JUDGMENT ERA::: FRIDAY OF THE 29TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

 Year A 

Ephesians 4:1-6

Psalm 24:1-2.3-4ab.5-6 (R. see 6)

Luke 12:54-59

JUDGMENT ERA

The name of this West African or Akan Adinkra Symbol is "MATE MASIE," is translated into English as "What I hear, I keep."  It is a symbol of wisdom, knowledge and prudence.  Thus as the implied meaning of the phrase "mate masie" is "I understand". Understanding means wisdom and knowledge, but it also represents the prudence of taking into consideration what another person has said.

A prudent person takes into consideration what others say before making his or her judgment, and out of his or her judgment, the person will be deemed wise and knowledgeable for weighing others statement and bringing out the best judgment. 

Solomon's judgment where he was able to decipher who the mother of the baby that was alive was, is indeed an act of prudence (1Kings 3:16–28 ). In fact right judgment is referred to as Prudence. Without prudence errors and misconceptions spread. 

For example without prudence, it will be difficult to understand and deduce the actual meaning of what Pope Francis meant about the controversial same-sex unions statement that is circulating online.  Because prudence does not Judge in isolation, prudence checks context, and every text is in a context. 

Etymologically, Prudence is from the Latin word prudentia, and was contracted from providentia, which means "seeing ahead, or sagacity". Thus, it is the ability to govern and discipline oneself by the use of reason.

St. Isidore of Seville (Etym. x) says; 

"A prudent man is one who sees as it were from afar, for his sight is keen, and he foresees the event of uncertainties"

The book of proverbs has these  to say about  prudence and a prudent person; 

Proverbs 8:12

I, wisdom, dwell in prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion.

And 

Proverbs 14:8

The wisdom of the prudent is to understand his way: but the folly of fools is deceit.

In fact we can say Prudence is the mother of the Virtues of which St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Augustine, St. Bernard of Clairvaux and so on agree. But the more reason for talking about prudence is that, prudence is right judgment, and it is done in a context. 

So according to the gospel today, we make right judgments about the whether; saying it will rain when we see a cloud rising in the west and it does rain, or that the will be scorching heat when we see the south wind blowing and it does. In short the world is the context that we make our right judgment, as we are in the world. 

Now if we are in the world and we listen to the things of the world to make such judgments and they come to pass, how much more if we are in Christ Jesus.  The Multitudes he was speaking to could be us, we fail to see the Victory of the era of Christ Jesus and appropriate the Victory for our own redemption. 

If we are prudent, we must analyze the context of our life and understand our way of life, so that we can bring out a good judgment about our lifestyles and conform our will to the will of God. It is only through the right judgment of our way of life that we can truly unite and be in Union with God.

St.Paul's says in the first reading, there is one body and one Spirit, calling to one hope, one Lord, one faith, one Baptism, one God and Father of us all. A lot of ones mentioned here; in fact this last sentence contains a perfect number of ones, 7 ones are mentioned. In short Prudence is a call to oneness; oneness in  the body of Christ Jesus, under his Lordship.

So just as when the world is the context we are in and we  can make right judgement concerning the things in the world, so to as we are called into one body in Christ Jesus, we must live accordingly to being in Christ Jesus by truly becoming another man, Jesus Christ. 

When you live in the world, you live for the world. But when you live in Christ Jesus, you live in the world yet for God. Be prudent, make a right judgment by checking the context, for Wisdom dwells in Prudence.

By Sylvester  Amakye-Quayson