Wisdom Is Liberation

Wisdom is freeing precisely because it submits to authority outside the self. But in a world preoccupied with power dynamics—oppressors and oppressed, the hegemony, the patriarchy, intersectionality, cultural appropriation, and so forth—we are skeptical of this notion. And it’s true that many human authorities are oppressive and not conducive to our flourishing. But that doesn’t mean the very idea of authority should be dismissed.

At its best, external authority is for our growth, not our repression. Italian Catholic philosopher Augusto Del Noce observes that the etymological root of the word authority is about growth (auctoritas derives from augere, “to make grow,” which is tied to the words Augustus, “he who makes grow”). This is in direct contrast to how authority is popularly viewed today: as a stifling barrier to growth.4 Today’s world has reframed freedom as a defense mechanism: a freedom “from” rather than a freedom “to.” We are “free,” our society declares, insofar as we are subject to no external authority or objective reality outside the self. But is this really freedom?

Jesus did not say “total autonomy will set you free.” He said the truth will set you free (John 8:32). True freedom is always hitched to truth—an objective, true-for-everyone truth that gloriously exists outside of our opinions, moods, and fickle temperaments. Without the truth, we are locked into a prison of our own making. But thanks be to God, the truth is out there and not in an abstract sense. It’s there in the form of a person, Jesus Christ, who said “I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6), and who calls every exhausted digital wanderer to sit at his feet and find rest:

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matt. 11:28–30)

Notice the equation here: “come to me” + “learn from me” = “you will find rest for your souls.” If ever there was a simple equation for true freedom, it is this.

But when we are wise—feeding on the bread of life (John 6:35), abiding in the vine (John 15:4–5), and drawing upon God-given sources of truth—we become like a robust tree planted near water (Ps. 1:3), with green leaves and vibrant fruit even when drought comes (Jer. 17:8). Our roots deepen securely into the ground, drawing life from vibrant streams. And our branches keep growing upward—like hands lifted in praise to their Creator. When the winds come—as they inevitably will, sometimes with furious force—these branches of wisdom won’t break off. They will simply sway, as if clapping or dancing with joy, turning every storm into an opportunity to sing. Soli Deo gloria.

- Brett McCracken, The Wisdom Pyramid:

Feeding Your Soul in a Post-Truth World, 2021