A reflection on the daily readings, for Monday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time, by Father Perry.
+ Wisdom of God — through God, within God, coming out from God — the word of God always was, is with God, and bestowed by God.
The awesomeness of God is the beginning of wisdom. Everything God looks at, speaks of, or touches is drenched with wisdom; for it is of God, and it is God.
And Sirach goes to the trouble to mention every drop of rain, every single strand of sand, heaven’s height and earth’s breadth, all eternity, are drenched in wisdom and both giving and revealing this wisdom.
All we can do is to approach it with humility and a huge dose of respect — that we might see and hear with wisdom so that we might find the almighty and everlasting one who is all holiness and the giver of all good gifts.
These first 10 verses of the first chapter of Sirach are said to be a poem about wisdom, and it seems as though Wisdom, to be appreciated, could only be described as one enormous poem — almost like a song.
+ But then we experience an event in the life and ministry of Jesus that exceeds the boundaries of the ordinary or the normal.
This one, a denunciation and renunciation of a particularly nasty evil spirit possessing an innocent boy, happens because a man has great faith and the humility to ask for more faith.
His faith-filled call out to Jesus is humble and unforgettable: “I do believe. Help my unbelief.”
And help, Jesus gives. The spirit of evil is ejected forever. The boy finally experiences some peace and wholeness.
Everyone is, of course, amazed once again.
The disciples are perplexed because they were incapable of “doing the job and taking care of business” and humbled by their lack of asking what went wrong.
Jesus reveals yet more of the great mystery which they all had to and have to realize.
“This kind can only come out by prayer.”
And we all know that prayer is sometimes, oftentimes, that ingredient that makes all of the difference.
A little more wisdom, it would seem!
Indeed!
Father Perry D. Leiker is the 13th pastor of St. Bernard Catholic Church. Reach him at (323) 255-6142. Email Father Perry at pleiker@stbernard-church.com. Follow Father Perry on Twitter: @MrDeano76.
