O Wisdom of our God Most High,
guiding creation with power and love:
come to teach us the path of knowledge!
Wisdom is so important in the business of teaching the faith. Every day students come to us with so many needs and so many valuable and valid questions. Why does God allow suffering and evil? Why does the Church teach the dogma she teaches? We hear of broken homes, parents and grandparents battling cancer, mental illness and so much more. All of these needs require wisdom to craft an answer, a prayer, a response and sometimes even the wisdom to say “I’m not sure- let’s try to figure this out together.” Sometimes wisdom is knowing that the problem isn’t yours to solve.
In this O Antiphon, we ask to be guided and taught on our path to knowledge. Who are some of the people who have taught you with power and love? How have interactions with your own teachers guided you on the path to knowledge?
I remember one of my amazing teachers, Professor Dowling. In my time at Rutgers University I took as many of his classes as I could. At the beginning of my senior year, my life seemed to be falling apart- someone I loved tried to commit suicide, and someone in my family was deep in the throes of addiction. I missed the entire first week of classes and went to office hours to find out what I had missed. As soon as I walked in the door, Professor Dowling knew something was wrong. He pulled me to the side, told me not to worry about classes and with a few questions got to the heart of the matter. Then he said something I will never forget. “I think God knew to send you here today Emily.” He then went on to tell me he would pray about both situations and shared the way addiction and the power of prayer had touched his own life. Dowling had wisdom- both an incredible amount about English Literature and also about how to powerfully love his students.
I want to be that kind of teacher for my students. I want to be able to teach my subjects with knowledge, love and power, but even more importantly, I want to have the wisdom to know what to say when they are hurting, broken and ready to give up.
Today: Pray for a specific teacher who has touched your life. Pray for wisdom in a specific situation with your class and your students.
