Wisdom shepherds guide hearts because wisdom herself shepherds hearts into illumination with luminous discernment, discerning the grace of Christ’s resurrection and ascension at work in angels and saints, overcoming death by death with deifying glory. Wisdom liberates seers by purifying hearts, blessing saints in realms of light and glory. Uncreated light communicates the timeless life of wisdom by illumining hearts with glory, transfiguring them through the grace of glorification. Wisdom transmits the saving Name that pierces hearts, transmuting the stigmata of the heart into an inward pruning that flowers in the Spirit, like ancient spiritual circumcision, bearing fruits of light generating light from light. Prophecy renews itself with the unceasing prayer of the Spirit in the heart, regenerating minds with wisdom and enlightening hearts in glory. Awakened hearts bloom, like gardens of paradise when wisdom dawns, empowering mysteries of purification to bear abundant fruits in illumination and glorification. When the eye of the heart is enlightened, the mysteries of grace are free to abound, releasing light from light and glory into increasing glory. Wisdom shepherds tend flocks of awakening seers, helping to protect them in the Spirit, with wisdom’s kindly shepherding, from threatening packs of tenacious demons, releasing them from alien violation by liberating them in realms of timeless light.
Shepherding by wisdom also encircles saints with angelic powers, nourishing them both from life-giving wisdom springs, ensuring glory grounds holiness in enduring peace, free from the deceptive ravages of demonic powers. Wisdom shepherds, both angelic and human, rejoice in the unveiled face of glory that breathes the fragrance of grace in paradise, sustaining flocks of saints as well as angels, wherever grace abounds. The roots of grace are incorruptible, just as the sources of wisdom are inviolable. Flocks of angels are nourished by uncreated light and watered with uncreated glory, so when wisdom’s shepherding gathers their human flock to rejoin the angels, light and glory welcome them. The life of angels embraces those who were lost with ineffable generosity. Undying angelic joy is glad to share its rejoicing with them, delighted to communicate its light with those who suffer in outer darkness. Angelic loving-kindness is open-armed and open-handed with its generous grace, inspiring good shepherding. The angelic fold is guarded by angel shepherds, Cherubic watchers and Seraphic seers, securing the gardens of uncreated grace on earth as they are in heaven.
Angel shepherds are wise elders to human wisdom shepherds on earth, wisely interpreting angelic wisdom for a heavenly earth, narrating mysteries of glory for earthly hearers in ways that renew the transmission of wisdom on earth. Martyrs have never ceased to confess wisdom in ineffable ways on earth, as angels do in heaven, unnoticed in an age of materialistic nihilism. Christ, the Good Shepherd, ascends and descends in communion with angel shepherds, revealing what true shepherding is. Through him, angels communicate with saints in every generation, ensuring good shepherding is not corrupted by divisive confusion. Humanity has always been a dwelling place of angels, not only because humanity has always shared God’s creation with angels, but because angels love to shine in humans as they listen to the same eternal Word as angel shepherds do. For Christ is the gate to both holy hosts, the light at the centre of both heavenly realms, the way truth is lived in both great communions. Christ, the anointed divine-human shepherd mirrors angels to humans and humans to angels, opening hearts to heaven and heaven to earth. The Spirit loves to extend Christ’s good shepherding to every age and generation, revealing wisdom’s enlightening shepherding among elders and handing it on with hallowing glory, through elders, to saints.