84. On Humility.

Dearly Beloved, 

When I worked in Switzerland for World Wildlife Fund International I became involved in a difficult argument with an American donor who was upset by my modest presentation of myself. She was positively offended by the fact that I was disinclined to boast about my history in wildlife conservation and my feats of daring do in desert mountains pursuing elusive and rare wild animals. As we were in Switzerland, and there is no greater neutral ground, I stuck to my guns, or rather my modesty, and both of us ended upset. When I mentioned this incident to an American colleague he said, “ Oh yes! American's don't do modesty!” Perhaps the extraordinary competitive nature of US society makes it unsafe not to blow one's own trumpet lest one be overlooked; perhaps being modest in the UK is part of our class system – indolent and poorly informed aristocrats perhaps did not want to be reminded that other people, their notional inferiors, did things which made the aristocrats look, well, indolent and poorly informed. Or perhaps people long ago tired of the ancient Anglo-saxon tradition of boasting, after all even Beowolf in the mead hall saying things like “Deeds I shall do of daring and prowess...” must have bored his listeners in the end, despite the warming effect of the mead. Paradoxically, I had not been modest enough to simply agree with my interlocutor and start boasting!

Perhaps the ultimate statement of modesty is said every day in Lent; it is so extreme it challenges even the most self-effacing humans:

"The sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, Oh God, thou wilt not despise." (Psalm 51:17, but better known as part of Allegri's setting of the Misereri).

We can look for a personal spiritual interpretation, but it also speaks to the wider , secular world. This verse is extraordinary as it comes out of the Old Testament which is redolent with strife and fear of one's enemies like the poem of Beowulf. Yet it is a vital guide for human conduct. It is especially relevant to those who would rule. Here is part of a famous speech by the leader of a Nation:

“If anyone reproaches me and asks why I did not resort to the regular courts of justice, then all I can say is this. In this hour I was responsible for the fate of the German people, and thereby I became the supreme judge of the German people. I gave the order to shoot the ringleaders in this treason,...” 

This is Adolf Hitler's speech on 13th July 1934 after operation Hummingbird, better known as “the night of the long knives” in which the leaders of the SA, the Nazi Party's paramilitary wing -- the “Brown Shirts” – and many conservative figures who had opposed Hitler in the past, were murdered. As far as we know there was no conspiracy against his party or his person at that time. It was a deadly moment in German history because it was the manifestation of the gulf that had opened up between the Nazi regime and the German judiciary which had been made possible by the enabling legislation passed a year earlier. 

 The Enabling Act gave powers to the cabinet and Chancellor to make laws without approval of Parliament (The Reichstag) which, as the Cabinet met increasingly infrequently, meant Hitler alone. One tragedy was that the mainly Catholic, The Center Party, voted for The Enabling Act despite otherwise actively opposing Hitler. That Act made extrajudicial killing by the regime possible, indeed acceptable, in Germany. The Enabling Act was passed in conditions of intimidation with the Brown Shirt paramilitaries infesting parliament - reminiscent of the goings on in the Capitol in Washington as rioters attempted to prevent the election of President Biden on 6th January. 

A few months later, following intimidation and duress, The Center Party was the last political party to dissolve itself and the day after its dissolution Hitler announced that formation of any new political parties was forbidden; that left only the Nazi Party in power and in control. No effective opposition could emerge afterwards to reinstate judicial rule. 

Today we have many national leaders who have manipulated themselves into the position where they can lead their countries for the duration of their lives. The healthy advance of new blood and new ideas into the polity and political hierarchy is thereby blocked. Because of our human weaknesses, such individuals inevitably give way to paranoia and misgovernment; self-enrichment, nepotism and state violence is an inevitable consequence. These individuals inevitably end up being a danger to their own people and those of other nations. They would find it difficult or impossible to say “The sacrifices of God are a broken Spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, Oh God, thou wilt not despise.”

Lent is a good time to reflect on this verse and it huge implications for the wide world as well as our personal relationship with the Holy Spirit and the teachings of Jesus.

Peace and Grace,

Paul

Completed for Lent 16 February 2021.


Photo: Paul Munton.
The Humiliation of Christ, with Mary Magdalene and Soldiers, King's College Cambridge Glass.


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