Thomas Merton and Albert Pujols

I'm a big fan of the St. Louis Cardinals, who are currently fighting to stay in contention in the National League Central Division. One of their signature players is first baseman Albert Pujols. Normally an opposing pitcher's nightmare, Albert has been in something of a slump lately. (Thankfully he has strong batting support on either side of him since the All Star break.) The press and fans started to worry about Albert. Then last night, August 4, his two home runs led the Birds in a 12-7 come-from-behind victory over the New York Mets. After getting panicky over Albert's cold at-bats, we suddenly realized that he has tied the all-time National League record for grand-slams in a single season, and we still have August and September to go. (Today he went 2 for 3 in a losing effort in New York.)

I'm not going to be able to quote him directly, but when asked after last night's game how he handled his recent slump, Albert shrugged his shoulders and said something like, "Stay humble and trust God." That's unique, in a cultural that deifies the grandstanding of individual effort and achievement. Albert recommends accepting a lowly role, refusing a victim mentality, and connecting with the One who puts our frenzied drive for significance in eternal perspective.

During my sabbatical I've been reading the updating of Thomas Merton's groundbreaking 1961 book, New Seeds of Contemplation. In this work, Merton insists that we find our genuine identity by dying to all of our self-engineered, manufactured establishing of importance and influence. Only in embracing our utter insignificance before the Eternal, only in losing ourselves in God, only in decreasing ourselves so that Christ in us increases, do we find our true selves.

That may be biblical, and we may give lip service to it, but few of us who are church people really believe it, much less practice it. We all want to convince the people around us that ours is the church they want and who will meet all their needs. I don't know of any church that says, "We're pretty much a mess here; only in God do we have hope."

Long after Albert Pujols' records are buried in a data bank somewhere, it will be his humble heart and his connection to God that will matter. I'll see you around the next bend in the river.