To be sure we have come to believe that holiness is simply about being nice to one another. So we accept any sort of deviation from the virtues and teachings of the Church, and our Scriptural tradition, because not to do so might 'hurt the feelings' of one or another. While Jesus is not nasty or mean-spirited, he insists that men and women live by higher standards than what is offered in the world.
Even as the mystics and saints understood, holiness is the ongoing conversion and discipleship that comes from prayer, the sacraments, reflection, and becoming actively engaged in a life with Christ, in the Body of Christ. Sometimes we try to avoid suffering; convinced Jesus would not want us to suffer. Or we avoid confrontation on moral matters; assuring ourselves that Jesus would not want us to appear self-righteous. Holiness develops in the depths of prayer and worship, as well as those moments when our journey brings us to stretch our understanding, compassion, kindness, and charity. Certainly the Word of God made flesh comes along with us to guide and guard us.
If the last time we have prayed well, been to Mass, read the scriptures, taken in some theological or spiritual reading, was in eighth grade, then we are ill prepared for the spiritual awakening which we all long for. The apostles in Mark's Gospel, today notwithstanding, often demonstrate a very shallow grasp of God's plan of salvation. Jesus points out to them that the process of dying to oneself brings out healing and grace, in addition to revealing the self-less love of God. This is an active process in which we are engaged and conscience of God's love and mercy.
Paradoxically holiness is often found in the tensions and trauma of life. Holiness continues to demand to know how we can bring God and Godliness in a variety of situations in life. The Word God directs us: "Be holy because I am holy."
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