As I’m sure most of you are probably aware, thanks to a petition at change.org which has received over 1.2 million signatures (and growing) from Spongebob Squarepants fans, it is very likely that Maroon 5 will in some way incorporate David Glen Eisley’s song Sweet Victory into their halftime performance at this year’s Super Bowl. It’s probably the only reason I’ll be watching, and if it happens, it will certainly be my favorite thing Adam Levine has ever done. Before that, the honors went to his participation in this little ditty from the movie Popstar…
Is it just me, or is there perhaps a tiny hint of false humility in those lyrics? In their book 30 Days with Teresa of Avila, Anthony Lilles and Dan Burke note…
“Just as the hiding of faults is rooted in pride and vanity, so exaggerating our faults can also be rooted in pride and vanity.
This is often called ‘false humility’ or a kind of humility expressed to gain some positive reaction from another rather than a disinterested and sincere expression of the true state of our soul.
Though harder to detect than the kind of pride and vanity that hides weaknesses, this kind of pride can be more dangerous because it masks itself in self-deprecation and a kind of openness to criticism. Often those that harbor this defect are self-deceived into believing that they actually are open to criticism or are self-critical. This deception can be very dangerous as it blinds the pilgrim to their deeply rooted need to be seen as humble when humility is actually in short supply, though desperately needed.”
So, how do you know if you succumbed to the temptation of false humility. Well, one test is pretty simple; if you’re exaggerating your imperfections in order to receive some kind of affirmation, then you just might be doing it wrong. So, if someone tells you your apple crumble is by far the most crumble-est, don’t act like it tastes bad out of false humbleness. Just graciously accept the compliment and move on. After all, why waste time with false humility when life is sure to serve you the real thing somewhere down the road.
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