The Illusion of Humility
The dictionary defines humility as “the quality or condition of being humble; modest opinion or estimate of one’s own importance, rank, etc”. Please note that the definition includes the word condition as well as quality.
Synonyms include “lowliness” and “submissiveness”.
The Bible, specifically Proverbs 16:18, says “Pride goes before destruction and haughtiness before a fall.”
Hm.
Yeah…that’s not me.
In fact, I think the whole idea of humility is, as Dr. Manhattan would say, “a highly overrated phenomenon.”
Here’s the thing; I believe in humility before God. I believe in humility when assessing oneself. I don’t believe in humility before men (or women). Meaning, I don’t believe in being lowly or submitting to anyone. I believe you should show respect to those you care about. I believe you should be willing to compromise in your relationship/marriage. I do not believe you should submit, or capitulate, to any human being.
What prompted this is a situation at work. Without going into too many details, I, like millions of other people in the world, feel that the job doesn’t treat us fairly. Humility would dictate that I shut my mouth and accept this. I believe, based on my experiences, that a status quo only becomes so when enough people accept it.
I’ve also learned, through my background, that those who challenge the system alone are usually dealt with harshly.
But I’ve also seen one person make a difference.
Humility is the ability to accurately assess yourself, and I know…I probably can’t make a difference here. It’s not pride that tells me I have to try; it’s that I believe in doing what is right, no matter what it costs.
It’s not humility that tells you to accept a situation just because you think you can’t change it, it’s humiliation, and there’s a big difference. You can’t expect other people to do something if you expect change; you have to take the chance yourself.
To me, the truest definition of humility is to know yourself and what you’re capable of. It’s to fully submit to whatever it is you worship (God, in my case), and it’s the courage to admit that you’re wrong, and you don’t know everything.
But the illusion of humility is to refuse to try to change the rules because you think you can’t.
(c) Avery K. Tingle for Akting Out LLC
Post Footer automatically generated by Add Post Footer Plugin for wordpress.
