Is it Better to be Holy or Wise?
A professor once asked me, "Would you rather have a spiritual director who is holy or learned?" It led to a pretty deep reflection on which I would prefer...
I remember during one of my graduate school courses, the Professor posed a question to the class. He asked, “Would you rather have a spiritual director who is learned or a spiritual director who is holy?”
(Pause for a moment to answer this for yourself. Why did you answer the way you did?)
He pulled from the response of a Saint (I want to say it was John of the Cross but don’t quote me on that!)... and the Professor said that it is better to have a director who is learned than one who is holy, because someone who is holy simply knows how they grew in holiness, but one who is learned knows how to lead others there. I never forgot that answer… perhaps not for the reason you may think.
I never forgot it because I wasn’t sure if I agreed. Now… who am I to argue with a Saint? Who am I to argue with a professor FAR more wise than myself? But I did think the question required more prayer and reflection on my part, because my first response to his question was that I would rather have a director who is holy than one who is simply wise. If a person is BOTH, that is ideal, but if I only get to choose one… I would rather choose holiness over knowledge.
Here is my reflection on why…
I struggle often with the world’s constant pursuit and display of knowledge. Now, Scripture says, “fools despise wisdom and instruction,”1 so please do not misunderstand what I am saying. I am not saying we should all remain foolish and avoid growing in understanding; that would be foolish! However, I see so many who love knowledge and wisdom solely for the sake of knowing… perhaps for the sake of showing others they are wise. I actually often see this in the Catholic/Christian world. How many need to have the next best approach to ministry (even though so often it’s the same approach just packaged and explained differently)? How so many want to show they know more than the other or have a better grasp on teachings than another through unnecessary arguments or division… “Catholic one-ups-manship” is how it often feels.
My first experience of this was when I was hired to be a Catholic missionary for a summer. The missionaries were all talking about their favorite professors at their Catholic universities or seminaries and it felt a lot like the people of Corinth arguing among themselves, “I belong to Paul,” or “I belong to Apol′los,” or “I belong to Cephas,” or “I belong to Christ.”2 In Scripture, they argued among themselves to show who was better or more blessed based on who baptized them. I wouldn’t have articulated it this way back then, because I knew almost nothing about the Catholic faith… but thinking back, it felt similar. They “shared” their favorite Saints and what they liked about them, but it felt more like trying to prove why their Saint was better than the other.
While this was my first experience of this in a Catholic setting, I saw it at the beginning of each summer when I led college students through mentorship programs. It never failed that others would be discouraged during Catholic conversations with their peers. Each summer, I (and Fred) had to meet with individuals early on to encourage them as they shared that they did not feel good enough or smart enough to serve God.
This is why I had to reflect on the professor’s question more… because I think if someone is simply learned, it can lend itself to a need to show how wise he or she is and perhaps tend towards pride. But one who is holy, first, receives the gift of wisdom and knowledge from God; wisdom to lead others to holiness and virtue; not to discouragement.
I love reading “Imitation of Christ” by Thomas a Kempis because it often humbles me in the ways I need to grow. I can’t say I have a favorite book or chapter, because they all shine light into the darkened places of my heart and mind, but here is one that humbles me often:
“What good does it do to speak learnedly about the Trinity if, lacking humility, you displease the Trinity? Indeed it is not learning that makes a man holy and just, but a virtuous life makes him pleasing to God. I would rather feel contrition than know how to define it. For what would it profit us to know the whole Bible by heart and the principles of all the philosophers if we live without grace and the love of God? Vanity of vanities and all is vanity, except to love God and serve Him alone.”3
I believe that God can work more readily in a heart that is holy and humble than one that is learned and seeks knowledge above all else. Again, I am not saying do not seek knowledge; “a discerning heart seeks knowledge.”4 However, Scripture and history would show that God works, and often chooses, the humble, poor, unwise, or unqualified to show his great love and mercy. Among many saints, St. Bernadette Soubirous is a beautiful example of this. I do not know much about her, to be fair. What I do know comes from a reference made by another Saint I love and from a 30 minute children’s movie my kids love!
St. Bernadette was the young girl who received the apparitions of Our Lady of Lourdes. She once said in an exchange with her superior, “It was because I was the poorest and the most ignorant that the Blessed Virgin chose me. If she had found someone more ignorant than me, she would have chosen her.”
The passage I began this article with, in the first book of proverbs reads, “fools despise wisdom and instruction,” but that full verse reads, “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge; fools despise wisdom and instruction.”5 Our journey towards knowledge in God and the faith begins in our relationship with God. It begins in our pursuit of holiness and humility. It begins in our fear of the Lord.
I would prefer a director who is holy, because one that is holy receives not just the knowledge given through personal study and worldly instruction… but one who is holy and fears the Lord receives the gift of knowledge from God. One who is holy first grows in relationship with God and thus, “the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.”6
I felt led to share this reflection amidst my past articles about the Holy Spirit and charisms. There are many who have the gift of wisdom, knowledge, understanding, or council, but if they do… it is because they first seek Christ! As we grow in relationship with the Spirit, these supernatural gifts manifest. I believe that if one is truly learned in the mysteries of the Lord in a way that leads others to God, it is because they are first holy and fear the Lord.
I share this solely as encouragement for others. It is so easy to grow weary and discouraged when we see the ways we lack–whether in knowledge of the faith or in giftedness. However, do not grow weary. Simply turn to God and seek first the kingdom.
“The teaching of Christ is more excellent than all the advice of the saints… there are many who hear the Gospel often but care little for it because they have not the spirit of Christ… whoever wishes to understand fully the words of Christ must try to pattern his whole life on that of Christ.”7
Before all else, we must seek to grow in holiness and become more like Christ. What he wishes for our lives is sure to follow!
Proverbs 1:7
1 Corinthians 1:12
Thomas a Kempis, Imitation of Christ, book 1, chapter 1
Proverbs 15:14
Proverbs 1:7
Isaiah 11:2
Thomas a Kempis, Imitation of Christ, book 1, chapter 1