you truly are a disciple of Christ.
  
  How despicable before the Lord is that disciple who behaves humble and has a proud heart and walks among greatness, who claims to boast, and does not know that he is destined to decay and that compared to the immense he is a small man.
  
  
• The third path you must follow to reach perfect humility is self-esteem. Then consider when you meditate where you came from and where you are going. Think about where you came from, and know that you came out of perdition, and were kneaded with dust and mud, and dwelt in sin, and were exiled from the bliss of paradise.
  
  This consideration serves to deflate your haughtiness, so that you can cry out with the three children in Daniel: We are today humiliated everywhere for our sins. Also consider where you will end up; you tend, you know, to corruption and to dissolve into dust; because you are dust and dust you will return.
  
  

Because you are proud, if you are today, tomorrow you will no longer be; if today you are healthy, tomorrow maybe sick; if today you are rich in virtue, tomorrow perhaps you will be a beggar and wretched. Who then is that miserable Christian who dares to be proud, when on every side he finds himself surrounded by so many miseries and calamities?

Be so humble, therefore, that you never allow your hearts to be dominated by pride, since you had a humble Master.

Saint Bernard says for us: «I see, and with great sorrow, that many, after having despised the pomp of the world, learn pride precisely in the school of humility, and under the wings of a meek and humble Master they become haughtily insolent, and in the cloister they become more impatient than when they were in the world; and, what is more enormous, many, who in their own home could not have been other than despicable men, cannot bear to be looked down upon in the house of God.

He finally listens to the advice of a brother; hate it, you'll like it. Flee the proud like vipers; he despises arrogant people as demons; keep away from the company of the proud as from a deadly poison. And why?

Hear why

A wise man makes this description of the proud man: "The proud man is insufferable: sumptuous in dressing, haughty in walking with his head held high, grim face, grim eyes, he decrees the highest place for himself, eager to be preferred to the best; he breaks sentences, he boasts in words and deeds; he does not even observe good manners in paying due respect to others".

Therefore, you must flee the company of the proud and not imitate them. Ecclesiasticus says about it: He who uses and converses with the proud, derives pride from it.