Wisdom Song is the music of angels in heaven so it is no surprise that it sustains the angelic life of saints on earth. Wisdom ascribes glory to God so as to empty vain glory of vanity everywhere. Wisdom song sings of the glory of Great Peace, in peace praying for peace that glory may lead from glory to greater and greater glory. Wedding earth to heaven, angels sing glory to God in heaven, answered by saints singing glory to God on earth. This is the great theme of gnomic poetics in the desert, unveiling the crucified heart of Orthodox wisdom mysteries. Glory was always God’s but when angels fell from glory and we humans followed suit, we fell from glory so it appeared that God’s glory was lost. In fact, angels and saints bear unbroken witness to glory in heaven in wisdom song, rightly ascribing glory to God, but we lost touch with them, forgetting wisdom and her song. Great Peace is lost when vanity intrudes into glory and vainglory breeds poisonous pride. The Cherubic Hymn raises God Most High on earth as in heaven, restoring glory on high to God on earth. Glory belongs to God and peace reigns in heaven when peace is declared with wisdom song and war in heaven ceases. Wisdom Song hallows the Name on earth as angels hallow the Name in heaven, inspiring wisdom song in elders so as to generate wisdom song in the saints.
Great Peace inspires wisdom song to make peace wherever there is war, undoing subtle enmity wherever it threatens to destroy healthy difference and healing division whenever it threatens to decimate wholesome unity. Wisdom song inspired a wisdom sanctuary in the hills not because it was useful but because it welcomed wisdom home and bore witness to glory. This witness is not understood if hearts are closed but awakens the moment grace reveals glory to wisdom. Wisdom song recalls us to witness wisdom ascribe glory to God, undoing the fall from glory which cuts us off from God. In reality, God is never cut off from us, because glory remains glory in heaven, but here on earth we feel cut off because if hearts are hard, wisdom song is quenched.
Wisdom sanctuaries welcome wisdom home by inspiring wisdom song that ascribes glory to God, and gnomic poetry like St Symeon’s ‘Hymns of Love’ that still heals the world. Wisdom is driven out and chased away when she is not understood, being invisible to the hardened heart. But conventional religion has its rights and cannot be coerced. Hesychast wisdom is freedom and cannot be imposed. When Hesychasm is set aside, there is no bitterness because wisdom is peace that knows when to stand back and let peace heal the world. When it is time to go, it is time to go and all is well, and all manner of thing shall be well. If a round cell is left bereft on a hill and used for storage because nobody understands what it is for, it may still bear silent witness to glory beyond utility, recalling wisdom to wisdom song beyond this world. It was worth building even if its neglect has come so soon but wisdom song goes on singing wherever hearts turn and see. If we die before we die, is it any surprise our lives include death, and dying to this world, we retire into mystery, hidden with Christ in God. Nothing in this world lasts, but this has always been wisdom’s song and wisdom herself does not die. Wisdom song is heard in stillness, restoring glory to glory everywhere.