Lost in Knowledge; Lacking in Wisdom

Yet another year is upon us. Even with my optimistic glasses on, I am afraid that I don't anticipate a sudden and significant change in issues plaguing our society. Pain and misery still exists in the midst of all the scientific and technological advancements that we have experienced in the recent history. One might even argue that sufferings and influence of evil have a tighter grip on us than ever before. Wealth, convenience and abundance have failed to bring us true happiness and satisfaction. We live in a society that is overloaded with knowledge - almost everybody is a 'how-to guru'. Unfortunately as individuals we lack the wisdom to sort through the clutter of knowledge to identify what matters to us. I have this humble opinion that, more than ever, we need guidance to navigate through the overbearing load of information and knowledge. I believe that we live in a time where we need to re-examine our notion of the validity of a Church that looks old and the significance of the Word of God that seems ancient and out of touch with reality. Everyday more and more people are distancing themselves from the God, His word and His Church. People find it hard to link our everyday problems with a book that was written thousands of years ago. But can the word of God through the Church provide us with the wisdom to sort through our daily mess and find peace and happiness in a sinful world?


Most of my adult life I struggled with the Bible; most of that stuff made no sense to me, many of the things like animal sacrifices and a jealous and unfair God was repulsive, and the few things I liked and agreed with were hard acts to follow in a practical world. But the merciful God granted me the grace to find a place for the Bible in my life filled with selfishness, greed and lust. During the short time since, what I came to understand is that the Word of God is very significant in a world that is doing everything it can to distance itself from God. What we need to understand is that we are not the first generation of people who sat down to eat and stood up to dance. It has happened before. The Bible is not just a book that glorifies God and stubbornly insists its readers to believe in Him to avoid hell. Rather, the Bible chronicles the struggles of humanity - with themselves, each other and also with God. It talks about a merciful, benevolent, and gracious God who forgives the neglect of His creation even if they only turn to Him in time of need. There is so much love in the Bible, it is beyond the comprehension of any human being. 

For the next three months leading up to Easter, I would like to venture into a task of bringing the Bible into our everyday life. Hopefully with the grace of God, some of you might be able to discover the practical application of the Word of God for our everyday problems and beyond. I would also be talking about the significance of the Catholic Church in our modern society by discussing some relevant topics such as role of women in the Church, the infallibility of the Pope, and human rights. I encourage all of you to engage in these discussions. Many of us have the awareness that doubting or questioning the teachings of the Church or the Bible is a big no no. Fortunately for us, it is a wrong conception. Pope Benedict famously said people must find "the courage to say, 'I don't understand you, Lord. Listen to me. Help me understand.'" He even went on to say that we have a right to ask Jesus for an explanation (Please go here to read the article). I will be talking about things that I had issues with and how I came to resolve it. One of the things I must say upfront is that many of the things that we find difficult to believe or adhere to could be misinterpretations of the actual teachings. It is only normal and expected when humans try to interpret the wisdom and knowledge of an Omniscient and Omnipotent God. So I pray, "May God grant that I speak with judgment and have thought worthy of what I have received, for he is the guide even of wisdom and the corrector of the wise. For both we and our words are in his hand, as are all understanding and skill in crafts." (Book of Wisdom 7:15,16)