The ‘Practicing Principles’ for the practice of imitating Christ by means of reading the Gospels

These Practicing principles as presented here, are the outcome of my doctoral dissertation, ‘The practice of imitating Christ by means of reading the Gospels. An interdisciplinary study according to the hermeneutical approach of Sandra M. Schneiders‘, Pontifical Institute of Spirituality Teresianum, Rome 2012.

“Following Christ is not an outward imitation, since it touches the human person at the very depths of one’s own being” (Veritatis Splendor, n. 21). Consequently, a Christian imitator cannot approach the Gospel texts as a historian who wishes to uncover the historical truths related to the words and deeds of Christ, or as a psychologist who wishes to study the traits of his personality. An authentic imitator approaches the text as a person in a process of conversion within the Church, who is struggling to learn from Christ an example on how to tread the way he indicates. This was the experience of imitation of the first disciples who accepted to follow Christ and should be the experience of the authentic imitator today.

These practising principles answers to the question ‘What can a Christian do to imitate Christ,’ by offering knowledge on the proper Catholic ‘approach’,  that is the ‘intension’ or ‘heart disposition’ for the practice of imitation by means of reading Gospels. It puts forth the fact that a Christian before being an imitator needs to be a follower of Christ in the Church. This “is not a matter only of disposing oneself to hear a teaching and obediently accepting a commandment. More radically, it involves holding fast to the very person of Jesus, partaking in his life and destiny, sharing in his free and loving obedience to the will of the Father […]. Being a follower of Christ means being conformed to him who became a servant even to giving himself on the cross (cf. Philippians 2:5-8)” (Veritatis Splendor, n. 19. 21).

The knowledge offered here elicits the fact that imitation is not something of the past or of the future, but a ‘right now’ experience. The Christian is called to be an imitator of Christ in the Church in the ‘today’ of one’s life. As Jesus met the disciples of Emmaus concerned about their immediate past and their actual life situation, and shed light on that situation by interpreting it through scriptures (cf. Luke 24:15-27); the same can happen during the practice of imitation: the imitator approaches the words and deeds of Christ as his follower in the Church carrying the actual experience—one’s actual state of conversion, one’s problems, hopes and desires.  This section sheds light on the latter experience.

It is also important to note, that these practicing principles are not intended to serve as a mandatory practice for the practice of imitation. The aim of these principles is to confirm, extend, and correct the actual practice of those engaged in imitation, and to serve as a resource for spiritual direction in guiding others in this practice. Therefore, while these practicing principles might contribute to a better collaboration with the grace of imitation (fides qua), it is theologically incorrect to presume that if one follows their suggestions, one will be performing an authentic practice of imitation. The practice of imitation, although it might be ministered with certain methods, can never be reduced to a prescriptive method or a step-by-step instruction. Authentic practice of imitation can do well without any method (cf. Orationis Formas,  n.23. Jesus Christ the bearer of the water of life., n.3.4). This is possible due to God’s gracious gift, He who “has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Galatians 4: 6).

A fundamental principle for the practice of imitation

First practising principle

Principle of only collaborating with the God who works.

The following and imitation of Christ “is not possible for a human person by his own strength alone. One becomes capable of this […] only by virtue of a gift received” (Veritatis Splendor, n. 22. 24). The gift which makes this imitation possible is the very person of the Holy Spirit (cf. 1 Corinthians 12:3; Romans 8:9).  Moreover, this gift of following and imitating Christ cannot be lived if it is not accepted freely through a personal commitment (cf. James 2:14-26).  The reason is that the Holy Spirit does not substitute the freedom of the person.  Furthermore, the acceptance of this gift on behalf of the human person, cannot occur merely through one’s effort, but due to the will and strength of God himself, who “generates and sustains the free response” (Veritatis Splendor, n. 22). This is because “Without God’s grace, one cannot by his own free will take one step towards justice in God’s sight” (Council of Trent, Decree on Justification, as in The Catholic Faith, n. 1929). Consequently, all the personal efforts to imitate Christ are nothing more and nothing less than a collaboration with a diving grace.

Three principles related to the Catholic attitude towards the practice of imitation.

Second practising principle

Principle of entire life conversion in Spirit and Truth.  

Authentic practice of imitation, leads the Christian towards a life long conversion in Christ during which one “fight[s] the good fight of the faith” (1 Timothy 6:12), and “train[s oneself] in godliness” (1 Timothy 4:7) in order to “Let the same mind be in [oneself] that was in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5). This happens with the aid of the Holy Spirit, since “no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 12:3; cf. Romans 8:9 – cf., Veritatis Splendor, n. 22). As this Spirit guided Jesus throughout his life—through him was conceived (cf. Matthew 1:18; Luke 1:35), started his public ministry (cf. Matthew 3:16), acted, spoke, rejoiced (cf. Luke 10:21) and offered himself up (cf. Hebrews 9:14)—this same Spirit continues to guide the Christian today.  This is possible, because the Father through Christ (cf. John 14:26) poured the Spirit on his disciples (cf. John 20:22).  Now, this Spirit, who dwells in the heart of the Christian (1 Corinthians 6:19), and is the spirit of Christ, leads us back to the Father, since “God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ ” (Galatians 4:6). Moreover, this Spirit brings to our remembrance all that Christ did and said (cf. John 14:26); thus, it is He who makes possible the actual encounter with the episodes of Christ’s life during imitation.  This Holy Spirit is also the Spirit of Truth (cf. John 15:26) who guides the disciples into all the truth (cf. John 16:13).  And since this truth can never contradict the teachings of the Church (cf. 1 Timothy 3:15), the imitator can secure the authenticity of one’s imitation by living according to the teachings of the Catholic Church. Accordingly, an authentic practice of imitation is always lived in Spirit and Truth (cf. John 4:24).

Third practising principle

Principle of conformation with Christ due to an intimate encounter

The spiritual journey of imitation is nothing more and nothing less than the following of Christ in a progressive movement from imitation through intimacy towards a conformation with Christ in which the imitator cries out,  “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me” (Galatians 2:20). Christ’s Call to his disciples manifests this journey.  “With the invitation ‘Follow me!’  (Mark 1:17) he presents himself as a guide who knows both the destination and the way to reach it; he offers at the same time to those whom he calls, communion of life with him and the example of how to tread the way he indicates” (The Bible and Morality, n. 46).

The main resource for conversion indicated by Jesus, more than an effort to accept and apply of his teachings, is a call to stay in his presence (cf. John 15:1-10) and consequently learn from his example (cf. Matthew 10:24-25; 11:29; John 13:15;14:6;15:12). Now, since Christ assured that he will be with us “to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20), this conformation due to intimacy continues to be the model for all generations.  Christ for the imitator is “not only the perfect model, but the efficacious model” (John Paul II, Jesus is our model, General audience, 17 Aug. 1988).  He is the way, truth, and life (cf. John 14:6).  Outside this intimate relationship, imitation is rendered to an outward imitation to re-produce the behaviours, taught patterns, and attitudes of Jesus (cf. Veritatis Splendor, n. 21).

Accordingly, in order that the practice of imitation is fruitful, more than an effort to do something, the imitator is invited to acknowledge and stay in the presence of Christ:  “Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing” (John 15:5; cf. Philippians 4:13).

Fourth practising principle

Principle of faithfulness to the will of the Father. 

During his earthly life Christ sought to do the will of the Father in everything: “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work” (John 4:34, cf. 6:38). This will which was the conscious aim of Christ from his adolescence (Luke 2:49) is manifested in a special way at the beginning of his ministry (Matthew 4:4, 10) and in his teachings (Matthew 6:9-10, Mark 12:28-30).  For Jesus there was no compromise with this Will (Luke 16:13). He is obedient to it even when asked for his own life (Luke 22:42).  And, since “those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son”(Romans 8:28), every person is predestined to be guided by the Holy Spirit to glorify God by doing His will in the Church.

As the Holy Spirit guided Jesus to do the will of the Father, this same Spirit who dwells in our heart (1 Corinthians 6:19), prompts the imitator from within to do the will of Father during imitation, since “God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ ” (Galatians 4:6). For this reason, during the practice of imitation, more than aiming to acquire a new way of thinking that currently one do not possess; the person is invited to let oneself be guided by the Holy Spirit, to aim as Christ, and empowered by him, to do the will of the Father in the reading, meditation, prayer and contemplation of the words and deeds of Christ narrated in the Gospels.

Three principles related to the reading of the Gospels for imitation.

Fifth practising principle

Principle of understanding the Gospels texts on their own terms. 

“Seeing that, in sacred Scripture, God speaks through men in human fashion, it follows that the interpreter of sacred Scriptures, if he is to ascertain what God has wished to communicate to us, should carefully search out the meaning which the sacred writers really had in mind, that meaning which God had thought well to manifest through the medium of their words” (Dei Verbum, n. 25).  Consequently, during the practice of imitation one has to ensure that one’s reading of the Gospels “proceeds in the right direction” (The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church, n. IV.A.2.e.). This is obvious for biblical scholars whose role is precisely to study the sacred texts.  However, even a non-specialist who is serious about imitation must make an effort to understand the text on its own terms.  That is, reading the Gospel texts with the intention of imitation does not mean reading into the text whatever one already thinks or what one wants to proof (eisegesis).  It is an attempt to allow the words and deeds as narrated in the Gospels to speak their own voice (exegesis), in order that by virtue of their own influence, the mind and heart of the imitator become purified from that which is not Christ.

Sixth practising principle

Principle of actualising the Gospels for imitation. 

In obedience to Christ’s Call to leave everything behind in order to follow him (cf. Matthew 4:19; 8:22; 9:9; etc.) and encouraged by his commands to follow his example (cf. Matthew 11:29;  John 13:15; 15:12); in accordance with the uninterrupted tradition which from the beginning invited Christians to follow the example of this “perfect man” (Gaudium et Spes, n. 22. 38. 41. 45, cf. Romans 12:2;Philippians 2:5; Ephesians 5:2; 1 Peter 2:21);  and aware that this same Christ is present in this world (cf. Matthew 28:20) through the Holy Spirit (cf. 1 Corinthians 12:3; Romans 8:9) and that the mysteries of his life are rendered present during the reading of the Gospels with the help of this same spirit (cf. John 14:26): the Christian could collaborate with the grace of imitation by directly trying to observe in the Gospel texts the different aspects of Christ’s performance.

In this way, the Christian will be more open to the example of this Divine model in order that by his, Christ’s own efficacy (cf. John Paul II, Jesus is our model, General audience, 17 Aug. 1988),  the person practicing imitation will be purified from that which is not Christ. A purification which brings out the Christ already impressed within the Christian imitator (Galatians 4:6) through creation and baptism. In doing so, the Christian has to pay attention that the studied Gospel is understood on its own terms (Fifth practicing principle), and interpreted within the teachings of the Church (Seventh practicing principle).

Seventh practising principle

Principle of faithfulness to the Church. 

“Authentic interpretation of the Word of God […] has been entrusted to the living teaching of the Church alone” (Dei Verbum, n. 19). “False paths will be avoided if actualisation of the biblical message begins with a correct interpretation of the text and continues within the stream of the living tradition, under the guidance of the Church’s magisterium” (The Interpretation of the Bible in the Church, n. IV, A, 3, e). Moreover, it is “The Church, ‘the pillar and bulwark of truth’ (1 Timothy 3:15) […that ] guards the memory of Christ’s words” (Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 171). Thus, if an imitator lacks to pay attention to the teachings of the Church in interpreting the words and deeds of Christ he or she runs a high risk of misinterpreting the Gospel texts narrating the words and deeds of Christ. 

For this reason, during imitation one has to make an effort to interpret the latter in communion with the Church, “that is, with all the great witnesses to this word, beginning with the earliest Fathers up to the saints of our own day, up to the present-day magisterium” (Benedict XVI, Address to the Students of the Roman Major Seminary, 19 Feb. 2007, n.1).  According to the Dogmatic Constitution Dei Verbum this includes an effort to “investigate what meaning the sacred writer intended” together with appropriate attention to the “content and unity of the whole of Scripture […], the living tradition of the whole Church […and] the harmony which exists between elements of the faith” (Dei Verbum, n. 12). 

Three principles related to the meditation, prayer, contemplation, and action that ought to follow the study of the words and deeds of Christ.

Eighth practising principle

Principle of mind renewal through meditation. 

The reading of the Gospels (Fifth practicing principle) for imitation (Sixth practicing principle) within the Church (Seventh practicing principle) remains an intellectual activity if not translated into an effort to renew one’s mind (thinking, feeling, acting,…) according to the words and deeds of Christ. This renewal consists of an effort to stay in a process of discernment, through which the Christian, prompted and sustained by the Holy Spirit, gradually puts aside the mind of this world (cf. Romans 12:2) and replace it with that of Christ (cf. Philippians 2:5). The aim of this renewal is to “discern what is the will of God” (Romans 12:2).  In practice this could be reached through the practice of meditation, a practice through which the imitator “individually but also as a member of the community” lets oneself to “be moved and challenged” (Verbum Domini, n. 87) by the words and deeds of Christ.

Ninth practising principle

Principle of transformation due to an encounter with God in Christ. 

The imitation of Christ is a Gift of God that has to be freely accepted with an attitude of faith, hope and love.  Its source is Pascal Mystery (cf. Romans 6:3-5), through which Christ is not merely the perfect model, but the efficacious model (Third practicing principle [n.13]).  The immediate principle in the Person of the Holy Spirit, who dwells in the heart of the imitator and prompts from within the growth in Christ (cf. 1 Corinthians 12:3 – Second practicing principle [n.12]). Additionally, the cause and purpose of this practice is the plan of the Father to be “conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29 – Forth practicing principle [n.14]).  

Due to this essential role God has in the transformation of the Christian, the imitator conforms one’s mind with that of Christ only through a profound relationship with God in Christ.  This relationship is achieved through prayer and contemplation. Thus, as Christ maintained this prayerful relationship with the Father continuously during his earthly life (Matthew 11:25; Mark 14:36; Luke 23:34.46; John 11:41; 12:27; 17:1.5.11.21.24.25), the imitator who wants to conform his or her mind with that of Christ, has to “pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17), “night and day” (1 Thessalonians 3:10).

Tenth practising principle

Principle of being a witness to Christ. 

“Everyone in the Church, striving to imitate the Divine Master, can and must bear witness” (Redemptoris Missio,n. 42). Thus, authentic imitation is not a self-enclosed or narcissistic spiritual activity but is lived in the Church and for the service of the Church, society and the world.  This is because, “The one whom the Father has sent to do his will (cf. John 5:36-38; 6:38-40; 7:16-18) draws us to himself and makes us part of his life and mission. The Spirit of the Risen Lord empowers us to proclaim the word everywhere by the witness of our lives. This was experienced by the first Christian community, which saw the word spread through preaching and witness (cf. Acts 6:7). Here we can think in particular of the life of the Apostle Paul, a man completely caught up by the Lord (cf. Philippians 3:12) – ‘it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me’ (Galatians 2:20) – and by his mission: ‘woe to me if I do not proclaim the Gospel!’ (1 Corinthians 9:16)” (Verbum Domini, n. 91).  

This is a call for everyone, and thus the imitator according to his or her own gifts (cf. Romans 12:6), opportunity, ability, charism and ministry (cf. 1 Corinthians 3:10) has to make an effort to witness to Christ with confidence and constancy (cf. Acts 4:13, 29, 31; 9:27, 28; 13:46; 14:3; 19:8; 26:26; 28:31; 1 Thessalonians 2:2; 2 Corinthians 3:12; 7:4; Philippians 1:20; Ephesians 3:12; 6:19, 20). This could happen by means of good example to others (1 Thessalonians 1:6; 2:14; 3:7, 9; Philippians 3:17; 1 Corinthians 4:16–17; 11:1; Hebrews 6:12; 13:7), as well by pastoral action directly intended to promote the words and deeds of Christ.  All this “should be done decently and in order” (1 Corinthians 14:40) within and according to the Church.