Wisdom in Classical and Biblical Tradition

Abstract

The roots of modern culture lie in ancient soil. On this fertile ground grew a two-sided tradition, a dialectical relation between the legacies of ancient Greek civilization on the one hand and theological perspectives based on the Jewish and Christian scriptures on the other. Later periods—the late antique, medieval, and early modern—attest to the fact that, despite essential differences, Greek philosophy and biblical interpretation formed a lasting cultural synthesis. Part of what made this synthesis possible was a shared outlook, a common aspiration toward wholeness of understanding that refused to separate knowledge from goodness, virtue from happiness, cosmos from polis, divine authority from human responsibility. As that which names this wholeness, wisdom features prominently in both classical and biblical literatures as an ultimate good. In its traditional form, wisdom was understood to govern a variety of endeavors. It was a program for human flourishing that accorded with a holistic understanding of reality in its metaphysical, cosmic, political, and personal dimensions. This book explores wisdom and the way it was presented in seminal works: in Greek texts, such as the epics of Homer and the writings of Plato and Aristotle, and in biblical books as well, including Genesis, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Job, Wisdom of Solomon, the Gospels, and the letters of Paul. In doing so, it aims to illuminate the modern legacy of classical and biblical tradition and its distinctive pursuit of wisdom.