Simplicity is Perfection

Feast of St. Therese

October 1, 2010

We celebrate today the feast of St. Therese of the Child Jesus whose cult was considered one of the most impressive and significant religious phenomena of contemporary times. She was known for her "little way", i.e. disposing her duties with perfection no matter how small they were. In our present times, she will be a very perfect advocate for "Pondo Ng Pinoy" which promotes that no matter how small an action maybe, as long as it is good and made a habit, it will lead to salvation. It will lead to perfection.

That was not the case with the Galilean towns of Chorazin and Bethsaida. Jesus lamented their blindness and rejection of the words He had spoken before them and the miracles He had worked before their eyes. Those words and deeds were more than enough for them to recognize His power, authority, and person. Those words and deeds were much much greater than any prophet and elders had done combined, both in quality and substance. And yet, their appreciation of Jesus were limited to marvelling on the newness and radicality of His Word. Their eyes just feasted only the spectacularity of His miracles and nothing more. They failed to understand and accept the full import of His ministry.

This maybe attributed to the sophistication and high level of intelligence in those communities. Too much criticism and and bias made it hard for them to accept Jesus. They did not expect God becoming one like them.  Much more, they did not expect Him to come from Nazareth, which is an unpopular town, and for the supposed Messiah to come from a family of a carpenter. It was also the reason why Jesus said that it will be easier for the children to enter the Kingdom than for the learned. The children are more open, humble, and trusting. 

Their expectation for the spectacular made them miss the simple and true. This attitude is prevalent in most of us. But St. Therese gave us a very good example in the beauty and effectiveness of simplicity. Well, big things came from small things. The spectacular was really a result of little things done in coordination. Our focus on the grand result makes us forget about the web of little goods and rights that were done to produce the great result.

The Good News is that salvation is attained by doing simple good things. The Good news is that perfection is attained by having small holy successes. The Good News is that eternal life is reached through a series of obedience to God. This is a good reminder to all of us who are so obsessed or so concerned about achieving only big things. The point is, it will come. But we can not be blind, deaf, and insensitive to everything that is happening before us and in us. Learn from yesterday. Prepare for tomorrow. But never neglect today. The present is the most important time for us. Addressing our concerns for today will pave the way for achieving the greatness in store for tomorrow. In climbing a stair, you start on the first step. If you look ahead up, it is impossible to reach the top with one or two leaps. But if you navigate the steps one at a time, reaching the top is as easy as setting foot on the first step. It is the same with the challenges in life. Our small problems and sufferings are actually preparing us for the bigger ones (which we hope will not come). We notice that there were problems and challenges that we imagined we would never be able to hurdle. But when they come, we are surprised by the strength and confident we have to go through them.

It is the same with perfection. The very word itself is discouraging because we know we are limited and are not capable of achieving it. But it was the Lord Himself who said that we must be perfect as the Father is perfect. It means that it is a goal we must achieve. It means that we are capable of achieving it. With His help of course! St. Therese discovered the way, the "little way"! By doing little good deeds, we are perfecting ourselves. Her attitude was to give her all in anything she was asked to do no matter how little they were in the eyes of many. Whether it is mopping the floor, washing the dishes, cooking, sewing, cleaning etc. The Lord Jesus said, "Whatever you do to the least of your brothers, you do unto Me!". For the world, small things maybe small, but for God, everything is BIG!

Forget about perfection, if you will. But always do good things no matter how small as best as you can. Before you know it, perfection is attained!