Just who do we think we are?

‘…God, be merciful to me, a sinner...’ (Luke 18:13)

Luke 18:9-14 (Year C: Advent-5)

If we hear Luke 18:9-14 this Sunday then we might stop and listen again.  Where is the ‘tax collector’ today? Am I feeling superior in my devotion? Or, do I feel unworthy and hypocritical to be here? Feelings are important. We can spend a lot of our lives denying them, fighting them or surfing them.  They are signposts to Attitude with a capital A.  Feelings don’t own us but we can decide how to respond.  Note that the Pharisee felt and thought in his heart that he was superior to that miserable sinner – the tax-collector (translated as publican in some versions of the Bible but indicating someone who collected taxes). We might also conjecture that the tax-collector felt quite miserable and inferior to the devout company of Pharisees and others around him. Today, we may carry an Attitude of crippling guilt, inferiority, judgment and blame towards ourselves.  We may even despise ourselves as much as we think others do.

Regarding others with contempt is not uncommon. Others, after all, are not ‘us’. They believe, think, pray, vote, look, talk, play etc. differently.  There can be a smug sense of collective egotism because we ‘know’ that we are in the One True Community of whatever. We have the full riches of a particular system of belief and practice while ‘they’ are deficient. Moreover, ‘they’ are responsible for any historical rift but we have been ‘saved’ or we have the full means of grace and they don’t.  Many Christians who claim to be disciples of Jesus are expert at this sort of collective egotism and, by implication, mild and not so mild disdain and contempt for others.

Collective Attitude is a close relation of individual Attitude that resides somewhere at the back of our thinking.

Attitude says a lot.  Attitude speaks without speaking and acts without acting.  A look, a silence, a little piece of cutting sarcasm or a staunch refusal to listen or understand can say more than a thousand words or actions.  In our attitudes we rehearse and reinforce our view of the world and people around us. However, in the first place we have inherited an attitude towards ourselves. Without realising it we have soaked in attitudes of others about ourselves for better or for worse. Possibly the best investment in a child’s future is positive encouragement and gentle direction.  Many carry the wounds of hurt from a distant past without realising who or how or why. It’s called ‘baggage’.

‘Two men went up to the temple to pray’, so the story goes. They brought with them Attitude.  To be fair to the Pharisee, he was not incorrect in saying what he said. Yes, he did pray regularly and fasted twice a week and refrained from murder, robbery and adultery and gave away one tenth of all of his income (which we assume was not too limited). We will take his word for all of this!. The point is that the Pharisee had an Attitude characteristic of people who ‘trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt’. This Attitude is one of entitlement based on personal merit and effort and a feeling of superiority over others.

When we arrive at a place we bring our Attitude towards ourselves and others present or absent.  We have little or no idea what other people bring with them to the gathering.

We might find ourselves on our way to mass or morning prayer and see scores of people driving to the sports field or shops or gym as the case may be while many more are somewhere asleep or engrossed in the Sunday papers or online gaming. Attitude springs to mind. We might find ourselves a few minutes early. Pick up the newsletter. Notice who is present today. ‘Haven’t seen so-and-so for a long time’. ‘Who is that with her? I wonder are they married?’  ‘That family from abroad – I wonder are they here just to get their child into the parish school?’ ‘And those two men together at the back of the church – they are always together - one wonders why?’ ‘Why is that child allowed to wander around the pews and creating havoc when we are all supposed to be concentrating on the sacred mysteries?’ And then the mind wanders through the hymns, readings, sermon and time of communion. ‘What was that sermon about again?’ ‘What a bore...’ ‘Oh yes, I am supposed to be praying and not thinking about the row I had with so-and-so last Thursday’.  It’s all over in 45 minutes. ‘What was that about again?’ A hand shake, a smile and away we go for another week.

The mind of Christ

We ought to cultivate Attitude but Attitude based on the mind of Christ.

‘For who has known the mind of the Lord so as to instruct him?’ But we have the mind of Christ.’ As Paul writes to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 2:16).

We do well to heed the words of scripture where Paul writes:

Why do you pass judgement on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgement seat of God. (Romans 14:10)

The next time one might enter a place of prayer or a gathering of people how about a silent little prayer along the lines of:

“God, be merciful to me, a sinner” (v. 13)