By FR. KEVIN M. CUSICK
We have access to abundant amounts of information at any given moment. The more we consume, sometimes, the less we know. It seems counterintuitive. One would think that the more facts one has at one’s disposal, the smarter one must be. On the surface it makes sense. But the more the mind plays on the surface, the less it is able to plumb the depths, to delve into what is happening and gain understanding and perception.
Sometimes nothing is happening. Many facts are not worth knowing. Time is limited. Discernment is also needed in deciding which information to avail ourselves of. Many become addicted to TV news before realizing a lot of the material is recycled in order to maintain the 24-hour cable news cycle.
Once the chain is broken and constant exposure to media, whether TV or Internet, is eliminated, one can actually begin to gain more insight about the news. Many real events develop slowly over time. When this is the case, it takes much more than a day’s news to perceive developments moving toward a recognizable solution. Once the repetitive noise is turned off, other elements begin to take prominence in the foreground of our minds and make evident what was obscured before.
Knowledge puffs up with pride, wisdom brings humility. Wisdom is attained by more than mere information. Consumption of facts without understanding leaves the human person dissatisfied and unfulfilled. Much of the information we receive today is atomistic. Bombarded on Twitter or Facebook with thousands of unrelated facts without discernment as to their value or even morality can leave us hungry for more. Mental exhaustion and dissatisfaction or increased envy do not, of course, enhance God’s gift of life. Much of this data is interspersed with ads also showing us the many things we don’t have and telling us we need to buy them.
We need the Lord and His wisdom. Otherwise, things own us, we don’t own them. Detachment from things and from the constant flow of irrelevant information frees us for the truth about God and about ourselves. Only in the silence made possible by turning off the information noise can we better hear the still, small voice of God calling us to recognize His will for us.
Reading the Scriptures with the Church in her sacred liturgies and at home on our own helps us to listen first to the Lord in daily life. We have been baptized for Eternal Life. We move forward on that pilgrimage through this world by taking deliberate steps through listening and discernment.
The proportion of our time spent in reading good books, over other forms of media, to include time spent on social media, is a matter of discernment and should be guided by wisdom. It should be discussed in the context of spiritual direction. The wasting of inordinate amounts of time on social media, gratuitous consumption of news beyond what is necessary for basic knowledge of current events, and consumption of other items on the Internet can rise to matters requiring Confession.
Reading good books, on the other hand, can give us the perspective of years thanks to the efforts of others who have gone before us. Above all we think of the Book of Wisdom as well as the whole of Sacred Scriptures. These are the books of divine Revelation, God speaking to us. Above all, it is in the four Gospels that we hear the Lord and see Him, most clearly, revealing God the Father and His holy will for our lives.
Our upcoming Christmas celebrations all center on the fullness of divine Revelation and its beginning in the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Lectio divina, the reading of the Scriptures and pausing to meditate, seeking the wisdom they confer, is a most valuable tool for prayer. If we would pray more intensely and fruitfully, it would be a daily task we can place at the center of time dedicated to prayer.
The Scriptures offer us wisdom, the understanding of ourselves and our world made possible in conversation with the One who created and redeemed us, and continues to offer sanctification leading to salvation in and through His Son.
“With the ancient is wisdom; and in length of days understanding” (Job 12:12). The wisdom of Scripture is found in the fact that it is the opposite of contemporary, but handed down as one with our faith, through Revelation. The Scriptures are the basis for our ongoing ecclesial and personal communication with God in the Holy Spirit.
Mary is the holy model of one in conversation with God. Our Lady is the seat of wisdom. She is our Mother and given us by God to lead us to Him.
Our Lady accompanies us on our pilgrimage through Advent in these last few days leading to the great celebration of the Nativity of our Lord. It was Mary’s receptivity to her Spouse, the Holy Spirit, which enabled her to conceive the Lord at the moment of the Annunciation. The Angel Gabriel’s message reached her ears, freed to hear the voice of God through holy availability.
We become more available to God by freeing ourselves of the petty agendas that can crowd Him out. Begin each day with a prayer, such as the Morning Offering, which dedicates the day to the Lord in imitation of Mary. Listen for His voice. Eliminate some unneeded clutter to give God room.
Our heavenly Mother intervenes in our day to call us to Heaven. She reminds us at Lourdes and Fatima of the necessity for repentance and penance. She calls us to the daily prayer of the holy rosary.
Did you know that at La Salette, our Lady predicted the attack on John Paul in 1981 on the anniversary of her apparition at Fatima? Did you know that her apparition at Lourdes was in answer to a call of the Pope upon God for help in the name of the Church?
Some think that John Paul II and Benedict alluded to still undisclosed revelations from Fatima, even after the release of the “Third Secret” of Fatima under John Paul II. Whether or not there is more to be revealed from Fatima, it remains true that we must stay close to our Lady who is best able to guide us through these dark days in the Church. Many of those who are divinely appointed to lead us cower in self-preserving silence and others disperse the flock through heresy and scandal. Our Lady may indeed have prophesied the widespread apostasy of our times.
Mary, Queen of Peace, pray for us!
Thank you for reading and praised be Jesus Christ, now and forever.
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