⁴I made my achievements big.
I built houses for myself,
I planted vineyards for myself,
⁵I made gardens and parks for myself
and planted in them trees with every fruit.
⁶I made pools of water for myself,
to water from them a forest flourishing with trees.
⁷I bought servants and maidservants
and ones born in my household.
I also had livestock, both herd and flock;
I had more than all who were before me in Jerusalem.

⁸I also amassed for myself silver and gold
and the personal treasure of kings and provinces.
I made for myself male and female singers,
and the pleasures of the sons of man, girls and more girls. (?)
⁹I got big and increased more than anyone who was before me in Jerusalem;
also my worldly-wisdom stood by me.
¹⁰Nothing that my eyes asked for did I keep from them.
I didn’t hold my heart back from any rejoicing;
rather, my heart rejoiced in all my labour.
This was my share from all my labour.

¹¹But I myself turned my face to all the deeds that my hands had done
and to the labour that I had put into doing it.
Look, everything was mere-breath
a chasing of wind.
There was no profit under the sun.

O Love, O God who created me, in your love recreate me.
O Love, who redeemed me,
fill up in me whatever part of your love
has fallen into neglect within me.
O Love, O God, who first loved me,
grant that with my whole heart,
and with my whole soul,
and with my whole strength,
I may love you.

Gertrude the Great

¹⁶I myself spoke in myself:
‘Here, I’ve got big and increased in worldly-wisdom
above everyone who has been over Jerusalem before me.
My heart has seen much of worldly-wisdom and knowledge.

¹⁷I’ve given my heart to a knowledge of worldly-wisdom
and a knowledge of craziness and insight.
I’ve come to know that this, too,
was a striving after wind.

¹⁸Because
‘With an abundance of worldly-wisdom
there’s much frustration,
and one who increases in knowledge
increases in pain.’

Grant, Lord,
that we may hold to you without parting,
worship you without wearying,
serve you without failing;
faithfully seek you,
happily find you,
and forever possess you,
the only God,blessed now and for ever.
Amen

St Anselm

I, Qohelet, began to reign over Israel in Jerusalem.
I gave my heart to looking and exploring
with worldy-wisdom
everything
that’s done under the the heavens.

God gave
a bad business
to the children of Adam
to be busy with.

I looked at all the deeds done under the Sun.
There, everything is mere-breath,
a striving after wind.

Something crooked cannot be straightened
and what is missing cannot be counted.

Thank you, dear Jesus,
for all you have given me,
for all you have taken away from me,
for all you have left me.

Thomas More (c.1478-1535)

⁴A generation goes, a generation comes;
the earth stands for all time.

⁵The sun rises and the sun sets
and rushes to its place where it rises.

⁶The wind goes to the south
and turns round to the north,
it turns, turns as it goes,
and on its turnings the wind goes back.
⁷All the wadis go to the sea, but the sea isn’t full;
 to the place where the wadis go,
there they go again.

⁸All the things are laborious;
no one could speak of it.
The eye isn’t replete as regards looking,
the ear isn’t full as regards listening.
⁹What has happened is what will happen;
what has occurred is what will occur;
there’s nothing new under the sun.
¹⁰Where there is a thing that someone says,
‘See this, it’s new’,
 Already it has happened
for ages that were before us.

¹¹There is no commemoration for the earlier people,
and also for future people who are to come.
For them there will be no commemoration,
with the people who will be in the future.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
Where there is injury, pardon;
Where there is discord, union;
Where there is doubt, faith;
Where there is despair, hope;
Where there is darkness, light;
Where there is sadness, joy,
For your mercy and for your truth’s sake. Amen

The words of Qohelet
son of David
King in Jerusalem:

Mere-breath of mere-breaths
says Qohelet
Mere-breath of mere-breaths
everything is a mere-breath

What is the advantage for a person
In all their hard work
at which their work
under the sun?

Eternal Light, shine into our hearts,
Eternal Goodness, deliver us from evil,
Eternal Power, be our support,
Eternal Wisdom, scatter the darkness of our ignorance,
Eternal Pity, have mercy upon us;
that with all our heart and mind
and soul and strength we may seek thy face
and be brought by thine infinite mercy
to thy holy presence;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Alcuin (735-804)