Some understandings to analyze:
I believe that saints have many problems (one would be humility versus pride to some sense). Because when you are in Gods ways, wisdom will come, and this can give you pride in your ways, and you forget that your ways should be Gods ways. And that you do and have wisdom because of God, that is why they say to have fear of God (and keep that fear, but is the fear of losing His ways, losing Him, for He is the source). That is what we need to keep in the conscience. Because we want to be like gods, that’s how we were tempted (in original sin for example). The other problem would be to belittle something that is good, giving it a lower standard so that it is easier to achieve it. But if only God is good, what then do we think is the standard of good?
The point in my understanding is that God should be first in your life, because in the means that God is first, you will “know” Him and be able to “see” His attributes and act “like” Him. And in this way you will care, the way you Truly Care, for only then you will act caringly like it is suppose to be acted. When God is first, that is your standard.
You should never think you are not good enough though (as a person), for you as a person have been valued since your creation. The value of the person is not what is at stake, or should be at stake, as God paid a price, and you see that He believes that, that, is the price He should pay for His creation. But He wants you to see that and follow that standard. You see that He paid a price but not for Himself (egoism) but to save His creation. Wouldn’t you think that God is better than ourselves, as He is perfect, thinking like man think, but then why does He sacrifices when we kill Him undeservingly not even from the point of justice?
The perfection should be searched not for our own benefit, but for Gods ways, because Gods ways is done for something good, and something good is always based on others. So when you do good, you do good to others. (Love is opposite to egoism, they can never make terms with each other) .
It’s a difficult subject, but the point I think is not forgetting to keep your sight on God. There could be different approaches, and what you need to look for are the basic principles in them (those that are based on God). Maybe now that I am thinking on it, maybe “perfection” can be some sort of “balance”. Not about being perfect an imperfect and being satisfied in that, but in being imperfect and looking for perfection, and staying there (on the search, as that means you will be searching for God). In that balance there are many ways, and maybe if God is the principle in all of them, they can all be correct to some sense. Meaning that there are many ways of being holy, if the north is truly God in your ways. God will take you were He wants and not what you think He wants. For probably your thinking will be realistic and pragmatic.
Some thought: Maybe in our humility we see the drive to perfection. Meaning that in our weakness we see the need to search for God, for pureness. Then our weakness helps us keep our sight on God. Because if we were “pure”, we would probably think we were gods. And if we stay satisfied of not being pure we would continue being impure.
