9781644135945

The Light of the World
without blessing and fruit. “It is vain for you to rise before light,” preferring to act and work first
before He starts with His work. Actions that are the work of man’s spirit and powers and are not
moved by God’s grace, actions that are not dependent on His will and work, will be without fruit.
“He that humbleth himself shall be exalted.” This is the secret of true piety. If we humbly
submit ourselves to God’s will, we have started on the right path. “Rise ye after you have sitten”
(Ps 126:2). First of all we must sit, rest, accept wholeheartedly God’s working within our souls;
then we must rise and work with the power of God’s help. With His help we are confident that
we can accomplish all things. “To Thee, O Lord, have I lifted up my soul; in Thee, O my God,
I put my trust” (Offertory).
Prayer
O God, who dost manifest Thy almighty power chiefly in showing mercy and pity; increase
Thy mercy towards us, that we, seeking the way of Thy promises, may be made partakers of Thy
heavenly treasures. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Thursday
The Gospel shows us two men praying in the temple. One of them begins thus: “O God, I
give Thee thanks that I am not as the rest of men. . . . I fast twice in the week; I give tithes of all
that I possess.” The other stands afar off, and “would not so much as lift up his eyes towards
heaven.” He strikes his breast, saying: “O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” The one boastfully
asserts that there is nothing he must pray for. Sufficient in himself, he remains within himself,
expecting to receive everything from himself and believing himself able to fulfill all his needs
by himself. The other man prays, going outside of himself; he opens his heart that God may
give him something, thus lifting himself beyond his self to God.
“To Thee, O Lord, have I lifted up my soul; in Thee, O my God, I put my trust” (Offertory).
When we pray we go outside of ourselves, lifting our heart towards God. But who can lift us
towards Him, unless He does so Himself? Of our own power we are unable to escape from
ourselves. As long as we rely on ourselves, like the Pharisee in the temple, we are unable to
transcend our own being; we remain within ourselves, excluding the influence of God’s grace.
With such pride we cannot truly pray: “To Thee, O Lord, have I lifted up my soul.” Pride does
not pray; only humility prays, because it does not feel sufficient in itself. Abandoning itself,
humility professes its dependence on God. Thus it can truly say: “To Thee, O Lord, have I
lifted up my soul.” He who speaks in such a way receives nothing from himself; but he receives
everything from God. All that he has received he returns to God without retaining anything for
himself or ascribing anything to his own powers. Having nothing of himself, keeping nothing
for himself, he admits that he has received everything he possesses from God and for God. He
can truly say: “To Thee, O Lord, have I lifted up my soul.” This is a genuine prayer to God and
denotes a true union with Him. It requires the giving up of one’s self in order to adhere to God,
in order to will and love only what God wills and what is pleasing to Him. Such an attitude of,
mind is founded on humility.
“In Thee, O my God, I put my trust; let me not be ashamed” (Offertory); that is, I shall
be heard. “When I cried to the Lord, He heard my voice, from them that draw near to me”
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