The Time of Wisdom
Every year on December 17 we transition into the last part of the season of Advent. This “mini-season” has the name of Sapientiatide, which means The Time of Wisdom. Rather than treating this as just another tidbit of trivial knowledge, our natural curiosity as thinking and rational beings should induce us to inquire into the connection between Wisdom and Christmas.
We can begin our quest by reminding ourselves that Wisdom is the first and highest gift of the Holy Ghost. It has this exalted rank because it is the perfection of the theological virtue of faith. Through wisdom, we come to value properly those things which we believe through faith. The truths of Christian belief are more important than the things of this world, and wisdom helps us to properly order our relationship to the created world, loving Creation for the sake of God rather than for its own sake.
In this season of shopping, decorating, and partying, we desperately need this reminder to love Christmas too for the sake of God rather than for its own sake. Or to put it more strongly, wisdom reminds us that the single underlying meaning of Christmas is God! It is the Feast of Christ—Christmas. It is the day on which God was born and dwelt amongst us, the day on which our Redemption enlightened the world and brought us out of the darkness of sin. What could possibly give us more joy than knowing our souls may now be made ready for eternal life? Certainly not an evening of drinking at the Office Christmas Party.
Through our faith we know the real meaning of Christmas. And yet we are still drawn to the egg nog, to the visits with Santa at the mall, to the stringing of colored lights on the bushes in our garden. These and so many other similar features of our Advent season often distract us from the focal point of our faith at this time. We don’t lose our faith during Advent, but we’re certainly prone to losing sight of our faith. Wisdom will help us refocus on the true meaning of Christmas and help us appreciate what is really important. The joy we feel at the approach of Christ’s coming is reinforced by this Time of Wisdom, this Sapientiatide that begins on Tuesday.
Today, meanwhile, is Gaudete Sunday, the Sunday of Joy. We’re reminded today that we should indeed rejoice that our Redemption draweth nigh. Hopefully, with wisdom—Sapientia—we can truly appreciate that our joy is based on this Redemption and not on all the trimmings that go with it.