The Sin of Pride, a reflection on Sirach 10:12-18

Since not everyone has a Bible that includes the Apocrypha, here is today's lectionary passage:

The beginning of human pride is to forsake the Lord;
the heart has withdrawn from its Maker.
For the beginning of pride is sin,
and the one who clings to it pours out abominations.
Therefore the Lord brings upon them unheard-of calamities,
and destroys them completely.
The Lord overthrows the thrones of rulers,
and enthrones the lowly in their place.
The Lord plucks up the roots of the nations,
and plants the humble in their place.
The Lord lays waste the lands of the nations,
and destroys them to the foundations of the earth.
He removes some of them and destroys them,
and erases the memory of them from the earth.
Pride was not created for human beings,
or violent anger for those born of women.

About the time we begin to think that we deserve some praise or reward because of our many valuable accomplishments, we are at the point of losing sight of who really does the accomplishments. The pride we have in ourselves will crowd out our recognition of what the Lord has done for us. And, we will be faced with the consequences of our neglect and forgetfulness.

To help with your own recognition of the Lord's place and yours, please look at Prayers for a Privileged People written by Walter Brueggemann.

The publisher Abingdon Press describes this collection of prayers:

In Prayers for a Privileged People, this much-published author sculpts—as carefully as if with chisel—prayers on behalf of those who are people of privilege and entitlement—the haves—at an urgent moment in our society. The privileged face, on the one hand, the seduction of denial or, on the other, the temptation of despair. These prayers of wisdom and prophetic power remind us that when things go wrong , when we are afraid , and when we feel prodded by those who lack voice, there is a conversation we can have—a conversation situated amid the promises and commands of God.