Ch. LI. The virtue of meekness

Beati mites, quoniam ipsi possidebunt terram (Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land).—MATT. v. 4.

HERE is one of the most attractive virtues of Christianity—the virtue of meekness, gentleness. It consists in an unalterable tranquillity of heart mingled with goodness and love—a tranquillity which remains unmoved in the midst of the most irritating contradictions. When it abides in the heart it diffuses over the countenance a perpetual serenity which no cloud of sadness or anger can darken. Blessed are the meek, says the Saviour, for they shall possess the land.

Then let us love meekness; let us endeavor to practise it more and more. To this end let us consider the excellence of this virtue and the manner in which we should practise it.

I. Excellence of meekness. This virtue was so dear to Jesus Christ that it caused Him to receive from the prophets the name of Lamb. Send forth, O Lord, said Isaias, the lamb, the ruler of the earth (Isaias xvi. 1). He shall be led as a sheep to the slaughter, and shall be dumb as a lamb before his shearers (Isaias liii. 7). The principal figure which represented Him was the paschal lamb: Christ our pasch is sacrificed (1 Cor. v. 7). Behold the Lamb of God, said St. John the Baptist, seeing Jesus coming to him, behold Him who taketh away the sins of the world (John i. 29).

He desires that His disciples resemble Him, that they be lambs like their Master: Behold, I send you as lambs among wolves (Luke x. 3). And confiding to St. Peter the government of His church, He says: Feed my lambs; feed my sheep.

Meekness is a virtue which He most earnestly recommends to us; Learn of me, because I am meek and humble of heart (Matt. xi. 29). You have heard that it hath been said: An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth. But I say to you not to resist evil; but if one strike thee on thy right cheek, turn to him also the other (Matt. v. 38, 39).

Meekness produces the most precious fruits. Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land. They shall possess the land; they shall be masters of all the land, like the most powerful kings, for they shall win all hearts. Such was Moses, the meekest of the men of his day: He was loved of God and men, says the Holy Spirit (Ecclus. xlv. 1). What power did not the meekness of the admirable St. Francis of Sales exercise over souls! Meekness, said this great doctor, is a heavenly honey which attracts souls. . . . We may also say that it is a holy oil which penetrates and softens the hardest hearts; or a rampart of wool which blunts the force of the most violent projectiles. A mild answer breaketh wrath, says the wise man, but a harsh word stirreth up fury (Prov. xv. 1).

Meekness accomplishes all things, renders all things easy, practises all virtues with facility, according to the words of St. Leo: There is nothing difficult to the humble, nothing hard and vexatious to meek and tractable minds.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall possess the land. But how are we to acquire meekness? How are we to practise this beautiful virtue?

II. Practice. 1st. We must endeavor to practise it in the daily occasions which we encounter.

Thus, to avoid all hardness, all impatience with others—with friends and enemies, with those who contradict or importune us, with our inferiors or superiors, with ourselves, our disposition, our own weaknesses. . . . To avoid all impatience or brusqueness in our labors, our infirmities, our sufferings. . . .

2d. To watch over ourselves, that moderation and meekness may constantly reign in our actions and our proceedings, in our words, in our very silence, and particularly in our hearts. The heart should be pure of all bitterness and breathe only kindness and meekness. This calm and friendly meekness of heart shines in the countenance and diffuses throughout the whole exterior a cordiality which charms and captivates souls.

To personal efforts must be added succor from on high. We must go to Jesus as the source of all virtues; we must draw sweetness from His divine Heart. Learn of me, He says, because I am meek and humble of heart. By joining meekness with humility He gives us to understand that if we are humble we shall have no difficulty in practising meekness.

Let us go, then, to His divine Heart, which overflows with the sweetest unction. Oh! how good and sweet, exclaims the wise man, is thy Spirit, O Lord, in all things (Wis. xii. 1).

Let us go to Him in His Passion, where, like the olive crushed in the press, He gives forth floods of the sweetest oil; let us go to Him in the Holy Eucharist, where He personally manifests all the marvels of meekness and promises at the same time that all who hunger and thirst for justice shall be filled.