World Religion: Wisdom, the first and highest gift of the Holy Spirit

According to Catholic doctrine, wisdom is one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, which are listed in Isaiah 11: 2–3. These gifts are present in their fullness in Jesus Christ, predicted by Isaiah (Isaiah 11: 1). From the Catholic point of view, the faithful receive the seven gifts from God, who is within each of us. They express that inner grace through external expressions of the sacraments. These gifts are intended to convey the essence of the plan of salvation of God the Father or, as the current Catechism of the Catholic Church states (par. 1831), "They complete and perfect the virtues of those who receive them".

Perfection of faith
Wisdom, Catholics believe, is more than knowledge. It is the perfection of faith, the extension of the state of belief into the state of understanding of that belief. As p. John A. Hardon, SJ, observes in his "Modern Catholic Dictionary"

"Where faith is a simple knowledge of articles of Christian belief, wisdom continues with a certain divine penetration of the truths themselves."
The better that Catholics understand these truths, the more they are able to evaluate them correctly. When people detach themselves from the world, wisdom, notes the Catholic Encyclopedia, "makes us taste and love only the things of heaven". Wisdom allows us to judge the things of the world in the light of man's highest limit: the contemplation of God.

Since this wisdom leads to an intimate understanding of the Word of God and His commandments, which in turn leads to a holy and just life, it is the first and highest of the gifts given by the Holy Spirit.

Apply wisdom to the world
This detachment, however, is not the same as giving up the world, far from it. Rather, as Catholics believe, wisdom allows us to love the world properly, like the creation of God, rather than for itself. The material world, although fallen due to the sin of Adam and Eve, is still worthy of our love; we simply have to see it in the right light and wisdom allows us to do it.

Knowing the correct ordering of the material and spiritual worlds through wisdom, Catholics can more easily bear the burdens of this life and respond to their fellow men with charity and patience.

Wisdom in the scriptures
Numerous passages from the scriptures deal with this concept of holy wisdom. For example, Psalm 111: 10 states that a life lived in wisdom is the highest praise given to God:

“The fear of the Eternal is the beginning of wisdom; everyone who practices it has a good understanding. His praise lasts forever! "
Furthermore, wisdom is not an end but a lasting expression in our hearts and minds, a way of living joyfully, according to James 3:17:

"Wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceful, kind, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere."
Finally, the highest wisdom is found in the cross of Christ, which is:

"Madness for those who are dying, but for us who are saved is the power of God" (1 Corinthians 1:18).