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MAY 30
ENVY
“‘…Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses
and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?’ And they took
offense (ἐσκανδαλίζοντο) at him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Prophets are not
without honor, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in
their own house.’ And he could do no deed of power there, except that he
laid his hands on a few sick people and cured them.” (Mk 6: 3-5)
Many of the people in Nazareth reacted with envy when Jesus visited His
hometown with His disciples, when He was already famous for His much
talked-about miracles and wisdom. They were envious, and hence they
were blind to Christ.
Here’s the ugly truth about envy, a pain one feels because of a desire to
have the advantage(s) of another. We are most likely to feel it towards
one of our own; neighbors, friends, or even relatives. “Envy” derives
from the Latin “invidia,” meaning “non sight.” It is a blindness to “the
whole picture” of myself and others as we really are, in God’s sight.
He sees us with all our true potential, limitations, sacrifices, gifts, and
so on, which make up each person’s unique vocation and journey. But
envy makes me focus on some external aspect of another’s life, as well
as some perceived inadequacy in my own life, drawing a comparison in
an imagined competition. It distracts me from the true challenges and
opportunities given uniquely to me, by setting my sights on this delusion
of competition. Envy blocks out gratitude and joy for my own gifts and
those of others, and prevents me from growing and learning from them.
It can cripple both the envious and the object of envy, because envy is
“neutralized” by diminishing the object of envy. Thus Christ diminishes
Himself in Nazareth, to neutralize the envy of His countrymen.
Today let me embrace gratitude, being mindful of my own gifts and
challenges, as well as of the gifts and challenges of others. May the
Lord help and enlighten me to see as He sees, and protect me from the
delusions of envy.
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