Approaching Humility
As beloved of God, our success in the quest for understanding is intrinsically tied to acknowledging limitations. Many profound insights will emerge only at the end of great frustration, why? The frustration is humbling and forces the reconsideration of presumptions. Yesterday I brought up a vast library, where one is armed only with a single candle. The flickering flame illuminates the path but also casts deep shadows, revealing the expansive darkness beyond.
Imperfection guarantees ignorance. It’s not just about what we know but also what we do not in the vast expanse of uncertainty that surrounds our meager understandings as mortals. Every answer we seek reveals new questions, creating an endless pursuit of truth. Each insight gained unveils deeper layers of complexity, reminding us of the unknowable boundlessness of reality. The more one learns, the more one realises how little is known.
Now, imagine that same person is drunk and clutching a torch that casts a blinding light in the same library. This torch represents arrogance, the overconfidence that obscures our limitations and burns through valuable information accidentally, not even leaving ashes as witness. Arrogant scientism often falls into this trap, claiming absolute truth while denying and wholly lacking in the humility required to acknowledge uncertainty.
Arrogance guarantees denied ignorance; it’s the delusion that we see clearly when, in reality, our vision is quite obscured by our simplistic definitions in and of themselves. This obscurity, if not understood in itself in the way described above, can lead us down paths of false certitude, stifling genuine inquiry and growth.
This is why arrogance leads to disastrous consequences. These are the dangers of unchecked pride. Humility stands as a guiding light, but the how is it achieved? It’s the recognition that our understanding is truly finite, and that our contributions to the world are made best in honesty which takes identification.
Humility is not necessarily weakness, but can rather be a strength born of self-awareness. When it is matched with strength, we call it meekness. At its core is a better understanding of the self more free of delusions. It opens doors to deeper understanding, allowing us to seek guidance, ask questions, and grow in wisdom. Humility acknowledges that our knowledge is a flickering flame in the vastness of the dark and inescapable ignorance surrounding it.
All wrong answers point to the right answer in the path of their incorrectness. Each misstep may bring us closer to truth, if we reside upon how it happened and work to correct it. In this way, imperfection serves as a compass pointing toward perfection. Our limitations are the outlines of potential for growth. Make perfection your perfection, and make sure your compass points truly North.
Note, the sculptor chiselling at marble does not strive for flawlessness but for harmony, balance, and beauty. In the same way, we should approach life’s challenges with humility and grace, and expectations aligned to the divine. If we believe our plans are best, instead of God’s, we will believe ourselves capable of some sort of perfection in our own imperfect judgements instead.