The “Offering of Self” Prayer from St. Ignatius of Loyola
Pray this short prayer to make an offering of Self from the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.
Pray this short prayer to make an offering of Self from the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola.
Humility is the highest of all virtues because it is necessary to have in order to know and love God and be willing to obey Him. What exactly is humility? From a Christian perspective, we understand that humility is the virtue that is in direct opposition to the vice of pride. Before we can commit any sin against God we have to commit the sin of pride, this is because in order to do an evil act we have to lie to ourselves, telling ourselves that the thing we want is not such a bad thing and that it’s not really a sin against God. Lying is a symptom of pride because it purposely hides the truth. Humility on the other hand sees the exact truth of things. For this reason, Jesus teaches us to be both meek and humble of heart. It is through the bravery of obedience to God on all things, even when we are afraid, and through humility of heart, we can stand up for the truth and not offend God or hurt others. The only way to thwart the temptation to commit an evil act is to possess the virtue of true humility. This doesn’t mean one must be self-deprecating and it has nothing to do with self-esteem. True humility is the ability to view yourself honestly in relation to both God and everyone else in your life. A person with true humility will obey God first above all else and they will do all things with love for God and the good of other souls.

“Change My Greedy Heart to One of Pure Contentment” – join us for our 34th meditation on the 35 virtues of St. Hildegard of Bingen.

“Humility of Heart Destroys the Greatest Evil, Human Pride” – Join us for our 16th meditation on the 35 virtues of St. Hildegard of Bingen.

“The Virtue of Modesty is a Matter of the Heart” – Join us for our third meditation on the 35 virtues of St. Hildegard of Bingen.

Jesus you humbled yourself. You returned to Jerusalem knowing you were giving yourself to be crucified. This, because you love me.

God, you will preserve me from my enemies so I entrust myself to you. My shield and my deliverer, teach me humility and self-abasement.

You are my refuge Lord Jesus Christ. I know you and where you are from. I trust you. Lord deliver me from trouble and rescue me from all distress.

Jesus be near to me. In your kindness hear me. Help me know the truth and be guided to obey your will. Give me the gifts of wisdom, humility, and obedience.

Lord you preserve me from the stain of sin. I promise to be faithful to you so that you will rescue me from the netherworld.

Today’s reflection is about loving God with all my heart, all my mind, and all my soul, and seeing him in every person, and loving them for his sake.

Lord, let me see what you see, and hear what you hear. Take away my pride and give me a humble contrite heart.