It is important to listen to the voices of the wise among us. St. Benedict asks us to “Listen with the ear of our hearts.” Given that the oral tradition was still very strong; many of St. Benedict’s followers learned by listening daily to the reading of the Rule. We, too, can learn by listening. Recently, a wise person shared the need to discern life through the lens of a Venn diagram: two intersecting circles. Inside one circle is the rational mind; inside the opposite is the emotional mind; the space created by the intersecting circles is the wise mind. Out of which space we live speaks to our way of being in the world. For example, learning about poverty and its consequences on the homeless is a good use of the rational mind; feeling “bad” when seeing a homeless person on the side of a street triggers the emotional side of one’s being. Wisdom is demonstrated and lived when these two sides of the whole lead to action: a compassionate conversation with the homeless person, a gift of hygiene products, a shared meal—you get the idea. Wisdom leads to action, arising out of a contemplative stance in real life situations.

By Dianne Schlichting, OblSB