Arrogance triggers people a lot.
What does arrogance say?
It says: "I am better than you, I know best, you can not teach me anything
because I already know everything there is to know, I do not need you,
I am totally self sufficient, I am up on a horse's back looking down at you".
Arrogance is the twin-sister of Pride.
What does Pride say?
It says: "I am blown up with my own importance and/or achievements.
I am always right, and I need people around me to validate me, and if they
do not, I become insulted and judge them. I need to maintain and reinforce
the ideas that I have about myself, through activities that strengthens my ego.
I do not admit when I'm wrong, and I can neither apologise nor forgive."
Many people think this is only a healthy confidence in one self, but it is not
the same as self-confidence and it is not good for the soul, because it block's
out the presence of God, which can only emerge in a humble person.
And the truly humble person does not look for
recognition or applause ( worldly glory), which creates a barrier in the
internal space of our soul, where God dwells, so the divine qualities that
are inherent, dormant, in all of us, can not develop and flourish.
It is not for nothing that Pride is regarded as the worst of all the deadly sins.
They are called deadly, because they kill the soul's capacities for the divine.
God is objective truth, and we should always live in His frame of reference.
If we do something really well, we are happy, especially if we have put
a lot of work and effort into it, and we want to let others know about it, we
like to boast a little. This is natural, but the Catholic Faith is supernatural, so
we should not do it. We should always remember that it was God that gave
us our qualities and talents in the first place, so the glory goes to Him.
The Magnificat:
"And Mary said:
“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant.
From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One
has done great things for me—holy is his name.
His mercy extends to those who fear him,
from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with
his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts.
He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the
humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich
away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful
to Abraham and his descendants forever, just as he promised our ancestors.”
Jesus's forerunner John the Baptist, who paved the way for Him,
says in John 1:27:
"He is the one who comes after me, the straps of whose sandals I am not
worthy to untie"
and in
John 3:30: "He must increase; I must decrease".
Being "small" is at the core of the spiritual teaching of Saint Thérèse
of Lisieux, she says that in order to grow spiritually, (in holiness),
we need to shrink in the eyes of the world.
This is in direct contradiction to the ways of the world, and it presents a
great challenge for most people for this very reason.
Jesus Himself told us that in order to enter the kingdom of God we have
to become like little children:
"and said, “Verily I say unto you, unless ye be converted and become as
little children, ye shall not enter into the Kingdom of Heaven."
Matthew 18:3
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