Saints versus Scholars

Growing in holiness as well as intelligence

09/05/2017

Luke 4:31-37 Jesus went down to Capernaum, a town of Galilee. He taught them on the sabbath, and they were astonished at his teaching because he spoke with authority. In the synagogue there was a man with the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out in a loud voice, "What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are–the Holy One of God!" Jesus rebuked him and said, "Be quiet! Come out of him!" Then the demon threw the man down in front of them and came out of him without doing him any harm. They were all amazed and said to one another, "What is there about his word? For with authority and power he commands the unclean spirits, and they come out." And news of him spread everywhere in the surrounding region.

              Ladies, is being smarter the best way to be more saintly? To be sure there is a deep compatibility between science and spirituality, academic intelligence and angelic inspiration, faith and reason. Even a simply survey of human history reveals that some of the brightest intellectual lights were likewise highly holy, like St. Augustine, Blessed John Henry Newman, St. John Paul II, and St. Catherine of Siena. And we hope that at Catholic schools, we’re educating the next generation of both saints and scholars, whose goal in life is not only to get make it to Harvard, but also to make it to heaven.

               And yet, unfortunately, sometimes we can be too smart for our own good, especially for our own spiritual good. Sadly, getting a Ph.D. doesn’t mean you’ll go to church every Sunday. There’s a yawning divide between faith and science, which is reflected in the yawning of young people at Mass who are bored by spirituality but can’t wait for the next discovery by science.

               This showdown between science and spirituality took center stage in the famous “Scopes Monkey Trial” in 1925 in Tennessee. At issue in the trail was whether evolution could be taught in Tennessee public schools. That may surprise us today, but you might remember that at the time Biblical creationism was the standard teaching, not evolution. Arguing against teaching evolution in school was the famous William Jennings Bryant, who warned in his closing arguments: “If civilization is to be saved from the wreckage threatened by intelligence not consecrated by love, it must be saved by the moral code of the meek and lowly Nazarene” (that’s Jesus, of course). He continued: “His teachings, and His teachings alone, can solve the problems that vex the heart and perplex the world.” In other words, going to college as a scholar doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll be canonized as a saint. Sadly, sometimes you can be too smart for your own good.

                Today’s gospel gives us another glimpse into how high intelligence does not equal high holiness. An unclean demon cries out: “What have you to do with us, Jesus of Nazareth? I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” As you know, demons are really fallen angels, and all angels are beings of incredible intelligence, insight and intuition, even the fallen ones. The brilliance of an angel would make a Harvard Ph.D. feel like a preschooler. But notice: even though this demon/angel knows with precision and perspicacity exactly who Jesus is – the Holy One of God – that knowledge did not save him. In other words, being a scholar didn’t make that angel a saint; the fallen angels are too smart for their own good, indeed, for their eternal good.

                     I think this tension between saints and scholars has a very practical application to the Immaculate Conception Ladies Auxiliary. How so? Well, I think of the late Sally Frick. She never got to go to college, but she provided scholarships for kids to attend UAFS. Sally didn’t go to Harvard, but we can be pretty sure she is in heaven. Sometimes, you may feel a little less than “tech savvy” because you cannot figure out how to use a cell phone, or use Facebook, or you only use a landline. That may make you feel small or not very smart, but just remember that sometimes people can become too smart for their own good. Many tech savvy people don’t see why they should go to church; they are better scholars than they are saints. Some elderly people lose their memory and their mental capacity through dementia and Alzheimer’s, and people question why they even live since they are not “useful” to society anymore. But that “usefulness” is measured by scientific standards, not by spiritual ones.  We never lose our capacity for holiness and being disciples of Jesus, in spite of mental or emotional illness or incapacity. In other words, your value should not be measured just by your smarts, but also by your love.

                     So, do not diminish the value of what you do as the Ladies Auxiliary: singing at funerals as the Dead Choir, preparing meals for the funeral receptions, purchasing items for the liturgy at Mass, and of course, the great annual Bazaar. Those activities have a value beyond this world, when seen from a spiritual point of view, not merely a scientific point of view. And most importantly, don’t ever become too smart for your own good. Why? Well, because in the end, it won’t matter who got into Harvard; it will only matter who got into heaven.

Praised be Jesus Christ!