One of the most exciting and interesting facts about this life is that nothing is perfect here, everything only gets better or worse. Our lives are conditioned by spacio-temporal factors. What we call the best today loses its importance tomorrow and gives way to something better. Records are set and broken. The best is always in the making and the most beautiful is not yet born. We can only do what is best for ourselves, which is key to the whole collection of what is best in an endless progression.
This progressive change makes life interesting in a way that presents everything as limited but improves for the better. That is why we keep longing and groping for the best that remains unreachable. Even what we describe as the greatest of all time is only temporary. So, when the first reading calls us to be holy (perfect) like God, who is holy, it presents God as the perfect One, and encourages us to be like Him. This call to holiness of life is that constant and consistent effort to do good and avoid evil.
Perpetua and Felicia
Today we remember two great saints who achieved perfection through the shedding of their blood. Perpetua and Felicia were among the first Christian martyrs whose blood became the seed of the Christian faith we have today. They saw perfection in the faith they professed and were willing to sacrifice everything for it.
The special thing about the early Christian martyrs was that they had a choice to reject God in order to save their lives, and yet they chose God because they saw in Him something greater than life. This shows us that perfection is a choice. And that choice is not only about what to do, but also about what not to do.
In the first reading, God enumerates the various deeds we must not do, which are summed up in the love of neighbor, while in the Gospel He enumerates what we must do to achieve perfection we seek in the life to come. These are the corporal works of mercy, which are required of us always, but especially during Lent. Thus, perfection is achieved not only by avoiding evil, but also by doing good that helps the lives of others for better.
