This prayer is called the Litany of Humility, and was prayed almost daily by Rafael Cardinal Merry del Val (1865-1930), the secretary of state for Pope Saint Pius X. This prayer was recommended to me by one of our priests, to help me focus on what it means to be meek.
O Jesus, meek and humble of heart, hear me. From the desire of being esteemed,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being loved,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being extolled,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being honored,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being praised,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being preferred to others,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being consulted,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the desire of being approved,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being humiliated,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being despised,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of suffering rebukes,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being calumniated,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being forgotten,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being ridiculed,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being wronged,
deliver me, Jesus.
From the fear of being suspected,
deliver me, Jesus.
That others may be loved more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be esteemed more than I,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That in the opinion of the world, others may increase, and I may decrease,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be chosen and I set aside,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be praised and I unnoticed,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may be preferred to me in everything,
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
That others may become holier than I, provided that I may become as holy as I should.
Jesus, grant me the grace to desire it.
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The truth is that I have all of these desires that are listed in the litany. I especially like to be extolled, honored, and praised. My personality, almost at its core, craves to be approved. Furthermore, I have all the fears listed in the second part of the prayer. I hate failure. I hate being humiliated, rebuked, and wronged. I get bothered if someone gets praised while nobody mentions me. I want to be noticed and told I’m doing well.
All of these things show a desire for seeking praise and approval from men, rather than from God. They show how easy it is for our priorities to be in the wrong place. I know I just said this the other day, but if we can just get to a place where we know in our hearts that the only thing we need is God, and how much we actually do need Him, none of this other stuff matters.
