vladimirgrebenar 
We generally define wisdom as synthesized great knowledge and experience that is beneficial to the individual and the community. Wisdom as interpreted by faith and wisdom as interpreted by philosophy and science are not the same concepts. One should distinguish the charism of wisdom from worldly wisdom. The charism of wisdom is the gracious gift of the Holy Spirit that comes by living in faith, and worldly wisdom is a kind of rational pragmatism and cunning gained through life experience without true faith. The charism of wisdom elevates man’s reflections toward God and His plans, whereas worldly wisdom is directed toward human goals and the exercise of one’s own will.
With the charism of wisdom, a person demonstrates the ability to make the most excellent decisions for the benefit of all, and secular wisdom seeks in the first place the realization of their own interests. The charism of wisdom implies great knowledge of spiritual and natural reality, while worldly wisdom relies on rational knowledge and does not possess the depths of spiritual knowledge. Wisdom has no limits, but is boundless since it comes from a God who is unsurpassed.
That is why wisdom is constantly growing and one can always ascend to a higher level than the previous one. A prerequisite for the acquisition of wisdom is a great longing of the heart to acquire this gift of grace through persevering prayer and a tried life in faith. The path to wisdom is complete surrender of the heart to God and complete trust in God, not in your natural strength: “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths” (Prov. 3:5-6).
Wisdom helps a person understand in what kind of narrative God acts in specific circumstances, and because of this knowledge a person obtains peace, grows even more in faith, feels a strong presence of God, even when everyone else seems to have withdrawn and does not act. A wise man understands deeper, wider and more and therefore his decisions are not initially understandable to everyone, but later they glorify God and have a greater positive impact on other people.
A wise man recognizes God’s pedagogy in the trials and humiliations that he goes through, as well as His will to teach him greater wisdom, for wisdom is not acquired by a book, but by the experience of a tried life in faith. The path to wisdom brings temptations and humiliations from the world: ” For in fire gold is tested, and the chosen, in the crucible of humiliation” (Sir. 2:5). However, a wise man does not withdraw from trials, accusations and humiliations, but surpasses them all by the power of God’s wisdom given to him: “But wisdom is justified of her children” (Matt. 11:19).
The wisdom of God, by the power of righteousness, opposes conceited people who laugh at God’s Law and do evil. He puts before their faces their deeds and guilt when they fall because of their pride, because they did not care for the fear of God. Because of their arrogance they became even stupider: “How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? Turn you at my reproof! (…) They would none of my counsel: they despised all my reproof. Therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way, and be filled with their own devices. (…) For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, and the prosperity of fools shall destroy them“ (Prov. 1:22-32).
It is the wisdom of God that laughs last, promotes the victory of righteousness, and rewards those who long for it and remain faithful to God. The Lord promises great spiritual graces and material blessings to all who love God’s wisdom: “I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me. Riches and honour are with me; yea, durable riches and righteousness. My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; and my revenue than choice silver. I lead in the way of righteousness, in the midst of the paths of judgment: That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance; and I will fill their treasures” (Prov. 8:17-21).
The charism of wisdom is acquired as grace in two ways:
- lived experience of faith,
- and God’s extraordinary intervention
The first way to acquire the charism of wisdom is through a long process of learning and after much experience of discerning, knowing and understanding the interdependence of spiritual and natural reality. From an early age, the Lord Jesus “increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man” (Luke 2:52). This journey is long and requires great patience and perseverance: “If you wish, my son, you can be wise; if you apply yourself, you can be shrewd. If you are willing to listen, you can learn; if you pay attention, you can be instructed” (Sir. 6:32-33).
In addition to constantly learning and understanding natural and spiritual laws, wisdom is gained by reflecting on past events in which God’s influences are discerned and understood, as well as how God has directed the course of things. Wisdom is also gained by doing God’s will and by experiencing faith in humility.
It is the discernment and deep inner knowledge of how God acted in specific circumstances that is the key to gaining wisdom, because as a rule these are less obvious influences that are revealed only when one prays for enlightenment and understanding of God’s influence. Man works on himself through personal and professional growth the best he can, but he prays to God that the Spirit of Wisdom works in him and miraculously connects the inner knowledge of the heart with the acquired rational knowledge.
Another way to acquire the charism of wisdom is when God works through extraordinary intervention, and we read about this in the Old Testament when God revealed Himself in a dream to Solomon, a young king with no experience of governing the state and the people: “God said, Ask what I shall give thee” (1 Kings 3:5). Among other things, Solomon replied: “Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy (…), and I am but a little child: I know not how to go out or come in (…) Give therefore thy servant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may discern between good and bad“ (1 Kings 3:6-9).
Solomon’s prayer was pleasing to God, because he did not seek glory, riches and a long life for himself, but the ability to discern in order to do justice before the people to the glory of God. That is why God said to him: “lo, I have given thee a wise and an understanding heart; so that there was none like thee before thee, neither after thee shall any arise like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou hast not asked, both riches, and honour (…). And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as thy father David did walk, then I will lengthen thy days” (1 Kings 3:12-14).
God gave Solomon more than the gift of discernment he prayed for. He gave him a “wise and an understanding heart,” which means that discernment, understanding, and wisdom are intertwined charisms, one on a higher level of spirituality than the other. The path to wisdom leads through discernment, knowledge, and understanding. God is the sovereign lord of all His graces, and He rewarded Solomon with extraordinary graces, greater than those he prayed for, but even more than that, He rewarded him with blessings he did not pray for.
The blessings for which he did not pray are in fact the result of the gracious gift of wisdom, for the wisdom of God poured out into man necessarily leads to the great success by which God is glorified. Thus, King Solomon miraculously completed the undertaking of building the first temple of God in Jerusalem. To receive the charism of wisdom means to receive guaranteed success in endeavors: “Wisdom sings her own praises, among her own people she proclaims her glory” (Sir. 24:1).
Yet, Jesus said of Himself, “behold, a greater than Solomon is here” (Luke 11:31), because Christ grew up in the wisdom of Solomon. At His baptism in the river Jordan, Jesus received a fullness of wisdom even greater than Solomon’s. Therefore, Christians who receive the Body of Christ should know that in this sacrament there is the grace of the charism of Wisdom, for the Spirit of Wisdom is the Spirit of Jesus: “And the spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding” (Isa. 11:2). Wisdom should be prayed for and wisdom sought, for it will not be given of itself against the will of man.
Wisdom is an extremely important way for God to communicate to man, and especially to people who have some kind of social responsibility. The spirit of wisdom inspires the mind and heart of man to reflect on specific circumstances and make the decision that God would make in those circumstances. Having the wisdom of God means being able to observe some events from God’s perspective, as much as man can bear the truth about the reality he is observing. That is why it is extremely important that leaders pray for wisdom so that their decisions and time management bring results. It is wise to pray for wisdom, because it is the path to success.
For example, an entrepreneur – director – owner of a company with hundreds of employees is facing major market changes and negative macroeconomic indicators. The national economy is entering a recession, and most companies are directing their business activities to survival, while fear and political insecurity reign in society. Secular sages in the roles of various consultants under the influence of rational fear advise disinvestment, stagnation and caution based on economic analysis. But an entrepreneur who has gained the wisdom of running a business through living in faith in this situation is looking for the door that the Lord has left open for him.
Entrepreneur-believer knows that he must not listen to the prophets of the world, but that faith in Christ obliges him to listen to the Spirit of wisdom. In the silence of the prayer room, he receives the realization that a new great change and a new creation will follow. After the next few prayers, he receives enlightenment and an understanding of how God has prepared him through the previous trials for the change that follows. Wisdom helps him to have no choice but to have faith and trust in God, who has acted in the same way in the past, but on less challenging changes.
The narrative of the Israelites coming out of Egypt and walking through the desert all the way to the temptation of hunger and thirst are for him the wisdom in deciding and intending to wait for God until the last moment to be glorified. The entrepreneur who has received such knowledge, understanding and wisdom is now ready for new challenges for which he does not feel fear, but joy, because he knows “that all things work together for good to them that love God” (Rom. 8:28).[1]
[1] The article was published with minor changes in: Veritas. Glasnik sv. Antuna Padovanskog. Croatian Province of St. Jerome of the Franciscan Conventuals. Zagreb. Sveti Duh 31. No. 2. February 2022. P. 36.