Above: A Blind Man, 1914-1918
Image Source = Library of Congress
Ecclesiastes and John, Part V: Scorned Wisdom
MONDAY, JUNE 1, 2020
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Blessed Lord, who caused all holy scriptures to be written for our learning:
Grant us so to hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them,
that we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life,
which you have given us in our Savior Jesus Christ;
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
–The Book of Common Prayer (1979), page 236
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The Assigned Readings:
Ecclesiastes 8:1-17 (May 30)
Ecclesiastes 9:1-17 (June 1)
Psalm 36 (Morning–May 30)
Psalm 120 (Morning–June 1)
Psalms 80 and 27 (Evening–May 30)
Psalms 32 and 139 (Evening–June 1)
John 9:1-23 (May 30)
John 9:24-41 (June 1)
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A poor man’s wisdom is scorned,
And his words are not heeded.
–Ecclesiastes 9:16b, TANAKH: The Holy Scriptures
That passage fits the experience of the blind man in John 9. Even with his new vision he understood Jesus more clearly than any of our Lord’s critics. Their ideology blinded them to reality, for they thought that they knew how God worked, and Jesus, by his life and deeds, contradicted that understanding. So, like people who did not want to be confused by facts, they doubled down on their ideology. It was safe and familiar.
Their ferocity in the story reveals something else. Such meanness and anger indicated that these men were trying to convince themselves of what they said. They could not pretend for long that what had happened had not occurred, so they looked for alternative explanations. And they committed injustice in the process.
Among the most dangerous people are defensive ones. I have learned that lesson by living and by monitoring the news. And the combination of defensiveness with a disregard for objective reality is more dangerous, especially in the news media and in the corridors of power. Good decision-making requires, among other things, a firm grounding in objective reality.
As for the rest of us–those not in power–a firm grounding in objective reality matters very much. And how we treat others–cruelly or not–matters to them. May we refrain from harming others to make ourselves feel good or better.
KENNETH RANDOLPH TAYLOR
JULY 3, 2012 COMMON ERA
THE FEAST OF ELIZABETH FERARD, ANGLICAN DEACONESS
THE FEAST OF SAINT ELIZABETH OF PORTUGAL, QUEEN
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http://blogatheologica.wordpress.com/2013/04/23/ecclesiastes-and-john-part-v-scorned-wisdom/
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