The Greatest In Heaven
There are a lot of saints in the firmament of the Church’s liturgical year. Some of them are famous throughout the world. Others, such as today’s saint Remigius, are well known only in certain countries. The degree of fame they hold in people’s collective consciousness, however, is not what makes one saint greater than another. Salvation is not accomplished through popular election. However, we might wonder sometimes if such and such a saint is greater than another. Apparently, such thoughts even concerned the apostles; they went so far as to ask our Lord. “At that time,” we are told in the 18th chapter of St. Matthew’s Gospel, “the disciples came unto Jesus, saying, Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
Before I give you our Lord’s answer, let me point out to you that today is the first day of October, month of the Holy Angels. And this Gospel, where the disciples try to figure out who holds the highest place in heaven, is the Gospel for the Mass both on St. Michael’s Day last Friday and on the Feast of the Guardian Angels tomorrow. So from this connection between the disciples’ question and the two feasts of the Angels, we might be tempted to jump the gun and answer the question by saying that the Greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven must be the angels. After all, they are pure spirits, superior in every way to us poor mortal men with our material and decaying bodies, our physical diseases and our spiritual temptations. So how could any mere mortal rise ever possibly rise in stature above that of the Angels?
It may come as a surprise then when we hear our Lord’s answer. Let’s hear how the Gospel continues… “And Jesus called a little child unto him and set him in the midst of them, and said, Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven. Whosoever therefore shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.”
Here is our answer then. Humility is the key to greatness. “He who exalteth himself shall be humbled, and he who humbleth himself shall be exalted.” Humility. What exactly is humility? Do we think we are humble? If we think we’re humble enough, then believe, we’re not! Anyone who is truly humble realizes that he can never be humble enough, and any pride we may take in our own humility is a contradiction that simply proves how full of pride we are. Best to just compare ourselves with God and the saints, so we can see how far short of perfection we fall.
What about the Angels? Are they capable of experiencing humility? The answer is a resounding yes. Their superior understanding of their own nature allows them to know exactly what their position is in the kingdom of heaven. Remember that single test of their free will that God gave them. It was a test of their humility and a third of the Angels failed. St. Michael the Archangel fought with Lucifer and his followers, those Angels who thought they were so exalted that they were as perfect as God himself. And St. Michael cried out to them with stern indignation, “Who is like unto God!” St. Michael knew his place, and so did all the good angels who remained loyal to their Creator. But the pride of Lucifer was his downfall. When he was told that a little Child would be born in a stable, one who would be Messiah and King, Lucifer rebelled. Far be it from him to humble himself as this little Child. Lucifer exalted himself, and was humbled forever.
So who is the greatest in heaven? Is it a little child? We sometimes refer to cute little children as “angels,” and indeed they exhibit many angelic characteristics—innocence, honesty, sinlessness. When a child dies, there is no Requiem Mass such as pertains to the rest of us sinners. The priest wears white vestments and says the Votive Mass of the Angels. But it is merely by analogy that we call a child an angel. No human being can ever be an angel, any more than a dog can become a horse.
What about the saints, then, who really did show the characteristics of a little child? Or perhaps a saint who gave the true reverence that is owed to the Christ Child. Such a child has her feastday on Tuesday, the day after the Guardian Angels. Her name was Theresa of Lisieux. She even took the religious name of Theresa of the Child Jesus, and yes, the Gospel on her feastday is this same Gospel, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”
But there is greater yet than even the humble St. Theresa. One whose lowliness God hath regarded, whose humility he hath blessed and exalted. Our Blessed Lady, inspired by the Holy Ghost, showed the greatest humility we could ever imagine when she cried out that “My soul doth magnify the Lord. For he that is mighty hath magnified me, and holy is his name. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble and meek.” This glorious and immaculate Virgin Mary was truly humble like a little child, and because of this was chosen for the exalted role of Mother of God. Even with this most noble of honors, she lost none of her humility, calmly acknowledging that God had “regarded the lowliness of his handmaidens, and behold, from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.” It is as though our blessed Lord had called to him this young woman and said “Whosoever shall humble himself as this little child, the same is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.” Today, the Angels, with all their angelic humility, fall at the feet of this great woman, acknowledging her as their Queen, the Queen of Angels and Queen of Heaven and Earth.
For us, then, it remains to emulate the humility of the Angels and of their great Queen. Like them, let us walk in God’s presence, forever bending our will in cheerful submission to the Divine will and obeying his commandments. Let us do so without any sense of compulsion, but freely and happily accepting any sacrifice we may be called upon to make. Let our service to God be one of total love and surrender, humbling ourselves for his sake, not that we might thereby deserve to be exalted, but rather so that God may be glorified in all we do. Do this and we will have learned our lesson from our Lord and Master, knowing and revering those who are truly greatest in heaven.