ETHICS (THE BOOK OF ECCLESIASTICUS) SIRACH

TO BEGIN WITH:

My politics and my personal beliefs have pushed me into unexpected sources of knowledge.  My politics made it necessary to learn as much as I could about the Koran so I would better understand Sharia law. This hopefully would give me an understanding of those who would harm others in the name of their Islamic faith.  My personal beliefs put a halt to this endeavor.  I am a convert to Christianity, but due to a lack of study in my younger years, I neglected to read and understand the Old Testament and its relationship to my beliefs.  I was hit with the fact that I could not in good faith delve into the Koran without getting through the Old Testament at least once.  One of the other aspects leading to the discovery of this particular book, The book of Ecclesiasticus, was my return to Catholicism and the Catholic Bible.  The book of Ecclesiasticus, also known as the Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach, is missing from many if not all of the Bibles I read during my trek to Christianity.  The relevance of this book also struck home with me in terms of what is going on with our society and our national political positions.  The more I read in this book the more relevance I saw.  This book not only spoke to my spiritual life, but even more so, to everyday living experiences.  Many of my writings have originated out of the desire to pass things on to my grandchildren and of an abhorrence of the hatreds within our society.  This book speaks to those desires and I hope this writing will prompt you to investigate its possibilities in your own lives.  Due to the enormity of Ecclesiasticus,  I will try to limit my thoughts to what I think may help my progeny and the roots needed for good ethical, productive, God fearing lives.  The need for God in our lives, to me, is the foundation of Wisdom. Should you disagree,  you have that choice.

As our country and the documents that it was founded upon are being attacked and disregarded, we might ask why.  The United States has gone through birth, childhood and is now in the state of adolescence.  We are at a critical time in the life of our nation, a period of growth which runs parallel to one of the primary aspects of most teenagers, that of rebellion. That rebellion exemplifies questioning the intelligence and controls put on us by our parents.  As teenagers we all think that we are smarter, we want more freedom to choose our activities, and we basically want what we want, and want it now.  What if our country and our society are in the throes of adolescent struggles to have whatever feels good?  Disregarding rules and beliefs in favor of self-gratification can always be justified by some form of rationalization.  

What if, in our denial of pathways of the past, we have put our people, our society and our country in peril?  What if the God of the past was real and held mankind accountable at that time, as stated in the Old Testament?  What if He were the same today as He was yesterday?  What if He were to hold our nation, our people and our society accountable for the things the prophets of old warned about?  The book of Ecclesiastes states that there is nothing new under the sun (Ecclesiastes 1:9).  Is history repeating itself once again?

The God we read about in the Old Testament gave His people ample opportunities to obey and follow His precepts.  The major problems seemed to occur time and time again.  If we take the time to compare then to now we can see where in His eyes we have moved off the path. The people of the Old Testament were blessed when their feet were on the path and were met with violent retribution when they continued to stray.  If God is real, our world of today may be in for some tough times.  Suppose that in order to save our country and our way of life, we need to recognize God, recognize our misbehavior, ask for God’s forgiveness, and actually change our direction.

What if God is real and He is not pleased with our current state of divergence?  Our form of government was born during a time of turmoil, not without its own birth pains. In an effort to move from under Britain’s thumb, the “Fathers” of our country’s government conceived the documents that allowed for our emergence from the womb.  Not all of them believed in the same definition of Our Creator, but all agreed to that term as part of our Declaration of independence and within our Constitution.  A belief in God as our Creator most certainly has an effect upon our sense of Ethics in a positive manner.  An underlying use of the Ten Commandments as a basis of our law has a similar effect.  My own life requires that I seek Wisdom and that requires truth.  One of those truths is as simple as this:

  The book of Eclesiasticus is a practical guide for an ethical and productive life, regardless of your beliefs or disbeliefs.

http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/Ecclesiasticus

^{COMMENTARY REGARDING ECCLESIASTICUS  CHAPTER 1}

¹ The Prologue of the Wisdom of Jesus the Son of Sirach. Whereas many and great things have been delivered unto us by the law and the prophets, and by others that have followed their steps, for the which things Israel ought to be commended for learning and wisdom; and whereof not only the readers must needs become skilful themselves, but also they that desire to learn be able to profit them which are without, both by speaking and writing: my grandfather Jesus, when he had much given himself to the reading of the law, and the prophets, and other books of our fathers, and had gotten therein good judgment, was drawn on also himself to write something pertaining to learning and wisdom; to the intent that those which are desirous to learn, and are addicted to these things, might profit much more in living according to the law. Wherefore let me intreat you to read it with favour and attention, and to pardon us, wherein we may seem to come short of some words, which we have laboured to interpret. For the same things uttered in Hebrew, and translated into another tongue, have not the same force in them: and not only these things, but the law itself, and the prophets, and the rest of the books, have no small difference, when they are spoken in their own language. For in the eight and thirtieth year coming into Egypt, when Euergetes was king, and continuing there some time, I found a book of no small learning: therefore I thought it most necessary for me to bestow some diligence and travail to interpret it; using great watchfulness and skill in that space to bring the book to an end, and set it forth for them also, which in a strange country are willing to learn, being prepared before in manners to live after the law. All wisdom cometh from the Lord, and is with him forever .  ^{ECCLESIASTICUS  1:1}

This is an acknowledgement by the original translator that holds true universally when seeking the truth of what we are discovering, what we are being taught and what we imagine.  When we absorb information into our belief structure that will dictate our future action or inaction we need to understand the frailty of our interpretation.  It is almost impossible for any of us to correctly understand another person’s truth because it is made up of so many different life experiences.  The only thing that we can really take as Gospel is just that, Gospel.  When we listen to what our teachers, our parents, friends and leaders say we need to listen and relate it to what we see in their lives and in their history.  We have so many interesting studies of dichotomy available to us in today’s society it is as if the Son of Sirach were talking to us face to face. 

We need to be constantly aware that teachings are most generally colored to agree with the teachers’ beliefs rather than the facts and truth.  Do not be afraid to question and seek alternatives.

Beliefs are frequently formed by ideological propaganda and then passed on as truth.  We see that in our national discourse on a variety of topics.  In the days that this book, (Ecclesiasticus), was originally written the spread of prevarication, propaganda and miss information was at the pace of a tortoise where as today it is at the speed of thought.  Most of us do not have or do not take the time to research the avalanches of information that bombard us daily.  Just try and imagine the volumes of information that we live our lives by, and forming opinions that are truly fallacious.  We can choose to be living a life of ignorance or one of informed study of the probability of factual basis for our beliefs. Our perceptions of truth are weakened and turned throughout our lives and it is by chance that we stumble upon factual truths. 

A fact of life is that we live a good portion of our lives on faith, acting on what we know cannot be proven by any of the five senses but just because it makes more sense to believe it than to doubt it.  Sometimes those faith based belief systems are stronger than what we experience sensually.  In my own case it is very difficult, I believe in God not because I have seen, touched or heard him but because of enough faith based evidence.  I have seen prayers answered, and I have seen needs addressed with and without prayer. I see a universe that exists without any means of origination other than that of creation, which would require a creator and for all practical purpose most of us call that, God.  There are other indicators of Gods existence such as the order of life, and the evolution of plants, animals and organisms that cannot honestly be explained by happenstance.  That puts my reliance on faith based beliefs at odds with my habitual search for factual truth and it also feeds the bit of skepticism that forms my questions.  Once again God answers my needs way before I knew I had them.

Throughout the first chapter the theme is strongly put forward that true knowledge is really only available to God, the rest even scientific knowledge, is not known in totality.  (There is one wise and greatly to be feared, the Lord sitting upon his throne.
^{ECCLESIASTICUS  CHAPTER 1:  (see v 1 above)}

² Who can number the sand of the sea, and the drops of rain, and the days of eternity?

³Who can find out the height of heaven, and the breadth of the earth, and the deep, and wisdom?

⁴ Wisdom hath been created before all things, and the understanding of prudence from everlasting.

⁵ The word of God most high is the fountain of wisdom; and her ways are everlasting commandments.

⁶ To whom hath the root of wisdom been revealed? or who hath known her wise counsels?

⁷ Unto whom hath the knowledge of wisdom been made manifest? and who hath understood her great experience?

⁸ There is one wise and greatly to be feared, the Lord sitting upon his throne.

⁹ He created her, and saw her, and numbered her, and poured her out upon all his works.

¹⁰ She is with all flesh according to his gift, and he hath given her to them that love him.

¹¹ The fear of the Lord is honour, and glory, and gladness, and a crown of rejoicing.

¹² The fear of the Lord maketh a merry heart, and giveth joy, and gladness, and a long life.

¹³ Whoso feareth the Lord, it shall go well with him at the last, and he shall find favour in the day of his death.

¹⁴ To fear the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and it was created with the faithful in the womb.

¹⁵ She hath built an everlasting foundation with men, and she shall continue with their seed.

¹⁶ To fear the Lord is fulness of wisdom, and filleth men with her fruits.

¹⁷ She filleth all their house with things desirable, and the garners with her increase.

¹⁸ The fear of the Lord is a crown of wisdom, making peace and perfect health to flourish; both which are the gifts of God: and it        enlargeth their rejoicing that love him.

¹⁹ Wisdom raineth down skill and knowledge of understanding standing, and exalteth them to honour that hold her fast.

²⁰ The root of wisdom is to fear the Lord, and the branches thereof are long life.

²¹ The fear of the Lord driveth away sins: and where it is present, it turneth away wrath.

²² A furious man cannot be justified; for the sway of his fury shall be his destruction.

²³ A patient man will tear for a time, and afterward joy shall spring up unto him.

²⁴ He will hide his words for a time, and the lips of many shall declare his wisdom.

²⁵ The parables of knowledge are in the treasures of wisdom: but godliness is an abomination to a sinner.

²⁶ If thou desire wisdom, keep the commandments, and the Lord shall give her unto thee.

²⁷ For the fear of the Lord is wisdom and instruction: and faith and meekness are his delight.

²⁸ Distrust not the fear of the Lord when thou art poor: and come not unto him with a double heart.

²⁹ Be not an hypocrite in the sight of men, and take good heed what thou speakest.

³⁰ Exalt not thyself, lest thou fall, and bring dishonour upon thy soul, and so God discover thy secrets, and cast thee down in the midst of the congregation, because thou camest not in truth to the fear of the Lord, but thy heart is full of deceit.