In these times of disturbing doctrinal confusion and moral laxity, people sometimes complacently say that “God has no favorites.” They refer, erroneously and without context, to passages such as the first verse of today’s Sirach reading: “The LORD is a God of justice, / who knows no favorites.” Their thought is that this expression implies that it does not matter what we believe or how we live our life.
Certainly God loves all his children irrespective of race, nation, sex, or creed. However, there is one category of people who receive God’s special favor in a manner that others do not: the poor, the anawim. This is one of the truths that today’s readings invite us to ponder. The Responsorial Psalm puts it clearly: “The Lord hears the cry of the poor.”
The theme of God’s preference for the poor and needy runs through the entire Bible, from the Pentateuch through the Prophets and Wisdom literature, and into the whole New Testament. Today’s reading from the Book of Sirach, a Wisdom book, echoes what was already taught in the Law and the Prophets: “the prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds; / it does not stop till it reaches its goal.”
Material poverty is certainly a clear expression of what the Bible means by poverty. The widows, the orphans, foreigners, the weak, and the oppressed are often described as being favored by God. Hence, it is no surprise that when God came to earth as man in Jesus Christ, he chose to live a materially poor and simple life. However, the poverty to which Christ calls us as a condition of finding true happiness is not merely an external condition. God calls some people to give up all material wealth; others he calls to use their earthly goods for his glory by raising their families and helping others. What applies to all, irrespective of external circumstances, is the call to poverty of spirit. In the biblical sense, the poverty that pleases God is acknowledging one’s need for him. God does not desire burnt offerings but a humble and contrite heart. He hears the cry of those who depend on him. One might be destitute yet may still not have biblical poverty of spirit. Conversely, another may be fabulously rich in material things and may yet be poor in spirit, one of the anawim.
St. Paul, in his own manner, fits well into the category of those in whom God takes delight. He made himself materially poor and was also imbued with the spirit of poverty that predisposes one to do God’s will and give God glory. Speaking of himself in today’s second reading, Paul reveals his self-emptying spirit, saying: “I am already being poured out like a libation….” Later in the Letter he shows that with his complete trust in God he holds no grudges against those who did not come to his defense. He even prays, “May it not be held against them!” Paul is an inspiring and eloquent example of a man who is truly poor in spirit, a man whose prayers pierce the clouds, and who belongs to the Kingdom of God.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus presents a magnificent parable to illustrate how poverty of spirit finds favor with God. God actually does have favorites: he takes delight in the humble of heart. The parable presents two men praying in the temple area, a Pharisee and a tax collector. The Pharisee is not an obviously bad man; he excels at doing what he should do. The tax collector is a notorious sinner and he knows it. However, to our great surprise, the sinner is the one who goes home justified – meaning he receives the mercy he humbly asked for – while the Pharisee who believes he is righteous does not.
Why was one man justified and not the other? The Pharisee prayed with arrogance, an attitude that God detests (cf. Pv 16:5) because it blocks the way of mercy, which is our only means of being made righteous. The sinner humbled himself before God, acknowledged his poverty, and offered God the gift of a contrite heart. God does not despise a humble and contrite heart (cf. Ps 51:19). Indeed, this is the very sacrifice that pleases him. Thus, God heard and answered the tax collector’s prayer.
The warning of the parable is clear: we must rid ourselves of all self-righteousness. Many people today seem to have lost the sense of sin. They seldom or never humble themselves to ask God’s mercy; they avoid going to Confession; yet they consider themselves better than others. This is the tragic condition of the Pharisee. The way out of this trap is to foster interior humility and a contrite heart – which is the true anawim spirit. If we are truly poor in spirit, we know and acknowledge our absolute dependence on God. This counts us among God’s favorites, who can be confident of going home justified – that is, going to our eternal home in God’s heavenly Kingdom. “Blessed are you who are poor; the Kingdom of God is yours” (Lk 6:20).
How does poverty of spirit affect my prayer and shape my daily life? When do I most often find my arrogance blocking the way of mercy? What helps me foster interior humility and a contrite heart?
Excerpt from The Anawim Way, Volume 21, no. 8. More information about The Anawim Way may be found here.