Gospel Reflection on Luke 18:9-14

October 26, 2025

He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others: “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank thee that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for every one who exalts himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

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We live in a world that encourages people to promote themselves, sell themselves. But in God's presence, there is no better than or worse than. In God's eyes, we're all children.

Each one of us loved uniquely. Each one of us seen completely.

One of the wonderful things about children is their emotional honesty. They don't hide their feelings or wants. They're not subtle. They demand. They holler. They cry. They take things from each other. And they aren't ashamed of any of it. They offer no apologies.

As we grow up, we become more disciplined and we leave much of this behind. But we also become less honest. Our selfishness and our faults become less obvious. But they never really disappear. They just become much more subtle.

And it's valuable to look at ourselves and see how we have transformed the blunt, obvious faults of children into the subtle faults of adults. How does pride manifest itself in our lives as adults? We see that in the story of the Pharisee and the publican.

The Pharisee is proud because of his maturity. That's a subtle pride, so hard to get rid of.

It becomes almost impossible not to compare ourselves with people around us who are struggling and not feel a bit smug. Proud of the fact that we're not like them. Pride in someone who's overcome selfishness takes the form of refusing to be small before God

and refusing to recognize how connected we are with others. To refuse to accept our own poverty.

Pride disguises itself as a kind of false humility. We serve, we do work, we deflect attention away from ourselves, yet inside we're secretly hoping and waiting for someone to notice us and admire us. We do the right things for seemingly the right reasons. But often we're doing them in service of our pride.

We need to remind ourselves that every time we come into this holy place, we bring our whole lives, our strengths, our failures, our joys, our wounds, and every time we face the same choice, do we come to God with masks and pride or honesty and humility?

Two people walk into the temple, one full of confidence, rehearsing their virtues.

The other quietly head bowed, words barely rising above a whisper.

Which leaves embraced by mercy? To be humble is not to despise ourselves.

It's not to wallow and shame. Humility is simply standing in the truth. I'm loved, I'm imperfect, I'm in need. And it is precisely this need that makes room for grace.

Think of the times you've come to God carrying a burden too heavy to hide. Did you not discover that God's mercy is like water flowing into the low places of your life? The broken soil always receives the rain first.

What would it mean if we prayed without masks? If we came before God exactly as we are without excuses? Our prayer could be simple and true. "Have mercy on me." Mercy is the heartbeat of God. The one who asks for mercy never asks in vain.

Humility is not weakness, it's the courage to let God be God and let ourselves be loved.

So let us lay down our pride and pray with the simplicity of children, with the honesty of hearts that know their need, and trust that God who raises up the humble will lift us up, embrace us, and send us home filled with mercy and peace.