The Gift of Understanding

Man has by nature a power to penetrate into the meaning of things and to grasp reality in its essence. This is the natural power of mind, intellect, understanding. But man needs more than natural intellect to understand the end for which he exists and the means of attaining it. For this, man requires the light of the gift of supernatural understanding.

The light of supernatural understanding does not impartscientific knowledge of divine things, so that man ceases to know them by faith. By the gift of supernatural understanding man knows the mysteries of the faith surely, but imperfectly. He sees that these mysteries involve no contradiction, and he assents to their truth on God’s word; thus he holds these truths by faith.

The gift of understanding gives knowledge of the truths of faith and also of things subordinate to faith, such as human action which springs from faith. Hence this gift is not purely speculative or theoretical; it is also practical or directive.

Just as the gift of charity, which is the love, grace,and friendship of God, is found in all who are in the state ofsanctifying grace, so also is the gift of supernatural understanding found in them.

And, without sanctifying grace, no one has the gift of supernatural understanding.

The gift of supernatural understanding gives to the mind of man the light of faith. In this light, the gift of wisdom enables a person to judge rightly of divine things; the gift of knowledge makes him capable of right judgment about created things;the gift of counsel equips him to apply the judgments of wisdom and knowledge in individual human acts.

The sixth beatitude, “Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God,” corresponds to the gift of supernatural understanding. For there is a special cleanness inthe mind and heart which, purged of evil phantasms, understands the truths of faith. Such an understanding sees God in his creatures on earth, and will behold him hereafter in the heavenly vision.

The fruit of the Holy Ghost called faith, that is, thecertitude of faith, also corresponds to the gift of spiritual understanding.