In his celebrated novel, Things Fall Apart, Chinua Achebe tells a story of how a little bird became so overfed that it challenged its Chi (God) to a wrestling contest. Our faith encourages us to undertake virtuous acts which enhance the life of our neighbor and our standing in the presence of God. Nowhere does our faith encourage us to despise and denigrate the efforts of others on the basis of our presumed superiority. Contempt for others represents the opposite of the kind of humility that Christianity invites us to practice in daily life.

As Christians, we are all on a journey. At any one time in the course of this journey, we find ourselves are on different levels. No one is superior to the other; we are all on a journey. Whether we are failing or succeeding, what keeps us going is the grace of God, which is unmerited and always on offer. As the popular saying goes, “there for the grace of God go I!” Without exception, as human beings, Pharisees and Publicans, we all stand before God short of grace, in need of grace.

When we have been fed and nourished by God’s abundant grace, may we be preserved from the pride that leads us to despise everyone else.