Transitoria

Tempus fugit a nos... (Time escapes us.)


Okay, so then we stop grasping and we move into the future (ambulare in futurum).

Change has been on my mind of late (as have Latin phrases, apparently).  At my place of employment, a storm of change has settled in and raged among us like a giant hurricane- churning the air with reckless disregard for anything and anyone emplaced.  Many people have lost their jobs-- most involuntarily and some, like me, voluntarily.  The structure and mission of the place has changed and people are struggling to settle the whole thing onto the new tracks. 

You would think that, given my preoccupation with all things time-related, I would take this as no big deal.  Well, in some respects, I am.  I understand the volatile nature of the time stream and what entropy is doing to everything.  Still, when it comes in large, concentrated doses, change can really knock you for a loop.  Some people (e.g., me) try to get in front of change and thereby become the author of it, instead of its victim.

 ~~  Things alter for the worse spontaneously, if they be not altered for the better designedly.  --Francis Bacon  ~~

Too often, though, there is little we can do to avoid or alter change.  That's when the magical concept of "acceptance" comes in.  Ah, but... God help me... sometimes it is difficult to actually apply concepts that I've believed (and even taught) for years.  For example: letting go of the notion of "control" when it comes to things that you cannot... well, control.  Change is often one of those things.  We can do what our abilities allow to attempt to influence the nature of change, but there are no guarantees.  

The ancient Roman poet Virgil called the fleeing time "irreplaceable."  So, when change is imminent and we have done all we possibly can... what then?  Do we just crawl into the fetal position and ignore it as we suck our thumb and mumble incoherently to our self?  Do we shake our fists impotently,  screaming curses at the darkness?  Or should we, as the saying goes, light a candle instead?  Well, our real power lies only in controlling our self and how we respond to change.  Time may, indeed, be "irreplaceable," but so are we!  So... we, too, must move on- just as time does- and become a virtual new and better creation with each change that we face!

 ~~  When we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.  --Victor Frankl  ~~

 
The honest person will admit that they have changed over the course of their life.  In fact, most of us over the age of... 35 or so... would say that we only remotely resemble the teenager that we once were (definitely on the inside).  That is something that is often lamented, which I think is somewhat natural, but still wrong.  We become who we are in response to what we go through; or, to put it another way, what we go through will play a big role in dictating who we become because we have to adapt to the new... or else (see above thumb-sucking).  (HERE is an in-depth discussion on identity from a few years back- just in case you're bored.)  Who I am now is exactly who I need to be in order to deal properly with what life is giving to me now.  I have to stay agile and fresh, even as changes come at me-- sometimes as fast and unwelcome as arrows. 

  ~~  People do not put new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise the skins burst, the wine spills out, and the skins are ruined. Rather, they pour new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.  --Matthew, 9:17  ~~

My youngest daughter says that she thinks fear of change is innate in us.  I'm not so sure she is wrong-- I've seen enough evidence to support the theory-- but I can say that I have always had a pretty healthy relationship with change.  I decided a long time ago that our moments are all fleeting things, like Nero's Domus Transitoria (transitory house); we will not be staying in the same present we experience, so we should not get too attached to it.  Even (especially) the very good moments will leave their mark and move on, and so I really have made an effort to remind myself accordingly and enjoy life as it comes to me. 

~~  To be interested in the changing seasons is a happier state of mind than to be hopelessly in love with spring.  --George Santayana  ~~

All the more reason why I'm so vexed at my reaction to the swirling winds of change that are blowing around me now.  I suppose the main culprit is that this is big-time change-- for others around me as well as for me.  I'm about to leave a professional place that I've been at longer than I've been anywhere in my life.  I feel for those around me and I feel for myself.  What exactly I feel is not precisely defined... but it seems to be an interesting cross between concern, sympathy, and exhilaration.  

In any case, I will continue to work it all through my processes... reminding myself at every turn that God works His own way, and our job is to persevere and seek always to do the right thing- while attempting to glorify Him in the process.  The virtues really help with this! 

I've spent years learning that the only things outside time's tyrannical grip are God Himself and the things He makes to be timeless.  I strongly believe that our souls are made timeless, by and for Him, and will one day return to Him outside time (if all goes well).  All that we have and all that we are and all that we ever will be... this is our gift from God.  How we unwrap and use that gift is entirely up to us. 

~~  Do not be deceived, my beloved:  all good giving and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no alteration or shadow caused by change.  --James, 1:17  ~~ 

(Bonus reading assignment!  Ecclesiastes, Chapter 3, verses 1 - 8.)

-

Have You Heard the Good News?

May the risen Christ give His peace to you and yours.  Have a blessed and happy Easter.

Welcome to 2013- aka "Now"

2013!  Wow... it's here already?  Seems like just a short while ago I wrote this essay on resolutions... but it wasn't really a short while- it was four years!  Seems like a good day to reflect on time's passage-- what do you say?  Okay, then!

Since time seems to be moving so quickly (it really is not, you know), we should keep our eyes open for hazards.  The first hazard is the only one that fundamentally matters: we have to get to a point where we are not running a race with time (and entropy), because we cannot win it.  

In my never-ending search for "the answer," I tend to think out loud a lot.  So... the rest of this essay will be a collection of my somewhat rambling thoughts on time and "now."  If you choose to stay, I'd appreciate any input you may have.  If you choose to exit early, then I offer my best advice, which is to embrace "now" and find God.  I wish I could give you the definitive way to do that... but I'm still working on it. 

~~  It's not that "today is the first day of the rest of my life," but that now is all there is of my life.

  --Hugh Prather  ~~ 

We should start by framing the issue.  Here is a brief flash of thought that quite suddenly assaulted my mind a few years ago and caused me to run home and write it down: 

   We're all the same age-- the age of Now.  All we really have is this moment... any of us.  To dig too deeply for the past or to reach too far for the future is pointless... or something... because it is a betrayal to Now.

   I have always thought entropy was the answer, but I did not know exactly what I meant by that.  Well, entropy is the answer... sort of.  It is the answer because it does not matter.  Time does not matter.  Outside time, there is no past and no future-- there is only Now.  Inside time, the same holds true for our immortal souls, but it does not seem so to us.

  Learning to live in Now is the hardest thing that any human can ever strive for, in my opinion.  Because we are so aware of time and so aware of entropy, we find ourselves slaves to those insidiously ubiquitous masters.  Breaking off the chains is very, very difficult.  Our very humanity fights against us doing so.  Our physical essence is tied by the tightest of tethers to them.  Only our soul is free of them... but our soul does not always know this because we have weighed it down so with earthly things.

  Now is happening everywhere to everyone.  We are all in it.  We are all the same age because we are all in Now together for this very moment.  Once this very moment is gone, we are together again the the Now of the next moment.  Moving between them smoothly is the trick... a trick that can only be accomplished by learning to smile pleasantly but distantly at the past while casting a curious gaze to the future without losing our balance on the beam of the Now.

  Why does this matter?  It matters because we are failing ourselves and we are failing our God by ignoring the truth.  We do not have ANYTHING except for this moment.  Now.  To think otherwise is to betray our very soul.  To think otherwise is to take for granted what God has given us.  He has given us Now and He has told us to live in it.

  As simple as that sounds, it is the most complex thing I have ever encountered.

  The vanity of science will have us chasing the minutia, to satisfy our earthly curiosities, at the expense of the truth.  Science is only important when it is framed properly in the picture window of the ultimate and fundamental reality.  Only a real spirit of philosophy and truth seeking can bring us to where we need to be.  And where we need to be is Now.

First, I suppose, should come a brief discussion on entropy (I highly encourage independent study on this- it is endlessly fascinating).  When things are left alone, they tend to move spontaneously to more and more dis-ordered states.  This is a part of entropy.  The second law of Thermodynamics holds that the total entropy in the universe is constantly increasing. An entropy increase, therefore, means a decrease in ‘available energy.'  Further, entropy law states that all energy, in an isolated system, moves from an ordered to a disordered state, and therefore, entropy is an expression of disorder or randomness.  This applies to more than mere matter.

Greeks, Hindus, Romans, Christians and on and on, all believed in a deteriorating universe.  It is as though such a concept is hard-wired into us.  The Greeks believed that the evolution of man was from a state of perfection to an eventual state of moral degeneration- rather than the opposite (sound familiar, Christians?).  The Romans also originally held that it was all a process of continual degradation; thus their belief that "time depreciates the value of the world."

~~ "The law that entropy always increases holds, I think, the supreme position among the laws of Nature.”  --Sir Arthur Stanley Eddington, The Nature of the Physical World (1927)  ~~

~~  “The tendency for entropy to increase in isolated systems is expressed in the second law of thermodynamics — perhaps the most pessimistic and amoral formulation in all human thought.”   --Gregory Hill and Kerry Thornley, Principia Discordia (1965)   ~~

We could go on and on with entropy, but we shall suffice to say that it shows that the time stream is finite... which means that anything and everything subject to time is finite and transitory.  If, then, we put our stock in things physical and transitory, we are doomed to have it all come crashing down and end horribly and finally.  Better by a million miles is to seek that which does not submit to the yoke of entropy, but instead endures eternally.

Which moves us to the questions at hand: mainly what is "now" and how do we get and stay in it?  Is the present moment absolutely distinct from the past and future or is it simply an emergent property of consciousness?   Albert Einstein phrased this as: "People like us, who believe in physics, know that the distinction between past, present, and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion."

So… science cannot define what “now” is—and, indeed, does not necessarily even agree that there is such a thing as “the present.” One reason for this may be that the concept is very difficult to prove—and we know how science hates that. Is “now” a "spatial structure with a zero-length time lapse" that is somehow discernible as that which separates past from future?

  ~~  I believe that only one person in a thousand knows the trick of really living in the present.  --Margaret Storm Jameson  ~~

  
I say that there is good and defensible reason to assert that “now” is all there ever is; however, the real "now" is only attainable outside of time. I see God (and our souls) standing outside this time flow, seeing all at once everything that has happened, is happening, and will happen. That is the crux of it: to us caught (mostly) in time, it seems to be movement—past distinct from present distinct from future—but from the outside, it is really just one happening.

Saint Thomas Aquinas gives, as usual, a fantastic visual-- that of a watchman, representing God, looking down on a valley to a road where past present and future, represented by individuals and actions strung out along its length, are all visible simultaneously to the watchman.
 
Another mental giant, Saint Augustine, wrote that time exists only within the created universe, so that God exists outside time; for God there is no past or future, but only an eternal present. 

We seem to get this on some basic level- even if we cannot always fully and clearly articulate it.  I am heartened greatly by the thought that God's work is not only visible to us in the physical world, but also in our heart of hearts.  

~~  "He has made everything appropriate to its time, and has put eternity into their hearts, without men's ever discovering, from beginning to end, the work which God has done.”  --Ecclesiastes 3:11  ~~

Since we're already trending to the notion that philosophy, science, and religion are all tracking simultaneously on this issue, let's bring in some more big guns.  Understanding Plato's ideas of "forms" is a fun and important exercise that will lead you to many other threads to pull on.  Briefly, a form is a concept-object ("justice" or "yellow" or "round") that is timeless and immutable that exists in the transcendent world.  The fact that forms are familiar to us is proof to Plato (and many others) of the eternal nature of our soul.  We can occasionally apprehend forms, e.g., when we see something beautifully special like an expression on a child's face or some other "special something" that is an emanation of something eternal.  

I think that perhaps this momentary apprehension of a form is a glimpse of the real "now."  If so, then the trick will be to make it last—or, more accurately, find the ability to continue seeing the form… then, we will be in the "now."  It is  not inconceivable to think that—just as God does—the forms reside in the "now."  In fact… I am certain of it.  

 ~~  He who lives in the present lives in eternity.  --Ludwig Wittgenstein  ~~

How, then, to acquire the ability to pull the forms fully into our cognitive scope?  While the answer continues to escape the best of us, a part of it surely lies in learning to recognize the forms.  This is what Socrates and Plato were teaching us: train your mind to look for the perfect so that you can understand it and its nature.  So we must work to keep our thoughts focused on that which is beyond our physical selves.  This is not new advice.  Wildly divergent sources have been saying as much for all of human history.  Consider a passage from the Bible—Romans, chapter 8: verses 9-13:

  

  "But you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you.

Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.  But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the spirit is alive because of righteousness.

If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit that dwells in you.

Consequently, brothers, we are not debtors to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live."

Saint Paul is telling us that the human self should not be enslaved by its physical shell… that the controller of the machine is not the machine itself, but rather the flickering essence inside that is our spirit—or soul, if you prefer.

Now consider some advice from Aristotle: 

"We must not listen to those who advise us 'being men to think human thoughts, and being mortal to think mortal thoughts,' but must put on immortality as much as is possible and strain every nerve to live according to that best part of us, which is small in bulk, yet much more in its power and honor surpasses all else." 

In the end, we are stuck in the physical world only if we do not work to transcend it.  Mortal senses think of “now” and then realize that what they thought was “now” is already gone and they are in a brand new "now."  the truth is that the eternal soul (and God/Angels/etc.) truly lives in the ultimate and fundamental “now.”  The “now” that lasts.  That is why it is so important to train ourselves to live in the right way as much as possible.  

We must remember that the physical universe is only our jail cell if we allow it to be.  Entropy is a fiend that helps make our “now” turn into the past… and makes us turn our thoughts to a future “now,” only to watch it speed past us, as well (if it ever arrives). 

~~  We steal if we touch tomorrow. It is God's.  --Henry Ward Beecher  ~~ 

We have within us the tools and equipment necessary to make it out of this world alive, as it were.  Surrendering to our mortality is so easy to do, and so very bad for our soul.  Seeking God and working every day to be in the real "now" is so much harder, but infinitely (and eternally) better for us. To me, this process starts and ends with God.  We have to seek Him and be ready for what He tells us to do in the quiet halls of our own conscience.  The good news is that the road-map and instruction book has been published and the way is laid out for us, if we will only follow it. 

~~  "Be of good cheer about death, and know this truth; that no evil can happen to a good man, either in life or after death." --Socrates  ~~

~~  Have no anxiety at all, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, make your requests known to God.  Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  --Philippians, 4:6-7  ~~

~~  Do not fear: I am with you; do not be anxious: I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand.  --Isaiah, 41:10  ~~

 

~~  But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given you besides. Do not worry about tomorrow; tomorrow will take care of itself.  --Matthew 6:33-34  ~~

Simple enough, eh?

Happy New Year to all!  Now, let's get on with our "now!"

-kmg

From The Ashes of Defeat...

A few thoughts:

Our country is sick.  Welfare and free phones have won the night.

I did not see this coming.  All rational indications pointed another way... but the desperation of those takers was just too great.

This is a very, very big blow to America.  We are in trouble, to be sure.  I weep for my country... and mostly for those untold millions of unborn babies who will be murdered.  The main tenants of Obamacare will kick in over the next two years, the already crippled economy will grow worse, we could see one or two new liberal justices appointed, our religious freedoms will be attacked with new force... and on, and on, ad infinitum. 

I want to just walk away from it all.  I want to curl up and lose myself in oblivion.

...but I won't.

Hell, no- I won't.

Patriots don't do that.  Americans don't do that.  Not when our country needs us most.

We are only defeated when we quit.  I refuse to quit.  That is exactly what they want from us.  Hell, no.  I plan to redouble my resolve to fight these bastards wherever I find them.  I will not submit!

Want to hear some positives?

-We almost pulled it off.  We came much closer than in 2008.  That means our country got smarter and almost did it.  That is a positive, by any measurement.

-We gained in the House.  They can stop some of the atrocities.

-There will be electoral hell to pay in 2014-- especially after the worst of Obamacare becomes obvious to the stupid people.

-Most importantly, God is with us.


They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength,

they will soar on eagles’ wings;

They will run and not grow weary,

walk and not grow faint.

-Isaiah 40:31

 

God bless America.

-kmg

Love

   I observed a label on a pet's prescription which said to "give until gone."  For some odd reason, it made my mind think of how giving most anything will lead to the original thing being "gone" at some point.  The logical fact is that, unless replenished, the stock of anything that you are giving will be depleted until ultimately all will be gone.  The more you give a friend a drink out of the water bottle, the sooner it will be empty.  Right?

   What about other kinds of "giving," besides physical/tangible things?  You can give someone your attention... but that certainly is not eternal and must be replenished with rest from the subject.  You can give an opinion...  but those are definitely finite (and with subjective value).  You can give someone a hard time...  but you have to go away and get angry again to keep that going (don't do that, by the way).  You can give your time... but we all know that one is limited (notwithstanding my theories on the ultimate and fundamental "now"- don't get me started on that!).  There are all sorts of ways you can give intangible things... and none of them are really infinite.

   With one exception.  Love.

   If I think of Love in terms of a container from which I must give, then I  quickly realize that I cannot fulfill that pet prescription's direction.  I can give and give and give... but Love is never gone.  Give more, and more is created inside me.  Give Love and it comes back to me-- often in ways I could never have predicted.

   ~~  “I have found the paradox, that if you love until it hurts, there can be no more hurt, 

only more love.”  --Mother Teresa  ~~

    So very much has been said and written on Love- for as long as mankind could communicate.  As well it should have been- since Love is the chief virtue and the most powerful force in creation.  I cannot add much to the endless volumes on Love... but I can add a bit, and so this essay will be short, but most sincere.  As is my habit, I start with God's Word and with those who help us understand His Word.  Divine Love and human Love are main topics in the bible, as well as in the writings of countless religious scholars and artists.

   1st Corinthians, Chapter 13 says that Love "bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."  The chapter ends with "Faith, Hope, Love remain... and the greatest of these is Love."  (Read the whole chapter- it is pure magic!)  The gist is that Love is eternal and infinite and will always be there.

  Charity is, of course, a specific type, or action, of Love.  The two terms are somewhat interchangeable in various areas of the bible, depending upon translations.  In my view, Love stands as the keeper and motivator of Charity.  Saint Thomas Aquinas said that "To Love is to will the good of another."  

   Love surpasses and transcends so many things.  We can know some things, but we can love all things.  Our reason will take us to a place, but it is Love that will make that place worth being at.  Paschal said that reason's last step is in realizing that there are an infinite number of things that surpass it.  I believe that Love is foremost among those things.

~~  "Love takes up where knowledge leaves off." -- Saint Thomas Aquinas  ~~

   ~~  "Le coeur a ses raisons que la raison ne connaît pas."  (The heart has its reasons which reason knows not.)  --Blaise Paschal~~

   Love heals and strengthens and enhances-- both oneself and the one loved.  Hence the inability to "give until gone."  Love brings a power above all powers to the least powerful among us.  In so doing, it makes itself even stronger- just as Mother Teresa said.
   
   To love as Christ loved-- even to love as someone like Mother Teresa loved-- is hard.  That is, it's hard until you do it... and then it's hard to not do it.  All it takes is practice and devotion and a clear heart.  

   Love is truly the only infinitely self-renewing source of energy and power.  That makes it the only thing that matters in terms of our eternal souls.  

   Given those stakes, we had better study some more on it... wouldn't you say?


   -kmg

  

Prudence

~~  "Prudence is the virtue by which we discern what is proper to do under various circumstances in time and place."  --John Milton  ~~

Leave it to Milton to state it so plainly- after all, he explained in great poetic detail how man lost Paradise, essentially by failing to act in a prudent way.  I note that Milton uses "proper" in his definition, and I have to agree that the word choice is understandable- even though it feels somehow incomplete.  A great friend of mine often uses the expression: "reasonable, necessary, and appropriate;" which is, in my view, a very decent way to sum up Prudence. 

Here's another definition of Prudence: "Doing the right thing."  If you can do that, you have a virtual superpower; since it is rare and extremely potent.  It is rare because doing the right thing requires a healthy dose of rational thought, and a willingness and ability to overcome distractions and loose emotions.  Hence, Prudence is often seen as the "party pooper" of the virtues.  When Hope calls us to soar, Prudence clips our wings so we won't crash.  When Fortitude wants us to run through the flames, Prudence taps our shoulder to remind us of the temperature.  When Faith promises us what we want, Prudence makes us study and verify.

 ~~  "Prudence is an attitude that keeps life safe, but does not often make it happy."  

--Samuel Johnson  ~~

Although I recognize the frustration that comes when one's party is pooped; I find it somehow reassuring to think of a thing like Prudence that will come along and put my passions and emotions in check when I need it to.  The tricky part is that Prudence does not just magically appear on the scene and guide us in the "proper" direction.  Telling someone to "do the right thing" is tantamount to telling them to "invert the Pythagorean theorem" or "change out the transmission in a '65 Mustang."  So long as they are trained in how to do it, they stand a good chance of succeeding.  If they are not trained and practiced, then... good luck with that.  St Thomas Aquinas calls this "acquired Prudence" ("Prudentia acquisita"), which is gained through experience and not innate.  Like math and mechanics, Prudence takes time and effort to develop-- and is, much like the other virtues, something we have to work at and be ready to listen to when it finally begins to speak to us. 

 ~~  "Hear the words of prudence, give heed unto her counsels, and store them in thine heart; her maxims are universal, and all the virtues lean upon her; she is the guide and the mistress of human life."   --Akhenaton, Pharaoh of Egypt's Eighteenth Dynasty  ~~

By the way, once again we see that the virtues are interwoven together- and they work best when practiced as a set.  So, rather than thinking of Prudence as killing the party, we should look at it as a vital ingredient in our virtuous life.  Operating in unison, the virtues guarantee us a clear vision and a straighter path that we otherwise would not have.  Beyond just nudging or chastising one another, the virtues also harmonize-- and adding two or more of them together will always get us a step or two closer to that elusive superpower.

Let's do a simple exercise and sprinkle in Prudence with the big three to see what comes up.  Combining Prudence and Hope gives us an optimistic realism.  Prudence and Faith together creates rational trust.  Perhaps the most potent combination is Prudence mixed with Love, from which we get justifiable passion and devotion that are solid and powerful enough to withstand most any strife.

In these examples, and any other we could think of, Prudence works with its fellows to keep us from overdoing a good thing-- or, more accurately, from doing a good thing in the wrong way.  (Hey, isn't that the job of Temperance, you may ask?  Nah- Temperance is what allows us to enjoy two glasses of wine instead of four; while Prudence sees the shark in the pool and therefore keeps us from "enjoying" what we thought we saw as a nice swim.)

~~  "Affairs are easier of entrance than of exit; and it is but common prudence to see our way out before we venture in."  --Aesop  ~~

Even standing alone, Prudence is a force to be reckoned with.  It is closely related to-- and may  be thought of as a part of-- true wisdom.  Intellectually, we all want it and we all make some effort to pursue it... but it is a difficult chase, and many would-be sages wind up abandoning the hunt for something easier- such as surrendering to moral relativism and permissiveness in the name of "liberty."  The notion that Prudence takes away from our liberty is beyond laughable- it is childish.  "I'll stick my finger in that light socket if I want to because I'm free!"

Another conventional thought (usually unconscious and untrained) is that Prudence takes time and in turn takes away from our required actions- and that is a key reason why so many quit seeking it.   After all, who has time for second thoughts when something very big and important and emotional is on the line?

 ~~  "Nothing can be done quickly and prudently at the same time."   --Publius Syrus  ~~

I do not completely disagree with the esteemed Syrus... there is an additional step in the process when we employ Prudence, but it really does not require us to slow down all that much.  It is true that Prudence proceeds through a process-- deliberating options, judging those options, and putting into practice what was judged best-- but that needn't be overly time consuming.  Aristotle said to take some time deliberating, but not to hesitate in acting on the judgment.  This process, like most any learned skill, becomes almost second nature once added to our regular mindset.

I think vilifying Prudence for slowing things down has become something of an unconscious excuse to avoid inviting that stern chaperone to our emotional party.  Much easier to just act in the way the moment calls for, right?  Well, if not right, it is certainly common.  Humans seem almost predisposed to rush in where Alexander Pope's angels fear to tread-- and they often do this with heartfelt and solid intentions.

Prudence cares little for our intentions, though; instead it is interested in our judgment and rationality.  This coldness is why the other virtues must season Prudence, even as it is testing them.  In the end, it is a careful balance between our reason and our will, between Prudence and Faith/Hope/Love.  Without this balance, emotions-- especially those with the most noble intentions-- are capable of wreaking disaster in our midst. 

~~  "The prudence of the best heads is often defeated by the tenderness of the best hearts."  

--Henry Fielding  ~~

St Thomas wrote of the absolute necessity of our reason and our will working together.  He said that Prudence was "practical reason" and was in the "cognitive power of the soul."  He thought of our will as the captain of our ship, and our reason (Prudence) as the navigator.  That metaphor resonates with me.  Our willful intentions (we'll be pragmatic here and speak of our better intentions- those borne of our Love/Faith/Hope... since the other intentions borne of the deadly sins really do not care about Prudence) give us a destination to reach for and our prudent discretion gets us to that destination in the best way to ensure that we maintain the integrity of our entire vessel. 

Beyond fulfilling our spiritual need for virtuous completion, Prudence also behaves as something of a bodyguard.  Indeed, it is good to use Prudence to make sure we are using our Hope properly... but it is also good to listen to the quiet voice when it is warning us of physical danger.  In my world, we call it "Condition Yellow" - that is to say a mindset that forces caution and insists that we be ready for anything that may come our way.

~~  "It is better to be careful a hundred times than to be killed once."  --Anonymous  ~~

Overall, then, I find Prudence to be the rational conscience of the other virtues... the voice that admonishes in order to maintain a good and safe course.  Just as with the other virtues, our souls can be strengthened by practicing Prudence, or our souls can be left struggling and weakened by neglecting it.  Also like the other virtues, it will continue to exist- whether or not we choose to employ it.  Just knowing it is out there should be reason enough for us to pursue it relentlessly; but, alas, we know that is not so.  It often takes bitter experience to drag us to Prudence's doorstep.  The good news is, when we knock (and keep knocking), the door will open and our virtuous life will be greatly enhanced.

In the end, I suppose that's the nature of superpowers... once you have proven that you are ready and worthy, they will be there to save the day- if we are willing to act.

~~   “Prudence is not just a quality of mind, it also involves our applying ourselves to a deed, and this comes about by the exercise of will.”  --St Thomas Aquinas   ~~

-kmg

Fortitude

  ~~ “Fortitude is the guard and support of the other virtues.” --John Locke ~~

How to go on?

How can any of us possibly persevere in this hopeless world?  What makes us press forward in our lives?  How can we choose the right path when there are so many wrong ones being presented to us?  Is there some force within us all that can be tapped in troubling and difficult times? 

Of course there is.  It is called many things, but none so descriptive as "Fortitude"-- that force that protects us from the negative friction caused by doubt, fear, and adversity so that we can press on and do the right thing.  It does this by enabling us to move forward in a positive way, in spite of adversity, conducting life's many and varied activities in an upright and virtuous way. 

We call Fortitude a virtue because it is a higher thing-- something we have to invoke and work on practicing.  I can feel Fortitude inside and around me, but I cannot claim it as something I "found" or created within myself.  I know in my heart that it is a supernatural gift that I must use properly.  However, before I can do that successfully and consistently, I have to know exactly what it is and how it works (as with every other philosophical question). 

~~ “Fortitude is the marshal of thought, the armor of the will, and the fort of reason.” 

--Francis Bacon ~~

Taking it from the basics, I can begin by seeing what thinkers in the past came up with on the subject.  Many of the great philosophers spent considerable time on Fortitude-- including Plato, Aristotle, and St Thomas Aquinas-- and they all wrote of Fortitude as a virtue.  Plato called Fortitude the "principle of not flying danger, but meeting it."  Aristotle did not specifically write that Fortitude is the highest virtue, but he covers it first when he covers the moral virtues.  St Thomas was specific and wrote that fortitude ranks third among the Cardinal Virtues after Prudence and Justice.  Whatever his "ranking" of Fortitude, St Thomas knew its vital nature in the scheme of things: that it must ensure the stability of all the virtues.

 ~~  "Virtues in general must act with that firmness which fortitude bestows."  ~~  St Thomas Aquinas

The Greek masters and St Thomas differed in other specifics.  The Greeks saw the great example of Fortitude as "facing death in a noble way"-- with much emphasis on battle and physical courage.  St Thomas, on the other hand, believed that true Fortitude involves moral courage to withstand all things which threaten our immortal soul-- and that courage fails us with every act of vice.  In order to really be a virtue-- rather than simply our fighting "animal" spirit the Greeks wrote of-- Fortitude has to be guided by our rational soul that St Thomas described.

I agree strongly that Fortitude is much more than physical courage.  A brave and courageous warrior can excel on the battlefield, but still succumb to worldy tempations and moral failures.  In fact, it seems clear that what makes Fortitude a virtue is the fact that we need it in times that are not extraordinary at all.  We need it in quiet times when we are trying to make it through the day.  We need it when temptation is all around and the right choice is not the easy one.  I often find Fortitude necessary in what are seemingly easy times-- when our guard is down and we can fall prey to sins and vices; perhaps because they seem fun and innocuous, or we are simply not paying due attention. This is when I find myself needing Fortitude-- at the times when my guard can be down.  To me, this makes it more of a consciously applied trait-- a form of watchfulness, or "Condition Yellow," as we say in my profession.

~~ "Gird your hearts with silent fortitude, suffering yet hoping all things." 

--Felicia Hemans ~~

The interesting thing to me about Fortitude is that you need it in order to practice the other virtues-- especially during trying times-- but you also need... something in order to practice Fortitude.  Reason tells me that while Fortitude is the motive power of all the virtues, it still needs a power of its own to function.  The Christian will attest that the driving force behind Fortitude is God Himself. The secularist will give credit to a good conscience and solid values from the individual (we'll leave for now the troubling question of how a secularist would recognize those things).

Without opening an age-old argument, I will say that I believe the force has to come from something outside of ourselves.  It is too logically fallacious for me to believe that my own self can protect me-- single-handed-- from myself.  Certainly, I can feel myself responding with Fortitude and using it to strengthen me... but I cannot bring myself to claim it as a force that I created inside myself.  Each time I fail, I can feel an outside power helping me-- if I choose to call upon it.  "Doing the right thing" becomes a way of choosing and a way of conducting the day to day business of life.  Ups and downs begin to look the same, with the same basic plan:  never quit, never do what you know to be wrong, and if you fail, get right back to trying.  That is the force of Fortitude.

 ~~ “Though a righteous man falls seven times, he rises again.” --Proverbs 24:16 ~~

Finally, there is the ultimate struggle for which we will need Fortitude.  At some point in our lives, we will be confronted with the truth of our mortality.  Having considered this for some time, I have come to the conclusion that we ultimately have but three choices in this area.
 
First, there is the choice of denial.  We have all spent time there and will again at some point.  Younger people tend to live in denial of mortality, as the power and essence of youth seems to repel the notion just as negative often repels positive.  There are many older people, though, who also embrace denial and its anesthesia-like siren song.

Second is the choice of despair.  Just as with denial, we have all experienced this one at times.  Despair can be a very, very strong force-- as evidenced throughout history, even for biblical persons up to and including Jesus Christ Himself.  Despair would have us abandon all of our virtues, including Hope, and surrender to the abyss. 

The third and final choice is acceptance of our true self which leads to a pursuit of our Creator and the right path.  People make this choice every day, because it is ostensibly an easy one to make.  The difficulty, of course, comes when we try to stay on the path that we thought we wanted.  Illustrative of this point is a quote from one of the giants of the early Christian forefathers, Saint Augustine, who famously said, "Lord, make me chaste, but not yet."  Deep inside, we recognize what is the right path, but at times it is so incredibly difficult to follow it.

St Augustine's sentiment seems to be hard-wired into all of us, and I contend that only Fortitude can see us through it.  Only a force that transcends our mortal selves can help us save our immortal souls.  We cannot shoot straight at the target of morality without a fortress to protect us from the slings and arrows of sin and vice that always seek to throw off our aim. 

~~ "Patience and fortitude conquer all things." --Ralph Waldo Emerson ~~

Fortitude, seen as a Cardinal Virtue and as the "enforcer" of the other Cardinal Virtues, is our ticket to the "straight and narrow" called out in the Gospel of Matthew (7:14).  The Bible, in fact, speaks to Fortitude's importance many times.  Regardless of your personal Faith or lack thereof, the wisdom is undeniable.  Here are a few of my favorites.

~~ “...let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.” --Hebrews 12:1 ~~

~~ “Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.” --Galatians 6:9 ~~

For those who choose the third way (acceptance and seeking), the Bible is our guide and is absolutely filled with fuel that inspires and empowers the Fortitude we need.

~~ "I can do everything through him who gives me strength." --Philippians 4:13 ~~

~~ "Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him."

--James 1:12 ~~

I close by positing that Fortitude is, literally, the gift that keeps on giving.  Once we have left behind us the despair and denial that choked our path, and once we begin to use Fortitude properly and successfully, we will find our way... our right way.



-kmg

 

Independence Day Motivation!

If this doesn't stir your patriot blood... nothing ever will.

That last sentence is one of the most inspiring things ever written.

IN CONGRESS, July 4, 1776.

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, –That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security.–Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.
He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.
He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.
He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.
He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.
He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.
He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.
He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary powers.
He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.
He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harrass our people, and eat out their substance.
He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.
He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil power.
He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For Quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:
For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:
For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:
For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:
For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by Jury:
For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences
For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies:
For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:
For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.
He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.
He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.
He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.
He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.
Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which, would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes and our sacred Honor.

The 56 signatures on the Declaration appear in the positions indicated:

Column 1
Georgia:
Button Gwinnett
Lyman Hall
George Walton

Column 2
North Carolina:
William Hooper
Joseph Hewes
John Penn
South Carolina:
Edward Rutledge
Thomas Heyward, Jr.
Thomas Lynch, Jr.
Arthur Middleton

Column 3
Massachusetts:
John Hancock
Maryland:
Samuel Chase
William Paca
Thomas Stone
Charles Carroll of Carrollton
Virginia:
George Wythe
Richard Henry Lee
Thomas Jefferson
Benjamin Harrison
Thomas Nelson, Jr.
Francis Lightfoot Lee
Carter Braxton

Column 4
Pennsylvania:
Robert Morris
Benjamin Rush
Benjamin Franklin
John Morton
George Clymer
James Smith
George Taylor
James Wilson
George Ross
Delaware:
Caesar Rodney
George Read
Thomas McKean

Column 5
New York:
William Floyd
Philip Livingston
Francis Lewis
Lewis Morris
New Jersey:
Richard Stockton
John Witherspoon
Francis Hopkinson
John Hart
Abraham Clark

Column 6
New Hampshire:
Josiah Bartlett
William Whipple
Massachusetts:
Samuel Adams
John Adams
Robert Treat Paine
Elbridge Gerry
Rhode Island:
Stephen Hopkins
William Ellery
Connecticut:
Roger Sherman
Samuel Huntington
William Williams
Oliver Wolcott
New Hampshire:
Matthew Thornton

Have You Heard...

...the good news?

Christ is risen!!

-




On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.”

So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in.

When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. For they did not yet understand the scripture that he had to rise from the dead. Then the disciples returned home.

But Mary stayed outside the tomb weeping. And as she wept, she bent over into the tomb and saw two angels in white sitting there, one at the head and one at the feet where the body of Jesus had been. And they said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping?”

She said to them, “They have taken my Lord, and I don’t know where they laid him.” When she had said this, she turned around and saw Jesus there, but did not know it was Jesus.

Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?”

She thought it was the gardener and said to him, “Sir, if you carried him away, tell me where you laid him, and I will take him.”

Jesus said to her, “Mary!”

She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni," which means Teacher.

Jesus said to her, “Stop holding on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am going to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”

Mary of Magdala went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord,” and what he told her.

On the evening of that first day of the week,j when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.

The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.

--John, 20: 1-20

**

Amen.

-kmg

Justice

There are some intellectual giants who have the perfect knack for putting the truth out there just right. I have always found it helpful to look for them and, whenever possible, let them lay it out there. So, here you go... we'll open by letting the smartest man to ever live define it for us.

~~ "Justice is a certain rectitude of mind whereby a man does what he ought to do in the circumstances confronting him." --Saint Thomas Aquinas ~~

Simple, eh? Just do what you ought to do. Period.

Simple, that is, until we actually think about it. When we try to imagine all the times we did not do what we ought to do, it begins to make us feel pretty lousy, eh? No worries-- St Thomas was not saying that we always do what we ought. He was certainly not saying that even he always did what he ought. Instead, he was doing what all good philosophers do: identifying and describing the virtue so that it can be examined and, ultimately, sought out in ourselves.

Still... I feel I need more to go on. Who decides what we "ought" to do, anyway? Us? How do we figure that out if we're still struggling with the basic concept? Until we know what it is, then we can't really answer any other questions about it. The problem is, the very question "What is Justice?" is a non-empirical one. It has been said that Justice is Truth in action... but there again is the problem. There is not really a recognized method for for getting to the answer. So, I think we need to run down some other thoughts.

First, we will establish that Justice is something good and important that we should want to attain.

~~ “Nothing is to be preferred before justice.” --Socrates ~~

~~ "I think the first duty of society is justice." --Alexander Hamilton ~~

Agreed. Next question: is it a societal attribute, or an individual virtue? I think that, like many other virtues, we have to have it in our private hearts and then live it every day in our society. Then, without doubt, it will become a social norm. If the individuals that make up society are found to be lacking in Justice-- or any other virtue-- then it will surely be in short supply in the State. That concept should be intuitive to all of us, whether or not we have read Plato.

~~ “Justice in the life and conduct of the State is possible only as first it resides in the hearts and souls of the citizens” --Plato ~~

Justice is not so easily defined and understood as we made it seem above, I fear. In fact, I submit that Justice is that thing that many people call for on a regular basis without having a good grasp on what it actually means. If they did have such a grasp, they would probably not be so quick to shout for it. Politicians believe that they are all over the Justice thing... so they legislate and legislate and legislate... and we are no better off then before they did that-- and actually, some would insist, far worse off. After all, Cicero warned us that the more laws there are, the less Justice there would be. That thought is not so counter-intuitive as it may seem at first blush.

Here are some things that Justice is not:

Justice is not revenge.

Justice is not compassion.

Justice is not necessarily equality.

Justice is not necessarily fair.

Justice is not necessarily pretty.

Moving forward, we can see that Justice, once attained, brings a strength to any other characteristic or virtue that they would not otherwise have. For example:

~~ “Without justice, courage is weak.” --Benjamin Franklin ~~

~~ "Knowledge without justice ought to be called cunning rather than wisdom." --Plato ~~

~~ "In the absence of justice, what is sovereignty but organized robbery?" --Saint Augustine ~~

~~ "Mercy, detached from Justice, grows unmerciful." -- CS Lewis ~~

...and on and on. Let that soak in a moment. Justice brings rectitude to other virtues. That is, if it is attained and practiced properly. We keep coming back to that, don't we?

Like the people mentioned above, I want Justice. I want it for myself and I want it for my family and my country. So... where do I get it? Who owns Justice and where does it come from? Some will say that it is just a thing that is floating out there somewhere for anyone to grab as they see fit. To me, these are the same people who live their lives attesting that there are multiple truths-- your truth, my truth, their truth... and we should not force our truth on them. That is, in itself, an entire essay, so I will pass on it for now.

Let's proceed on the non-empirical, but imminently intuitive, path that God owns Justice.

~~ "All human laws are, properly speaking, only declaratory; they have no power over the substance of original justice." --Edmund Burke ~~

That sounds perfectly right, but is it a comfort to know that God alone owns Justice, and we only attempt to borrow it? It certainly should be... but is it? I think the more you know about the true nature of His Justice, the less you may be comforted. Until you begin to practice it the way He wants you to, that is.

~~ "I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that his justice cannot sleep forever." --Thomas Jefferson ~~

If we want Justice, then we must be prepared for it to come to us; and when it comes, it will come in its own way, with little regard for our personal notions of "fair" and "equal" and so forth. We must be ready to both stand with Justice and to stand before Justice. If we can learn to do that, then we will be on solid, if somewhat frightening, ground. If we can embrace it, then Justice will strengthen our core and bring to fruition the seeds of morality that are inside each of us. I do believe this.

~~ "At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice he is the worst." --Aristotle ~~

All right, all right... now we want Justice, don't we? Of course we do. Our very souls are hard-wired to seek it. That is something that pagan and Christian philosophers alike have always agreed on. We have to seek it and we have to administer it as best we can, both as individuals and as society.

We must be bold in our quest and we must be ready to live with the consequences... and there will always be consequences when real Justice is applied. Those who seek to serve it have to be energetic and steadfast-- and they must be ready to fight for it at all costs; always checking the moral compass to ensure the cause is still in the realm of true Justice.

~~ "Justice without force is powerless; force without justice is tyrannical." --Blaise Pascal ~~

~~ "...moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue." --Barry Goldwater ~~

The real trick, of course, is in being sure that we are on the side of true Justice before we even think of trying to administer it. Even this very day, there are people in the streets calling for it-- and yet, they will shout and cry foul if it comes in its true form. They will shout and cry because they will not recognize it. They call for Justice, but what they really want is far more personal and selfish. We are all guilty of this at times. We are often like the parents Bill Cosby mentions who are not so much interested in Justice as they are in peace and quiet. So this is why we question and examine and search. To try to get it right.

~~ “Justice and power must be brought together, so that whatever is just may be powerful, and whatever is powerful may be just.” --Blaise Pascal ~~

I would offer a final note on recognizing Justice. I believe that the aforementioned hard-wiring comes with a serious glitch. Sometimes, it seems so obvious to us that Justice is this way or that way... and before long we have succumbed to the great trap of finding truth in a mirror. To us it seems so, but we have not truly examined it and held it up to scrutiny that is not subject to our personal predispositions. This is the essence of objectivity, and it is quite elusive, indeed. I have come to avoid posting links, but I will add this one so that all who read this can take a moment for a reality check by one of the great masters of thought.

The truth is, our search for Justice is not easy and is not often kind and gentle. Getting to it requires the kind of discernment that means an open heart and an ear cocked toward Heaven. In other words, the answers are out there if we seek them in the right way.

Finally, just so we are all clear on our imperative mandate to embrace Justice, I close with the ultimate Word.

~~ "In all the communities which the LORD, your God, is giving you, you shall appoint judges and officials throughout your tribes to administer true justice for the people. You must not distort justice: you shall not show partiality; you shall not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the eyes even of the wise and twists the words even of the just. Justice, justice alone shall you pursue, so that you may live and possess the land the LORD, your God, is giving you." -Deuteronomy, 16: 18-20 ~~


-kmg

Temperance

~~ "Temperance is simply a disposition of the mind which binds the passion."
--St Thomas Aquinas ~~

Are you in the habit of moderating your indulgence of appetites, desires, and passions? If you are, then congratulations! You are practicing Temperance.

Too bad most people are not with you on that. In fact, it seems that this particular virtue, that Plato called the "principle of subduing desires and living moderately," has fallen on hard times in today's "free" world.

Our Founders built upon timeless ideas and concepts to create a system where freedom and control would actually work hand-in-hand. They built our foundation upon the notion of the Civil Society—the same idea expressed by Socrates, Plato, Hobbes, Locke, and so many others. Essentially, the Civil Society ensures relatively peaceful coexistence among free people—ensured through social pacts or contracts. Pulling from Locke, our Founders knew that civic rights and virtues came from natural law... in other words, the Creator.

Plato, for his part, knew that the excessive freedom of a democracy leads to the loss of moral and intellectual standards, and will result in societal (and personal) anarchy. He also knew that this resulting anarchy—born of a lack of self-control and wisdom—leads to the establishment of tyranny and the loss of freedom. In fact, according to Plato, where there is too much freedom, the people are easily influenced by emotional speeches and their “votes” are easily bought by the charismatic demagogues who will then use the people’s own votes to reduce freedom. I’m sure Plato also observed the delicious irony in this concept.

Many others throughout history, perhaps especially those divinely inspired, have called for people to curb their own inner Id. Intuitively, we know that it is not good to give ourselves everything we want. Still more dangerous, then, for a society to have all it wants.

~~ "For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your... knowledge with self-control, self-control with endurance, endurance with devotion..." St Peter (2 Peter, 1:5-6) ~~

Something that seems to be missing today is the voluntary restraint of freedom in the name of being civil, and it is plain to see that this is closely related to the virtual collapse of our societal moral code. Nowadays, we do things because we CAN, often with no regard for the moral and social implications; and that is an abuse of freedom, plain and simple. Withholding something that you CAN do... or moderating it to a smaller something... this is a noble and fulfilling talent that is all too often lost today.

This is, I am sure, one of many reasons that men turn to God. Those who are self-aware enough to actually realize their limitations can exceed those limitations by calling for His help. We’ve seen this brilliantly displayed throughout history. Painters, musicians, writers, scientist (yes), and even regular folks have done things that clearly were beyond their obvious or ostensible abilities.

The atheist will argue that of course these people had the abilities, and ascribing it to God is only a psychological booster for them. I’m more inclined toward the wisdom in this verse from Matthew, 19:26: Jesus looked at them and said, “For human beings this is impossible, but for God all things are possible.”

To segue from exhibiting great and amazing abilities back to curbing our excesses, I point to our Founders again. They were, if nothing else, very self-aware and quite demonstrably cognizant of their own shortcomings. They leaned on the Creator and they counted heavily on the good graces of their fellow citizens when crafting this experimental government. The motivation is clear for John Adams' famous quote: “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.”

~~ “Ask God for temp'rance. That's th' appliance only Which your disease requires.” --William Shakespeare ~~

The success, then, of our Republic is reliant in no small part upon Temperance. Our system will not work with unbridled freedom. Chaos and anarchy develop, followed closely by overstepping government. Using freedom for something more than it was meant to be (by our Founders and certainly also by our God) is like the use of spray paint by the "huffing" teenagers: something useful turned to something harmful.

The catch-22 here is that true Temperance comes only from the self, and in a society, from a group of individual selves. Government imposed Temperance is nothing of the sort. It is, instead, tyranny.

~~ "Temperance to be a virtue must be free, and not forced."

--Cyrus Augustus Bartol ~~

So, just like our society, our personal system will also not work with unbridled freedom; and when it breaks down and is added to many others’ breaking down, we see the result in society. So we need look no farther than our own mirror to see where lies most of the ills that plague us enlightened modern folks: an individual loss of Temperance that carries directly to a societal one.

What a dilemma! To be free and to stay free, we must make ourselves curb freedoms. Seems paradoxical at first glance… but not at second glance. Giving it just a moment’s thought tells us that it is not a paradox at all. Temperance is inextricably and tightly tied to Free Will. It is a simply profound truth (as most truths are).

~~ "If you find honey, eat only what you need, lest you have your fill and vomit it up." Proverbs, 25:16 ~~

We, individually, have been eating too much honey, and we see the results of that in the rivers of vomit running through our society. So, once again we find that the answer to this issue is found, like so many others, within the individual and not the collective. It is yet another timeless lesson from our God and from our Founders. A lesson that, unfortunately, our leftist brethren simply will not learn. To succeed, a society must empower the individual above all else. From that, very good things will come to everyone.

A team starts with individuals and ends with individuals. Without the one, the many will fail every time—and so, the one must be free to do all that can be done; and also free to restrain from doing that which one's individual conscience and God say should not be done.

~~ "Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable." St Paul (1 Corinthians, 9:25) ~~

As I practice my own personal Temperance during this Lenten season, I try my best to remember that I do it for a greater good. In fact, we would all do well to keep that in mind. As we saw with yesterday’s tragic, devastating, and absolutely heartbreaking news about the death of the mighty Andrew Breitbart, we are—none of us—long for this world. Practicing that which gets us closer to St Paul’s “imperishable wreath” is just good business for the soul.

~~ "Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect." St Paul (Romans, 12:2) ~~

I’ll close this with a few random quotes on Temperance that I just really liked. Peace to your spirit.

-kmg

“Temperance is moderation in the things that are good and total abstinence from the things that are foul.” --Frances E. Willard

“Abstinence is easier than temperance." --Seneca

“Abstinence is the surety of temperance." --Plato

“Temperate temperance is best; intemperate temperance injures the cause of temperance." --Mark Twain

“Abstinence is as easy to me as temperance would be difficult.” --Samuel Johnson

"I drive my body and train it, for fear that, after having preached to others, I myself should be disqualified." St Paul (1 Corinthians, 9:27)