Thus you are to be Holy to Me, for I the Lord am Holy;
and I have set you apart from the peoples to be Mine.
Leviticus 20:26
VATICAN II
The Second Vatican Council (Vatican II 1962-65) was called to address the Church in the Modern World. Perhaps, it’s largest theme was the Universal Call to Holiness. addressed directly in the document, Lumen Gentium
To quote Lumen Gentium, Every Christian must seek God’s will in all matters and devote themselves to love of God and service to their neighbor by utilizing their own personal gifts in the duties, circumstances and conditions of their life. To be holy, then, is to be about God’s business above all else. In holiness each person comes to realize that one’s life is not about her/his self but about following God’s projects and plans.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE HOLY AS GOD IS HOLY?
We are people set apart by God. We are not of this world but created in the eternal image of God. We grow in holiness as we grow in our image of the Creator. God did not have to create us. He needs nothing, but He wanted to share with us His divine life, perfect, unsoiled, shining in grandeur of the Almighty. At our Baptisms, we become a new creation, free of original sin and adopted children of God.
We are gods not by nature but by adoption. We begin the Our Father with the first petition, Hallowed be thy name. We call God Our Father with good reason and acknowledge He is holy, above all other gods. For us to be holy is to be like God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit, One God, three Persons in relationship of Love. The Lover (Father), the Beloved (Son), and Love itself (Holy Spirit)
Holiness is not a human project but a response to God’s initiative. You are to be holy! Holiness is a separation from the unholy. God’s holiness is sheer goodness and light without any hint of evil or darkness. To confront God’s holiness is also to confront our sin.
Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. Matthew 5:48 The command “Be ye perfect” is not a command to do the impossible. God does not ask the impossible of us. All things are possible with God. God is going to make good His words, if we let Him. Our free will can stand in the way, though.
We can choose our self or God. Sin can stand in the way and it does have consequences. Just a quick look into the Old Testament from Genesis on…. Exile from Garden of Eden, The Great Flood, Sodom and Gomorrah, Babylonian Exile, Destruction of Jerusalem etc.
Holiness makes it necessary for us to separate from what is not holy. As our Creator, God knows best what is best for His creation. God gives his laws to make his people a people set apart: “You shall keep all my statutes and all my ordinances, and observe them. . . . You shall be holy to me; for I the Lord am holy, and I have separated you from the other peoples to be mine” Leviticus 20:22-26
Jesus assumed our nature in order that by becoming man he might make us gods. Jesus shed his blood for our ransom and purification, so that we might be redeemed from our wretched state of bondage of sin.
The Word became flesh to make us “partakers of the divine nature”: this is why the Word became man…so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine son-ship, might become a son of God.” Catholic Catechism #460
In the middle of the Mass there is a very significant gesture that summarizes the entire Christian story. After the priest offers the bread upward in preparation for consecration, he next turns to the chalice and after pouring in the wine, he takes the cruet of water and places just a drop, praying, “Through the Mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in Your Divinity, as you humbled Yourself to participate in our humanity.”
I will conclude with Psalm 23 a prayer I would suggest to say often and reflect at those times we feel the storm is too great, the waves too high, the depths too low and our hearts lashed by every demon we can possibly imagine. Psalm 23 gives me great consolation and encouragement to stay the course as I am reminded that Jesus is my Good Shepherd, seeking me, carrying me home.
PSALM 23
The LORD is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall lack.
In green pastures he makes me lie down; to still waters he leads me;
He restores my soul. He guides me along right paths for the sake of his name.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil,
for you are with me; your rod and your staff comfort me. You set a table before me in front of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows. indeed, goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life; I will dwell in the house of the LORD for endless days.