The Wisdom in Our Midst

Wis 7:22—8:1; Psalm: 118; Lk 17:20-25

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, in a world that clamors for dramatic signs and political solutions, the Word of God today reveals a profound and comforting truth: the Kingdom of God is not a matter of external observation, but a hidden reality of grace already active among us, and the key to perceiving it is the gift of Divine Wisdom.

The magnificent passage from the Book of Wisdom paints a breathtaking portrait of Holy Wisdom. She is “an aura of the might of God and a pure effusion of the glory of the Almighty.” She is “intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, subtle,” and “pervades and penetrates all things.” This is not merely a human virtue or intellectual knowledge. This is a divine personification of God’s own mind and creative energy, an attribute so sublime that she is “the refulgence of eternal light,” a spotless mirror of God’s goodness. Wisdom is the ordering principle of the universe, the beauty in creation, and the truth that the human heart seeks. She is, as the text concludes, “the artisan of all,” holding all things together.

This profound Old Testament revelation finds its ultimate fulfillment in the person of Jesus Christ. In the Gospel, the Pharisees ask when the Kingdom of God will come. They expect a political restoration, a visible, datable event. But Jesus answers, “The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed… For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.” The Greek here can mean “among you” or “within you.” Both are true. The Kingdom is present among them in the very person of Jesus, who is the incarnate Wisdom of God walking in their midst. And it is within us through grace, as we allow the Holy Spirit to form Christ in our hearts.

Jesus then turns to his disciples and warns them not to be drawn by those who cry, “Look, there he is!” for His ultimate coming will be as unmistakable as lightning. The path to that final glory, however, passes through the Cross: “First he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation.” The Wisdom of God, incarnate in Christ, is a suffering wisdom. The Kingdom is established not by military conquest, but by the sacrificial love of the King.

Jesus Christ is the “wisdom of God” (1 Cor 1:24). To know Him is to possess true wisdom. The Kingdom is primarily His reign in the human heart, a reign that begins now through faith and the sacraments, and will be consummated at the end of time.

As Pope Benedict XVI taught, “The Kingdom of God comes in the person of Jesus… it is he who is the Kingdom.”

This offers us immense comfort and strength. We need not anxiously search for signs or despair at the world’s turmoil. The Kingdom is already here, present in the Eucharist, active in the Church, and at work in every soul in a state of grace. Our task is not to calculate dates, but to cultivate a heart receptive to Wisdom.

How do we apply this? We ask for the gift of Wisdom in prayer, that we may see God’s hand in all things. We recognize the Kingdom “among us” by reverencing Christ in the poor and in the sacraments. We nurture the Kingdom “within us” through repentance, charity, and contemplation.

Let us take to heart the words of St. Augustine: “You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.” May we, through Christ, the Eternal Wisdom, perceive the quiet, powerful presence of His Kingdom in our midst and in our souls, and find our true rest in Him. Amen.

May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.