“What kind of wisdom has been given him?”
What is knowledge? The basic definition of knowledge is “Any act, function, state, or effect of mental activity. Essential to knowledge is that some reality from outside the mind is re-presented in the mind by what is called an intentional likeness or similarity to the object known. Knowledge, therefore, is assimilation of mind with object. As a result there is an intentional (assimilative) union between knower and known. We become what we know.” [1] When we apply this to God, we realize that He has made Himself known so that we can see the reality of Him and begin to know Him.
Why does knowledge matter? If God did not make Himself known then we could not have the realization that He exists. God is not a thought, but a person within reality who has made Himself known.
Knowledge helps us to look past creatures and things and see them as nothing compared to God. St. John of the Cross writes, “Nothing, nothing, neither this, nor that, neither the goods of earth, nor the goods of heaven,” not even spiritual joys or consolations, but God alone. Knowledge helps us to see beauty and perfection in God’s creation but ultimately everything and everyone draws us back to the Creator. “It is this light that changes creatures from an obstacle into a ladder leading us to God…When a soul is profoundly enlightened by the gift of knowledge, creatures no longer hinder its ascent to God, for whether considering their nothingness or the beauty with which God has endowed them, whether in giving them up or in using them through necessity, they always urge the soul on to God, inspiring it to seek Him and love Him, the one infinitely beautiful Being.” [2]
What is the difference between knowledge, understanding, and wisdom? Of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, counsel, piety, fortitude, and fear of the Lord are known to help us with the moral life while knowledge, understanding, and wisdom govern our theological life and direct our relationship with God. “They are the so-called gifts of the contemplative life, that is, of the life of prayer and union with God.” [3] Knowledge differs from understanding and wisdom in that it helps us to know what God wants us to do in our lives and in all things.
What can keep us from growing in knowledge? We can keep ourselves from growing in knowledge by rejecting the reality that God exists. We begin to dictate that our reality and knowledge is only based on worldly things or the world of the senses. In our striving for God, one great obstacle is “creatures which impress and allure us by their attractions…” [4] It is easy for us to fall into this because we live in a world filled with sensations and faith in God is striving for something beyond just our senses. “Confronted with the attractions of creatures, we forget and perhaps even betray our Creator. Therefore we need more powerful help, a divine light, which illumines from within, without the need of passing through our reasoning, so limited and rude: it is this light that the Holy Spirit infuses into our soul by means of the gift of knowledge. This gift does not make us reason on the vanity of things; but it gives us a living, concrete experience of them, an intuition so clear that it admits no doubt.” [5]
How can we grow in the gift of knowledge? We should work to obtain knowledge of God by reading the Scriptures and then proclaiming the Gospel. Prayer is also absolutely essential to growing in the gift of knowledge. If we do not pray then we cannot listen and hear God. If we are not listening to God then we are not being taught and cannot grow in knowledge. The more knowledge that we have the more we can act in accordance to what God wants us to do. It can also help us learn and know the times that we failed to follow Him. Knowledge can help us to know our sins and ask for repentance. “The function of knowledge is to help us pass judgment on creatures, which can be the occasion for our turning away from God. Sorrow for past mistakes answers to the gift of knowledge; then comes consolation when creatures are accepted as God would have us do. So that knowledge corresponds to the third Beatitude, ‘Happy are those who mourn; they shall be comforted’ (Mt. 5:5).” [6]
Pope Benedict XVI - True knowledge of God comes from inner purification
[1] Hardon, Modern Catholic Dictionary pg. 304
[2] Gabriel, Divine Intimacy pg. 927
[3] Gabriel, Divine Intimacy pg. 925
[4] Gabriel, Divine Intimacy pg. 97
[5] Gabriel, Divine Intimacy pg. 926
[6] Hardon, Catholic Catechism pg. 202