Friday, July 17, 2020

The True Meaning Of Moderation

Since the time of Socrates, people have debated what it means to live with moderation, and it still continues to be discussed among modern Hellenists and NeoPagans today. Some, however, have misinterpreted it in a sense of extreme abstinence, something it was never meant to be. Moderation means to maintain a healthy balance in all things in life, so that one does not destroy themselves. Therefore, as long as one is being healthy with their actions, they are practicing moderation. It is not, for example, against moderation to have more than one lover as long as everyone is consensual and no one is being harmed or endangered. It is, however, a violation of moderation to starve yourself of your sexual desires to the point that it impacts your mood, happiness and health, or to have sex with someone who may have a disease, because these things are also destructive. The one who starves and the one who drowns, are both destroying themselves. It is not against moderation to eat the foods you like, but it is a violation to eat so much that you become obese and sickly. To remain healthy in your actions, in all forms, is the moderate way. The ideal of the moderate life is to keep yourself from self-destruction. It is not the ideal of willful suffering or unhappiness. In fact, to love and enjoy life was the most Greek of mentalities. The Greek way is not to hate your humanity or the world around you, but to embrace it in the most healthy and productive of ways.

Priest Christopher.

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