In this episode of The Rule of St. Benedict for Daily Life, Kris McGregor reflects on the third degree of humility in Chapter 7 of the Holy Rule. St. Benedict brings humility into concrete daily life by placing it within relationships and legitimate authority. Humility is revealed not only in interior intention but in how the heart responds when another’s direction stands between personal preference and faithful action.

This obedience is offered for the love of God and lived within the order of community and vocation. When what is asked belongs to truth and charity, the heart receives it as part of God’s providence. Benedict points directly to Christ, who entrusted Himself to the Father in obedience even unto death. Through ordinary acts of faithful response, this degree of humility trains the heart in freedom, where trust begins to replace resistance and fidelity grows steadily.

Benedict of Nursia, The Rule of Saint Benedict, Chapter 7 § 34-35 (RB 1980)

“The third degree of humility is that a person submit himself in obedience to a superior,
for the love of God,
imitating the Lord, of whom the Apostle says:
‘He became obedient unto death.’”

“Tertius humilitatis gradus est, ut subditus oboedientiam pro Dei amore maiori praebeat, imitans Dominum, de quo Apostolus dicit: Factus oboediens usque ad mortem.”

“And being found in human form he humbled himself and became obedient unto death, even death on a cross.”

1. How do I respond internally when I receive direction that interrupts my preference?

2. Do I view obedience within legitimate authority as a burden or as part of God’s providence?

3. Where in my vocation or daily responsibilities am I invited to practice relational humility?

4. How does Christ’s obedience to the Father illuminate this degree of humility?

5. What might change if I carried out a directive today simply and faithfully, without modifying it?

Copyright © 2026 Kris McGregor. All rights reserved. No portion of this content may be reproduced, distributed, published, or transmitted in any form, including audio, print or digital media, without prior written permission from Discerning Hearts®.

Steps to Take as You Follow Christ

Ask—When have I judged someone wrongly?

Seek—Do you need to be reconciled to someone in your life? It might be someone in your family, a former friend, an enemy, or even God. Go to confession; through the grace of absolution, seek to trust in God more and more.

Knock—Meditate on 2 Corinthians 5:16–18.

From now onward, therefore, we do not judge anyone by the standards of the flesh. Even if we did once know Christ in the flesh, that is not how we know him now. And for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation; the old creation has gone, and now the new one is here. It is all God’s work. It was God who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the work of handing on this reconciliation.

What does it mean to be a new creation?

If you are a new creation, how are you different from those in the world who are not “in Christ”?

How do you view others?

Transform Your Life—See the temptation to judge others or even yourself as a personal invitation to take up your cross and to trust in Christ, the friend of sinners. Pray that God will bless both you and those you might judge. Be quick to show the mercy that God shows to you to others.

Michael Dubruiel’s book The Power of the Cross: Applying the Passion of Christ to Your Life is currently available in Kindle format.

You can find the book here:
https://amzn.to/4rTMBK9

To explore more of Amy Welborn’s books and writing, visit:
https://amywelborn.wordpress.com/books-by-amy-welborn/

Check out more at the Discerning Hearts’ Michael Dubruiel page

Excerpt from THE JERUSALEM BIBLE, copyright (c) 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd. and Doubleday, a division of Penguin Random House, Inc. Reprinted by Permission.

In this episode of The Rule of St. Benedict for Daily Life, Kris McGregor reflects on the second degree of humility in Chapter 7 of the Holy Rule. St. Benedict moves from awareness of God’s presence to the ordering of the human will. Humility becomes concrete when personal preference is placed within obedience to God.

Self-will often appears reasonable and justified, yet it can quietly shape life around personal control and insistence. Benedictine formation gently loosens that grip. Looking to Christ, who came not to do His own will but the will of the Father, the heart learns to surrender preference and rest in trust. Over time, this practice forms a deeper freedom as the will becomes aligned with God rather than governed by personal inclination.

Benedict of Nursia, The Rule of Saint Benedict, Chapter 7 § 31 (RB 1980)

“The second degree of humility is that a person loves not his own will
nor takes pleasure in satisfying his desires,
but imitates the Lord, of whom the Scripture says:
‘I came not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me.’”

“Secundus humilitatis gradus est, si propriam non amans voluntatem, nec delectetur implere desideria sua, sed imitatur Dominum, dicentem: Non veni facere voluntatem meam, sed eius qui me misit.”

“For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me.”

1. Where do I most strongly experience the pull of personal preference?
2. How do I react when my plans or desires are interrupted?
3. In what ways does Christ’s obedience to the Father challenge my understanding of freedom?
4. Can I recognize the difference between a healthy desire and self-will that insists on control?
5. What small opportunity today might allow me to yield my preference peacefully?

Copyright © 2026 Kris McGregor. All rights reserved. No portion of this content may be reproduced, distributed, published, or transmitted in any form, including audio, print or digital media, without prior written permission from Discerning Hearts®.

In this episode of The Great Works in Western Literature, Kris McGregor and Joseph Pearce explore the life, struggles, and literary genius of Oscar Wilde through his novel The Picture of Dorian Gray. Pearce presents Wilde as a man defined by paradox. Brilliant, witty, and celebrated in Victorian society, Wilde was also deeply conflicted, drawn both to worldly pleasure and to the truth he encountered in Christianity. This inner struggle forms the heart of The Picture of Dorian Gray, a novel that tells the story of a young man who trades his soul for eternal youth, only to discover that a life devoted to vanity and pleasure ultimately destroys both himself and those around him.

The discussion reveals how Wilde’s novel is far more than a gothic story about youth and beauty. It is a moral and spiritual meditation on conscience, temptation, and conversion. The portrait that ages while Dorian remains outwardly beautiful becomes a powerful symbol of the human soul, revealing the consequences of sin hidden beneath appearances. Pearce also reflects on how the novel speaks to modern culture, where celebrity, pleasure, and the pursuit of youth often replace deeper truths about virtue, sacrifice, and lasting joy. Wilde’s life itself mirrors this tension, ending with his reception into the Catholic Church, a final act that fulfilled a lifelong spiritual longing.

1. In The Picture of Dorian Gray, the portrait reveals the corruption hidden within the soul. What does this image teach us about the difference between outward appearance and the true condition of the heart?

2. Dorian Gray pursues pleasure, youth, and admiration at any cost. What dangers arise when a person seeks happiness only through pleasure or reputation rather than through virtue?

3. The story shows how small compromises gradually lead Dorian further away from goodness. In your own life, how can seemingly small choices shape the direction of the heart over time?

4. Joseph Pearce notes that literature allows us to learn from the lives of others. How can reading stories like The Picture of Dorian Gray help us recognize temptation and choose a better path?

5. Wilde’s own life was marked by both weakness and a longing for truth that eventually led him to the Catholic Church. What does this remind us about God’s mercy and the possibility of conversion even after great failure?

6. Modern culture often glorifies youth, celebrity, and self-indulgence. How does the warning found in The Picture of Dorian Gray challenge us to pursue a deeper and more lasting joy rooted in truth and virtue?

A native of England, Joseph Pearce is the internationally acclaimed author of many books, which include bestsellers such as The Quest for Shakespeare, Tolkien: Man and Myth, The Unmasking of Oscar Wilde, C. S. Lewis and The Catholic Church, Literary Converts, Wisdom and Innocence: A Life of G.K. Chesterton, Solzhenitsyn: A Soul in Exile and Old Thunder: A Life of Hilaire Belloc. His books have been published and translated into Spanish, Portuguese, French, Dutch, Italian, Korean, Mandarin, Croatian and Polish.

He has hosted two 13-part television series about Shakespeare on EWTN, and has also written and presented documentaries on EWTN on the Catholicism of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit. His verse drama, Death Comes for the War Poets, was performed off-Broadway to critical acclaim. He has participated and lectured at a wide variety of international and literary events at major colleges and universities in the U.S., Canada, Britain, Europe, Africa and South America.

He is Visiting Professor of Literature at Ave Maria University and Visiting Chair of Catholic Studies at Thomas More College of Liberal Arts (Merrimack, New Hampshire). He is editor of the St. Austin Review, series editor of the Ignatius Critical Editions, senior instructor with Homeschool Connections, and senior contributor at the Imaginative Conservative and Crisis Magazine. His personal website is www.jpearce.co.

The Stations of the Cross – one of the most powerful devotionals alive in the heart of the Church. Reflecting and deeply meditating on the Passion of the Christ, Deacon Keating guides us through the 6th station (Veronica wipes the face of Jesus), the 7th station (Jesus falls a 2nd time), and the 8th station (Jesus encounters the women of Jerusalem) along the Way of the Cross.

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., is a professor of Spiritual Theology and serves as a spiritual director at Kenrick Glennon Seminary in St. Louis, MO.

Check out Deacon Keating’s “Discerning Heart” page

Scripture Reading (Jerusalem Bible):

Micah 7:18-19
“Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of your possession? He does not retain his anger forever because he delights in showing steadfast love. He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities underfoot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.”

Today’s scripture draws us into the heart of God’s steadfast love and mercy. “He does not retain His anger forever because He delights in showing steadfast love.” These words from the prophet Micah remind us of the boundless mercy of God, who longs not to condemn but to forgive, to heal, and to restore.

God’s forgiveness is not something we earn; it is a gift freely given. Yet, this gift calls for a response from us—a willingness to turn back to Him with contrite hearts. Lent is a time to embrace this call to repentance and to trust in God’s promise to “cast all our sins into the depths of the sea.” No matter how far we may feel from Him, His mercy is always greater.

The Desert Fathers knew that the path to forgiveness often began with humility and the courage to face one’s own weaknesses. Abba Moses the Black said:

“The one who knows his sins is greater than the one who raises the dead.” (Apophthegmata Patrum, Alphabetical Collection, Moses 11)

Similarly, St. Faustina Kowalska, the Apostle of Divine Mercy, reminds us:

“The greater the sinner, the greater the right they have to My mercy.” (Diary of St. Faustina, 723)

God’s mercy is not limited by our failures. It is infinite, waiting to embrace us when we turn to Him in trust. As we reflect today, let us ask: How can we open our hearts more fully to God’s forgiveness? And how can we extend that same mercy to others, reflecting the love we ourselves have received?

1. How does God’s steadfast love and forgiveness inspire us to return to Him with trust?
2. What areas of our lives are in need of healing and repentance?
3. How can we reflect God’s mercy in our relationships with others, especially those who have hurt us?

Lord, You are rich in mercy and delight in showing steadfast love. Teach us to trust in Your forgiveness and to turn back to You with humble hearts. Cast away our sins and fill us with Your healing grace. May Your mercy transform our lives so that we may reflect Your love and compassion to the world. Amen.

This reflection is written by Kris McGregor of Discerning Hearts®. The Scripture passage is taken from the Jerusalem Bible (1966 edition), used with permission. No unauthorized use or reproduction is permitted without prior written consent.