The left side (looking at it) of Fra Angelico’s Last Judgment is gorgeous. We see angels leading the saints to a shining city. The latter seem to be conversing and angels almost dancing.
On and off in the last couple of weeks during Mass we have heard excerpts from St Paul to the Ephesians. As it can happen, the profoundly inspired biblical texts can go somehow unnoticed or lose their depth if we have not quieted our spirits before coming to the Liturgy. One of those texts is this passage from Eph. 1: 15-23 which we heard a few days ago. Paul prays for this community asking
that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,
may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation
resulting in knowledge of him.
May the eyes of your hearts be enlightened,
that you may know what is the hope that belongs to his call,
what are the riches of glory
in his inheritance among the holy ones,
and what is the surpassing greatness of his power
for us who believe,
in accord with the exercise of his great might,
which he worked in Christ…
The Riches of Glory
The riches of glory are beautifully depicted in this painting of blessed Fra Angelico, a place where all of us would like to be as our final destination. However, in this life we need both the spirit of wisdom and revelation for our knowledge of Christ. Knowledge leads to love, and the more we see with the eyes of our hearts illumined by God’s grace, love and mercy, the more we will enjoy beatific vision.
When St Thomas Aquinas comments on this passage, he makes a distinction among the gifts common to all and which are necessary for salvation such as faith, hope and charity, and the special gifts of wisdom and revelation for which St Paul prays. The gift of wisdom has to do with the knowledge of divine realities. Psalm 12: 4 asks God to illumine our eyes, as the Apostle does here. We need the natural light of our intelligence to know temporal realities, but more importantly, the supernatural light of faith to know God.
Hope
The gift of intellect (or revelation of spiritual secrets) is associated with the virtue of hope, necessary for salvation. St Peter speaks of us being regenerated for a living hope, and Thomas says that hope is the strongest of virtues, a refuge for us, a solid foundation.
I could go on, but I would prefer to leave it at that, so you can come up with your own insights about these gifts and what it means to own the treasure of hope and the perfect knowledge of Christ which leads to Paradise, a Paradise infinitely more beautiful than the already exceedingly beautiful painting of Fra Angelico.
God bless you all.
Author: The Contribution of Cornelio Fabro to Fundamental Theology. Reason and Faith, Cambridge Scholars Publishing: htps://www.cambridgescholars.com/product/978-1-5275-9315-2
Poesía Sacra, Quemar las Naves, and Desde Fossanova, IVE Press: htps://ivepress.org/
Fra Angelico, Last Judgement, Paradise, c. 1431, tempera on panel, 105 x 210 cm, Museo di San Marco, Florence[1]
[1] From http://www.travelingintuscany.com/art/fraangelico/lastjudgment.htm, accessed 25 October 2024.
Dear Fr., I enjoyed reading this reflection on wisdom and hope from the perspective of fundamental Theology which is also my area of specialisation. I do like to have a copy of your book: “The Contribution of Cornelio Fabro to Fundamental Theology. Reason and Faith.” I am also a contributor to Gratia Vobis and will appreciate getting a copy of the book.
Kind regards,
Sr Rosemary.