A firefly lying in a garden, shuddered with envy at the effect of the lights from a nearby Christmas tree and, in a melancholic mood, complained of the weakness of her own splendor; “how can it be possible that something could shine so brightly”, she wondered. Its friend looked carefully at the tree and said to the firefly: “hold on… wait here… I will be back in seconds” and he left the firefly alone. A couple of seconds later, the tree went out; he had switched it off. Then he went back and said to the firefly “now you are the most brilliant light around, those stupid lights faded away.” And the firefly was happy again.
This short fable can help us to understand a very important truth: I am what I am no matter what others are. Did the firefly’s friend change something within her? Did the firefly become brighter? However, she was happy again because she was the brightest light around.
That is envy; St. Ambrose says: “in vain can you expect the aid of Divine mercy, if you grudge to others the fruits of their virtue. The Lord despises the envious, and withdraws the miracles of His power from them that are jealous of His divine blessings in others… See then what evils envy produces” (Catena Aurea).
St Thomas says that envy is the sadness we feel when we consider another’s good as one’s own evil. This is a very common mistake. When we consider the other’s good as evil, we try to lower them instead of making ourselves better. Envy does not increase virtues, skills, grace, holiness. Envy is an easy attitude, since it is much easier to see that I am better than others (this implies that I do not have to strive to improve or to grow in virtue, grace, holiness) than to try to be better, than to conquer my defects and imperfections. When we reach heaven and face the Judge, the particular judgment will not be about others, rather it will be about ourselves and about what we did or did not do in order to be holy.
