(The St. Joseph’s Bible Study blog will have a number of activities for Lent including specific prayers and thoughts for each day. Every Thursday there will be a reflection on one of the Seven Last Words that Jesus said on the cross.)
You can find a commentary on the first reading for Ash Wednesday here: https://biblestudystjosephsparis.wordpress.com/2023/02/21/ash-wednesday-first-reading-joel-212-18/ for the second reading here: https://biblestudystjosephsparis.wordpress.com/2022/03/01/ash-wednesday-mass-second-reading-commentary-2-corinthians-520-62/ and for the gospel here: https://biblestudystjosephsparis.wordpress.com/2021/02/16/ash-wednesday-matthew-61-6-16-18/
8 Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things. 9 Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you.
In verse eight, Paul lists six virtues that we should focus our thoughts on. Paul was a Hellenized Jew, and here we see that, because this is a Greco-Roman virtue list. A teacher would give a list of virtues that his students should exhibit. Notice that there is nothing particularly Christian about any of them, for pagans of the time would also have recommended these virtues. While Paul sees a conflict between “the world” and Christianity, he does not mean that everything in the world is bad, for God created it. The world is fallen and needs saving but God created it to be good.
Christianity is not something completely new and foreign, for people have always understood the importance of certain virtues. Paul tries to speak to the Philippians in terms that are from their culture and they can understand. Instead of condemning a pagan culture, Paul takes from it things that correspond to Christianity and holds them up.
The first virtue is “whatever is true” which means honest or possibly “real” in the sense of opposition to “false”. This refers to our behavior, of course, but more is involved. We may all feel threatened when our beliefs are challenged; for example, some people reject scientific information on the creation of the universe because they see it as in conflict with the Bible. There are many truths we can reject because they do not conform to our world view. But God created this universe, and he allows us to be challenged in order to deepen our faith. Darwin greatly challenged many basic ideas of Christianity, but the reflections that grew from it were very beneficial to our understanding. We should never fear truth, for truth comes from God: as Jesus says, I am the way and the truth and the life. Some people fear that the church is in decline in the West and try to deny it or ignore it. But there’s a reason this is happening and we need to ask why.
The second virtue is noble or honorable. This could also be translated as worthy of respect and refers to morality. The third is what is right or just. Here Paul means something similar to the Beatitudes. Paul talks of being justified by faith which is the same root. This should automatically lead us to seek for justice in the world because virtue has a community basis. Justice is also obviously necessary for a peaceful society. The fourth is purity. This probably refers to our moral life and our motives. Note that the same Greek term is applied to Christ in 1 John 3:3.
The fifth refers to what is lovely. The term suggests aesthetic beauty rather than moral beauty. Paul seems to be saying here that we should be thankful to God for the beauty of his creation. Praising God in beautiful ways, such as music or painting also seems involved. This is paired with whatever is admirable or commendable. Christianity should not only look for what is just and upright but also what is beautiful and inspiring. Finally, Paul tells us to think about things that are excellent or praiseworthy. We must focus our thoughts on what is best.
In verse nine, Paul once again puts forward his own example. Pretty much every normal person agrees on what is good, so what makes Christianity superior? Paul suggests that if you want to see what is truly noble, right or pure, then look at Jesus. He is the definitive definition of all these terms. Paul never sees life as a Christian as easy but as something that must be practiced. To do this we must imitate Christ and look at the examples of Christians around us. To be good Christians we must set our minds on what is truly good which is Christ. Paul ends this verse by returning to the idea of peace. Christ has restored our relationship with God and so allowed us to have access to true peace. If we seek to follow Christ, think as he did and live as he did, then we will have joy and peace.
St. Joseph's Paris: Bible Study Website 