Today’s readings invite us to reflect on how we measure people.  We can measure height objectively but how we see things can also imply value judgements.  The words in St Luke’s Gospel refer literally to the height of the sun in the sky – at its peak or near the ground.  Our word humble comes from the Latin word for ‘soil’. ‘Proud’ comes from an Anglo-Saxon root and can simply mean ‘standing out’ – a bump in a smooth surface.  The Latin ‘superbia’ comes from ‘super’ meaning ‘over’.  These words can also imply physical or moral dominance.  ‘Walking tall’ is seen as something positive – being humiliated is very definitely negative!  We are all equally God’s children yet we have different strengths and weaknesses.  Pride is essentially about judging ourselves to be in the top position or to deserve that recognition from others.  Humility as a virtue is about accepting the judgement of others rather than seeking recognition and status.  In the end the recognition that matters most is not that of our peers but of Almighty God.  In his parable Jesus offers two motives.  The first is a very human one, to avoid being humiliated through setting too high a value on ourselves.  The second is more spiritual.  Even if we do not receive in this life the recognition we truly deserve we shall receive it in the eternal life.