As we enter the final year of our current Spiritual Theme, we are called to “Walk Humbly with God.” This passage is both comforting and reassuring during these unprecedented times. With God, we are never alone. He is the one constant, most important aspect of our lives. As people of faith, we can rely on the promise of what is to come. By being a community of hope, we believe that better times will return.
As we transition into this new school year, we need to continue to accompany each other more than ever. The Holy Father, Pope Francis, stated, “There is no humility, without humiliation.” This may seem to be a harsh perspective, but by working through challenges and obstacles, we identify our strengths and shed light on our deficiencies. Once these are identified, we can take the appropriate actions to address what needs to be improved and narrow the gaps. These are the opportunities to make difficult situations easier and come out stronger and more knowledgeable than before. To do so, we need all of the OCSB community to remain committed to justice, kindness, mercy, and humility.
St. Benedict of Nursia outlined the 12 Degrees of Humility. Although these were written for the Monastic Life in 6th Century Italy, they are still valuable to reflect on today. These 12 Degrees of Humility are virtue-centred and emphasize the importance of being God-fearing, admitting our failings, practicing silence and being empathetic. All of these are important for our spiritual, physical, emotional and mental wellness.
The Prophet Micah calls us to be prophetic. Prophecy is not about looking into what might be, it is a call to be voices that challenge and change. We may think that this past year has provided enough challenges and change already, but we must remember that our fatigue does not stop the needs of our community from growing. As we accompany each other, as we “Walk Humbly with God,” we will listen to the needs of our community. We will continue to assist those in need and adapt to safely and quickly address these needs. This will range from our continued support of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Development and Peace, Chalice, and Shepherds of Good Hope to our schools collecting food for the local food banks to distributing hygiene items to the Salvation Army.
The ancient Roman had a saying “Solvitur ambulando,” which translates to “It is solved by walking.” In many instances, we do not know what the answer will be at the start of our search. It is in walking and in the experience of doing that we come closer to understanding. Even though the path is not as straightforward as it was in the past, we continue to walk knowing our destination is the same. We build a Civilization of Love. We continue as companions on the journey, confident that we believe that “With God, all things are possible” (Matthew 19:26) #ocsbWalkHumbly.