If we are attentive to the world around us, we realise that it is often the clamour of different views and opinions that prevails. Everyone wants to have their say and there is a proliferation of forums for debate in which it seems as though everyone knows everything. However, we do not always find genuine wisdom there; on the contrary, there is sometimes a risk of encouraging superficiality, ignorance and gradual cultural impoverishment.

Faced with this scenario, what truly deserves to be heard? There are words and Words. What distinguishes them? We can call them Words with a capital W — whether written or spoken — which, once embraced, have the power to transform us. These are words that express wisdom because they offer a key to understanding human existence, the desire for transcendence and the relationships that bind human beings to one another and to nature. As Rabindranath Tagore, the Indian poet, philosopher and writer, writes: ‘Words that come from the heart, go to the heart.

The Word does not belong to a particular era, place or religion. Xavier Melloni, an anthropologist and theologian observes that for some people, the Word is inspired by the Holy Spirit whilst for others it is the fruit of the enlightenment of the conscience. But how can we recognise the Word that conveys value?

‘We might say that the Word enables us to open up to others, to give of ourselves, and pausing in silence, go beyond our own being towards an always greater depth. The true Word generates life[2].
This is how the Word, understood in the broadest sense, frees us from the constraints to which we are subjected; it does not depend on hidden interests and it is not coercive but it becomes idolatry when it ceases to be wise.

Nonetheless, the Word may have a different resonance within each of us, even when it is expressed in the same way. How we receive it is closely linked to whatever we are experiencing and our stage of life. Superficiality, excessive self-suffiiciency and indifference are obstacles that prevent the Word from bearing fruit within us and, through us, in others.

The wise Word becomes a fixed point of reference on the journey through life. Sometimes it offers us answers; sometimes it raises new questions; it allows us to view things from a different perspective and to open up to dimensions of reality that we were previously unable to perceive. The Word sets us free and leads us to experience what is truly essential to our existence. Only the authentic Word, the Word of wisdom, can transform the way we think and act. When we welcome and live by it, it helps us to give greater meaning to our lives, to live deeper relationships and to build a more humane and fraternal society together.

Jordi shares his thoughts: ‘Every encounter with the Word is personal and intimate. My encounter with the Word came after years centred on work and technology. Reading books from various fields – biographies, novels, philosophy, etc. – reawakened in me a search for wisdom to make sense of life’s big questions, to sustain my existence and to understand why the Word manifests itself in such diverse and seemingly contradictory forms. On this journey, I came to know the wisdom of Chiara Lubich, expressed in a fresh and vibrant reinterpretation of the Gospel and borne out by an inspiring way of life. Despite its confessional nature, this wisdom has proved capable of resonating with people who, like me, have no religious convictions, and of drawing them into the path of fraternity.’

This month, let us nourish ourselves with words of wisdom, make them our own and transform them into life. And, if we have the opportunity, let us share the fruits they bear with those who, like us, are on a journey. In this way, we will build together a more humane and meaningful way of living together.

Photo © James Oladujoye – Pixabay

[1] This expression is taken from an address given by Jordi Illa at the International Conference for People of Non-
Religious Convictions, 2013, entitled “The Word.”

[2]Xavier Melloni, Vers un temps de síntesi, FragmentaEditorial, Barcelona, 2011, p. 55.

THE IDEA OF THE MONTH is currently produced by the Focolare Movement’s “Centre for Dialogue with People of Non religious Beliefs”. It is an initiative that began in 2014 in Uruguay to share with non-believing friends the values of the Word of Life, i.e. the phrase from Scripture that members of the Movement strive to put into practice in their daily lives. Attualmente L’IDEA DEL MESE viene tradotta in 12 lingue e distribuita in più di 25 paesi, con adattamenti del testo alle diverse sensibilità culturali.
dialogue4unity.focolare.org