“Imitation,” they say, “is ...” (you fill in the blank).

            Yes, you can do it — because this is a well-known aphorism indeed. “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.”

            The apostle Paul says, here in Philippians, chapter 3: “Brothers and sisters, join in imitating me ....”

            Whatever can he mean?

            More to the point, how can anyone make a statement like that? Paul sounds awfully full of himself, doesn’t he? Can you imagine a person saying, “I am the be-all and end-all, the very paragon of humanity. So here’s how to get through life: Just do as I do!”

            Read on in the letter, though, and you’ll see Paul’s goal is far more modest. There are times, after all, when the only thing we can possibly do is to imitate another person.

            Have you ever taken golf or tennis lessons? It’s hard to learn anything at all of the proper technique without first observing very closely how the pro swings the club or the racket. And which one of us has ever learned how to swim, without first observing a swim teacher demonstrating the crawl or the breaststroke? Sometimes imitation isn’t about flattery at all. It’s simply about learning, in the simplest and most efficient way possible.

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