(Thirtieth Sunday of the Year (C): This homily was given on October 23. 2022 at St. Pius X Church in Westerly, R.I., by Fr. Raymond Suriani. Read Sirach 35:12-18; Psalm 34:2-23; 2 Timothy 4:6-18; Luke 18:9-14.)
[For the audio version of this homily, click here: Thirtieth Sunday 2022]
This morning I would like to give
credit where credit is due. This morning,
within the context of this homily, I want to commend the Pharisee we just heard
about in this parable from Luke 18. Now
I realize that I may be the first person in Church history to do this, but no
matter—they say there's a first time for everything.
Fr. Ray, how can you possibly offer any kind of praise to this repulsive character?
Well, before I give my word of commendation, let me say that there are plenty of legitimate criticisms that you can level against this Pharisee: he was proud; he was arrogant; he was condescending; he was lacking in self-knowledge (because he was completely out of touch with his own failings and sins). He was also judgmental, in the sense that he not only condemned evil actions (which is what we are supposed to do); he also condemned other people by pretending to know what was in their hearts (which is what we must never do). In this regard, Bishop Sheen used to say, "We can always know with certainty the worst that is within ourselves, but we can only SUSPECT the worst that is in someone else." Unfortunately, the Pharisee had it backwards: he was completely blind to the worst in himself, and he thought he knew with absolute certainty the worst that was in other people.
You know, it's interesting—his prayer would have been perfectly acceptable if he had said, "I give you thanks, O God, that BY YOUR GRACE I have been able to avoid certain sins in my life. I praise you Lord, for your goodness and mercy." That would have been a legitimate prayer of gratitude to God. But instead, his prayer consisted of condemning people like the tax collector and patting himself on the back (as if he had been able to avoid certain sins BY HIS OWN POWER).
And yet, in spite of all these negatives, I must give this Pharisee credit for one thing: at least he was only proud of his good and virtuous actions! In this parable, he commends himself for avoiding certain sins, for fasting and for paying tithes—all of which are praiseworthy endeavors. It's good to avoid sin (I highly recommend it!); it's good to fast; and it's good to give one-tenth of your gross income to charitable causes. Now please don't misunderstand me—I'm not approving in any way of this man's pride. His pride was clearly sinful. But I am saying that at least he was proud of doing things that were good!
Believe it or not, that makes him quite different from many proud people in the modern world—because nowadays it's very common for men and women to be proud of their VICES as well as their virtues! In other words, what was once a cause for shame is now considered by some to be a cause for boasting!
For example, have you seen the latest television commercials for the pro-abortion politicians in the state of Rhode Island? This illustrates the point beautifully. Now, I know, these politicians like to call themselves “pro-choice,” but that expression—"pro-choice”—is absolutely, positively meaningless, until you know what the choice is that’s being supported. Well, in this case, of course, it’s the choice to kill an innocent and helpless human being; the “choice” is the choice to kill a baby. For supporting this kind of evil activity, these candidates for public office should be ashamed of themselves. But from their television commercials it’s clear: they’re not ashamed; they’re not ashamed at all. They’re PROUD! They’re PROUD of where they stand on the matter; they’re PROUD of their support for baby-killing. It’s a badge of honor to them! It’s also sick.
Some people today are PROUD of their support for giving potentially dangerous drugs and radical, mutilating surgeries to confused children—young children—without the parents of those children knowing anything about it.
Some people are PROUD of the rioting and looting that they’ve done on our city streets in recent years. In fact, the other day I read about a new book that’s come out. It’s entitled, “In Defense of Looting”. The title indicates that the author sees looting as a good thing—something that looters should be PROUD of, not something they should regret.
Some people are PROUD of their racism, although they don’t call it racism. They usually call it “social justice” or “making reparations”. In effect, they blame all white people for the sins of some white people (especially, I dare say, if the people in question are white policemen)—which is just as wrong as blaming all black people for the sins of some black people. Both attitudes, at their root, are racist. And both, sad to say, are all too common in our country right now.
The reality is that there are lots of sins that people are proud of these days: their drinking exploits; their sexual exploits; their shady business deals; their lack of charity towards others.
Some are even PROUD of their support for having pornographic images in certain books in our public school libraries.
So, my brothers and sisters, before we point our finger at the proud Pharisee in this gospel, we need to take stock of the condition of our own house. Are we proud of our good and virtuous actions in the same sense that the Pharisee was—forgetting that it's ONLY by the grace of God that we can do ANYTHING good?! And are we infected with this modern type of pride which actually leads us to boast of our vices and sins? We all need to examine our consciences on this matter, because pride is the most subtle and the most prevalent of all the deadly sins. Consequently it's often overlooked, and not repented of. St. John Climacus, who lived back in the 7th century, tells a story that illustrates just how difficult this sin can be to identify. I will leave you with his words. St. John wrote: "An old man, very experienced in these matters, once spiritually admonished a proud brother who said in his blindness: 'Forgive me, father, but I am not proud.' 'My son,' said the wise old man, 'what better proof of your pride could you have given than to claim that you were not proud?'"
