The Light shines out of darkness

~  Brother Thomas Paul  ~

Our enlightenment from the darkness of ignorance is called Wisdom. It is a free gift from God. It cannot be attained by our own understanding. Adam who was free from original sin too did not have this wisdom. God made Jesus….wisdom incarnate for us. Jesus came as Wisdom for us. We receive the Sacrament of Baptism to dispel the darkness of ignorance that came into this world through the original sin and also the ignorance that existed before that.

Jesus came as Light for us. This light means illumination/enlightenment…and this is Wisdom. The Almighty God, Creator of all, called into existence, Light out of darkness in His infinite wisdom. This is how Light came into existence. Our Pope Francis in his encyclical Lumen Fidei, talks about this…(In the Light of faith)
2 Corinthians 4:6 … “The God who commanded the Light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the Light of Knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
Have we ever wondered about the creation of light from darkness?

“O happy fault, … which gained for us so great a redeemer!”
(In the Roman Catholic rite, we proclaim the above in exultation)(CCC412)
Romans 5:20 … “The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more.”
It is important to understand that God is definitely more powerful when compared to sin!
In adoration & Holy Mass, we proclaim that Jesus cancelled all our sins… St. Paul states that God Almighty can transform evil into good.
The source of Wisdom is not the light we see around us… it is Knowledge. Before we attain wisdom, we are ignorant about several things and have sin in us. We develop understanding during our period of struggle with our sins and misconceptions.
We read in the gospel… ‘the child grew in wisdom’.
What did child Jesus learn? Jesus studied the Psalms. What was Jesus’ prayer?… The Psalms, the book filled with wisdom.
Luke 2:40-52 gives us a brief idea of how Jesus grew up and some of the things He learnt that would prepare Him for His public ministry.
Luke 2:40…’And the child grew and became strong; He was filled with Wisdom and the grace of God was on Him.’
Luke 2:46…’After three days, they found Him in the temple courts, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions.’
Luke 2:47…’Everyone who heard Him was amazed at His understanding and His answers.’
What do you think the boy Jesus discussed with the elders at the temple?
Let us imagine and consider this as a possible question for discussion….(only as an example)…
Why did God allow us, the Isrealites, His chosen people to live a harsh life of slavery?
Different answers were given by people gathered there . None of the answers were appropriate….then the boy, Jesus stood up and answered. Everyone marvelled at His answer and accepted His answer….What could be that answer?
When God made a covenent with Abraham, God told Abraham that He would make Abraham a great nation… but his descendants would have to go into slavery for 400 years after which God would save them.
This is the hidden Wisdom in the Word of God. The Holy Spirit will reveal everything to us. The Holy Spirit was present everywhere. The Holy Spirit is God’s divine Wisdom which abounds in Jesus. It will be easier for us to understand if we have Jesus and the Holy Spirit on either of our sides.
The twelve year-old boy, Jesus revealed astounding Wisdom.. never seen in anyone before.
The four evangelists who wrote the first four books of the New Testament had a symbol for each of their books…
The gospel of St.Mathew has the symbol of a divine man with wings. It represents Jesus’ life from the beginning…It talks about Jesus’ family tree starting from Abraham.
The gospel of St. Mark has the symbol of a majestic Lion. It represents the Lordship of Jesus. It is also the symbol of royal resurrection. The Lion sleeps with his eyes open…symbolizing The God who neither slumber nor sleeps…The Mighty King who is compassionate and merciful.
The Gospel of St. Luke has a winged ox as a symbol. It signifies priesthood and service. The ox is strong, carries any load, has tolerance for suffering and gives up its life as a sacrifice in the end.
Mathew 20:28..Mark 10:45…
‘I have come not to be served but to serve and give up my life as a ransom for many.’
The eagle is the symbol of the gospel of St. John. The eagle lives in the greatest heights. It is the symbol of revelation…the revelation of the deep hidden mysteries.
The Gospel of Mathew talks about Jesus, the Son of Man.
The Gospel of St Luke talks about Jesus, the High priests’ service to mankind.
Luke 2:52…’He grew in Wisdom and stature, finding favour with God and Man….here too, Wisdom is clearly observed as the principal aspect in Jesus.
Let us have a look at Jesus’ public ministry which commenced at the age of 30…
John 7:15
‘Then the Jews were amazed and said, “How is this man so learned, since he has not been trained?”
This is infused Wisdom.
Jesus answered, ” My teaching is not my own. It comes from the one who sent me. Anyone who chooses to do the Will of God will find out whether my teaching comes from God or whether I speak on my own.
Jesus makes it very clear here that God, the Father is the source of Jesus’ teaching.
Without any formal training, Jesus had great Wisdom. We too are called to receive the anointing of Wisdom from above…we have been anointed with this Wisdom in the sacraments of baptism and confirmation. We receive this anointing in the Holy Mass.
On the way to Emmaus, the disciples did not recognise Jesus who was walking with them and talking to them.Their eyes were blinded to the identity of Jesus. But after they received Jesus in the breaking of the bread, their eyes were opened. They understood everything. Let us introspect to ascertain whether we have been freed from our ignorance… whether we have overcome any of our misconceptions.
Such introspections will illuminate our hearts…A light from the darkness.