012 FOUNDATION BLOCKS OF INTEGRATIONAL SPIRITAN MOVEMENT
EPILOGUE ; The Wisdom of Jesus Son of Sirach
I once met three philosophers arguing about the nature of God. The
Christian theologian among them insisted on the Trinitarian doctrine, the
Oriental Christian emphasised that the Holy Spirit proceeded only from the
Father whereas the Roman Christian argued that the Holy Spirit proceeded from
both the Father and the Son!
I laughed at them. They got angry. In unison,
they demanded to know why I was laughing them to scorn. I said, “Why not
bother yourselves about the things in the world that you can comprehend? Leave
God alone!” One of them interjected, “Why do you say that, are you wiser
than the Holy Church fathers and the great theologians that handed down these
doctrines?”
“Thank you very much for being truthful. You
just called them ‘doctrines’ and that’s exactly what they are! You can’t arrive at any meaningful
conclusion in your argument since all we can ever know or say about him is, “God exists!” And what that really means is
this: “God is the Almighty Being that created everything that exists in the
universe. Anything else anybody says or we say is puerile, futile and simply
mundane guesswork!” I concluded.
In I.S.M. we do not theorise about what we
have no existential answers that can satisfy human reasoning! We limit
ourselves to provable and rational concepts, no mysteries, no dogmas and no
doctrines. You are very welcome to disproving anything we posit, provided you
can defend your position convincingly, and carry along seventy-five per cent of
humankind. We are okay! It will be interesting to introduce my readers to a
grandfather in ethical philosophy and my cherished psychotherapy master. I
learnt so much from him in my youth that sharing his thoughts with you is the
only natural thing that my naïve mind can think of now. It is evident in his
book that much of what he preached, which was later transcribed into the Greek
language by a grandson, was addressed to the Israelites living in exile at
different parts of the world at the time of his writing. This concise reproduction is taken from the 1979 edition of
GOOD NEWS BIBLE, (TEV DC053P) Today’s English Version
with Deuterocanonical Books/Apocrypha as published by BIBLE SOCIETIES and
printed by COLLINS & FONTANA.
In INTEGRATIONAL SPIRITAN
MOVEMENT (ISM), all edifying social ethics that will foster world peace or
the harmonious living together of all Homo sapiens is the paramount factor in
choosing reprints. I have come to appreciate the non-partisan portions of his
ocean of ethical principles. All those who seek veritable wisdom need to drink
from this fountain of knowledge. It is the universality of some of his counsels
that merits its reproduction here for all those who may not have access to the
complete Bible edition. I hope you’ll enjoy it as I did in my youthful days
when our teachers encouraged voracious reading. Spread the message in it to
everyone that you may meet after its ennobling insight has sunk into your bone
marrow!
The Book of Sirach (aka.
Ecclesiasticus) 1: 1-30
“In
Praise of Wisdom
v.1: All wisdom comes from the Lord,
And Wisdom is with him for ever.
v.2: Who can count raindrops
Or the sand along the shore?
Who can count the days of eternity?
v.3: How high is the sky? How wide is the earth?
How deep is the ocean? How profound is
Wisdom?
Can anyone find answers to these questions?
v.4: Wisdom was created before anything else;
Understanding has always existed.
v.5: The source of wisdom is the word of God on
high;
Her ways are eternal commands.
v.6: Has anyone ever been shown
Where Wisdom originates?
Does anyone understand her subtle
cleverness?
v.7: To whom has the knowledge
Of Wisdom been revealed?
Who has understood her great experience?
v.8: There is only one who is wise,
And we must stand in awe before his
throne.
v.9: The Lord himself created Wisdom;
He saw her and recognised her value,
And so he filled everything he made with
Wisdom.
v.10:
He gave some measure of wisdom to everyone,
But poured her out on those who love
him!
v.11: If you fear the Lord,
Honour and respect will be yours;
You will be crowned with happiness and
joy.
v.12: To honour the Lord is a heartfelt delight;
it will give you a long and happy
life,
v.13: And at the end of your days
all will go well for you.
God will bless you on the day of your
death.
v.14: To revere the Lord is the first step to
Wisdom.
Wisdom is given to the faithful in
their mother’s wombs.
v.15: She has lived with us from ancient times,
And generations to come will rely on
her.
v.16: To fear the Lord is Wisdom at her fullest;
She satisfies us completely with her
gifts
v.17: And fills our homes and our barns
With all that our hearts can desire.
v.18: To fear the Lord is the flower of Wisdom.
That blossoms with peace and good
health.
v.19: She sends knowledge and
Understanding like the rain,
And increases the honour of
those
Who receive her!
v.20: To fear the Lord is the root of Wisdom;
Her branches are long life!
v.22: There is no excuse for unjustified
anger;
it can bring about our downfall
v.23: Wait and be patient,
And later you will be glad you did.
v.24: Keep quiet until the right time to speak,
And you will gain a reputation for
good sense.
v.25: Wisdom has a treasury of wise sayings,
But sinners have nothing but contempt
for godliness.
v.26: If you want to be wise keep the Lord’s
commands,
And he will give you Wisdom in
abundance.
v.27: Fearing the Lord is Wisdom
and an education in itself.
He is pleased by loyalty and humility.
v.28: Be faithful in the practice of your religion;
When you worship the Lord,
Do it with all your heart.
v.29: Be careful about what you say,
And don’t be a hypocrite.
v.30: Don’t be arrogant;
You may suffer a fall and be
disgraced.
The Lord will reveal your secrets
And humble you in front of
everyone in the synagogue, because you did not come there with reverence for
the lord, but with a heart full of hypocrisy.”
I have nothing to add. Drink
in this wisdom and become a Kenezian!
*Signed on 04.04.04 @ 1200 GMT by Rev. Prof. J. J. Kenez!
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