Destruction and Death say, “Only a rumor of it has reached our ears.” – Job 28:22

Today’s Scripture Reading (June 17, 2018): Job 28

Isaac Asimov argued that “The saddest aspect of life right now is that science gathers knowledge faster than society gathers wisdom.” Our technological abilities outstretch our ability to act wisely with the technology. We have harnessed the power of the atom without the wisdom of knowing how that power should be used. We know much more about what we can do but have yet to answer the questions of whether or not these are things we should do. Wisdom is hard. And the unfortunate truth is that Wisdom seldom stands with the majority, which led Mark Twain to quip “Whenever you find yourself on the side of the majority, it is time to reform.”

The book of Job questions our capacity for wisdom. The book focuses on the central idea that wisdom rarely surfaces in our day to day interactions. We are filled with bluster, and we are certain about things of which Wisdom might argue that we need to be less certain. Both Job and his friends are in dire need of wisdom to understand the events of the day, but they do not possess it. The human race spends so much of its time chasing after the material wealth offered by this world, but they seldom find Wisdom in the process.

Even the omnipotence of Destruction and Death only know of the existence of Wisdom because they have heard the rumor, much like the rest of us. So much of this world is simply beyond our understanding and beyond our wisdom. And it is maybe our prejudices that reveal evidence of our chronic lack of wisdom.

Isaac Asimov suffered a heart attack in 1977. The doctors determined that he required triple bypass surgery, but as a result of the blood transfusion during that surgery in 1983, Asimov contracted HIV. It was AIDS that killed him in 1992, although his family for a decade after his death would insist that Asimov died of heart and kidney failure. Doctors had convinced them that AIDs prejudice would likely extend to the family if the public found out. It might be more likely that the reputation of the Doctors might be tarnished if news of Asimov’s HIV influenced death, as a result of surgery, was released to the public. Maybe the saddest part of Isaac Asimov’s life is that we had possessed the technology and knowledge to extend his life, but, in the midst of our prejudice, we lacked the wisdom and compassion to confront his death. And once again, Death and Destruction could only reveal that they had heard of wisdom, and not that they had experienced it.

Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Job 29