Meekness as Pride

In studying the topic of pride as it relates to Christianity, I’ve found that all the material I’ve encountered has pretty much followed the same progression: i) teach people how pride is truly the worst of sins, ii) tell them to be humble (and that it’s only possible with Jesus’ help), iii) caution them not to fall prey to false humility which can be equally destructive.

Last week however, while attending Ottawa Christian Counsellings "Relationship Intelligence" seminar with Krystle, I heard a rather enlightening twist on this matter. The speaker followed the previously stated progression but ended off bringing things around full circle by stating that one of the essential components of true humility is a solid foundation of self-worth! Wow, that’s usually the one thing they try and steer way clear of.

To illustrate this, she used the example of a man who aspires to be a great writer but is scared to make any serious attempts at writing, and even when he’s encouraged by his friends he shies away from the prospect, usually with “humble” excuses like “oh, well, I’m not really talented”. On the surface, this man appears to be as far from prideful as can be, but he is very prideful indeed. His problem in fact is that he thinks too highly of himself. He knows that any attempt he makes brings with it the possibility of failure, and he can’t stand the thought of failing and looking like a fool to his friends and/or to himself. In other words, he thinks so highly of himself that he can’t stand the thought of showing any weakness and risk being ridiculed or embarrassed so he doesn’t try at all.

Undoubtedly, this point spoke to me so powerfully because I count myself among these pridefully shy people. As a society we’re accustomed to castigating openly prideful people, and even the unapologetic show-offs themselves are usually willing to admit that they shouldn’t be the way they are. On the other hand, pridefully shy people – such as myself – are left relatively alone. Sure, our friends might try and poke us out of shells for our own good but in general they’re willing to accept our shyness as an innate character trait that isn’t hurting anyone, but a sin is a sin, whether it’s a sin of commission (e.g. open pridefuleness) or omission (i.e. meek pride).

James 4:17 - Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin.

C.S. Lewis on Pride = There Will Be Blood

I am a huge fan of C.S. Lewis; reading Mere Christianity was one of the turning points of my spiritual life and of all the chapters in that book, the most revelatory one to me was his chapter on "the great sin":

"There is one vice of which no man in the world is free; which every one in the world loathes when he sees it in someone else; and of which hardly any people, except Christians, ever imagine that they are guilty themselves [...] the vice I am talking of is Pride".

I am also a huge fan of film, and while I keep separate blogs for my film-related thoughts and my Bible/Christian ones, this is one of those occasions where I feel justified in putting a film recommendation here. Paul Thomas Anderson's There Will Be Blood is the greatest illustration of pride that I have ever seen committed to celluloid. It also happens to be one of the best films I have seen in a very long time and one that has stuck with me even weeks after seeing it - twice! (update: three times)

So despite film recommendations from cinephiles being a dime-a-dozen I'll still go ahead and say that I think this is a must see for any Christian and particularly those who think that the movies have nothing to offer but immoral entertainment. There Will Be Blood is likely one of the most powerful, intelligent and spiritually reflective films I have ever seen in my life. Go and watch it! And even if you've already seen it and didn't feel like you quite "got it", sit yourself down, read Lewis' chapter on pride, then go and watch it again!

(and if you're looking for someone to watch it with, I'm sure I'd be up for another viewing, and another, and another...)