Social networks are a reflection of the inner state of man today. There is confusion, quarrels, discussions and disquisitions which are supposedly presented to find the truth but which, in reality, are an attempt to impose one’s own standards on others. There are judgments which pit the good against the bad, the faithful against the unfaithful, the courageous against the cowardly, those who hold the truth against those who are in deception….
In these times of societal polarization, there is an effective remedy to consider: less arrogance and more humility.
Hooked nails
A while ago I spoke with a good friend who was going through a difficult time due to defamation. I listened to him with attention and compassion. I suffered knowing what he was facing. A few days later I received a meme with the image of 5 people. nails. One of them was completely straight and the other 4 were crooked. A hammer appeared above the right nail, the image suggesting it was going to be hammered. A phrase at the base of the image read: “he who is straightest always gets hit.”
As soon as I saw him, I thought of my friend, whom I consider from afar to be a person of integrity. I sent him a message of solidarity. It was a way of telling him that I was with him.
His unexpected response, however, made me think deeply. He responded wisely, “Thank you very much. I think we are all crooked nails, but the Lord still uses us.”
It’s true ! We all have hooked nails, we are all light and shadow, we are all right and wrong, we all make mistakes, and we all come to our senses too late. No human being is perfect. Accepting this reality would lead us to harmonious, healthy and uplifting human relationships.
Sowing and harvesting
Pride, for its part, deceives us into believing that we master everything, that we already know everything, it makes us arrogant and violent.
I remembered the response of Saint John of the Cross to a nun who had written to him to give him all her support when Saint John had been taken to the dungeon by decision of his own Carmelite brothers. She told him she would do whatever was necessary to get him out. Saint John replied: “Do not worry about me, my sister, God will take care of me… bless my persecutors and love them, for “where there is no love, sow love and you will reap love.”
One of the luminous sentences of our saint is delivered to the world in the midst of injustice and pain!
This is the humble way of facing challenges, returning good for evil. This is foolish by human standards, but a wise response when we know how to adopt Christian standards.
Go out to meet people
It is important to no longer contribute to environmental polarization by practicing this fundamental virtue. He is humble who does not need to impose himself on others, who does not need to be right, who does not describe himself as the good one, the intelligent one, the champion of history, because he knows that this place belongs only to God.
It is not up to us to prove that we are better, but to love!
To love is to meet others, respond to their material and spiritual needs, care about their general well-being and do something concrete for them. By chatting on the networks, we waste time looking at those who are suffering and showing solidarity. Even if they are dogmas of faith. We share them, but we propose them respectfully without trying to impose them. It will be our coherence of life, the magnet that will attract souls to the heart of Jesus.
Less quarreling and more action for those who need us. Let us flood the networks with blessing initiatives, let us spread the good news, that which encourages us to persevere in building a civilization of love.
Jesus gave us the following instruction: “Study yourselves in my school, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Mt, 11, 29 b).
