Letter 1526: My definition of the wise — I am not laying down law, but offering my judgment — is those adorned with the virtues...
Who may properly be called wise. I define as wise — for I am not legislating, merely expressing my judgment — those who are adorned with the virtues of the intellect, such as those who possessed both reason and the wisdom that comes from direct knowledge of divine things. The truly wise person is not the one who has accumulated the most information, nor the one who can argue the most cleverly, but the one whose understanding has been illuminated by the light of truth and whose life reflects that illumination. Knowledge without virtue is merely cunning; virtue without knowledge is merely instinct. But when knowledge and virtue combine — when the mind is clear and the will is pure — then we have wisdom in its fullest sense. Such wisdom was possessed by the patriarchs, the prophets, and the apostles, who knew God not merely as an idea but as a living reality, and whose knowledge transformed not only their understanding but their entire way of life.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
Οκὶς εαρίεπε ῥτορτίε αἋ ϑοπμα αἀἱςεπάμδ. ἀοπί. ἐρὶε!. . Σοφοὺς ἔγωγε ὁρίζομαι (οὐ γὰρ νομεθετῶ, ἀλλὰ ΒῸ ϑαρίοηιοδ ααϊάθια δρρεϊϊλνογο ( πἰμ! ἰδινδα Ὑνώμην ἀποφαίνομαι) τοὺς τῶν νοερῶν ἀρεταῖς χεχοσμημένους, οἷοι ἧσαν οἱ λόγον ἔχοντες χαὶ σο- φίαν γνώσεως ᾿ ἀγαθοὺς δὲ, τοὺς ταῖς παρά τινων χαλουμέναις ἀλόγοις. Οἷοι ἧσαν οἱ σοφὸν μὲν εἰπεῖν οὐδὲν δυνάμενοι, διὰ δὲ τῆς ἀρίστης πολιτείας τοὺς θεωμένους παιδεύοντες" ὧν ἡ σιγὴ τοῦ λόγου τοῦ ἐρήμου πράξεων χρησιμωτέρα. Εἰ δέ τις χαὶ τὰς νοερὰς, καὶ ἅς φασιν ἀλόγους ἔχοι, τοῦτον καὶ ἀγα- θὸν χαὶ σοφὸν ὁρισαίμην. Ῥγα)υάϊοο, δοὰ δοηϊοη δα) ρεοίθεο πηθᾶπι) ] ἰμ0δἰ-- Ἰοοῖυ5 Υἱγίυ δύηϊ ογπϑιΐ, φ δι68 δυοϊ., ααἱ Γἅ- τἰοοΐὶ οουνοηΐοηίεν υἱνυηι, αφυΐ4υθ γογυ οορηΐοη6 δδρί οηιἴδαυθ ργβα ἶ δυὴϊ. ΒοΟΏΟΘ γόγοὸ ἀΐχοτο, φυΐ, 4ᾳυδ γϑιϊίοηΐἱ οοηδοηΐβηθ8 Π01)] Β0η1, . ΠΟ Γδ[Ϊ0η8- [ νἱγίυϊο5, υἱ ἃ αυϊθυδύθηι ποπιϊηδηϊυ, ροβδί ἀθηί. ΒΘΘ Θυλ68 ὀγδηὶ, αυὶ δαρίδηβ εἰ ἢ ργοίεγγο οι ροβϑθηὶ, ἴρδθ08 Οοιιϑβί δγδηίθβθ, οριϊπιῦτῃ (: Υἱ15 ἰμϑι Παση πιούυμπη Γαιοηθ ργῦθηϊ, οὲ δἷ. ἱρ5ὶδ οἰἶδπὶ βρϑοίδηι θυ ἀοσοηὰο ργθδυῃ!, ' ΦΌΟΓΟΠῚ ἴῃ ϑογπθη6 ἰδοϊ υγΓηΐ ΠΠ10Γ , φυδηὶ ᾿ δ6γ0, αυἱΐ ῥγαδίἀΐο γογυ ἀσϑιϊυῖυ89 . δ᾽ Ὑ6γῸ οἱ ἰη(]]6οἴυΔ οἰ γοσδηΐ ποη ἰηί(οἰ δου" ἰ65 μαδοδὶ υἱγίυίο5 ; θης αἱ Ὀοηυπηὶ οἱ δρί θη Π ΠὈΠΟυΡΔΥΘΓΟ.
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