The fact that meekness does not have a good reputation in public opinion. It is often presented as a weakness, which is not attractive for today’s man.
“We do not want to be weak. We want to be strong, fast, efficient, as society expects us to be. But we should strive to improve our reputation for moderation. After all, moderation is beautiful, it is happiness, it is freedom, it is the self-realization of one’s own life,” the Archbishop states.
Although temperance most obviously affects our basic needs—food, drink, and the senses—we need it in other areas as well. It relates to curiosity, for example.
“We are constantly looking for something new and in the process we lose our concentration, our attention, we get distracted by many things. How many times during the day do we look on the Internet to see what’s new?” reflects Archbishop Zvolenský.
However, not every moderate attitude must also involve moderation. The Archbishop points out that even in passivity, great intemperance can manifest itself, and it is necessary to beware of its hidden manifestations.
“It is not an offensive attitude, it is just that even passivity created from intemperate indulgence in negative thoughts is a transgression, it is a distortion of the potential that man has within himself.”
In the interview, he also discusses why a life of moderation is not boring, how to enjoy it to the fullest even if you have to guard the peace, and how moderation affects our different moods and temperaments.
If we could list virtues right now, we might not even include temperance. Some might even consider it a weakness. Why is gentleness among the cardinal virtues?
We have four cardinal virtues—wisdom, justice, fortitude, and meekness—which we also call cardinal virtues. The term cardinal comes from a word that we translate into English as a hinge on which a door turns. We can say that all four virtues are hinges on the door that leads to life, to man’s realization.
Moderation is a virtue that is – surprisingly – focused on ourselves. Any man who dares to focus on himself should, in the right measure, use all the dimensions of his existence that belong to him. Moderation should lead us to be able to use everything in measure in the right way.
This may not be to everyone’s liking. At present, there are many possibilities and opinions that influence us. And, let’s be honest, moderation does not have a good reputation in public opinion. Very often, we see it presented as a weakness. I understand that this then discourages us. We do not want to be weak. We want to be strong, fast, and efficient, as society expects us to be.
And isn’t a life of moderation a boring life?
A life of moderation cannot be boring if we learn to understand it well. It should be fascinating to say that using my endowments makes me a noble person, practical, truthful, helpful, rightly kind, passionate, and loving.
Simply because of gentleness, we use all our endowments in a balanced way. We should strive to improve the reputation of temperance in society. For temperance is beautiful, it is happiness, it is freedom, and it is self-realization of one’s own life.
You are talking about givenness. But we first associate moderation with the enjoyment of food and drink. So, what does moderation refer to?
It most obviously touches on the basic needs that belong to our existence—drink, food, sensuality, and sexuality. All these areas belong to our daily lives, and so we are confronted every day with finding the right moderation.
But then there is, for example, our capacity for imagination. This is an area where we need to be very moderate and careful. I read somewhere that many expressions of intemperance often begin in the imagination. So, not even in the primary sensibility, but in the imagination. On the one hand, it is our givenness because we can dream of beautiful, great things, but we can also dream of harmful things.
Or curiosity. There, too, we need moderation. We are constantly looking for something new, and in the process, we lose our focus and attention, getting distracted by many things. How many times during the day do we look on the internet to see what’s new? Here, too, another space opens up for each of us to question the degree to which we give our activities.
What role does one’s nature and temperament play in practicing moderation?
All kinds of temperaments, as we know them in that classical simplistic distinction, are on an equal footing. It is only outwardly, for example, that intemperance is more evident in choleric or sanguine, while it is more hidden in phlegmatic or melancholics. Although in the more introverted moods their attitude may appear to be mildness, it may not be the virtue of mildness.
Wallowing in one’s pessimistic fantasies may represent great intemperance. One weighs one’s insides down and complicates one’s existence. Perhaps those around him see the consequence of his passivity, which is not so disturbing. It is not an offensive attitude, only that even passivity created from immoderate indulgence in negative thoughts is a transgression, a distortion of the potential that one has within oneself.
And is it possible to enjoy life to the fullest if we are always to keep our peace?
The answer is hidden in St. Thomas Aquinas’ formulation that moderation is more than anything else a manifestation of one’s own self. This is a wonderful statement and a very modern one, valorizing man’s existence and individuality. Is it not a great value to own oneself? The further we advance in this realization, the more we can give of ourselves and the more sublime and profound our giving.
Because of the high pace of life and the inevitable superficiality of wanting to participate in everything in some way, we often cannot go within and glide only on the surface. This is how we lose ourselves because we live only on the outside and feel as if the world carried us away. We must come down to ourselves as if to take hold of everything we experience, with its joys and transgressions. Sometimes, that can be a deterrent that one cannot bear. It is hard to think of your sins if you have no sure way out. This is owning oneself, accepting one’s existence, and the realization that moderate enjoyment is the greatest happiness.
If I were to illustrate this, I would use the example of dieting. One person told me he had cut out everything sweet from his diet. When he had an apple after some time, he thought it was very sweet. It is interesting. Because of his moderation and abstinence from sweet things, even an apple that would have been sour to another seemed very sweet to him.
This example also shows what renunciation does. We have so many impulses that sometimes we cannot enjoy even one thing. When one becomes moderate in enjoyment, one can then enjoy life better.
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