Saturday of the Third Week of Lent
The Pharisee in today’s gospel thanks God for not being like the rest of humanity, “greedy, dishonest, adulterous.” Indeed the list of negative traits that humanity exhibits can go on and on and on. But in his haste to set himself apart from the rest of his fellow human beings, the Pharisee forgets that “self-righteousness” could just as easily be added to the list.
Jesus tells us that when we exalt ourselves, we will be brought down to the ground, to the very dirt from which we were created. The fall, of course, is not painless and will inevitably deform the beautiful figure that we ourselves and perhaps many others had come to admire. “Well deserved!” some might say. But instead of standing in the place of judgmental satisfaction, a place oddly reminiscent of where the Pharisee stands, perhaps the more Chrisitan attitude is to help a fallen Pharisee find the unrivaled form and splendor that only God’s loving hand can give.