Word to the Wise
Monday, September 24, 2018 - Monday in the 25th Week in Ordinary Time
[Prov 3:27-34 and Luke 8:16-18]Refuse no one the good on which he has a claim when it is in your power to do it for him. Say not to your neighbor, "Go, and come again, tomorrow I will give," when you can give at once. [Proverbs]
The use of proverbs is truly ancient. Collections like the ones in the Bible (Proverbs, Sirach, Ecclesiastes, Wisdom) are found in many of the ancient Middle Eastern cultures among others. The scribes who put these collections together found the spark of divine wisdom in these sayings. The New Testament shows their influence. We are familiar in our own culture with sayings of this kind that are cross stitched and framed in our own homes, or we remember our elders repeating, "A stitch in time, saves nine." "A penny saved is a penny earned." Some of these are famous from Benjamin Franklin's, POOR RICHARD'S ALMANAC.
There is wonderful richness in the Wisdom literature of the Bible. It can make for very rewarding reading as we see things said by ancient writers that have found a modern form in our own day. Perhaps a line based on Ecclesiastes (Qohelet) says it well: "There's nothing new under the sun." The latter book brings us the wonderful reflection, "A time to be born, a time to die, etc." The next few days will offer us selections to think about! AMEN