Reading notes

Matthew writes well:

Intelligence matters. The job of the president of the United States is not to love his wife; it’s to manage a wide range of complicated issues. That requires character, yes, but not the kind of character measured by private virtues like fidelity to spouse and frequency of quotations from Scripture. Yet it also requires intelligence. It requires intellectual curiosity, an ability to familiarize oneself with a broad range of views, the capacity — yes — to grasp nuances, to foresee the potential ramifications of one’s decisions, and, simply, to think things through. Four years ago, these were not considered necessary pieces of presidential equipment. Today, they have to be.

Surely most of us can agree on this?

For an individual, I hold that character matters more than intelligence.

Of course, by “character” I mean a depth of personality that seeks internal consistency (integrity) aligned with humanity’s highest values, that presses away from deceit and toward genuineness, not the “[cultic] moral clarity” that “character” means to the GOP media machine.

For the job of president, however, intelligence matters more than character.

Of course, intelligence must be disciplined by character, or else it’s dangerous, too. But in this job it’s the intelligence we’re counting on, a president’s ability to learn well, think well, and decide well. All other job requirements (and sundry nice-to-have characteristics) are subordinate to this.

The Bible calls this multifaceted intelligence wisdom, and regards it highly. Of its lack — made visible in poorly informed decisions that consistently turn out wrong — the Bible tends to speak woe until the lack is corrected.

Sell everything and buy Wisdom! Forage for Understanding!
Don’t forget one word! Don’t deviate an inch!

Never walk away from Wisdom—she guards your life;
love her—she keeps her eye on you.

Above all and before all, do this: Get Wisdom!
Write this at the top of your list: Get Understanding!

Throw your arms around her—believe me, you won’t regret it;
never let her go—she’ll make your life glorious.

She’ll garland your life with grace,
she’ll festoon your days with beauty.

—Proverbs 4:5-9 (The Message by Eugene H. Peterson)