“So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
At the end of the Gospel reading, Jesus tells us to be perfect. This lesson will dive into what does Jesus mean by being perfect, and how do we strive for this perfection.
What is “perfect”? Perfect is, “Whole or complete. What is perfect has all the actual qualities that are proper to its nature or kind. Only God is all perfect. Creatures are more or less perfect as they are more or less what they ought to be, according to their rank or level of being, and among people, according to their age, position, or state of life. (Latin perfectus, finished, completed, from perficere, to complete)” [1]
What is perfection? Perfection is “That in which nothing is lacking which, according to its nature, it should possess. That is absolutely perfect, which in itself has all possible excellence and excludes all deficiencies. Only God is absolutely perfect. That is relatively perfect which has a finite nature and possesses all the advantages corresponding to its nature. The Church teaches that God is infinite in every perfection. Creatures are as perfect as they are like God, and moral perfection consists in becoming like Christ, who is infinite God in human form.” [2]
Is anyone perfect? There are two people that we know without a doubt who are perfect: Jesus and Mary. Other than that, we all have sinned and fallen short. This does not mean we should stay down, but get back up to get back on the road to perfection.
What should we say to people who say “nobody’s perfect!” or “I’m not perfect.”? We should say “You’re right. Nobody is perfect, except Jesus and Mary, but we should be striving for perfection!” or “You may not be perfect, but you should be moving towards perfection.” Many times people use those sayings as a crutch or an excuse as to why they are failing. We have smeared the perfect image that God has placed in us, but we can make it perfect if we stay close to Him.
Where do we find our perfection? We find our perfection in Jesus and the Church He gave us. “The first and last point of reference of this catechesis will always be Jesus Christ himself, who is ‘the way, and the truth, and the life.’ It is by looking to him in faith that Christ's faithful can hope that he himself fulfills his promises in them, and that, by loving him with the same love with which he has loved them, they may perform works in keeping with their dignity: I ask you to consider that our Lord Jesus Christ is your true head, and that you are one of his members. He belongs to you as the head belongs to its members; all that is his is yours: his spirit, his heart, his body and soul, and all his faculties. You must make use of all these as of your own, to serve, praise, love, and glorify God. You belong to him, as members belong to their head. and so he longs for you to use all that is in you, as if it were his own, for the service and glory of the Father.” [3]
How can the Church be perfect if there are only sinners in the Church? The Second Vatican Council speaks on this question. “The Church on earth is endowed already with a sanctity that is real though imperfect.” [4] “In her members perfect holiness is something yet to be acquired: "Strengthened by so many and such great means of salvation, all the faithful, whatever their condition or state - though each in his own way - are called by the Lord to that perfection of sanctity by which the Father himself is perfect.” [5] While the church is full of sinners, the Church Herself is sinless. It will be able to prevail over Hell as Jesus told us [6]. The Church is Holy and perfect because She is guided by the Holy Spirit.
How do we become perfect? The more we are willing to become one with the Church, the more we are willing to become one with Christ who is the Head of the Church. “This ‘as’ is not unique in Jesus' teaching: ‘You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect’; ‘Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful’; ‘A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another.’ It is impossible to keep the Lord's commandment by imitating the divine model from outside; there has to be a vital participation, coming from the depths of the heart, in the holiness and the mercy and the love of our God. Only the Spirit by whom we live can make ‘ours’ the same mind that was in Christ Jesus. Then the unity of forgiveness becomes possible and we find ourselves ‘forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave’ us.” [7]
We find our perfection “in seeking and loving what is true and good.” [8] What is true and good is Jesus. “Christ Jesus always did what was pleasing to the Father, and always lived in perfect communion with him. Likewise Christ's disciples are invited to live in the sight of the Father ‘who sees in secret,’ in order to become ‘perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect.’” [9]
We become more perfect if we follow Jesus in our faith and morals. “The moral law finds its fullness and its unity in Christ. Jesus Christ is in person the way of perfection. He is the end of the law, for only he teaches and bestows the justice of God: ‘For Christ is the end of the law, that every one who has faith may be justified.’” [10] We must be willing to work out our perfection every day of our lives. “Human virtues are firm attitudes, stable dispositions, habitual perfections of intellect and will that govern our actions, order our passions, and guide our conduct according to reason and faith. They make possible ease, self-mastery, and joy in leading a morally good life. The virtuous man is he who freely practices the good. The moral virtues are acquired by human effort. They are the fruit and seed of morally good acts; they dispose all the powers of the human being for communion with divine love.” [11]
How do we gain moral perfection? Moral perfection solely relies on us striving for holiness. We must be moved within our hearts and souls to what is truly good. “Moral perfection consists in man's being moved to the good not by his will alone, but also by his sensitive appetite, as in the words of the psalm: ‘My heart and flesh sing for joy to the living God.’” [12], “The perfection of the moral good consists in man's being moved to the good not only by his will but also by his "heart.’” [13]
What if someone is not even on the road to perfection? We are all on a road: either the road to life or the road to death there is not middle ground. Staying stagnate, and not moving is dying. We must remind ourselves, and those around us that we can turn around. We can put the “car” in reverse sort of speak. We can get back on the path, which leads us to life. “‘All Christians in any state or walk of life are called to the fullness of Christian life and to the perfection of charity.’ All are called to holiness: ‘Be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.’ In order to reach this perfection the faithful should use the strength dealt out to them by Christ's gift, so that . . . doing the will of the Father in everything, they may wholeheartedly devote themselves to the glory of God and to the service of their neighbor. Thus the holiness of the People of God will grow in fruitful abundance, as is clearly shown in the history of the Church through the lives of so many saints.” [14]
How do we stay on the path of perfection? Jesus Christ left us with an amazing Church. Within the Church, She is able to bestow on us Sacraments, which were established by Jesus. Spiritual progress tends toward ever more intimate union with Christ. This union is called ‘mystical’ because it participates in the mystery of Christ through the sacraments – ‘the holy mysteries’ - and, in him, in the mystery of the Holy Trinity. God calls us all to this intimate union with him, even if the special graces or extraordinary signs of this mystical life are granted only to some for the sake of manifesting the gratuitous gift given to all.” [15] By living within Christ and His bride, the Church; living in the Sacraments we can begin to grow in virtue. When we grow in virtue we grow the Fruits of the Holy Spirit. These Fruits of the Holy Spirit help us on our path to perfection. “The fruits of the Spirit are perfections that the Holy Spirit forms in us as the first fruits of eternal glory. the tradition of the Church lists twelve of them: ‘charity, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, modesty, self-control, chastity.’” [16]
Is there any limit to becoming perfect? St. Gregory of Nyssa said it best, “Christian perfection has but one limit, that of having none” [17]. The only limits to perfection are the ones we set on ourselves. Live heroically! As Pope Saint John Paul II said, “Do not be afraid to become the Saints of the new millennium!” “The way of perfection passes by way of the Cross. There is no holiness without renunciation and spiritual battle. Spiritual progress entails the access and mortification that gradually lead to living in the peace and joy of the Beatitudes: He who climbs never stops going from beginning to beginning, through beginnings that have no end. He never stops desiring what he already knows.” [18]
[1] Hardon, Modern Catholic Dictionary pg. 415
[2] Hardon, Modern Catholic Dictionary pg. 415
[3] CCC 1698
[4] LG 48 # 3.
[5] LG 11 # 3.
[6] cf. Mt. 16:18-20
[7] CCC 2842
[8] GS 15 # 2.
[9] CCC 1693
[10] CCC 1953
[11] CCC 1804
[12] CCC 1770
[13] CCC 1775 – Moral perfection
[14] CCC 2013
[15] CCC 2014
[16] CCC 1832
[17] St. Gregory of Nyssa, De vita Mos.: PG 44, 300D
[18] CCC 2015