Daily reflection _ in humble prayer

IN HUMBLE PRAYER
One man condemns himself by his pride and another is rescued because of his humility.  
Deacon John Ruscheinsky
In the Responsorial Psalm we acclaim, "The Lord hears the cry of the poor" (Ps 34:7a). He is close to those who are brokenhearted. The Lord redeems our lives, for we are His servants. Today's readings make us pause and wonder why Jesus accepted on person's prayer and rejected the other's prayer. Luke's Gospel gives us a hint when we hear that despising one's neighbor closes the door to our heavenly Father's heart.
Contempt is more than just distaste or malice. It springs from the assumption that one is qualified to sit in the seat of judgment and to ascertain who is good and just. Jesus Christ's story caused offense for those who regarded "tax collectors" as unworthy of God's grace and favor. How could Jesus think it was right to put down a "religious leader" and raise up a "public sinner?"
His parable speaks about the nature of prayer and our relationship with God. It does this by contrasting two very different attitudes towards prayer. First, the Pharisee takes pride in his religious practices and he exalts himself at the expense of others. Second, the tax collector, who represented those despised by religious people, humbled himself before God and asked for mercy. His prayer was heard by God because he had remorse for his wrong doing. He sought God with humility! In the words of the twentieth century monk, Thomas Merton, "Pride makes us artificial and humility makes us real."
May we strive each day to be who we really are, as Scripture tells us, the "salt of the earth" (Mt 5:13). The idea that a Pharisee and a tax collector go into the temple to pray turns out to be no joke at all. One man condemns himself by his pride and another is rescued because of his humility. May we hold close to the prayer that saves, "O God, be merciful to me, a sinner" (Lk 18:13).