Even the noblest behavior can be cheapened when it’s performed out of naked self-interest, and we can’t help but notice some ulterior motives in one man’s supposedly virtuous lifestyle: This man is only meek because he wants to inherit the earth.
C’mon, man. That’s not how this is supposed to work.
Thirty-two-year-old Zachary Cressler is as meek as they come, demurring from any and all confrontation and generally going through life like a kind of human doormat. But far from doing this out of an innate sense of humility and submission, Cressler has another motivation: he knows the meek will inherit the earth, and he wants a piece of the action. Now, we can’t deny that the earth is a pretty sweet payout for showing a bit of meekness, but for Cressler to take such a calculating approach to his own gentle nature seems to miss the entire spirit of the thing.
Take the other day, for instance. Cressler got double parked while picking up some almond croissants at the bakery, and instead of causing a fuss or trying to get the car towed, he simply turned the other cheek and walked around the block for half an hour until they were gone. Pretty meek, right? Seems like a good guy to inherit the earth. But if he spent that whole time thinking “Inheriting the earth, here I come!” to himself, well, that casts his quiet acquiescence in a bit of a different light. It’s like if somebody told you they were only a peacemaker because they wanted to be called a child of God. It’s not that being a peacemaker is wrong or anything, but when it’s coming from a strictly transactional place, that can leave a bad taste in your mouth.
Whatever happened to meekness for its own sake?
To be honest, we’re not exactly nuts about a guy with this kind of cynical worldview winding up in charge of the place. Yeah, he’s meek now, but once he inherits the earth? Maybe he says, “Sorry suckers, but it’s high time your ol’ buddy Zach started throwing his weight around!” Who knows what kind of Caligula shit he’s got planned for everyone who ever pushed him around before? And if you’re counting on the rest of the meek to keep him in line, you can see why that might be a problem, right?
Man, it’s guys like this that give the meek a bad name. Here’s hoping Cressler comes around and starts being meek for the right reasons!
