“For with much wisdom comes much sorrow;
the more knowledge, the more grief.”
Ecclesiastes 1:18
And so we come to the end of the first chapter of Ecclesiastes written by “The Teacher” whom most identify as Solomon, perhaps the wisest man who ever lived and who was the son of King David. His opening statement startles us as we read, “Meaningless.” Is he really saying that all is meaningless? He sees the circles of life, the circles of nature, the circles of history and wonders to what point. What really is memorable or permanent? “There is nothing new under the sun.” He was gifted with wisdom by God when he became king and he used that wisdom to investigate life and folly. Yesterday he lamented that the crooked cannot be made straight. Nicodemus on Sunday will lament that he does not understand how he can be reborn, be made straight, to live in the kingdom of heaven. Isaiah in the Old Testament reading sees God and realizes that he is a sinful, crooked man, living among crooked people. “Woe is me,” he cries. More knowledge means more grief.
A statement like that is worth thinking about. I first thought of a medical person with all their skill stepping in to scenarios of great grief, helping the sick and dying. I next thought of soldiers going into war and the horrors they are exposed to. Then I realized that with modern media we are more exposed to situations of drama and trauma around our world. 1 Corinthians 13:11 says, “When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me.” As we grow in knowledge and awareness, we grow in our awareness not only of the beauty of this world but also we grow in our awareness of the struggles of this life.
Let us pray for those who work on the forefront of grief. Let us pray for chaplains, law enforcement, courts, prisons, and medical services. Let us pray for the grieving and those who deal with them. Give them your wisdom Lord and give them compassion. Guard them from despair and feelings of meaninglessness.
On the Way to Wonder 