“My child, if there is anything beyond these words, take heed; For there’s no end to making books, which wear you out to read.”
(Ecclesiastes 12:12)

This is the twelfth and final post on Ecclesiastes, which I am translating into common meter.  The following contains my rendering of Ecclesiastes 12, preceded by a brief reflection.

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Ecclesiastes 12:12 stopped me in my tracks.  For while I take a high view of Scripture, and subordinate other writings to it, I do not discount such writings as this verse seems to suggest.  Consider the NIV translation (which for proper context I include the preceding verse), “The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails – given by one shepherd.  Be warned, my son, of anything in addition to them. Of making many books there is no end, and much study wearies the body.” (Ecclesiastes 12:11-12)

We Christians should be careful in what we choose to read; certainly nothing that opposes the words of Scripture.  To the extent that Ecclesiastes 12:12 is simply a warning to be selective, I suppose it is harmless enough.  But when the Author of Ecclesiastes adds that there is no end of the making of books and that study wearies the body – it could be interpreted as a warning to avoid extra-Biblical books entirely.  This simply flies in the face of everything we know about how we acquire wisdom and truth.

For one thing, the idea that, “much study wearies the body,” is not universally true.  Many of us are, in fact, energized by studying.  Also, because translation is an art, not a science, there are many verses that need the guidance of Biblical and linguistic experts.  For example, what is the meaning of the phrase, “almond blossoms grow white” in Ecclesiastes 12:5?   The translators of the NET explain, “This is an appropriate metaphor to describe white hair that often accompanies the onset of old age.”  It is essential to consult other sources to discover the meaning of much of Scripture.

Consider as well, the exchange when Philip meets the Ethiopian eunuch who is reading from the book of Isaiah.  When Philip asks him if he understands it, the eunuch replies, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” (Acts 8:31)  Teaching and explaining Scripture is as old as Scripture itself.  Furthermore, we go to church every Sunday to have God’s Word opened up to us and explained.  So there really is no place for denigrating extra-Biblical instruction whether it is oral or in written form.

Fortunately, the institutional church has come down on the side of knowledge and wisdom.  Those readers with sharp eyes will note that the cover photo for this blog is the interior of the Vatican Library, which houses over 1.6 million books.

I am unabashedly a reader, and I study scores of books ever year – 95% of them involving matters of faith.  I believe I can trace just about all of my spiritual growth back to what I have read over the past quarter century.  Therefore, I would like to use this final post to mention some of the authors and their books that I have referenced over the past eleven reflections on Ecclesiastes.

Ronald Rolheiser – “Sacred Fire: A Vision for a Deeper Human and Christian Maturity.”  This is one of the best books I know on deep, mature Christian discipleship.  Based on Scripture, Rolheiser gives ten commandments for mature living, which he describes in detail in the book.
1.  Live in gratitude and thank your Creator by enjoying your life.
2.  Be willing to carry more and more of life’s complexities with empathy.
3.  Transform jealousy, anger, bitterness, and hatred rather than give them back in kind.
4.  Let suffering [humiliation] soften your heart rather than harden your soul.
5.  Forgive – those who hurt you, your own sins, the unfairness of your life, and God for not rescuing you.
6.  Bless more and curse less!
7.  Live in a more radical sobriety.
8.  Pray, affectively and liturgically.
9.  Be wide in your embrace.
10.  Stand where you are supposed to be standing, and let God provide the rest.

Other books by Ronald Rolheiser that I recommend are: The Shattered Lantern; The Fire Within; The Restless Heart; and The Holy Longing.  If you are unfamiliar with Ronald Rolheiser and are serious about discipleship to Jesus, his books are a good place to look.

Henri Nouwen – “The Return of the Prodigal Son.”  Henri Nouwen is one of the most beloved and prolific spiritual writers of the 20^th Century.  His extensive works speak to our spiritual journey and how we are loved by God.  The Return of the Prodigal Son is an impactful book that really convicted me when he turned the focus on the Elder Son.  Here is a sample.

“The more I reflect on the elder son in me, the more I realize how deeply rooted this form of lostness really is and how hard it is to return home from there.  Returning home from a lustful escapade seems so much easier than returning home from a cold anger that has rooted itself in the deepest corners of my being.  My resentment is not something that can be easily distinguished and dealt with rationally.
It is far more pernicious:  something that has attached itself to the underside of my virtue.  Isn’t it good to be obedient, dutiful, law-abiding, hardworking, and self-sacrificing?  And still it seems that my resentments and complaints are mysteriously tied to such praiseworthy attitudes.  This connection often makes me despair.  At the very moment I want to speak or act out of my most generous self, I get caught in anger or resentment.  And it seems that just as I want to be most selfless, I find myself obsessed about being loved.  Just when I do my utmost to accomplish a task well, I find myself questioning why others do not give themselves as I do.  Just when I think I am capable of overcoming my temptations, I feel envy toward those who gave in to theirs.  It seems that wherever my virtuous self is, there also is the resentful complainer.
Here, I am faced with my own true poverty.  I am totally unable to root out my resentments.  They are so deeply anchored in the soil of my inner self that pulling them out seems like self-destruction.  How to weed out these resentments without uprooting the virtues as well?
… It is clear that alone, by myself, I cannot find myself.  …  I cannot be reborn from below; that is, with my own strength, with my own mind, with my own psychological insights.”

Other books by Henri Nouwen that I recommend are: With Open Hands; Out of Solitude; The Inner Voice of Love; Spiritual Direction; Making All Things New; and Here and Now.  I receive a daily email meditation based on his writings from henrinouwen.org to keep his words before my eyes and heart.

Curt Thompson – “Anatomy of the Soul.”  This book describes the science behind what is happening in our brain when we pray and engage in spiritual disciplines.  It may sound boring and pedantic, but it is anything but.  Thompson provides many practical ideas for spiritual growth, including the following.

“One simple attention exercise that doubles as a helpful meditation practice is to choose one of the nouns listed as the outgrowth of a Spirt-filled life in Galatians 5:22 (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control).  Focus your attention on that word daily, throughout the day.  Feel free to create images in your mind that represent that word.
Dedicate seven consecutive days to focus on each word, continuing to cycle through all nine on an ongoing basis. Whenever you encounter another person or sense an emotional shift that tempts to take you down the low road, allow yourself to be immersed in your awareness of your word for the day.  Be mindful of how that word is calling you to reflect and manifest it in that moment – especially when your mind is screaming for you to do just the opposite.  Ask yourself how you can be a conduit of joy, peace, patience, or gentleness in this moment.  This exercise will not only facilitate the integration of your own prefrontal cortex, you will be doing the same for those around you by creating space within which they can feel felt.”

I have been practicing this discipline since November, 2022, and can report that it is the most impactful spiritual practice I have ever engaged with.

Kathleen Dowling Singh – “The Grace in Aging.”  This book provides practical guidance for spiritual growth in the last years of our life.  Singh, like the other writers I mention here, writes from a deep place in her soul.  She gives hope that it is never too late to experience a spiritual awakening.  Like Curt Thompson, Singh writes about the importance of adopting a moral discipline.

 “Aging can offer us the time to deliberately reorient ourselves toward the inner life, an infinitely more reliable refuge than anything the world can offer.  To open these inner vistas is to enter a time of awakening, to lighten our attachment to self, the cause of all our unease.  We have the opportunity to, first, recognize that living attached to our own sense of self is a small, confined, and stressed way to live and, then, to wholeheartedly engage in practices that will free that myopic attachment.” …
Adopting a moral discipline clears the space of our awareness, of our daily lives, of distractions.  One couple found that they tended to judge others in the casual conversations they had between themselves.  They made a commitment to stop.  They found that the adoption of just this one practice of abstaining from judging others allowed them entry into examining their behavior, and transforming their behavior, in the light of all of the other aspects of practicing moral discipline.”

Singh has an ecumenical approach to spirituality that I have found immensely helpful.  She also wrote, “The Grace in Dying,” which I am currently digesting.

Ann Voskamp – “One Thousand Gifts.”  This wonderfully crafted book by Ann Voskamp is a reflective journal of her “experiment” of writing down 1000 gifts for which she is grateful to God.  Deeply moving and connected with Scripture, I really appreciate how she uses the simple discipline of gratitude and writing to deepening her spiritual life.  Here is a sample.

Joy is a flame that glimmers only in the palm of the open and humble hand.  In an open and humble palm, released and surrendered to receive, light dances, flickers happy.  The moment the hand is clenched tight, fingers all pointing toward self and rights and demands, joy is snuffed out.  Anger is the lid that suffocates joy until she lies limp and lifeless.  And for me, it’s a cosmic-numbing notion that far eclipses this domestic moment.  It speaks to the whole of my life and the vision brands me: the demanding of my own will is the singular force that smothers out joy – nothing else.
Pride, mine – that beast that pulls on the mask of anger – this is what snaps this hand shut, crushes joy.  When I would read Henry Beecher’s words later, I’d take it for my own story, so familiar his thoughts: ‘Pride slays thanksgiving. … A proud man is seldom a grateful man, for he never thinks he gets as much as he deserves.’  Dare I ask what I think I deserve?  A life of material comfort?  A life free of all trials, all hardship, all suffering?  A life with no discomfort, no inconvenience?  Are there times that a sense of entitlement – expectations – is what inflates self, detonates anger, offends God, extinguishes joy?”

I end by returning to the words of the Ethiopian eunuch, “How can I understand, unless someone guides me?”  The words of the Teacher in Ecclesiastes, like much of Scripture, contain great wisdom.  But who is it that can guide us into their meaning?  Who can show us how to embody them?  And who can encourage us along the way?  Gifted writers can.  We are blessed if we discover some.  May the Lord so grace you.

S

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1 Remember your Creator God,
while young and fancy-free;
Before vile days will have you say,
“They hold no joy for me.”

2 Remember him before the sun,
and moon and stars grow black;
And clouds don’t seem to go away,
though rain begins to slack.

3 Remember him when house guards shake,
and strong men bend and creak;
When teeth no more can grind their food,
and eyes are growing weak.

4 Remember him when doors are closed,
yet sounds are hard to hear;
When people rise to chirping birds,
although their songs aren’t clear.

5 Remember him when souls are scared,
white-haired and tired out;
And going to their final rest,
as mourners walk about.

6 Remember him before the crock,
and water wheel have snapped;
Before the silver cord is cut,
and golden bowl has cracked.

7 Remember him before the dust,
returns to whence it came;
Before the breath of life returns,
to God who gave the same.

8 “In vain! In vain! It’s all in vain!”
the Teacher’s words declare;
“All things are futile and in vain,
   like vapor in the air.”

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9 Not only was the Teacher wise,
imparting what he knew;
He pondered proverbs that he found,
and organized them too.

10 The Teacher searched to figure out,
the words that would delight;
And all the words he settled on,
were truthful and upright.

11 The sayings of the wise are like,
the prods directing sheep;
They’re given by one Shepherd who,
has firmly nailed them deep.

12 My child, if there is anything,
beyond these words, take heed;
For there’s no end to making books,
which wear you out to read.

13 Now here is how the matter ends,
when all that’s heard is through:
Fear God and keep what he commands –
It’s what we all must do.

14 For God will surely judge each deed,
here underneath the sun;
No matter if it’s good or vile,
or secret thing that’s done.