Human beings have always needed wisdom but have mostly thirsted after
knowledge. History shows us that we have become more knowledgeable but
not wiser. Of course, if we were wiser we might have sought after wisdom,
rather than knowledge!
Not that there's anything wrong with questing after knowledge - it has
led to great scientific advances, not least in medicine and communication
technology. Now the world not only has more knowledge than at any other
time, but also it's never been easier to access that knowledge, with the
internet. More knowledge, but not, it seems more wisdom.
Immanuel Kant, the C17th moral philosopher said:
'Science is organized knowledge. Wisdom is organized life.'
And that explains why leaders need wisdom; if they are going to order
human affairs, they need more than facts - they need to understand what
to do. Time and time again, we have seen a man or woman elected to a position
of leadership with great hope and expectation. Then, over time, they have
lost their shine, their people have become disappointed and even disillusioned.
We don't have to think of the worst examples such as Robert Mugabe, we
might think of the way Tony Blair ended his term of office and the way
George Bush is ending his. Leaders who have been in need of wise judgement
at key points in their leadership.
This week one of the greatest statesmen of our time has been celebrating
his 90th birthday. Nelson Mandela did not end his presidency in disgrace
and disappointment. One South African man was asked by a reporter what
he thought Mandela's greatest quality was… 'Humility'. Many leaders
trip over their own pride and arrogance. It takes humility to listen to
others, to understand their position and to gain a godly perspective -
that is true wisdom. Psalm 111 vs. 10 says that 'The fear of the Lord
is the beginning of wisdom.' i.e. Respect for the Creator of this world
and for His ways is the only way to understand it. And Solomon knew that.
The famous story we heard in our first lesson shows what great wisdom
Solomon had. Two women claimed to be the mother of one baby and Solomon
found a way of finding the real mother. The story follows his prayer for
wisdom - in humility he asks God for a wise and understanding mind, to
discern between good and evil. His prayer was granted and he was a great
leader, because he looked for divine guidance in his reign. Failure to
see things God's way and follow His ways leads ultimately to disintegration
of society and disunity in the nation - something we are seeing in Britain
today.
In our second lesson we see that God gave leadership in the emerging church
to those who were uneducated and ordinary, yet who sought His ways in
humility. The Sadducees, the rulers and elders had knowledge (they were
educated) but they lacked godly wisdom and tried to silence those who
did. Today, the church needs godly men and women more than ever. We can
rejoice that in the Archbishop of Canterbury we have one such. We have
a leader whose brilliant learning is combined with and informed by a life
of deep prayer and spiritual humility. With other church leaders, Rowan
Williams needs the wisdom of Solomon, which of course, is actually the
wisdom of God. He and the other bishops need our prayers, as they meet
for the Lambeth conference and then as they return to their own dioceses
and provinces.
And so now, let us pray…