Knowledge of Self: Day Four

Image by Andre Mouton from Pixabay

Day sixteen at Fish Eaters.

Day sixteen at The Catholic Company.

The first part of today's readings is from True Devotion and it is a recapitulation of this week's theme: knowledge of self. There are two quotes I'd like to highlight:

[We] can reflect on those three considerations of St. Bernard, the vileness of our origin, the dishonours of our present state, and our ending as the food of worms.

And,

[We] will turn to our Blessed Lady and beg her to obtain for them that great grace which is the foundation of all others, the grace of self-knowledge.

That grace of self-knowledge is humility.

The second part is from Imitation of Christ. While I was a lapsed Catholic, I had the grace to witness this tendency in other people, and indeed, it is one of the truths spoken by Jesus that had me thinking, "this guy is onto something" during my return to faith.

I see this from today's reading:

Often we are not aware that we are so blind in heart. Meanwhile we do wrong, and then do worse in excusing it. At times we are moved by passion, and we think it zeal. We take others to task for small mistakes, and overlook greater ones in ourselves. We are quick enough to feel and brood over the things we suffer from others, but we think nothing of how much others suffer from us. If a man would weigh his own deeds fully and rightly, he would find little cause to pass severe judgment on others. 

As a reflection of this from Matthew 7:1-5.

Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.