CHRISTIAN PERFECTION. – In its ideal content, this signifies the complete realization of Christian life as opposed to its beginnings, that is, the fullness of goodness in the supernatural moral order (Phil. 3:15; Col. 3:14; I Cor. 2:6; Iac. 1:4). One is called “perfect” who practices, to the highest degree possible according to the measure of grace communicated to him, that complex of virtues which constitutes the patrimony of Christian teaching.
The general concept of perfection is therefore shared with Aristotle’s classical definition (Metaph., 5, 16), τῷ κατὰ τὸ πῦ μηδὲν ἐλλείπειν. Jesus used the word “perfect” twice: at the end of the Sermon on the Mount, revealing the fullness of the new evangelical law in relation to the ancient one, “Be perfect as your heavenly Father...” (Mt. 5:48; cf. M.-J. Lagrange, Evangile selon si Mathieu, Paris 1921, pp. 1–18), and in the invitation he addressed to the rich young man: “If you wish to be perfect...” (Mt. 19:21), “one thing you lack” (Mc. 10:21; Lc. 18:22).
The Christian use of the term “perfect,” τέλειος, derives neither from the esoteric mysteries of pagan syncretism, in which the word τετελεσμένοι was used (from τελέω, to initiate, τελετή, initiation), nor from the philosophical use made of it in the sphere of morality (cf. τελεία ἀρετή in Aristotle, Ethica Nicom., V, 1, 15), but from the usage of the Old Testament. In it, the Septuagint translates by τέλειον the Hebrew word tāmim, which indicated perfection (Deut. 18:13; I Reg. 8:61; 11:4; Sap. 9:6), more in the sense of legal and external than of interior perfection, though without excluding the latter (cf. Fr. Platt, Perfection, in Enc. of Rel. and Eth., IX, 728 ff.).
Absolute perfection belongs to God alone, who is goodness itself. All other beings can attain only a relative, limited perfection.
There are different ways of presenting c. p., depending on the point of reference. Thus, if emphasis is placed on what has been said above, c. p. is fullness of goodness, and in the person who possesses it implies all that goodness which befits his nature, elevated by Grace to the supernatural order. Ideally, such fullness would entail the absence of every sin and conduct entirely conforming to the condition of a child of God (Eph. 5:8; I Cor. 6:19), something that cannot be achieved without a special privilege. The Church holds that this privilege was granted to the Most Blessed Virgin Mary (C. Pesch, Praelect. theol. dogm., 4th ed., Freiburg im Br. 1914, V, no. 173 ff.). Man can strive toward it by reducing venial sins, even those that are only semi-deliberate, to the greatest possible extent, and by positively performing the commanded and counseled good in the best manner, according to circumstances (cf. O. Zimmermann, Lehrbuch der Aszetik, Freiburg im Br. 1929, p. 18).
Many Fathers, especially St. Gregory of Nyssa (PG 44, 1200), present c. p. under the aspect of “imitation of God.” Since God is in fact the exemplary cause of every perfection, Sacred Scripture likewise presents it as the supreme norm: “Be imitators of God, as beloved children” (Eph. 5:1). Such imitation evidently can be only analogical and moral. In practice, it presupposes profound meditation on the attributes of God, upon which one models one’s life. Thus God’s foreknowledge can serve as an incentive to anticipate the last things; his Providence, as an encouragement to care for the persons and things entrusted to each one; God’s long-suffering in bearing with sinners, as an invitation to sentiments of mercy, and so forth (cf. De divinis moribus, a work attributed to St. Thomas).
Others propose as a synthesis of c. p. full “conformity to the will of God,” according to the maxim: “Omne tulit punctum, patitur qui semper agitque quae vult quove modo vult Deus et quia vult,” in the “imitation of Jesus Christ” and of the Saints. Indeed, no one like Christ has expressed in himself the highest ideal of every virtue. Since Jesus is the divine Person of the Word, he acted in all things as God ought to act in a human nature. The imitation of his examples and his criteria is therefore the surest path to holiness. In Sacred Scripture this truth is explicitly taught: “Ipsum audite” (Mt. 17:5; Mc. 9:6; Lc. 9:35; II Pt. 1:17), “Veni, sequere me” (Mt. 8:22; 9:9; 19:21; Mc. 2:14; 9:6; 10:21). St. Paul likewise urges the faithful to imitate him, as he has imitated Christ (I Cor. 4:16; Gal. 2:20). The imitation of the Saints also—that is, of those Christians who, on account of their heroic virtues and the miracles worked by God to attest their holiness, have been canonized—helps in attaining c. p.
The perfection of Christian life must be judged by the virtues, especially by charity (Sum. Theol., 2ᵃ-2ᵃᵉ, q. 184, a. 1). This is the teaching of Christ (Mt. 22:35; Mc. 12:31), who said that his true disciples would be recognized by supernatural charity (Io. 17:21). Charity indeed has primacy in the spiritual life (I Cor. 12:31; I Tim. 1:5); it is the bond of perfection (Col. 3:14), the fullness of the law (Rom. 13:8–10), and every other virtue, if not accompanied by charity, is “nothing” (I Cor. 13:1–13).
Consequently, the life of the faithful will be more perfect in proportion as charity informs all their human acts in the most universal, actual, and intense manner, and in proportion as the elicited acts of that same virtue are more numerous, whether directed toward God (the primary object of love) or toward one’s neighbor and oneself, who are loved for the sake of God (the secondary object: Sum. Theol., 2ᵃ-2ᵃᵉ, q. 23, a. 5; q. 25, a. 12; q. 26, aa. 1–4).
Charity must be affective and effective; nevertheless, c. p. is primarily inferred from affective charity, which is that by which God is loved for himself, with a friendship (v.). The soul that loves in this manner takes delight in God and in God’s attributes and infinite goodness, and unites itself to him through a life of praise, admiration, and gratitude, until it immerses and loses itself in him (cf. St. Francis of Sales, Traité de l'amour de Dieu, chap. 6). Effective charity, that is, the unshakable resolve to obey God, to fulfill his will in everything, and to please him in all things, together with its execution, is the effect of the former; it demonstrates its genuineness (Mt. 7:15–27; Lc. 6:43–49; Io. 14:15–21) and is a valid criterion for judging true charity toward God.
The other theological virtues, faith and hope, are intimately united with charity, both by preparing for it and by increasing II. They are infused into man as a wayfarer in order to make him capable of attaining his supernatural end, which is achieved through charity. The more charity increases in a soul, the more the virtues of faith and hope grow in strength and splendor. Divine love in fact gives the soul a new knowledge and savor of heavenly things: the supernatural truths that are the object of faith become almost connatural to it, so that the just person lives by them, placing them above everything else. At the same time, the demands of divine love extend ad altiora et difficiliora and commit the faithful more fully to the path of renunciation and great works of goodness, so that he must increase in hope in God and abandonment to him, the sole sufficient helper for every heroic undertaking (S. Schif-
fini, De virtutibus infusi, Freiburg im Br. 1904, nos. 219–
224, 285–91).
With regard to the moral virtues (prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance, together with their subordinate virtues), they contribute to constitute Christian perfection as integral elements, both by removing the impediments that would make the exercise of charity impossible or at least difficult—for charity can order acts toward the ultimate end only if they please God—and by ensuring that even the other acts of human life, not elicited by the theological virtues, may come under the dominion of charity. Charity can in fact effectively inform the various human acts when they are virtuous, and direct them all toward the attainment of the ultimate end, whereby they become meritorious (Council of Trent, sess. VI, c. 10: Denz-U, 803, 809, 836, 842). It is therefore understandable why spiritual masters attach special importance to certain virtues, such as humility, poverty, chastity, etc., even though by their intrinsic nature they are not among the highest: they are virtues that remove the greatest impediments to the exercise and triumph of divine charity in a soul. It is likewise understandable why everyone must practice the theological virtues with the utmost diligence, whereas in the moral virtues it is not necessary for everyone to devote themselves equally to them; rather, a greater variety of practice is permitted, according to the different conditions and circumstances of life. The theological virtues are in fact circa finem omnibus semper quantum fieri potest appetendum; the moral virtues, on the other hand, are circa media ad hunc finem, means that are not all of equal importance in themselves, nor equally fixed for each person (cf. J. de Guibert, op. cit. in bibl., n. 77).
The evangelical counsels also contribute to constitute Christian perfection, both those understood in the broader sense, namely, works of supererogation (which are not commanded under precept, not even sub levi), and those understood in the strict sense, namely, perfect poverty, chastity, and obedience. The former (such as frequent Communion, forgiving not only one’s enemies but repaying them with special favors and benefits, embracing some humiliation that one could licitly have avoided, etc.), when joined with fidelity in fulfilling the duties of one’s state and the precepts, indicate in the soul a great dominion of charity, so that in fact there is no great perfection without them. The latter, on the other hand, mark out a special path, and therefore their practice is not in itself necessary for attaining Christian perfection. Nevertheless, their observance places the soul on the safest and most effective path toward its attainment, while being more in conformity with the examples of the Savior and of his most holy Mother (cf. Sum. Theol., 2a-2ae, q. 186 a. 7); hence their profession forms part of the canonical state of Christian perfection recognized by the Church.
Arnaldo M. Lanz