The Praise of Wisdom – that’s how we could define the Book of Sirach, from which we read for continuation. Emphasizes the need to „be smart. “ But, be wise when we do stupid things many times. And that is often entirely unexpected. The first reading also gives us a recipe: …push God and don’t let him make you wise. The apostles were stuck with Jesus, and yet they acted very stupidly. The Lord says: The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him, and the apostles argued among themselves on the way as to which of them was more remarkable. Foolish attitude. What will help with wisdom?
Let’s analyze ourselves first: We often encounter problems with easy solutions. E.g., recognize when thrift goes into stinginess. When is loneliness, and when is society an escape from the will of God? The problem is distinguishing whether the motive for the activity is good zeal, or whether it is a well-disguised ambition, whether to pray, or whether it is necessary to do something, whether something only serves our hobbies, and whether we need it for the family… Whoever wants to fulfill God’s appointed task must solve various dilemmas daily. To do this, it is not enough to rule. You also need to know. That is why it is said in the Scriptures: “Wisdom is better than strength. (Eccl. 9,16).
Let’s ask ourselves: What wise have I seen in others? We might remember how someone cleverly came to the money, got an inheritance, and got cut out of something… Is it wisdom? Everyone is this wise for themselves. Even a tiny child can trample or “cry” his! That’s not wisdom, that’s selfishness! So, we can almost say that wise is what is not selfish. And here we come to what St. Paul calls folly (see 1. Cor 1,18-21). Yes, St. Paul considers wisdom to be different from what we imagine. Let’s compare what he writes about it next: Let no one lie to himself! If any of you think he is wise at this age, let him become a fool to be wise.
Because the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God, it is written: „On catches the wise in their cleverness” (1 Cor 3, 18-19). He who does not think he is wise seems to be wise. It isn’t easy to live with little mental ability. The worst thing is if someone is so limited that they overlook their limitations. He desperately wants to prove superiority over others. And when reason is not enough, it reaches for other means. That is the field for intrigue and violence.
An example can be the stoning of St. Stefan. Those who could not resist his wisdom (Sk 6,10) argued with rocks. As soon as we get upset, for example, we lack wisdom.
An able person has less chance of adequately solving the dilemmas we mentioned initially. And like every poor person, he is mainly subject to envy. But he can also falsely humbly retreat, not dare to do the desired tasks. However, he should follow the advice of St. James: „ If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives to all generously and without reproach, and he will receive it. But let him ask with faith and without doubt“ (Jam. 10,19). The Lord’s assurance that „ will be given to us at that moment“ (Mt 10,19) is undoubtedly not meant to promote convenience. It applies in situations that, through no fault of ours, exceed our capabilities.
V The book of Proverbs says: „U of those who take advice is wisdom (Proverbs 13:10). However, this requires a piece of humility that everyone needs equally. Perhaps even more capable ones. The dangers of high IQ and extensive knowledge are mainly prided, conceit, superiority, and contempt. „Woe to those who are wise in their own eyes and reasonable in front of themselves! (Isaiah 5, 21).
Can we develop mental abilities? A person can and should develop cognitive skills within a genetically given limit. The irony is that although a high IQ enables knowledge of a high degree, it is enough for few to know the most prominent and eye-catching truth, that God is the owner and giver of all intelligence. Before his intelligence, we are all equally pathetic. IQ 70, 100, and 140 seem very different from our point of view, but there are negligible differences between them, like a height difference of a few hundred meters concerning the sun. The feeling of superiority of the more capable over the less capable is not justified, yet it often occurs in all forms.
