Humilitas

Way back in September, I mentioned in a post that I had been thinking a lot about humility.  A friend of mine commented and recommended a book by John Dickson called, Humilitas.  I borrowed the book from her and proceeded to not read anything at all during the holiday seasons.  I finally picked it up in January and what an interesting read.  It definitely was very thought-provoking and fit my curiosity about humility. 

John Dickson, among other things, is a senior research fellow of the Department of Ancient History at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia.  Throughout the book, it is obvious that he is very passionate about history.  I enjoyed teaching American History, so I know where he is coming from a little bit.  He spent a lot of time in the beginning of the book talking about the history of humility.  He spoke of how different society was in ancient times than what we are used to now.  In the ancient world, it didn't matter if a son was happy or made money, it mattered if he brought honor to the family.  Because honor and reputation was so important, humility was not high on their list of virtues.  Dickson says humility came to the forefront with Jesus.  Jesus said, "Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.  For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many."  Mark 10:43-45.  In these famous verses, Jesus encourages his disciples to become servants to others if they want to be considered great in the kingdom of heaven.  Being a servant and being humble in this way does not mean to let people walk all over you.  Dickson defines humility as, "the noble choice to forgo your status, deploy your resources or use your influence for the good of others before yourself."  The key in this definition is that it is a choice.  It is not someone overpowering you.  You gladly step down to help someone else up.

While I enjoyed reading the history, background, and definition of humility according to John Dickson, the parts I liked the most were near the end.  I agreed with a lot of his points about leaders needing to be humble in order to effectively lead.  I also was inspired by his chapter on how humility generates growth in your abilities.  Most of all, I liked the chapter, "Harmony: Why Humility is Better than 'Tolerance.'"  In that chapter he talked about the big issues in the world; different religions, homosexuality, abortion, etc.  He claimed we should not be tolerant of things that go against our convictions.  He encouraged readers to hold strong to their convictions, but to "treat those who hold contrary beliefs with respect and friendship."  I don't think I have ever got into an argument with people over those big controversial topics, but I have reserved my friendship and respect from people who make choices that I don't believe in.  This book made me realize I need to separate the two.  Just because I don't agree with a religion someone follows or a life choice they make, doesn't mean I can't respect the person and befriend them.  I really like a quote Dickson used from G.K. Chesterton, "An open mind is like an open mouth; its purpose is to bite on something nourishing.  Otherwise, it becomes like a sewer, accepting everything, rejecting nothing."  I think that quote says we should have our beliefs and morals.  We should have our strong convictions.  We just need to have them with a soft heart.  This also fits the saying, "If you stand for nothing, you'll fall for anything."

Finally, I am going to share the steps he gives for becoming more humble.  I know I need to follow them. 
1. We are shaped by what we love.  Love and admire humility and it will come more natural.
2.  Reflect on the lives of the humble.  Jesus...enough said.
3. Conduct thought experiments to enhance humility.  I am the kind of person who over-analyzes everything, so the idea of purposefully over-analyzing something is scary to me, but it makes sense to use forethought to figure out how to act with more humility.
4. Act humbly.  Even if I don't feel up to it, I need to force myself to do it.  Kind of like getting on the treadmill; I don't want to, but I always feel better after I do.
5. Invite criticism.  I am blessed to have a really awesome group of friends whom I meet with every week.  I know they'd be glad to provide constructive, loving criticism to help me grow.
6. Forget about being humble.  Humility is low key.  You don't often notice it in a person right away.  Dickson quotes C.S. Lewis, "If anyone would like to acquire humility, I can, I think, tell him the first step.  The first step is to realise that one is proud.  And a biggish step, too.  At least, nothing whatever can be done before it.  If you think you are not conceited, it means you are very conceited indeed."

I guess I can say I have made the first step.  I know I am proud and I'm not proud of it.  I know I need to stop talking about myself and listen more to others.  I'm really glad my friend lent me this book to help me get started down the right path!

PS-I know I shared a lot of the book on here, but it truly is a great read and I would highly recommend it!