Humility is the beginning of the spiritual life and the visible sign of the work of Grace in the human soul. It does not arise from mere willpower, nor from a human realisation of one’s own unworthiness, but is the fruit of a living encounter with God. The closer a person draws to the divine light, the more clearly they come to know both the greatness of God and the measure of their own being. This knowledge brings not turmoil but peace; it gives rise not to despair but to a longing for God; it does not diminish the person, but enables them to receive the riches of Grace.
The entire economy of salvation shows that pride is the beginning of alienation from God, whilst humility is the beginning of a return to Him. Man, desiring to find life within himself, has lost communion with the Source of life. But the Son of God, by assuming sinless human nature, showed that true exaltation is attained through obedience and love. In His humility, one does not see a lack of divine glory, but rather the radiance of love that gives itself without measure. Thus, the humility of Christ the Saviour has become the path through which man has been raised to communion with God.
For this reason, the spiritual life cannot be separated from this virtue. Divine grace does not work in the soul as an external power, but renews it from within, enlightening the mind, purifying the heart and strengthening the will towards the good. However, this work is not imposed upon man, but calls for a response from his free will. Humility is precisely this openness of the heart, through which man ceases to rely on his own strength and becomes receptive to the divine work. Where pride persists, grace remains unfruitful; where humility is found, man progresses from strength to strength on the path of becoming like God. In this regard, Saint Nicodemos of the Holy Mountain says: ‘Consider that however many good deeds you do and however many gifts you receive, all the more are they due to God, and the more you are indebted to Him. From this reflection, not only will you not take pride in your virtues and qualities, but you will descend into the depths of humility, for you have nothing worthy with which to fully repay God’s gifts”1.
The life of the Church must also be understood in this light. Ecclesial communion is not the fruit of mere human understanding, but the participation of all in the same life of Christ through the Holy Spirit. Those who receive Grace do not withdraw into themselves, but open themselves to God and to their brothers and sisters. Therefore, humility is not merely the virtue of those who practise self-denial in secret, but also the foundation of peace, love and ecclesial unity. As a person is cleansed of selfish self-love, they become able to see in their neighbour a brother or sister called to the same glory of the Kingdom.
The culture of success, geared towards performance and prestige, associates humility with weakness, a lack of initiative or a diminishing of one’s own worth.
Often, however, in contemporary society—dominated by the assertion of individualism, competition and a constant desire for self-assertion—humility seems, at first glance, to be an anachronistic virtue. The culture of success, geared towards performance and prestige, associates humility with weakness, a lack of initiative or a belittling of one’s own worth. This perception is nothing new, for ‘even the pagans did not recognise it; indeed, they regarded it as a weakness, as cowardice’2.
In Orthodox spirituality, humility is regarded as the foundation of all virtues, as it makes it possible to attain communion with God.
In Orthodox spirituality, humility is regarded as the foundation of all virtues, for it makes it possible to attain communion with God. Christ the Saviour, the Word from all eternity, true God and incomprehensible in His divinity, out of His love for mankind, willingly took on our nature and appeared in the form of a servant, making it known, through His entire life, that humility is the path which leads man to share in the divine life and to attain holiness. Thus, He Who is above all glory did not diminish His divinity, but revealed, in His humble descent, the boundlessness of divine love and the true path to salvation. Thus, ‘He is its source, as the One who descended to our level to enter into communion with us. Humility is gentleness towards God and towards every person. Christ possesses humility as the Son of God towards the Father, but He also possesses it as a human being towards God the Father and towards every human being. That is why He humbled Himself through the Incarnation and through death; that is why He is given to us as a sacrifice until the end of the world. ‘From Him we learn humility and draw the strength for it,’ teaches the Venerable Nichita Stithatul 3.
The mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God reveals that humility is inherent in the very way in which God relates to His creation. The incomprehensible God does not remain confined within an inaccessible transcendence, but descends to humankind, freely assuming human nature and sharing, to the very end, the condition of our existence—save for sin. The Son of God does not ‘possess’ humility as a moral quality, but demonstrates it through His very assumption of the condition of a servant, as the Holy Apostle Paul assures us: ‘He emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant’ (Philippians 2:7). In this sense, the kenosis of the Son of God must not be understood as a renunciation of divinity, but as a revelation of the authentic image of divine glory. The glory of God does not consist in the assertion of His power over creation, but in the power to give Himself. God is truly great precisely because His love does not seek its own affirmation, but the existence and salvation of the other. In the Lord Christ we see that omnipotence is not opposed to humility, but is expressed through it. The Cross thus becomes the place where God’s greatness is revealed in the most unexpected form: love that sacrifices itself for the life of the world. Thus, the true value of humility has been revealed to us through supernatural revelation and through the words of the Son of God: ‘Learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart’ (Matthew 11:29), but He also points out that ‘everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and everyone who humbles himself will be exalted’ (Luke 14:11).
The mystery of the Incarnation of the Son of God reveals that humility is inherent in the very way in which God relates to His creation.
Therefore, human humility is not merely an outward imitation of a moral example, but a participation in the very life of Christ. Man is called not only to admire God’s humility, but to embrace it as a way of life. Through the grace of the Holy Spirit, the life of Christ becomes the life of the believer, and His inner disposition becomes the principle of man’s transformation. Humility no longer appears as an effort to diminish one’s own person, but as a liberation from pride and false autonomy, as Saint Symeon Metaphrastes explains: ‘Consider how the Son of God, your King and your God, humbled Himself, taking the form of a servant, and how He suffered. And if God did this, how can you be proud and consider yourself to be something great, you who are a human being made of blood and flesh, who are dust and ashes, and who have not partaken of anything good, but are nothing but impurity? If you are wise—and even more so, by virtue of what you have received from God—say: ‘What I have is not mine, but I have received it from Another, and glory be to Him, for what has been given to me is not taken away from me. Thus, regard all that is good as coming from God, and all that is evil as stemming from your own weakness”4.
In the light of kenosis, man discovers the truth about himself, for God’s humility represents a constant call to a life lived in humility. Man becomes humble to the extent that he is united with Christ, for he receives Christ’s way of being, since God’s descent made man’s exaltation possible through the Sacrifice on the Cross. Thus, the humility of Christ the Saviour is revealed in His perfect obedience to the Father’s will.
The Saviour’s humility thus reveals the true measure of perfection. To be humble does not mean to lose anything of the fullness of existence, but to make room for the love that gives life to the other. God humbles Himself without diminishing Himself, for perfect love knows no contradiction between greatness and humility. On the contrary, because love is complete, it is capable of total self-giving. In the light of the Resurrection, the humility of the Cross has been revealed as the beginning of man’s deification and the renewal of the cosmos. He who descended into the depths of death leads the whole of creation towards the fulfilment of its ultimate purpose: union with God.
To humble oneself does not mean to lose anything of the fullness of existence, but to make room for the love that gives life to the other. God humbles Himself without diminishing Himself, for perfect love knows no contradiction between greatness and humility.
Therefore, if God humbled Himself without ceasing to be God, humility cannot be regarded as a sign of weakness. In Christ the Saviour, humility became the perfect form of love, and love became the true measure of greatness. All the more so, man—who receives his existence as a gift and is called to be in the image of God—can only advance along the path of deification by embracing this humility. It is not merely one of the virtues, but the foundation of the entire spiritual life, for it places him in the truth of his relationship with God and enables him to attain ‘spiritual height’5, ‘but humility is not seen by the one who possesses it, but by others’6. In this regard, there is an account in the Paterikon: ‘The fathers of the monastery were sitting beside Abba Sisoe as he was about to pass away. And his face shone like the sun, and he said to them: “Behold, Abba Anthony has come!” And after a short while he said: ‘Behold, the company of the prophets has come!’ And once more his face was filled with an even greater radiance, and he said: ‘Behold, the company of the apostles has come.’ And his face shone twice as brightly, and it was clear that he was speaking to someone. The monks asked him: ‘Father, to whom are you speaking?’ And he said: ‘Behold, the angels have come to take me, and I pray that I may be allowed to repent a little!’ And the monks said to him: ‘Father, you have no need to repent!’ And the elder said to them: ‘Truly, I do not know of any beginning to my own self!’ Then they all realised that he was perfect”7. We thus discover the ‘spiritual paradox’: the one who advances in spiritual matters becomes more humble, and the one who is truly humble advances in communion with God. This is how authentic humility is born. It is not the result of comparing oneself with others, but the fruit of a profound encounter with God. The closer a person draws to the light, the more clearly they see the shadows within themselves—not in the sense of despair, but of a spiritual awakening. Humility thus becomes the illumination of the mind: not darkness, but true vision. The more a person loves what is good, the more clearly they see how much they still have to love. Thus, Peter Damascene says, humbling himself: ‘What shall I say of myself, when Abraham says of himself that he is dust and ashes (Genesis 18:27), Solomon, a little child who knows neither right nor left (3 Kings 3:7), and the Apostle Paul: ‘I am the foremost of sinners’ (1 Timothy 1:15). So what shall I do? Where shall I hide from my many misdeeds?’8
The closer a person draws to the light, the more clearly they see the shadows within themselves—not in the sense of despair, but of a spiritual awakening. Humility, in this sense, becomes the illumination of the mind.
Therefore, the more the soul advances in the fulfilment of the commandments, the more it humbles itself, not out of sorrow, but out of a deep awareness of the divine infinity and of its natural dependence on divine Grace. And this humility becomes the sure sign that the soul has not stopped on its path, but is in its natural movement towards God, Who is the endless end of all who love Him.
This communion is achieved solely through the renunciation of movements contrary to nature, the deepest of which is undue self-love. From this springs pride, which severs the unity of nature with its divine reason and causes man to shut himself off within the limitations of his own judgement.
Humility, on the other hand, is the return of nature to its natural inclination towards God. It is not merely a state of mind, but a condition of one’s entire existence, which recognises that all that is good comes from God and that nothing that is truly good can be possessed as one’s own, but only shared through Grace. Thus, the humble person does not regard himself as the source of virtues, but as their recipient, and, through this, remains open to the divine work. ‘The humble person, who asks of God things below his worth, will undoubtedly receive those above himself. This is borne out by the tax collector, who asked for forgiveness but received justification (Luke 18:14), and the thief who asked only to be remembered in the Kingdom, and inherited the whole of Paradise (Luke 23:43)’9.
The humble person does not dare to ask God for those things which might seem appropriate to a worthiness they attribute to themselves, for they have understood that worthiness itself does not spring from themselves, but from God’s gift. His prayer is not based on the expectation of having attained a high standard, but on the awareness that every divine gift surpasses all human expectation and understanding.
In this state, the soul asks for humble things, that is, those suited to its weakness: forgiveness, patience, strength in repentance, deliverance from passions, and the turning of the mind from distraction to inner stillness. And it is precisely this lowering of one’s request, this placing of it within the bounds of one’s presumed worthiness, that becomes the beginning of an ascent which man could not have conceived beforehand. ‘Descend into the depths of humility, where you will find the precious pearl of your salvation,’ says Saint Theognostus10, for then ‘when a person descends into humility, they are exalted’11, since God, Who looks not only at the words of prayer but at the depths of the heart, sees in this humility the turning of one’s whole being towards Him. And where a person no longer asks to be counted amongst the great in virtue, but knowingly places themselves amongst those in need of mercy, there Grace works, for it no longer encounters the subtle resistance of pride. Thus, a mysterious order of life in God is revealed: man’s voluntary humbling becomes the occasion for his exaltation by God. What man does not dare to ask for as a measure of his worth, God bestows as mercy; and what man considers to be beyond his measure becomes precisely the measure to which he is raised by Grace. For this reason, Saint Dumitru Stăniloae regarded humility as ‘the channel through which the gifts of divine life flow from God’, because ‘the thirsty depths of humility draw many gifts into themselves, regarding them as superior to those which man thinks he possesses in himself’12. Thus, ‘it is in humility that the greatest blessings are received, for no wall of pride stands in their way. God “gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). In humility lies freedom from oneself; it is complete openness to God, Who reveals what is most proper to Him not in crushing power, but in goodness free from any passion that narrows the heart”13. At the same time, ‘true freedom lies in humility, for it is nourished by love of God and for God. Between the humble person and God there is an intimate relationship of love in freedom”14. It is not a nullification of the will, but a purification of it from the tendency to assert itself against God or independently of Him. Where a person regards themselves as the source of their own life, an apparent freedom arises, but one which is, in reality, fragile and dependent on the constant affirmation of the self. This freedom easily turns into anxiety, for it lacks a foundation. In contrast, the freedom founded on humility is stable, for it is rooted in God, Who is eternal. A relationship of profound intimacy is born between the humble person and God, for humility removes everything that might hinder communion: pretension, self-sufficiency, and an absolutist view of oneself. The humble person no longer stands before God as one who claims spiritual rights, but as one who lives by love and responds to love with love. God never forces a person’s freedom, but draws it to Himself through love, and ‘to remain in humility is to remain in harmony with God’s will’15.
‘(…) In humility lies freedom from the self; it is complete openness to God, Who reveals what is most proper to Him not in crushing power, but in goodness free from any passion that narrows the spirit’.
As a person becomes more humble, they discover that the divine will is not opposed to their fulfilment, but is itself the very path through which their being is fulfilled.
In this state, God’s will no longer appears as a foreign reality, but as the very life of the soul. As man humbles himself, he discovers that the divine will is not opposed to his fulfilment, but is the very path through which his being is fulfilled. For God wills man’s life, enlightenment and deification, and this will is not imposed from without, but is offered as a work of love.
Humility is not merely the condition of obedience, but the very form in which obedience becomes love. He who humbles himself does not submit to a command, but responds to a love that calls him to life. ‘When the greatness and great mercy of God are experienced, it is impossible for the soul not to feel humility. Nor can humility arise within it except from the experience of God’s greatness and great goodness. Therefore, one’s own humility and God’s greatness are experienced together. The closer God is felt, the greater the humility. In the immeasurable depths of humility, God is felt to be closer than one’s own breath. He Himself is felt to be breathing through man in breezes of light and life”16.
Humility is not the opposite of perfection, but accompanies perfection as an understanding that perfection is not possessed, but shared. Grace and human freedom work together: Grace enlightens and draws, whilst the will responds through purification and openness.
In this sense, progress in the spiritual life does not diminish humility, but deepens it. For as the soul is purified of passions and partakes more fully of the divine light, it understands more clearly the boundlessness of God’s goodness and, through this, its own inability to fully comprehend this goodness. Thus, it is shown that humility is not opposed to perfection, but accompanies perfection as an understanding that perfection is not possessed, but shared. For God is perfect in Himself, whilst man shares in perfection through Grace, without possessing it as his own. Therefore, the one who progresses does not consider himself to have arrived, but remains in a ceaseless movement towards the better, a movement which is the very form of the spiritual life.
In this movement, Grace and human freedom work together: Grace enlightens and draws, whilst the will responds through purification and openness. Humility is precisely this steadfast openness of the will to the divine work, through which man attributes nothing of what he receives to himself, but returns it in gratitude to its Source, for ‘true humility is a gift from God; it is God’s opening up to the one who prays; it is a living relationship with Him. Only the open presence of God’s infinity truly overwhelms the soul and causes it to humble itself truly, as it can never fully do so through its own efforts alone’17.
Only the knowledge of God can truly overwhelm the soul, so that it may be authentically humbled. “The knowledge of divine visions, coming suddenly upon the ascetic, who is not expecting it, for his humility’18, shows that the soul which no longer dares to believe it can comprehend the divine through itself becomes precisely the place where God can work to the full.
For man does not attain complete humility by gauging his own weaknesses, but through the vision of God, in whose presence every human measure loses its validity. In this vision, the soul is placed in its natural order: that of a creature called to communion with God.
Humility is thus revealed both as a gift and as a relationship: as a gift, because it is the work of Grace that comes from God; and as a relationship, because it is kept alive through man’s continual encounter with God in prayer. And where this encounter becomes a constant, humility is no longer merely one virtue amongst others, but the very atmosphere of life in God, in which a person lives not from themselves, but from the light and love of the One who calls them to Himself.
- 1
Saint Nicodemos of Mount Athos, The Unseen War, Arta Grafică Publishers, 1991, p. 88.
- 2
Metropolitan Dr Nicolae Mladin, Prof. Deacon Dr Orest Bucevschi, Prof. Dr Constantin Pavel, Prof. Deacon Dr Ioan Zăgrean, Orthodox Moral Theology, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1980, Vol. II, p. 79.
- 3
The Venerable Nichita Stithatul, ‘The Spiritual Vision of Heaven’, in Philokalia, vol. VI, p. 369, note 41.
- 4
Saint Symeon Metaphrastes, ‘A Paraphrase in 150 Chapters on the 50 Sayings of Saint Macarius the Egyptian’, Philokalia, vol. V, p. 354.
- 5
Saint Gregory Palamas, ‘Chapters on Commandments and Dogmas, on Threats and Promises, on the Thoughts that Follow Them, and on Passions and Virtues’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of writings by the Holy Fathers showing how man may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. VIII, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1979, p. 267, note 555a.
- 6
Saint Symeon the New Theologian, ‘Catecheses’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of writings by the Holy Fathers showing how man may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. XI, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1981, p. 368, note 521b.
- 7
The Paterikon, published by the Romanian Orthodox Archdiocese of Alba Iulia, Alba Iulia, 1999, p. 225.
- 8
Saint Maximus the Confessor, ‘Exposition on the Lord’s Prayer’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of the writings of the Holy Fathers showing how a person may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. V, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1976, pp. 75–76.
- 9
Saint Isaac the Syrian, ‘Words on Asceticism’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of writings by the Holy Fathers showing how a person may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. IX, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1980, p. 313.
- 10
Saint Thalassius the Libyan, ‘On Love, Self-Control and Moderate Living’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of writings by the Holy Fathers showing how man may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. IV, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1981, p. 272.
- 11
Saint Symeon the New Theologian, ‘Catecheses’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of the writings of the Holy Fathers showing how man may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. XI, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1981, p. 335.
- 12
Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Spirituality and Communion in the Orthodox Liturgy, published by the Metropolis of Oltenia, Craiova, 1986, p. 216; Saint Symeon the New Theologian, ‘Catecheses’, in The Philokalia, or a collection of the writings of the Holy Fathers showing how man may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. XI, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1981, p. 443, note 631.
- 13
Saint Symeon the New Theologian, op. cit., p. 344, note 486.
- 14
Ibid., p. 283, note 289b.
- 15
Ibid., p. 512, note 737.
- 16
Saint Gregory Palamas, ‘Chapters on Commandments and Dogmas, on Threats and Promises, on the Thoughts that Follow Them, and on Passions and Virtues’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of writings by the Holy Fathers showing how man may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. VIII, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1979, p. 269, note 556.
- 17
Saint Gregory of Sinai, ‘Very Useful Chapters in Acrostic Form’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of the writings of the Holy Fathers showing how a person may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. VII, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1977, p. 138, note 65.
- 18
Saint Maximus the Confessor, ‘Chapters on Love’, in the Philokalia, or a collection of writings by the Holy Fathers showing how man may be purified, enlightened and perfected, vol. II, translation, introduction and notes by Saint Dumitru Stăniloae, Published by the Biblical and Missionary Institute of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Bucharest, 1981, p. 155.