PRAYER MOMENT 

Tuesday 4 November 2014

HE EMPTIED HIMSELF

                     

Pause. Be still in God’s presence.

Reading: “His state was divine, yet he did not cling to his equality with God but emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave, and became as men are.” (Phil 2:5-11)

Reflection. Can we try for a moment to tease out what this early Christian hymn means? The phrase ‘he emptied himself’ is akin to the beatitude about the ‘poor in spirit.’ It is akin to the spirit of Francis of Assisi and Pope Francis. The former Francis was born into a family of wealth and power, status and influence. He literally emptied himself of these in a dramatic gesture before the bishop of Gubbio, stripping off his fine clothes and standing naked before his enraged father and the bishop. The early Christians understood the action of God in Jesus in emptying himself. But can we today? Life is all about searching for qualifications, work, money, promotion, getting on, security and the rest. Does it make any sense to speak of ‘emptying oneself? The answer must be ‘no’ if we try to reduce it to a few words of explanation. But it must be an emphatic ‘yes’ if we are serious about the attitude behind the words. ‘Blessed are the poor in spirit.’ These are the first words of Jesus in Matthew. He had us all in mind.     

Prayer. Lord, you emptied yourself in order to fill us with your life. Help us to live joyfully poor in spirit. Amen.  

David Harold-Barry SJ