“I prayed and understanding was given me; I called on God, and the spirit of wisdom came to me”
These words from the opening lines of our first reading this weekend contrasts God’s wisdom with the wisdom of the world. In fact, the so-called “wisdom” of the world is foolishness, and this becomes more and more obvious with each passing day as laws and policies are adopted by our various levels of government which are at complete odds with divine wisdom. In my homily last weekend, I spoke about the attempts of the Alberta government to impose laws on Christian schools which amount to a complete denial of their fundamental beliefs as Christians. Schools henceforth will not be allowed to say that God is the source of wisdom, that God made humankind male and female, that the Bible is an infallible guide to how we should live our lives. To hold such “liberal” principles is one thing; to force others to go against their fundamental beliefs completely contradicts the Charter of Rights and Freedoms which, apparently, applies to everyone in Canada apart from Christians.
That is why the Alpha program (and the Youth Alpha Program) which starts this weekend is a crucial resource for us as Christians to remind ourselves and to grasp hold of what is true wisdom, what the word of God really says, and what our faith in Christ really embraces. It will enable us to hold our own against the distortion and outright lies being proclaimed all across social media, lies such as Christians hate science and reason because their beliefs are all based on legend and superstition, bringing up your children as Christians is another form of “child abuse,” to believe in God is to deny true freedom to the human being, Jesus Christ never existed, or, if he did, he certainly never rose from the dead, and so on and on and on.
In the Alpha course, you will find great, sound teaching on such topics as :”Who is Jesus,” “Why did Jesus Die,” “Why and how should I pray and read the Bible,” “Who is the Holy Spirit,” and “What about the Church,” and much more. The course runs until December 9th, from 5pm – 7pm, beginning at 5pm with a light meal, followed by DVD teaching and group discussion.
Do you want to know the wisdom of God, and see how different it is from the wisdom of the world? Then come along at least to the first teaching of the Alpha series, entitled “Is there more to life than this?” starting this Sunday, October 14th, in St Philips parish hall at 5pm. It will change the way you think and feel about your life!