Fr. Ron Rolheiser speaks to the nature of emptying ourselves. He writes that the incarnation, the central mystery of our Christian faith, invites us to look down, investigate the small, and descend. Why? Because that is what God did in the incarnation. He emptied Himself, taking on the form of a slave. He became small, a helpless baby. The movement of God in Jesus Christ is a downward one. Thus, among other things, it invites us to enter into the experience of powerlessness. It invites us to look down, to investigate the small. It invites us to look for God in the baby rather than in the corporate magnate, the president, the prime minister, the rock star, the star athlete, the brilliant writer, the Nobel prize-winning scientist, or the Hollywood god or goddess. It is not that God cannot be present in these. To be Christian, to be persons who keep giving flesh to God in this world, we must ultimately be free of the tyranny of ambition and achievement, measuring our meaning and success from what gives us upward mobility. A valuable criterion to discern is whether we are following Christ or following our own desires. Are moving upward or downward? Are we deeming equality with God as something to be grasped at? Are we growing in power, prestige, and admiration? Or are we emptying ourselves and assuming the powerlessness of the poor?