“So temperance is about controlling bodily pleasures, but not all of them. • Enjoying beautiful sights (like paintings or colors) isn’t seen as self-indulgent. • Enjoying pleasant scents, such as flowers or incense, isn’t the same. It only counts if it’s linked to cravings. For example, you might love the smell of food because it makes you hungry.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 58

@QnA @Ungovernable @Seth For Privacy @MaxUM FYI: Ashigaru stats are on Clark Moody’s Dashboard

Gospel reading for today: “Jesus said to his disciples: ‘To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. For if you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do the same. If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, and get back the same amount. But rather, love your enemies and do good to them, and lend expecting nothing back; then your reward will be great and you will be children of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked. Be merciful, just as also your Father is merciful. Stop judging and you will not be judged. Stop condemning and you will not be condemned. Forgive and you will be forgiven. Give and gifts will be given to you; a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing, will be poured into your lap. For the measure with which you measure will in return be measured out to you.’ “ -Luke 6:27-38

The first reading in today’s Catholic Liturgy is timely and appropriate: “Brothers and sisters: Put on, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, heartfelt compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience, bearing with one another and forgiving one another, if one has a grievance against another; as the Lord has forgiven you, so must you also do. And over all these put on love, that is, the bond of perfection. And let the peace of Christ control your hearts, the peace into which you were also called in one Body.” -1 Colossians 3:12-15

“What Is Temperance? With courage, we learn to manage fear. But what about pleasure? That’s where temperance comes in. These two virtues help us control our impulses. One fights fear, while the other resists indulgence. Courage helps us face fear in the right way. Temperance helps us control pleasure in the right way.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 56-57

“A truly good and happy person actually values life more than others, so losing it is even more painful for them. But they still choose to fight for what is right, even if it costs them everything. Interestingly, the best soldiers aren’t always the bravest. Some people risk their lives because they have nothing to lose. A truly brave person understands the value of life but still chooses to act with honor.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 57

“True courage is about thinking wisely and acting for a good cause, not just reacting with emotion. True courage means facing danger even when the odds are against you, not just when you expect to win. True courage is knowing the danger but facing it anyway.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 55-57

“True courage comes from choice, not fear.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 55

“Who Deserves Blame? We don’t blame people for things they can’t control, like being born blind. But if someone ruins their health through laziness, we hold them responsible. The same rule applies to character. If someone is born into a bad situation, they aren’t to blame. But if they keep making bad choices and refuse to change, they are responsible for who they become. Some might say, ‘People don’t choose what looks good to them.’ But a person who always does the wrong thing has trained themselves to want the wrong things. A good person learns to see what is truly good. Since we can choose to be good, we can also choose to be bad. Both are in our power.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 53

“Our habits shape who we are. Just like an athlete gets stronger by training, a person who keeps making bad choices becomes a bad person. If they refuse to admit this, they’re just making excuses. Can People Change Once They Have Bad Habits? A person who keeps choosing to lie or be selfish can’t say they don’t want to be that way—they’re making that choice every day. But once a bad habit is formed, it’s much harder to change—just like ignoring a doctor’s advice can lead to an illness that’s difficult to cure. Think of it like dropping a rock. Before you drop it, you have the power to hold on. But once you let go, you can’t stop it from falling. In the same way, we can choose our actions in the beginning, but if we keep making bad choices, it gets harder to turn back. This means being a good or bad person is up to us—our choices shape who we become.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 52-53

“Pleasure is tricky—it can make something feel right even when it’s actually harmful. That’s why virtue requires wisdom and discipline, not just instinct.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 43

“A virtuous person knows when to feel emotions, how much to feel, and how to act on them in the right way. The same goes for actions: • Generosity: Too much, and you give everything away. Too little, and you’re selfish. The right balance is giving wisely. • Courage: Too much, and you’re reckless. Too little, and you’re a coward. The right balance is bravery with wisdom. • Self-control: Too much pleasure-seeking makes you indulgent. Avoiding all pleasure makes you lifeless. The right balance is enjoying life responsibly. Some Things Are Always Wrong But, not everything has a middle ground. Actions like stealing, lying, and cruelty are always wrong. You can’t say, ‘I only stole a little, so it was virtuous.’ Some things are simply bad, just as courage and honesty are always good.” -The Nichomachean Ethics-For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 41-42

“Just like a strong eye sees well or a well-trained horse runs smoothly, a virtuous person makes good choices and lives wisely. But how do we know what ‘good’ looks like? In everything, there’s a too much, a too little, and a just right. We call this the mean—the middle ground between extremes.” -The Nichomachean Ethics-For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 41

Tête-à-Tête

“Virtue isn't just a feeling or an ability. It is a state of character. We develop it over time through practice.” -The Nichomachean Ethics-For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 40

For those of you who remember a song named “Stan” by Eminem. This clip reminds me of it… Enjoy! https://fountain.fm/clip/ELFrpLB9m2tkcsioTB9b @HODL

“Virtue works the same way. Just doing a kind or fair action once doesn’t make you a kind or fair person. To truly have virtue, three things must happen: 1 You must understand what you are doing. 2 You must choose to do it because it is the right thing to do. 3 You must do it regularly so that it becomes part of who you are.” -The Nichomachean Ethics-For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg.39

“The Key to Being Good • Virtue is about pleasure and pain—we need to train ourselves to enjoy good actions and avoid bad ones. • Virtue is developed by practice—what we do repeatedly determines our character. • Virtue is about balance—too much or too little of anything can lead to bad character. Happiness comes from living a good life. To be virtuous, you need effort, discipline, and good habits.” -The Nichomachean Ethics-For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 38

“People often do bad things because they enjoy them and avoid doing good things because they seem difficult. This is why training from a young age is important—we need to learn to enjoy good actions and avoid harmful ones. Punishments also work this way. We correct people by making them feel pain when they do something wrong. Pain and pleasure influence our behavior.” -The Nichomachean Ethics - For Everyone, Aristotle, Kindle Edition, pg. 38