Everything suits me that suits your designs, O my universe. Nothing is too early or too late for me that is in your own good time. All is fruit for me that your seasons bring, O nature. All proceeds from you, all subsists in you, and to you all things return. (Meditations 4.23) The Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius was a deeply spiritual person and that fact comes across clearly in his Meditations. American philosopher and religious scholar Jacob Needleman suggests...
If I were a nightingale, I would perform the work of a nightingale, and if I were a swan, that of a swan. But as it is, I am a rational being, and I must sing the praise of God. This is my work, and I accomplish it, and I will never abandon my post for as long as it is granted to me to remain in it; and I invite all of you to join me in this same...
Seneca’s writing reveals a committed Stoic, a pious soul, and an inspirational moral philosopher. Nevertheless, some of his actions and financial dealings have generated doubt about his genuineness. The historical Seneca is a mixed bag if the record can be trusted. Nevertheless, it is important to keep in mind that Seneca engaged in politics at the highest levels of the dominant world power of his time. Thus, he had powerful enemies, not the least of which was Emperor Nero. When...
NOTE: An updated version of this blog post and an accompanying Stoicism On Fire podcast episode is available here. Many people introduced to Stoicism by twenty-first-century popularizers are surprised by the religious nature of the philosophy. The deafening silence on this topic leaves most people unaware of the deep religious piety of the Stoics. This silence belies the copious references to divinity and providence in the Stoic texts and the extensive scholarship, from a variety of fields, acknowledging the religious nature...
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