The Nature Of Wisdom

In his quest for wisdom, Solomon gives us a very poetic account of the nature of wisdom. She is similar to that of the pagan goddess of wisdom, Isis. He seeks to intertwine the Greek wisdom with that of the Hebrew understanding of the Logos, the Word, being the personification of wisdom. Some have understood wisdom as the Spirit. Notice that wisdom is absolute perfection in the real sense since there are seven qualities of the nature of our wisdom, in groups of three. Seven was the perfect number and three being the divine number in Hebrew thought.

Wisdom is personified as spirit; in other ways, justice or Word. Certain characteristics are mentioned: intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, unstained, certain, clear, not baneful, loving, good, keen, unhampered, beneficent, kindly, secure, firm, tranquil, all-powerful, all-seeing and all-pervading. It seems we could be almost describing a person with such qualities.

Wisdom is described in feminine form as the one who reflects the purity of God, the aura of God, the spotless mirror of the power of God. Her work involved making friends of God and prophets. God loves the one whom she has possessed. She is light eternal, renews all things and passes into souls in every generation. In this meditation on wisdom, one can almost see parallels with the sequence given to us at Pentecost.

In the sequence of Pentecost, the Church puts upon our lips the invocation of the Holy Spirit. “Shed your ray of light divine…the soul’s welcome guest… our inmost being fill… heal our wounds, our strength renew… guide the steps that go astray.”

The sages of old gave practical advice on living. They were men and women of wisdom, aged with experience and powerful in their insight. Let us invoke these women and men of old so that we, too, would be filled with wisdom. Let us act wisely in our life for in this we shall find God’s favor. Fr. Brian Steele, MGL

Reflection Question:
Pray for the gift of wisdom.

Lord, grant me wisdom of heart that I may please You all my life. Amen.

St. Monitor, pray for us.

One Bread, One Body - ALWAYS PREPARED

Dedication to Pope St. Leo the Great

Wisdom 7:22—8:1, Psalm 119:89-91, 130, 135, 175 , Luke 17:20-25
Link to Readings --> http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/111011.cfm

"Once, on being asked by the Pharisees when the reign of God would come, [Jesus] replied..." —Luke 17:20

At the end of the world, there will be terrible suffering. Jesus said: "A time will come when you will long to see one day of the Son of Man but will not see it" (Lk 17:22). "Those times will be more distressful than any between God's work of creation and now" (Mk 13:19). At the end of the world, many will be confused. "They will tell you He is to be found in this place or that. Do not go running about excitedly" (Lk 17:23). There will be a mass apostasy from faith in the Lord (2 Thes 2:3). The end of the end will come very quickly. "The Son of Man in His day will be like the lightning that flashes from one end of the sky to the other" (Lk 17:24; see also Lk 17:31). Whether or not we are alive for the end of the world, it's likely that our future holds great sufferings, times of confusion, and unexpected changes. Therefore, we all need to develop a deep, totally committed, personal relationship with the Lord that is strong enough to withstand anything, even terrible sufferings. We also need to be confirmed in our understanding of the Bible and the teachings of the Church. In times of confusion, we desperately need to be clear about the Truth. Finally, we must not delay doing what the Lord calls us to do. At the end, events will be happening so quickly, we won't have time to do anything. Therefore, we must do it now. Believe, repent, forgive, give, witness, obey, serve, etc. Do it now, for we know not the day or the hour when Jesus will come (Mt 24:36).

Prayer: Jesus, come back today or as soon as possible.

Promise: "She produces friends of God and prophets. For there is nought God loves, be it not one who dwells with Wisdom." —Wis 7:27-28

Praise: Pope St. Leo's life-changing sermons are still calling many to holiness through the Liturgy of the Hours.

http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp?d=11/10/2011

One Bread, One Body - BUILDING BLOCKS

Wednesday, November 9, 2011, Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome

Ezekiel 47:1-2, 8-9, 12, 1 Corinthians 3:9-11, 16-17, Psalm 46:2-3, 5-6, 8-9, John 2:13-22
Link to Readings --> http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/110911.cfm

"I laid a foundation as a wise master-builder might do." -1 Corinthians 3:10
The international outreach of the Pope and the Vatican has probably never been greater than the present. Pope John Paul II was a prolific missionary pope. We have more dioceses and parishes than at any time in the two-thousand-year history of the Church. Geographically, the Church has never been as "catholic" (universal) as today. Nevertheless, the Church is struggling, especially in Western Europe, Australia, and America.
One main reason for the breakdown of the Church in some parts of the world is that the basic unit of the Church is no longer functional. The universal Church is made up of dioceses, dioceses are comprised of parishes, but of what are parishes comprised? In some parts of the world, parishes are made up of individuals and nuclear families. Historically, these are not the basic units of a parish. A parish is intended to be a community of small communities, a family of extended families.
This is what we celebrate in today's feast. The Basilica of John Lateran was one of the first parish churches. It was built so that several communities could come together. On this feast day, let's pray for the Church to be renewed by the Spirit, raising up small communities to be the basic units of the parish.

Prayer: Father, may I be a living stone (1 Pt 2:5) in a living community of Christians.

Promise: "The temple of God is holy, and you are that temple." -1 Cor 3:17

Praise: "How lovely is Your dwelling place, O Lord!" (Ps 84:2) We rejoice in the shadow of Your wings. All glory and praise be to You.

http://www.presentationministries.com/obob/obob.asp?d=11/9/2011

My Daily Eucharist

Oh, how high and honorable is the office of priests, to whom is given power to consecrate with sacred words the Lord of majesty, to bless Him with their lips, to hold Him in their hands, to receive Him in their mouths, and to communicate Him to others. How clean should be the hands, how pure the lips, how holy the body, how spotless the heart of a priest, into whom the Author of all purity so often enters. From the mouth of a priest, who so often receives the Sacrament of Christ, nothing should issue but what is holy, true, and edifying. Let his eyes, that so often look on the Body of Christ, be simple and chaste. Let his hands, that handle the Creator of Heaven and earth, be pure and raised to Heaven (I Tim 2: 8). For to priests in particular are addressed the words of the Law, 'Be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy' (Lev 19: 2).

Almighty God, let Your grace assist us, that we who have undertaken the office of priesthood may be enabled to serve You worthily and devoutly in all purity and with a good conscience. And although we cannot remain in such innocence of life as we ought, yet grant us sincerely to lament our sins, and to serve You henceforward with greater devotion, in the spirit of humility and with good will and intention.

 

The Imitation of Christ
Thomas A Kempis

Run To God

"And when they saw him, they pleaded with him to leave the region." - Matthew 8:34

I give regular talks to young professionals in Makati. One time, as part of my presentation, I asked if anyone might have questions. A young man raised his hand, stood up and asked, rather intensely, “Is it all right to get angry with God?”

I’d been serving Jesus for 23 years, and finished my Master in Theology with flying colors. I’d been a church leader for more than half my life. All these achievements came to my mind would help me to answer him. So, I looked in his eyes, smiled a bit and confidently told the group, “Ok, let’s have our closing prayer, please.”

I did not know what to say! And in times like this, I’m sure of one thing only – prayer. So I prayed silently.

When I was granted an answer, I looked at this young man again, and said, “Bro, I cannot say that you are wrong for being angry with God. I do not know what you’ve been through. I only have one answer – if you are mad at Him, go to Him still. When you talk to Him, bring with you your remorse for He will always understand… because He is your God.”

If you happen to be angry with God now, don’t run away from Him. Go to Him. Go to your God. He is waiting for you. Arun G.

Reflection: Have you been hurt in life? Where do you run to? Run to your God!

Lord, when I am hurting, I will run to You.

St. Bertha, widow and abbess, pray for us.

One Bread, One Body - THE CULTURE OF DEATH

"By the envy of the devil, death entered the world, and they who are in his possession experience it." –Wisdom 2:24

Pope John Paul II called© our Western, secularized culture "the culture of death." Married couples refuse to conceive children; we abort babies; we withdraw food from terminally ill patients so that they will die; masses commit suicide through alcohol and other drugs; we entertain ourselves by watching people kill each other on TV. We are a culture of sin, and because the wages of sin is death (Rm 6:23), we are a culture of death.

"It was the wicked who with hands and words invited death, considered it a friend, and pined for it, and made a covenant with it, because they deserve to be in its possession" (Wis 1:16). "Court not death by your erring way of life, nor draw to yourselves destruction by the works of your hands" (Wis 1:12). We either repent of our sins or court, marry, and become possessed by death. We either give our lives to God, Who is Life (Jn 14:6), or become lifelong, everlasting slaves of Satan, the prince of death (Heb 2:14-15).

"I call heaven and earth today to witness against you: I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life" (Dt 30:19).

PRAYER:	Father, use me to save babies from abortion and other people from sin and damnation.
PROMISE:	"The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and no torment shall touch them. They seemed, in the view of the foolish, to be dead; and their passing away was thought an affliction and their going forth from us, utter destruction. But they are in peace." –Wis 3:1-3
PRAISE:	Larry and Sarah repented of their contraceptive lifestyle and soon became prominent figures in pro-life movements.

Source: http://www.mycatholic.com/reflections/2011-312.html