Neostoicism 2.0 Stoicism, Christianity & Personal Empowerment for the 21st Century

ROBERT WOOLSTON Copyright © 2017 Robert Woolston

Published by PhilOwl Press [email protected] Greenwood, SC (USA)

ISBN-13: 978-1974055753 ISBN-10: 1974055752

Printed by CreateSpace, An Amazon.com Company

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

Interior images retrieved from Creative Commons License Search (labeled for commercial purpose reuse)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Speical thank you to family and friends for all your support.

“Minima maxima sunt” CONTENTS

I. PREFACE...... P. 5

II. INTRODUCTION...... P. 9

III. ANCIENT GREEK STOICISM

CH 1 - ORIGINS OF STOIC PHILOSOPHY...... P. 21 CH 2 - ZENO OF CITIUM CH 3 - EPICTETUS CH 4 - SENECA CH 5 - MARCUS AURIELIUS

IV. CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY

CH 6 - CHRISTIANITY IN THE ROMAN ERA...... P. 53 CH 7 - ST AUGUSTINE CH 8 - ST THOMAS AQUINAS CH 9 - CHRISTIANITY & THE MIDDLE AGES V. NEOSTOICISM 1.0

CH 10 - JUSTUS LIPSIUS...... P. 79 CH 11 - NEOSTOICISM - THE RENAISSANCE

VI. NEOSTOICISM 2.0

CH 12 - NEOSTOICISM & CHRISTIANITY...... P. 91 CH 13 - THE NEOSTOIC LIFESTYLE CH 14 - NEOSTOICISM FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

VII. CONCLUDING REMARKS

CH 15 - THE CASE FOR NEOSTOICISM IN TODAY’S WORLD...... P.129

VIII. EPILOGUE...... P.137 BIBLIOGRAPHY...... P. 155

STOIC & CHRISTIAN MAXIMS...... P. 161

SUPPLEMENTAL READINGS...... P. 167

I. PREFACE

Neostoicism 2.0 is not so much a type of Philosophy or academic theory. It’s a lifestyle. A mentality for daily living. Contained within this book is a complete and concise overview of what Neostoicism truly is. That of being a mentality and lifestyle to be applied by readers in today’s modern, 21st Century. While the details of Neostoic philosophy will soon become apparent in the pages that follow, the benefits of applying Neostoicism in your daily life will follow you in ways that you never imagined. All it takes is a willingness and attitude of acceptance to embrace Neostoicism in your life moving forward.

Neostoicism 2.0 is broken down into four main topical areas, all of which flow in sequential order. They are the following: Ancient Greek Stoicism, Christianity, Neostoicism 1.0 and Neostoicism 2.0. For readers to fully understand what Neostoic philosophy truly is and how to

5 properly apply it in the modern world, it’s recommended that each section be read in order. To skip between sections is to miss the chance at fully experiencing the wisdom of Neostoicism as it applies to living a full and virtuous life.

First, the section on Ancient Greek Stoicism briefly yet succintly covers the lives and teachings of the major pioneers of Stoic philosophy from antiquity. Figures profiled in this section include the great Ancient philosophers Diogenes of Sinope, Zeno of Citium, Epictetus, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius. Second, the section covering Christianity focuses on an overview of Christian history from the time of the early Apostles through the Roman Era and all the way until the commencing of the Middle Ages in Europe. The focus here is on the historical development of the Christian faith, its surrounding environment, profiles of significant Christian philosophers/theologians, and the impact of Christian theology.

Third, the section entitled Neostoicism 1.0 details the rise of Neostoicism as a syncretic philosophy of the European Renaissance. Developed by the Belgian philosopher Justus Lipsius in the late 1500s, Neostoicism emerged as a respected and legitimate way of interpretating Christian scripture and theology. Finally, the fourth section 6 is Neostoicism 2.0. Here I personally build upon the prior three sections to add a new and updated version of Neostoic philosophy for the modern, 21st Century. Research-based and illustrated with real world examples, Neostoicism 2.0 will show readers how they can apply this new philosophy in their own lives for sustaining a greater level of personal empowerment and growth.

It should be noted that Neostoicism 2.0 is not in any way, shape or form an attempt at disputing or canceling out Christianity with a new religious doctrine. Rather, Neostoicism as described in this book is simply a new form of interpretating Christian scripture/theology from the perspective of Ancient Stoicism. As serious readers will soon discover, Neostoicism 2.0 is very much relevant for our lives today and the benefits obvious in nature. Also, while the foundation of Neostoic philosophy is of course rooted in Christianity, this book is not just for those who subscribe to the Christian faith. Anybody, regardless of religious or spiritual background (or lack thereof), will find this book to be instructive in the topical areas of history, philosophy, ethics, morality, and personal growth.

Thus it’s my sincere hope that you find this book to be as fulfilling and empowering as I have found in writing it. As embodied in the book’s 7 Introduction and Epilogue, Neostoicism is an immensely personal and spiritual philosophy of mine, one that I embrace fully and without reservation. For the benefits that have flowed into my life through embracing a Neostoic mentality are without measure or bounds.

As you read and ponder the content herein, simply remember this maxim:

Don’t be scared. Be Neostoic.

8 II. INTRODUCTION

9 10 The teardrops and cross insignia on Saint Peter in the above image signify pain and suffering, a kind of bleeding of the soul. That image, in my opinion, best epitomizes the spiritual definition of Neostoicism. That of being a syncretic philosophy of Stoicism and Christianity which stresses the importance of understanding Christian theology from the 11 perspective of stoic calm and emotional self- control. The teardrops and cross symbolize our natural human disposition to emotion and suffering, while also acknowleding our ability to overcome irrationality and emotional instability.

These markings have been juxtaposed onto the bust of Saint Peter to visually illustrate the nature of embracing a Neostoic lifestyle. In modern times, these symbols often have contrasting and varying meanings. Certain individuals will choose to have the teardrop and cross markings tattooed in order to signify pain, eternal grieving or the loss of a loved one. In the criminal underworld and prison environment, these symbols often carry a much more sinister connotation. In every case, however, the symbols signify some form of pain or suffering, a grieving of the soul as a result of the past.

These tattoo markings are particularly common among individuals, often young males, living in the inner-city Wards of New Orleans, Louisiana. Here again, the markings often denote more nefarious meanings related to criminal and gang activities unique to the inner-city. For residents of New Orleans and those living within its various poverty-stricken Wards, this is simply a common but unfortunate feature of everyday life. In fact, New Orleans and its county, Orleans Parish, are 12 deemed to be the most murderous places within the United States, based upon research studies of per-capita murder rates (Daley, 2017). Figures which exceed that of more publicized murder and crime rates in US cities such as Chicago, Baltimore and St. Louis.

The problem here in New Orleans isn’t simply a localized one; rather it’s much more systemic and interconnected than many may realize at first glance. Both before and after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, New Orleans has remained a city battling the epidemic of violence and criminal activity within a state, Louisiana, that is known as “the prison capital of the world” (NPR, 2012). This infamous distinction is bestowed upon Louisiana due to the fact that the state imprisons more people per capita than any other jurisdiction or country in the world, including Iran, Russia and China. The most prominent manifestation of this being the Louisiana State Penitentiary, also known as Angola, which is the largest maximum security prison in the United States with over 6,000 inmates on a prison property that’s geographically larger than the city of Manhattan in New York City (Applebome, 1998).

As stated above, the dualing problems of crime in New Orleans, and Louisiana in general, coupled 13 with the state’s strikingly high incarceration rate are systemic and connected. Civil law judicial systems in New Orleans are notriously underfunded and understaffed, resulting in poor conviction rates and justice processes (CBS News, 2017). Many of the residents living in the inner-city of Orleans Parish also have a longstanding and deep seated mistrust of the NOPD and law enforcement in general. The issue of incarceration in Louisiana has been exasperated by the widespread implementation of private prison funding and its resulting flow of money into the coffers of local sheriffs (Chang, 2016). Strict conviction laws and mandatory sentencings in many parts of Louisiana has resulted in a surge of long-term sentences (e.g. life sentences) for many individuals convicted of even non-violent crimes. Clearly the issues here in New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana are more widespread and complex than at first glance.

With all that being said, Neostoicism 2.0 is a book that’s dedicated to the everyday citizen living in New Orleans and the state of Louisiana. Many of the New Orleans residents I’ve spoken with, from various environments and life circumstances, have expressed these concerns about rampant crime, injustice, poverty and lack of hope in the social system around them. Day 14 after day, far too many of them (along with their families) struggle to navigate the insidious trappings of a city and region with many systemic social issues. Thus, Neostoicism 2.0 is my humble attempt to provide a philosophical antidote to dealing with and even overcoming these kinds of serious issues, in the form of a mentality to be utilized in the modern 21st Century.

While this book is dedicated to the residents of New Orleans, the text is applicable to all of us living in the 21st Century who seek a kind of tranquility and calm in overcoming the struggles of modern life. Furthermore, while Neostoicism is directly concerned with concepts of Christianity and Christian theology, again this text can be applied by peoples of all faiths, spiritual backgrounds, or even lack thereof. Ultimately, Christian theological ideals and Bible parables referenced in the book are meant to allow readers to better understand the core tenets of Neostoic philosphy. Thus, the kind of Neostoicism stressed in this book is one that’s intensely pragmatic, reality-based and cosmopolitian in nature.

Finally, the teardrop and cross markings on Saint Peter carry an even deeper philosophical message. One of the core tenets of Neostoicism is 15 referred to as constantia, an ancient Latin term translated today as constancy, which is defined as “a right and immovable strength of mind neither elated or depressed by external events of circumstances.” Other synonymous terms for constantia include firmness, steadiness, perseverance and steadfastness. Thus, while all of us experience a wide range of human emotions, the individual who is able to adequately control them through a strength and steadiness of mind is superior and more apt to truly live.

The cross on Saint Peter’s forehead signifies the crucifix of Jesus Christ, as a reference to Neostoicism’s philosophical foundation rooted in Christianity. The teardrop tattoos placed under the eyes of Saint Peter denote two unqiue interpretations on the permanance of human emotion. One, that all of us by nature are endowed with feelings and emotions, with teardrops being a direct manifestation of these from our soul. Second, as a tattooed marking illustrated on Saint Peter’s face, the teardrop symbol also represents the soul of Neostoicism which, when fully understood and applied, will lead one to overcome the instability of destructive emotions (and thereby instability of the soul) while gaining a fuller realization of the Great Soul that connects all of us as humans.

16 That is True Love and this is Neostoicism 2.0

Thank You! With your purchase of Neostoicism 2.0, a quarter of this sale will be donated to the KIPP New Orleans School program. KIPP (Knowledge is Power Program) is a nationwide network of open- enrollment college preparatory charter schools serving under-resourced communities throughout the United States. KIPP New Orleans began in 2004 as a collection of New Orleans residents - parents, teachers, business and civic leaders - dedicated to providing high quality educational opporunities in the city. Today, the KIPP New Orleans School program has grown to ten schools serving over 4,000 students with innovative educational programs and scholarship funding. More information on KIPP New Orleans can be found at https://kippneworleans.org/

17 18 III. ANCIENT GREEK STOICISM

19 20 Chapter 1 - Origins of Stoic Philosophy

Our story begins here: The time is 336 BC. Just off the Mediterranean Coast in the Greek city-state of Cornith, Alexander the Great is traveling in search of a notrious and renegade philosopher. Alexander no doubt knows exactly who he is looking for, as well as his traveling partner, Aristotle, the great Athenian philosopher and tutor to Alexander. Traversing through the cool and pristine climate of Mediterranean Greece, Alexander and Aristotle soon locate this mysterious philosopher just outside the city of Cornith. As the two approach they notice the man in question laying back in an earthenware hut, roughly the size of dumpster can, sporting a overused toga and surrounded by a cadrie of feral 21 dogs.

This man, whom Alexander and Aristotle have found, is Diogenes of Sinope. Also known as Diogenes the Cynic and Diogenes the Dog, he is a man of controversial repute mainly for his ostentatious lifestyle that rejects social norms and commonalities. See Diogenes, despite being a respected intellectual and philosophical thinker, is a man who essentially thumps his nose at establishment thinking and social life. He’s homeless. He begs for his meals and lives off of the ancillary handouts of Greecian residents in Cornith and Athens. He surrounds himself with the company of feral dogs. All of this, strangely enough, is not done due to coercion or extreme mental illness; rather it’s his own choosing. That’s right, Diogenes independently chooses to live a life that embraces poverty and a lack of materialism, all in the pursuit of testing his own philosophy (which will soon be addressed ).

As he approaches the hut where Diogenes is resting, surely Alexander must be contemplating to himself what exactly about this man, this homeless and poverty-stricken philosopher, is so appealing. Indeed it’s a peculiar situation and an encounter that defies reason in many ways. For instance, at this point in time Alexander is emerging as the most powerful man in the world. 22 He leads a Macedonian fighting force that is conquering territory throughout the Eurasian continent and will soon claim victories and territory in Persia and India. Alexander the Great is his moniker for a reason and everyone, including Diogenes, knows this.

In contrast, Diogenes is basically the complete opposite of Alexander the Great. Diogenes has no interest in military expansion, power, social recognition or wealth. He purposely rejects the finer things in life and seeks to make living a life of poverty a kind of existential virtue. Diogenes is the Yang to Alexander’s Yen essentially. As Alexander approaches the hut of Diogenes and the two come face-to-face, with Aristotle looking onward, a true polarity of status and viewpoint between the two men is occuring. The tension is palpable and the moment already historic. It’s soon to be transcendent.

While only secondhand historical sources detail the encounter of Alexander and Diogenes, we know enough to glean the basic diologue and significance here. Alexander and Diogenes likely first exchange terse and quick pleasantries. Based upon Alexander’s previous knowledge of and currrent dialogue with Diogenes, he’s immensely impressed with the sharp intellect of this renegade philosopher. So impressed in fact that 23 Alexander offers a proposition to him: Alexander asks Diogenes, “I am willing to offer you anything you want...money, power, land...what can I give you?”

Briefly puzzled by Alexander’s offer, Diogenes soon embraces a stoic, controlled facial expression and retorts to Alexander, stating, “Would you mind stepping aside...you’re standing in my sunlight.”

Even more puzzled and intially perturbed by this statement is Alexander the Great. At this historic moment Alexander is likely thinking what on Earth am I dealing with here. What’s the deal with this man, a lover of poverty and simplicity, after I have given him anything he wants. And yet, all he simply wants is for me to step out of his midday sunlight. Soon enough, however, Diogenes’ stoic and steadfast disposition is spiritually transferred to Alexander. Responding back to Diogenes with an expression of admiration and mutual respect, Alexander replies, “Were I not Alexander, I would be Diogenes.”

24 The moment of Alexander & Diogenes’ encounter is not just historic and worthy of its place in texts for all-time. The moment is now transcendent, having eclipsed the polar divide between two individuals, two mindsets, two philosophies, that have come full circle and morphed together. Alexander the Great, as the world’s most powerful and popular individual, is embracing the status and philosophy of Diogenes of Sinope, perhaps the world’s least popular and powerful man based upon established social standards. Alexander is basically stating that Diogenes, a homeless and destitute philosopher, 25 is his intellectual and existential equal. A statement which taken out of context or simply viewed at first glance appears utterly absurd and without merit.

Furthermore, not only has Alexander acquiesced to Diogenes and his philosophy; Diogenes has by all acounts logically defeated Alexander, the most powerful and influential man in the world. Diogenes’ retort to Alexander to step out of his sunlight, coupled with Alexander’s concession to wanting to be like Diogenes proves this point. As Alexander and his philosophical tutor Aristotle walk away from the encounter, the moment has been transcribed into world history as well as into the transcendent. No other event single event in world history has been more impactful and edifying on the topic of philosophy and human nature than that of Alexander & Diogenes. So just what about Diogenes and his philosophy so impressed Alexander the Great?

Born in Sinope, a coastal city-state in what is now modern-day Turkey, Diogenes was the most well- known pioneer of the philosophy known as Cynicism. Colloquially known as Diogenes the Cynic, his philosophy of Cynicism was a movement that “stressed stoic self-sufficiency and the rejection of luxury” in pursuit of attaining true enlightenment and virtue (EB, 2017). Thus, 26 the philosophy of Cynicism as advocated by their followers, who were known as the Cynics, can best be described as one of finding joy in simplicity and basic subsistence. Author and philosopher Dr. Anthony Gottlieb (New York University) notes in his book The Dream of Reason that Diogenes’ Cynic philosophy “taught that happiness consisted in satisfying only the most basic needs and in disciplining oneself not to want any more - because none of it made one a morally better person (2016, pp. 170-171). Thus, according to Diogenes and the Cynics the finer things of life - money, riches, comfort, luxuries - were to be renounced in pursuit of attaining virtuous habits.

Diogenes took this Cynic philosophy to the extreme. As noted earlier, his reputation was a radical one that consisted of self-imposed asceticism including living in an earthenware tub, begging for his daily bread, abandoning hygiene and comforts, and surrounding himself with feral dogs. For Diogenes the life of dogs he believed was instructive for how humans ought to live their lives, in that dogs didn’t pass judgement on their fellow man, weren’t hypocritical nor were they at all concerned with material blessings beyond their basic subsistence. These qualities, Diogenes believed, made people better in an ethical and moral sense. As such he would go on 27 to earn the pseudonym Diogenes the Dog for his ascetic views and lifestyle.

Arguably more so than any other human or philosopher, Diogenes was an individual who not only preached his philosophy but truely embraced and lived it to the core. He was also not afraid of confronting other philosophers and Greek citizens on their philosophical views. The great Athenian philosoher Plato was in fact a frequent target of Diogenes...one event includes Diogenes bluntly admonishing Plato for his Socratic definition of man as “a featherless biped.” Upon hearing of Plato’s maxim here, Diogenes responded by plucking the feathers off a chicken and throwing it at Plato in public, stating “Behold, I give you Socrates’ man.” Utterly embarrassed and taken aback by Diogenes’ retort, Plato begrundingly responded by stating, “Man is a featherless biped with broad flat nails.”

Many tales of Diogenes’ antics and musings on philosophy remain with us today through historical texts and records. Another comical but instructive story details how Diogenes would walk around the city of Athens in broad daylight holding a lit lantern, all while stating that he “was looking for an honest man, but couldn’t find one.” As one can surely notice at this point, the label of Cynicism would go on to be adapted into 28 a more common definition as one who holds rather pessimistic or unfavorable views of mankind. Diogenes certainly fit that definition, although his Cynicism philosophy was in fact much deeper and more nuanced. Cynic philosophy would go on to have a major impact upon great intellectual minds of that time (including Plato and Aristotle). Furthermore, Cynicism went on to hold a significant place amongst the various philosophical movements of the time and would later be adopted by the early Stoics, including Zeno of Citium.

Clearly the Cynic movement of Diogenes and others, including Antisthenes and Crates of Thebes, made a significant contribution to the understanding of philosophy in Ancient Greece (c 300 BC). While the views and lifestyles of followers like Diogenes were no doubt extreme and radical in a sense, Cynicism offered to the Ancient Greeks a new and innovative way of looking at life and the world in general. The kind of habits and ethics advocated by the Cynics were staunchly minimalist and stoic in the way later philosophers would come to understand the term. No where in history is that truth more poignantly demonstrated than in Diogenes’ encounter with Alexander the Great in 336 BC.

“Would you mind stepping aside...you’re 29 standing in my sunlight” is the transcendent message here and one that, in the spiritual sense, would go on to be adopted by the Ancient Greek philosophers of Stoicism.

30 Chapter 2 - Zeno of Citium

While the origins of Stoic thinking can be traced back to Diogenes and the Anicent Greek Cynics, the actual founder of Stoicism was a philosopher known as Zeno of Citium. Born in 31 334 BC in Citium, Cyprus and developing his Stoic philosophy til his death in 262 BC, Zeno took hold of the insights of earlier movements including Cynicism, Epicureanism and the teachings of Socrates. Much like Diogenes of Sinope, Zeno preached a kind of ascetic philosophy hereby the material and ordinary things of life were to be put into proper context, as a tertiary concern at best, in place of the need for individuals to focus on living a life of virtue in accordance with nature. This was essentially Zeno’s definition of his philosophy, Stoicism, which readers will soon notice was both metaphysical and ethical in nature.

Zeno derived the name of his philosophy, Stoicism, from the Greek term Stoa Poikile (meaning “painted porch”), an open market in Athens where he and the original Stoics would meet and teach (Baltzly, 2013). Zeno’s Stoicism and its emphasis on virtue/ethics can be summarized as follows:

Zeno and the Stoics taught that an individual’s reactions, emotions, and behaviors were controllable. They were subject to appropriate philosophical maturation whereas external things (including social events, pleasure/pain, reputation, material acquisitions, and even one’s physical body) were not directly under one’s full 32 control. The goal of Stoicism then involved the pursuit to mastering one’s soul/mind to live virtuously and with integrity. This would be achieved by a mentality of controlling one’s thoughts and outward emotions, which the Stoics believed often resulted from errors in one’s judgements towards the world and thus inhibited rational behavior.

The basic description of Stoicism provided above, in a nutshell, contains many similarities to that of Diogenes and the Cynics from the previous chapter. The Cynics acted as precursors to the development of Zeno’s Stoicism, similarly advocating for a life spent in pursuit of genuine virtue as opposed to focusing on external and material things that were of less spiritual importance. Diogenes of course took that philosophical mentality to the extreme as he independently choose to attain moral habits by making a virtue out of a life of poverty. Zeno, while not being as extreme in that sense, similarly adopted an ascetic and simple lifestyle. That of course falling in line with his Stoic thinking that elevated virtue and rejected (or at least seriously downgraded) whatever was deemed to be extraneous or materialistic (Papineau, 2016, p. 138).

Unfortunately none of Zeno’s writings or 33 transcripts remain with us today (barring a historic archeological discovery). Most of what we know of his texts and thoughts are derived from that of the later Stoics, including Epictetus, Seneca and Marcus Aurielius. These continue to serve as legitimate sources of Zeno’s philosophical musings which almost assuredly influenced the later Stoics. Accounts of arguably Zeno’s most famous text is one entitled The Republic, believed to have been written at the start of the 3rd Century BC. Zeno’s choice of title here was most likely in reference or opposition to Plato’s Republic, a more well-known and studied ancient philosophical text. Zeno’s Republic provided an outline of the principles for the ideal state from the perspective of Stoic philosophy, whereby virtuous men and women would live a life of simple asceticism in an equal society. Aspects of Zeno’s utopian Stoic society are rather unconventional, as all utopian frameworks are, by advocating the idea that ordinary education was useless and the need for clothing unnecessary (Hicks, 1972).

Zeno and the early Stoics not only made an ethical case for how individuals ought to behave and live. They also proposed a metaphysical interpretation of the world around them and how it operated. Zeno and the Stoics believed that the universe (or cosmos as they referred to it) was 34 formed and guided by reason (or logos) that consisted of order, destiny and natural law (Papineau, 2016, p. 138). According to Zeno the cosmos was “designed by a beneficent intelligence” - a benevolent God - which lead to the Stoic notion that the “miseries of life were easier to bear up to: everything [thus] was ultimately for the best, even if on the surface it frequently appeared not to be” (Gottlieb, 2016, p. 320). The goal then for the Stoics and by extension all people was to live in harmony with nature and a universe guided by a divine logos.

The metaphysical view of the world advanced by Zeno and the Stoics naturally coincided with their ethical philosophy. Since the universe was created and guided by divine and benevolent reason, people should make a point of adopting habits that were in harmony with that reality. Paramount to this view was Zeno’s teachings on developing inner strength and mental tranquility. To be truly Stoic then was to stand strong and upright regardless of what life threw at the individual. According to Zeno, “if a person is truly good and virtuous, then things like death, pain, sickness or imprisonment are not really ‘bad’....they are merely dispreferred” (Bassham, 2016, p. 94).

And herein lies the spiritual essence of Ancient 35 Greek Stoicism: As humans we should approach life without fear, disappointment or regret for anything that may happen to us. The circumstances of the external world, the cosmos, are guided by a divine logos that ultimately works towards the good. Despite the fact that at times we view external situations as bad or unfortunate. We should instead approach the hard knocks of life with strength, fortitude and equanimity, standing like a unmoved rock through all the storms that sweep through our lives.

36 Chapter 3 - Epictetus

Following in the footsteps of Zeno and the early Athenian Stoics was a philosopher by the name of Epictetus. Extending Stoicim into the 2nd Century AD, Epictetus is one of the most well known Stoic philosophers of antiquity with many texts surviving as later transcripts to this day. Epictetus’ life experience and contributions to Stoicism as historians understand it today make the case for his place in the pantheon of the world’s most influential minds.

Born in 50 AD, Epictetus spent his youth as a slave to a wealthy Roman who served as secretary to Emperor Nero at the time. Studying philosophy and Stoic thinking from an early age, Epictetus eventually was granted emanicpation as

37 a slave and would go on to teach philosophy in Rome around approximately 70 AD. Similar to other Stoic philosophers and the earlier Cynics he was noted for his ascetic lifestyle of few possessions. In fact it’s believed that Epictetus lived most of his life alone and likely never married. However, what he lacked in material and social prestige Epictetus more than made up for in terms of his contributions to Stoic philosophy (Seddon, n.d.).

While no known texts directly written by Epictetus remain with us today, what we do know of his philosophy and Stoicism comes by way of transcriptions of his student Arrian. The texts composed by Arrian on Epictetus’ methods and philosophy are contained in one entitled the Discourses and another the Enchiridion (each written around 100 AD). Both texts focus on dialogues between Epictetus and his students regarding the nature of the philosophical life - specifically the Stoic life - as it relates to topics such as behavior, mentality, friendships, illness, and poverty (Bassham, 2016, p. 110). Epicetetian Stoicism would soon become the label for his unique version of and contribution to Stoic philosophy.

38 Epictetus’ form of Stoicism harkened back to the philosophy of Socrates and the early Greek Stoics, stressing a firm and demanding kind of Stoic philosophy that required submitting oneself to a strenuous yet liberating way of life. The key component of his Stoic philosophy was that of control. Acceptance of what was in fact under an individual’s control, or not, was paramount for Epictetus. He imparted upon his students the notion that to complain or detest the “bad” things of life was useless because much of the unfortunate circumstances of our lives were not 39 individually controllable. Thus, Epictetus warned against the excessive desiring of external things in life - namely money, power, fame, even a happy family life - since these things were at least partially our of control and subject to fortune or luck (Graver, 2017).

What Epictetus advocated instead was for individuals to chase after and desire the good things of life which were fully within an individual’s control. Such things included one’s attitude towards life, judgments, reactions, and emotional dispositions. These things, according to Epictetus, provided the key to achieving a truly happy life. Epictetus’ Stoic perspective of control and happiness is vividly illuminated in many quotes attributed to him. One reads, “Men are disturbed not by the things which happen, but by their opinion about the things”. Another famous quote of his goes, “There is a time and place for diversion and amusements, but you should never allow them to override your true purposes” (Epictetus; Labell, 1994).

Clearly we can obverse the importance and logic behind Epictetus’ Stoic philosophy of control and proper perspective. Epictetian Stoicism ultimately is not simply some ancillarly interpretation of Stoic philosophy to be relegated to the dusty shelves of archived world literature. In fact, the 40 Stoic thinking and perspective of a former Roman slave in the 2nd Century AD remains highly relevant for us today.

41 42 Chapter 4 - Seneca

Following in the footsteps of Zeno but before Epictetus lived another great Stoic philosopher by the name of Seneca. Unlike the later Stoic philosopher Epictetus, Seneca was born into nobility as the son of a Roman nobleman of the equestrian class. While many intimate details of Seneca’s early life remain quite sparse and unknown, it’s generally believed that he was born sometime between 8 BC to 1 BC in Cordona, Hispana (modern-day Spain) and later raised by his father in Rome. Seneca quickly established himself as a proficient writer and intellectual mind in Rome. In fact Seneca’s writing prowess was so advanced that by the time of his death in 65 AD he had composed over a dozen philosophical essays and more than 100 letters dealing with moral and ethical topics (Wagoner, n.d.). Needless to say Seneca 43 established himself as one of, if not the most, influential Stoic philosophers in history.

Letters to Lucilius remain today as Seneca’s most famous and well known text. A collection of over 120 letters divided into 20 books, Letters contains a wealth of discussion and philosophical musings on the nature of Stoic theory as Seneca would come to understand it. The title of Seneca’s literary collection derives from its address to the Roman provincial officer of Sicily whose name was Lucilius. However the audience for Seneca’s Letters extended beyond the scope of simply one Roman government official. The overarching themes of Seneca’s Letters include an emphasis on personal moral improvement (as the supreme goal of philosophical study), living with purpose, the need to control one’s outward emotions, and musings on the nature of what is evil and what is inherently good (Wagoner, n.d.).

For Seneca, the idea that death was something to be interpreted as an inherent evil in life was nonsense. So were the conclusions that wealth is always good, political power desired and anger as justified. Seneca shunned these common social practices and values of his fellow Roman citizens. Going along with the Stoic ideals of Zeno and his followers, Seneca impressed upon readers and Roman citizens that moral improvement was of 44 upmost concern for all. Everything else, the externals of wealth, political power, social status, etc, were to be of tertiary concern (Vogt, 2015).

Ironically, Seneca’s ascetic Stoic philosophy propelled him in the upper class of Roman society. In fact from the years 54 to 62 AD he served as a tutor and advisor to the Roman Emperor Nero. Historical sources indicate that Seneca’s influence on the young Roman Emperor were quite profound. Nero’s early successes as Emperor were often attributed to the advice and political skill of Seneca. However, as Nero grew older he became less interested in Seneca’s advice and the relationship between the two greatly deteriorated.

Nero would also go on to become one of Ancient Rome’s most brutal and oppressive rulers, including directing numerous personal and political executions and instigating the Great Fire of Rome in 64 AD. Nero’s tyranny and psychosis would eventually target Seneca as well. In 65 AD Nero ordered the execution of Seneca as a result of Nero’s paranoid assertion that Seneca was part of a conspiracy to kill him (Bassham, 2016, p. 108). In a sublime and legendary fashion, Seneca complied with Nero’s order by orchestrating his own slow, painful suicide. While slowly bleeding out from self-inflicted wounds and consuming 45 deadly poison, Seneca dictated his thoughts and final words to a Roman scribe by his side.

The death of Seneca serves to explicity illustrate how he truly lived out his Stoic philosophy. Much like the life of Cynic philosopher Diogenes, in the most sublime way Seneca embraced the inevitability of his death with tranquility and stoic calm. It’s documented that he exhibited no fear or displeasure during his suicide as ordered by Emperor Nero. Perhaps the greatest demonstration in history of true Stoicism and stoic calm, Seneca exemplified the truth, in his view from his text Letters, that death itself was not an inherent evil. Thus it was not something to be feared or interpreted with disdain. And in the end, the man who ordered the execution, Emperor Nero, has become a deplorable stain of human history. Seneca however has become a historical martyr for philosophy and the strength of applied Stoicism.

46 Chapter 5 - Marcus Aurelius

With respect to Zeno, Seneca, Epictetus and all the other great contributors to the movement of Ancient Stoicism, arguably the most famous and well-known Stoic was Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. Of course that conclusion is open to much interpretation and

47 ultimately within the eye of the beholder. However, the fame and recognition that Aurelius brought to Ancient Stoicim was in no small part due to the fact that he served as Emperor of Rome from 161 to 180 AD. The fact alone that Aurelius served as Emperor of Rome isn’t what made him such a prominent individual in the history books. Aurelius’ reign as Emperor was so effective in fact that the great Italian Renaissance philosopher and diplomat Niccolo Machiavelli referred to him as one of the Five Good Emperors. Aurelius’ effective rule and statesmanship, according to Machiavelli, earned him this distinction (Machiavelli; Mansfield, 1998, pp. 76-77). Aurielius was also the last of the Ancient Stoics and his contribution to Stoicism is nothing sort of immense.

Born to a prominent Roman family in 121 AD, the young Aurelius soon rose even further up the social and political ladder of Roman society. In fact he was educated early on in his life under the supervision of the Roman Emperor Hadrian and later adopted as the protege to Emperor Pius in 138 AD. Undertaking studies in classical rhetoric and philosophy along with his connections to the most powerful individuals in the Roman Empire, Aurelius would eventually become Emperor himself in 169 AD and served in that capacity until his death in 180 AD. For the eleven years of 48 his rule over the Empire, Aurelius gained a favorable reputation amongst both the people and Roman officials alike. Among his multitude of accomplishments as Emperor were improvements in the civil and administrative sectors of Roman law, securing the rights of slaves, widows, orphans and other marginalized groups, and successfully leading many military campaigns during the Roman-Parthian War of 166 AD (Crook, 2017).

So great was Aurelius’ reign that he garnered the illustrious label of being a philosopher-king, an esteemed designation proposed centuries earlier by the great Athenian philosopher Plato in his text The Republic (Bassham, 2016, p. 114). Aurelius obtained the status of being a philosopher-king in no small way due to his adherence to the philosophy of Stoicism. For Aurelius, the philosophy of the Stoics served as a guide for how he lived personally as well as how he ruled the Roman Empire. Aurelius was especially influenced by the Stoic philosophy of Epictetus, an individual whom he quotes numerous times in his most famous text. It’s also arguably the most well-known and popular source for Stoic philosophy today. The text entitled Meditations was Aurelius’ lasting contribution to philosophy and particularly Stoicism which he favored above all else. 49 Meditations was composed by Aurelius around 170 AD as kind of a personal notebook or journal of Stoic philosophy and insights. Scholars claim that Meditations was really meant to be read only by Aurelius and composed for no other purpose or outside audience. Ironically, the text (which is actually a collection of 12 books) has become the most well-known and cited source for understanding Ancient Stoic philosophy. Accordingly, the content of Meditations takes the form of personal/private writings meant to lead the famous Emperor to a better understanding of Stoic guidance and self-improvement. Some of the more powerful themes found in the text emphasize the Stoic ideals of a divine cosmos, living in harmony with nature, maintaining focus and avoiding needless distractions, and exhibiting strong ethical principles (Kamtekar, 2010).

50 IV. CHRISTIAN THEOLOGY

51 52 Chapter 6 - Christianity in the Roman Era

Following the death and resurrection of Jesus as proclaimed by his disciples and followers, Saint Peter ventured out west of Jerusalem to spread the faith of Christianity. Among all the early apostles and disciples of Jesus, Peter is considered the most influential and important for a variety of reasons. First, are the words spoken and recorded by Jesus in reference to Peter. Found within the Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus states, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). At that moment Peter, whose name meant ‘rock’, was established as both the leader and designer of the universal Christian church (O’Connor, 2017). Second, as one of the early apostles Peter ventured all the way to the most important, populated and powerful civilization of the ancient world: The Roman 53 Empire and its capital of Rome. Peter would go on to preach and spread the early faith of Christianity to the citizens of Rome and many areas within that of the Empire.

Peter and his numerous letters addressed to various peoples/regions of the ancient world proved to be instrumental in the development of early Christianity. While in Rome, Peter would ultimately become a martyr of the faith much like its founder Jesus Christ. Unlike Jesus however, Saint Peter elected to be crucified upside down as he didn’t feel worthy of being crucified in the same way as Jesus (Kirsch, 1911). The orders of execution were followed through by Emperor Nero and in 64 AD Christianity lost arguably its most important and impactful disciple of the faith. Yet Christianity would survive into the Roman Era and grow into a major force throughout the region. So great in fact that it surpassed the end of the unified Roman Empire in 395 AD (O’Connor, 2017).

Early Christianity in the Roman Empire proved to be a major influence on the lives and civil functioning of the state. The faith was introduced into the capital of Rome by Peter, along with other apostles spreading Jesus’ life and message in other parts of the Empire. The apostle James established the faith in Spain, the apostle Andrew 54 in Greece, and Simon in Macedonia. To say that the journeys of these disciples was smooth or simple would be the furthest statement from the truth. All of the apostles suffered great torment and punishment during their time of missionary travels. Followers of the apostles and their message of Christ’s salvation required them to meet in secret, often in dark and at night, to avoid arrest and persecution by judicial authorities. In fact, all of the original apostles of Christ (aside from John) became martyrs of the Christian faith, facing violent and public deaths in the form of crucifixions, burnings, stonings, etc (Kiger, 2015).

The courage and fortitude that the apostles of 55 Christ (along with their early followers) exhibited during the Roman Era reflected a very stoic mentality and disposition. Even prior to the death of their savior, these original disciples were well aware of the dangers and violence that awaited them. As Jesus foretold them by stating “Look, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves. But beware of men; for they will hand you over to their councils and flog you in their synagogues” (Matthew 10:16-17). While the divine clairvoyance of Jesus here of course was to be true, the apostles continued with their spiritual mission of evangelizing the masses and spreading the Christian faith. By virtue of their commitment in the face of extreme persecution, the apostles exhibited a stoic perspective to accept their ultimate fate and push forward regardless.

Despite all of the perpetual violence and persecutions inflicted upon the apostles and early followers of Christianity, the faith would grow into a major cultural and social force. As the Roman Empire was falling into decadent turmoil, the religion of Christianity became so prominent in the region that in 330 AD the Emperor Constantine the Great became the first Roman Emperor to convert to the Christian faith. Constantine is also noted for signing the Edict of Milan in 313 AD, which ensured tolerance of the 56 Christian religion for the first time in the history of the Roman Empire (NatGeo, 1996). The momentous force of Christianity wasn’t to be stopped. Just a handful of decades later, the Emperor Theodosius in 380 AD would establish Christianity as the official state religion of the Roman Empire (Joosten, n.d.). Having now been publicly recognized and integrated into the world’s most powerful empire, Christianity was now established as the supreme titan of religion, culture, and power within the Western world.

57 58 Chapter 7 - St. Augustine

Following the work of the Christian apostles in spreading Christianity from Jerusalem to the rest of the Ancient World, the first great Christian philosopher was soon to make his lasting impact on the faith. St Augustine of Hippo was his name and his writings on Christian theology would prove to have a profound influence. One of his texts in particular, The City 59 of God, laid out Augustine’s case for Christianity in a way that no other Christian intellectual had ever done so before. As such The City of God became a permanent fixture of the Christian theological canon and Augustine himself a transcendent figure in the development of Christian theology.

The story of St Augustine begins in the municipality of Thagaste in Roman Africa (an area found in present-day Algeria). There he was born and raised in a family headed by his mother Monica, a early follower and devout Christian woman. Augustine’s father Patricius was a lifelong pagan who eventually converted to Christianity while on his deathbed. Known as brilliant intellectual mind even in his youth, Augustine became an intense student of Latin and Rhetoic eventually moving to Carthage where he continued his studies and understanding of ancient philosophy. He would later move to Rome and Milan further establishing his education in philosophy and rhetoric. The most impactful moment of Augustine’s life, however, came in 386 AD when he officially converted to Christianity (Mendelson, 2010). Like a knife’s edge cutting through him, from that point forward Augustine’s veneration as a Christian philosopher and theologian would be established through his writings on the subject. Along with his 60 autobiographical text Confessions written in 397 AD, his most seminal work on Christian theology and faith is found in his 426 AD book The City of God.

A powerful and comprehensive work of Christian literature, The City of God essentially lays out Augustine’s case for the Christian faith over that of various pagan belief systems unique to the Roman Era of the time. In particular Augustine advances the case in his book that Christianity was not in fact the decisive factor producing the decline of the Roman Empire. Rather, alluding to the book’s title, Augustine viewed all of human history as being a perpetual conflict between the Earthly City (or City of Man) and the City of God. The City of Man, according to Augustine, consists of people who have erroneously immersed themselves into the cares and pleasures of the present, passing and temporal world. In contrast, The City of God represents all those people who elect to forego earthly pleasures in pursuit of dedicating themselves to the eternal truths of God, being fully revealed in the faith of Christianity. The thesis presented by Augustine makes the case that ultimately the conflict between these two cities, these two mindsets, is destined to end in a victory for the City of God (St Augustine; Bourke, 2014).

61 For Augustine, the City of God in the real world was the manifestation of the universal church/communion of Christian people (i.e. the Catholic Church). The tension and conflict between the City of Man and the City of God represents a kind of metaphysical and transcendent war between the two sides. The history of the world has been and will continue to be a universal war between God and the Devil. According to Augustine, God utilizes divine providence/intervention to move governments, political ideologies and military forces in line with the City of God, the universal Christian community, to oppose by all means necessary the governments, political ideologies and military forces that are in line with the City of Man, who is subject (either directly or indirectly) to the confusion promulgated by the Devil (St Augustine; Bourke, 2014).

A significant portion of Augustine’s The City of God is devoted to defending the Chrisitan faith against various pagan and outside belief systems, including Ancient Stoicism. On the subject of human emotions, Augustine in The City of God attempts to reconstitute Stoic thinking on the inherent goodness of emotions including sadness and compassion. In contrast to Augustine’s other rebuttals of pagan and outside belief systems, his case for the supremacy of Christianity over 62 Stoicism isn’t nearly as convincing and more akin to a collaborative philosophy between the two. For instance, Augustine presents the case that compassion and sadness are worthy human emotions that toughen individuals through the acceptance of human suffering. This contrasts in theory with the Stoic philosophy of Zeno, Seneca and others by virtue of Stoicism regarding human emotional states as externals to the self and thus unworthy of absorption by the individual. Here the deeper philosophical question is not the emotion itself, but rather the object (or cause) of said emotion, whether it be sadness, pity, anger, etc. Augustine by his own words in The City of God is in fact in union with the philosophical theories of the Ancient Stoics on this subject. For the Stoics, emotions were essentially the manifestation of disruption of the rational part of an individual, as a result of one’s irrational interpretation or credence given to external things or situtations. Surely, Augustine would concur with that Stoic theory in that, at a deeper level, the emotion is secondary to that of the primary cause of said emotion. Which often is one’s interpretation of external things or events which are outside of one’s control anyways.

The key difference between St. Augustine and the Stoics here is the ontological view of human nature. This contrast is especially nuanced and 63 subtle, and by most accounts the ethical implications aren’t readily apparent to the casual observer. For Augustine, the human body is an image of the soul and the soul an image of God. Thus human emotions including clemency, pity, sadness, elation, etc were God-given characteristics of the soul and thus inherently good. For the Stoics, such an ontological interpretation wasn’t established although they promulgated a cosmopolitian worldview on the universal acceptance of all people by nature and the functioning of the universe by a divine cosmos directed by a universal, rational logos. Augustine through his Christian theological understanding essentially took the earlier Stoic model and added to it. Thus, we can observed the embryonic seeds of a merging of Stoic philosophy with Christian theology.

64 Chapter 8 - St. Thomas Aquinas

While many other philosophers and theologians from St Augustine onward would contribute to the development of Christian theology, it wasn’t until 1250 AD that Christianity’s second greatest philosopher would make his impact. St Thomas Aquinas was his name and his influence on Christian theology 65 even to this date remains profound almost beyond measure. An Italian Dominican friar and Catholic priest during the Middle Ages, Aquinas established a plethora of Christian theological tenets and maxims that greatly influenced later Christian thinking and scholars. He wrote extensively on the subjects of virtue, ethics, political philosophy, and metaphysics in relation to Christianity. Among his many texts his greatest work is observed in the magnum opus Summa Theologica which was finalized in 1274 AD. Summa Theologica along with Aquinas’ other theological writings lead Chistianity out of the Middle Ages (or Dark Ages) of Europe and propelled the faith into the later era of the European Renaissance.

Born in the Sicilian castle of his father Landulf of Aquino, a knight of King Roger II of Sicily, the young Aquinas grew up in a family of affluent means that was well-connected with European royalty of the time. He went on to move to Naples where he studied philosophy and theology under the tutelage of John of St Julian, a local Dominican preacher. Soon thereafter Aquinas was to be recruited into the Dominican Order, a Catholic order of local priests who taught that preachers were to be at the forefront of the intellectual life during the Middle Ages. Greatly disturbed by this, Aquinas’ family seized him in 66 en route to Rome and imprisioned him for over a year in the family castle located in Sicily. Remaining steadfast in his faith and religious destiny, Aquinas escaped the imprisonment of his own family and moved to Paris where he would continue his education, ultimately becoming the pioneer of modern Christianity and theological intellectualism (Brown, n.d.).

Aquinas went on to teach and write his theology at Christian medieval universities in Paris, Cologne and Naples, quickly making a name for himself amongst the Christian intelligensia of the time. So influential and profound was Aquinas’ theological writings that in 1265 AD Pope Clement IV appointed Aquinas to the post of papal theologian. Aquinas was soon thereafter ordered to teach at the Basilica of Saint Sabrina in Rome. It was at this time when he composed his seminal text Summa Theologica in which he laid out his philosophy on Christian topics related to ethics, virtue, natural law, politics and metaphysics. So powerful and transcendent was Aquinas’s Summa Theologica that it has now become a staple of Christian literature to the point that an understanding of its contents is required for anyone seeking ordination to a Christian diaconate or priesthood position. Furthermore, Aquinas would later be canonized by the Holy Catholic Church, designating his legacy as a saint 67 of the Christian faith.

Aquinas’ Summa Theologica is no doubt a dense and comphrensive work on the subjects of Christian philosophy, theology, ethics, politics and other germane topics. So extensive is the content of Aquinas’ text that he essentially covers all theological teachings of the Catholic Church and all points of Christian theology produced in the Western World (Brown, n.d.). Totaling over 3,000 pages in length, a reading of Summa Theologica is certainly not for the faint of heart or casual reader. The diverse and extensive content it contains merits only the most serious and disciplined analysis. Just some of the more notable philosophical points Aquinas deals with in Summa Theologica are the Christian theological concepts of Just War, Just Prices, human nature, ethics, original sin, jurisprudence, and various proofs for the existence of God (Thomas Aquinas; McInerny, 1999).

A titan of Christian philosophy and theology, St Thomas Aquinas’ contribution to Christianity both in the European Middle Ages and beyond merits nothing else than the upmost respect and recognition, both within the Christian community and the secular world.

68 Chapter 9 - Christianity & The Middle Ages

The impact that St Augustine and St Thomas Aquinas had on Christian theology and intrepretation of scripture was profound beyond measure. So much in fact that Christianity would solidify its place at the center of European life up until the end of the Middle Ages (500-1500 AD). The Christian Church’s movement into the Middle Ages was a gradual and slow process, emerging out of localized rural regions in Europe. The process of emerging Christian hegemony throughout Europe first gained its foundation in the missionary work of Catholic priests and monastic orders. Western missionary expansion of the Christian faith included conversion of pagan populations located in what would become known as the British Isles (England, Scotland,

69 Wales, Ireland) as well as Germanic and Frankish terrorities. During this perpetual movement Christian leaders would establish their churches alongside the first universities to exist in the Western World in the form of medieval theological institutions. Soon enough the faith of Christianity and its teachings would come to dominate nearly every aspect of life in Medieval Europe.

Perhaps no other event during the time of the European Middle Ages best epitomizes the emerging dominance of Christianity than that of Emperor Charlemagne’s rise to power. That event occurred in 800 AD as King Charlamagne (also known as Charlamagne the Great) was crowned Emperor of the Romans by Pope Leo III on Christmas Day at St Peter’s Basilica in Rome (Hellfeld, 2009). Prior to that moment in history, Charlemagne established his reign as King of the Franks and ruler of the Carolingian Empire that covered territory throughout all of Western and Central Europe. Charlamagne was also known for being a staunch proponent and protector of the Holy Catholic Church during the Middle Ages. Pope Leo III’s act of crowning Charlemagne with the title of Emperor essentially amounted to the Church’s designation of him as the Emperor of a new Roman Empire in Western Europe. And it was at this moment that Christianity had 70 established its zenith of power in Medieval Western Europe.

The Roman Catholic Church quickly made certain that it was not in any way going to relegate its imperial status in the cultural, social and judicial fabric of Medieval Europe. Through actions which most people today are familiar with, the papacy enacted numerous military and judicial orders that attempted to expand the influence of Christendom throughout Europe and beyond. The Crusades of the Middle Ages (11th to 14th Centuries) represented the Christian Church’s boldest action to expand the influence and power of Christian culture, attempting to reclaim the Holy Lands of the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern states through military conquest. In addition, the Medieval Inquisitions beginning in 1184 AD established draconian policies aimed at eliminating apostasy and heresy of the Christian faith within Western Europe. The Catholic papacy during this time took severe and sinister steps to ensure its hegemony in Medieval Europe (Fanning, 2009).

The increasing relevance and position of Christianity in Medieval Europe also coincided with many educational and technological advancements. As Dr. Rodney Stark (Baylor University) points out in his historical text The 71 Victory of Reason, Christian theology in Europe during the Middle Ages produced a kind of formal reasoning about God and discovering the nature, intentions and demands of the divine (2007, p. 5). Theology, Christian-based or otherwise, “necessitates an image of God as a concious, rational being who imposes moral codes and responsibilities upon humans” (Stark, 2007). Thus as Dr. Starks points out in nuanced detail, the inherent nature of Christian theology produced a systematic way of thinking about social issues and ethics due to prevalence of parables and philosophy found within sacred Christian scripture; which reached it’s theological zenith with St Thomas Aquinas’ Summa Theologica.

It’s no coincidence that the first formal universities in Europe emerged during the Middle Ages as scholastic Medieval institutions for the study of Christian literature and theology. While monastic education appeared in Medieval Europe much earlier, the first formal universities were established in Paris and Bologna during the 12th Century. A multitude of other Medieval universities would soon follow including Oxford, Cambridge, and many others up until the end of the 13th Century. As Dr. Rodney Stark notes in his text The Victory of Reason, these universities “were deeply Christian institutions: all of the 72 faculty were in the holy orders and, consequently, so too were most of the famous early scientists” (2005, p. 53).

In addition to the advancements in theology, philosophy and education in the Christianized Medieval Europe, numerous technological discoveries were achieved during the Middle Ages (ironically referred to by many as the European Dark Ages). Technological innovations flurished during the Middle Ages in Europe, in part from the subsidization and entrepreneurial spirit of Christian monasteries. Among the more 73 well-known inventions of this era were the watermills, windmills, horse-drawn plows for farming, the three-field system of farming, chimneys, eyeglasses and clocks (Stark, 2005, pp. 33-44). All of these technological innovations, as well as the before-mentioned Medieval universities, aided Europe in its slow but sustained progress toward becoming a more affluent and advanced continent.

With respect to the Christian Church and its influence here, the Catholic monastic estates and monasteries greatly facilitated this progressive economic development through the invention of capitalism and money-lending. Referred to as religious capitalism, monastic estates of the Catholic Church developed their own internal systems of commerce and investment, first through internal farming and later in monocrop production/trade...all of which would later grow into outside lending to the European populace through mortgages, credits, and the development of a cash economy to replace the inefficiencies of bartering (Stark, 2005, pp. 55-67).

Far from being stuck in a depressed and backward society of the Dark Ages (as many might erroneously assume), the Middle Ages in Europe was actually one of great technological, educational and economic progress. Despite the 74 infamous legacies of the Crusades and Medieval Inquisitions, the Christian Church throughout Europe was indeed instrumental in advancing Europe towards becoming a region of great affluence and progress.

75 76 V. NEOSTOICISM 1.0

77 78 Chapter 10 - Justus Lipsius

Without the works and contributions of Justus Lipsius there likely would’ve never been a Neostoicism philosophy. A Belgian philosopher and classical philologist of the late 1500s, Lipsius introduced Neostoicism to the world as a syncretic philosophy combining Ancient Stoicism and Christianity. For the purposes of this book, Lipsius’ philosophical contribution here is referred to as Neostoicism 1.0 (i.e. the first phase of Neostoic philosophy). Lipsius went on to bring 79 the term Neostoicism into the vernacular of Western thought and European philosophy. Without his lasting impact and legacy, any discussion of a merging of Stoic philosophy and Christian theology likely would’ve never occurred. As we’ll soon observe, the Belgian philosopher’s insights into the applicability of Stoicism and Christianity would prove to be profound and merit the highest regard during the European Renaissance.

The story of Lipsius and his Neostoic philosophy began in the Belgian town of Overyssche in 1547 where Lipsius was raised. He would go on to study at a Jesuit college in Cologne, Germany, and later at the Catholic University of Louvain (Belgium). Lipsius established himself as an ardent student and research of philology, studying ancient manuscripts and classical literature from antiquity. In particular he made a point of studying Ancient Greek and Roman Stoicism, especially that of the Roman Stoic philosopher Seneca (Sellars2, n.d.). As Lipsius established his reputation as a erudite scholar of philosophy, he made his legacy permanent by releasing his most famous text on the subject of a Stoic-Christian syncretic philosophy in his 1584 book entitled De Constantia.

The label of Neostoicism was established by 80 Lipsius in De Constantia in addition to his multitude of other philosophical texts during the European Renaissance era. However, De Constantia proved to be Lipsius’ most impactful and lasting work, receiving acclaim and adulation from many well-respected Renaissance philosophers of the time. In his text Lipsius’ main point on the applicability of a merged Stoicism- Christian theological philosophy is centered upon the concept of constantia. Translated today as term constancy, Lipsius’ emphasis on constantia related to its very definition as “a right and immovable strength of mind, neither elated nor depressed by external or chance events” (Sellars2, n.d.). Synonomous terms for constantia include such descriptive labels as steadfastness, stability, durability and persistence. As one can surely observe Lipsius’ theme of Neostoic constantia, by virtue of its very definition, contains the seeds of Ancient Stoicism through emphasizing the relegation of externals and outside events.

Lipsius’ Neostoic philosophy in De Constantia also was one of Stoic optomism. He theorized and advanced the notion that all things in life, including unfortunate or chance events, were ultimately directed toward the good. Much like Zeno’s view of the universe/cosmos being directed by a divine logos or rational divine being, Lipsius took the point further by applying 81 it to the Christian theological view of God being an omnipotent, omnipresent and benevolent force in the world. One such quote by Lipsius from De Constantia crystallizes this view as he states, “The end of calamities tends always to good, albeit they be effected oftentimes by hurtful persons, and for harm’s sake; but God breaks and bridles their force. And so all things are turned to our benefit” (Justus Lipsius; Garrett, 2000, De Constantia 2, Ch 7).

82 Chapter 11 - Neostoicism - The Renaissance

Neostoic thought and philosophy would have a major impact on the intellectual climate of the late European Renaissance, both during and immediately after Lipsius’ life. In fact Lipsius’ Neostoicism as presented in his various texts (including De Constantia) influenced the dialogue and works of many great European philosophers that were to follow him.

Even prior to the formal emergence of Neostoicism by Justus Lipsius in the 16th Century, the philosophy of Stoicism remained a prominent feature of Christian theology and philosophy during the Middle Ages. As Dr. John Sellars (University of London) notes in the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, copies of

83 Epictetus’ Enchiridion text were circulated throughout Christian monasteries as well as Seneca’s Letters during the European Middle Ages. Even earlier Christian theologians like St Augustine and Tertullian demonstrated an affinity for various tenets of Ancient Stoicism in their publications (Sellars, n.d.). Needless to say, the philosophy of Ancient Stoicism survived in the era of Christian hegemony during the Middle Ages, leading the way for its full resurrection by the work of Justus Lipsius in the 16th Century.

Lipsius’ revival of Ancient Stoicism during the Late Renaissance in Europe would greatly influence a number of other European philosophers of the same time period. These individuals would come to be known as the Neostoics and the most notable among them were (aside from Lipsius): Guillaume Du Vair, Pierre Charon, Francisco de Quevedo, and Michel de Montaigne. These four individuals would carry the torch of Neostoicism first ignited by Lipsius all the way through to the end of 17th Century. As we’ll soon observe these Neostoics indeed had a great deal to add to the discussion on reviving Ancient Stoicism in a way that would be compatible with Christian theology in Europe.

An ardent admirer of Lipsius and his Neostoicism, Guillaume Du Vair followed in line 84 by writing his own Neostoic treatise of a very similar title: De la Constance (1594). A French statesman and later serving as a church bishop, Du Vair established his version of Neostoicism by referencing the works of Epictetus (as opposed to Lipsius subscribing to the works of Seneca). The emphasis on strict Stoicism that Epictetus advocated was indeed a major part of Du Vair’s Neostoic philosophy. Specifically, for Du Vair “a complete mastery of one's passions, achieved via the application of Stoic principles, forms the basis for a truly Christian way of life...Only one who has overcome the passions of fear and anger can, for instance, practice true Christian forgiveness towards one’s enemies” (Sellars, n.d.). While readers today may label Du Vair’s Neostoic ideal here to be cold, distant and apathetic, we’ll soon observe how useful that kind of emotional control indeed is for spiritual and personal growth.

Along with Pierre Charon (French philosopher) and Francisco de Quevedo (Spanish author), another highly influential Neostoic of the Late Renaissance named Michel de Montaigne soon emerged onto the scene. Montaigne was a French essayist who greatly admired Lipsius’ Neostoic theories and later adapted them into his own treatises. So impressed was Montaigne of the first Neostoic philosopher that he described Lipsius as “one of the most learned men then alive” (Sellars, 85 n.d.). Most notably, Montaigne recognized the symmetry that existed between Stoicism and the early Christian religious movement, observing how the early Christian apostles and followers exhibited stoic attitudes towards death that were very much synonymous with that of Seneca at the hands of Emperor Nero (Sellars, n.d.).

While a singular resurrection of Stoicism during the Renaissance by Lipsius alone likely wouldn’t have garnered much notoriety, the supplemental contributions of Guillaume Du Vair, Michel de Montaigne, and other philosophers helped to elevate Neostoicism into being a respectable and relevant philosophy moving forward.

86 87 88 VI. NEOSTOICISM 2.0

89 90 Chapter 12 - Neostoicism & Christianity

Lipsius’ Neostoicism 1.0 broke the ground for uncovering just how applicable Ancient Stoicism is for understanding Christianity and, more specifically, Christian theology. In this section of the book, I’ll attempt to build upon Lipsius’ original theories and add insights that further make the case for a merger of Stoicism 91 and Christianity. Hence, what follows is referred to as Neostoicism 2.0.

The main takeaway from Lipsius’ Neostoicism (i.e. Neostoicism 1.0) is the philosophical theory of constantia or constancy in terms of one’s mentality and view of the divine world around us. The topic of constancy as a kind of steadfast, durable and stable mindset is one that’s in fact at the core of nearly every relevant parable or scriptural story in the Christian Bible, both in the Old and New Testaments. While Lipsius may in fact have directly referenced scripture and parables from the Christian Bible in his multitude of philosphical texts, I have yet to unearth any precise mention of them in his historical works. Thus, this new manifestation of Neostoicism (i.e. Neostoicism 2.0) will begin by ossifying Lipsius’ case for a Neostoic philosophy in the modern world.

As previously mentioned, the concept of constancy is one that’s vividly apparent throughout Christian scripture particularly in the historical parables found in the Bible. In fact, the topic is so readily apparent that it’s at the core of the very first story of morality and human nature in the Bible: The Garden of Eden. As followers of Christianity will surely know, as well as those familiar with the story, Adam and Eve’s original 92 sin was their disobedience towards God by eating the forbidden fruit of the Garden, due to their temptation and emotional inconstancy. This can be observed directly from the passage in Genesis which reads “So when the woman [Eve] saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She gave to her husband [Adam] and he ate” (Genesis 3:6).

Within that passage alone, the terms pleasant and desirable signify the root of Adam and Eve’s abandonment of God-given rationality and reason. Their submission to emotional impulse thus introduced original sin into the world. The couples’ disobedience and lack of constancy in their mentality lead to God inflicting eternal punishment upon the two, along with their progeny as detailed in the scripture from Genesis. The cunning and deviant serpent essentially tricked Eve, and by extension Adam, into committing the very first and original sin of the Christian-metaphysical world. All as a result of playing upon their lack of emotional control and inconstancy to disobey even the simplest of divine responsibility, despite the availability of permissible fruit within the Garden. According to the scripture, the Garden of Eden was to be no more for Adam and Eve, and thus the entirety of the human race, due to their original sin. The 93 Biblical text here concludes stating “So he [God] drove out the man; and He placed a cherubim [angelic spirit] at the east of the garden of Eden, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to guard the way to the tree of life” (Genesis 3:24).

While the parable of The Garden of Eden provides perhaps the most palpable representation of constantia and its importance in Chistian scripture, numerous other references and parables point towards the concept of constantia as first espoused by Lipsius. Soon following the Garden of Eden is the story of Cain and Abel, the first offspring of humankind through Adam and Eve. Eve bore her two sons following their exodus from the Garden of Eden and clearly the original sin of Adam and Eve was transferred into their offspring. Or rather into their first son, Cain. As the scriptural story goes, Cain would grow to become a farmer while the younger Abel would become a shepard (a keeper of sheep as it reads). It would come to pass one day that Cain brought to God an offering of the fruit he had tilled while Abel presented his offering of the firstborn of his flock to God. In response, God respected Abel and his offering but did not respect Cain’s offering.

Angered and emotionally disturbed by this revelation, Cain is described in the scripture as 94 being “very angry, and his countenance [facial expression] fell” (Genesis 4:5). Noticing this, God said to Cain, “Why are you angry? And why has your countenance fallen?” (Genesis 4:6). Unresponsive according to the scripture, Cain went on to meet with his younger brother in the field and “rose up against Abel his brother and killed him” (Genesis 4:8). Being an omnipotent and omnipresent God, the Lord responded by condemning Cain for his act of inconstantia, punishing him to a life as a destitute vagabond/fugitive, bearing the murderer with the infamous mark of Cain. The misguided and disturbed Cain would go on, as the scripture tells, to dwell in the land of Nod (translated as Wandering) on the east of Eden.

Here yet again we immediately observe the importance and disasterous consequences of mankind’s emotional inconstantia and irrationality in the view of God’s divine providence. The scripture line which references the falling of Cain’s countenance symbolizes this fact from the Bible. Much like Adam and Eve’s abandonment of God-given rationality, Cain rejected the wisdom of God through emotional impulse, uncontrolled and leading him to murder his own brother out of jealous spite. And just as in the case of Adam and Eve’s original sin, God marked Cain with eternal punishment for his 95 sinful trangression which would eternally damn his progeny of the human race moving forward.

The manifestation of sin and mankind’s inconstantia was to remain a recurring feature of Biblical tales and scripture throughout the rest of the Christian Bible. Numerous other Biblical passages and stories contain the theme of emotional inconstantia at the core. Such passages include the story of Noah & God’s Ordering of the Flood (Genesis 6-7), Sodom & Gomorrah (Genesis 19), King David & Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11), and even Judas’ Betrayal of Jesus in the New Testament (Luke 22). In all of these cases, along with many others, the theme is the same: mankind’s failure to uphold a mentality of constancy and emotional control which leads to divine punishment due to the committing of sin.

However, the greatest example of mental and emotional constancy in the Bible is one that has a much more uplifting ending. That being the Temptation of Jesus in the Desert. According to the story, Jesus was led by the Holy Spirit into the Desert to be tempted by the Devil for forty days and forty nights. Challenging Jesus to exercise miracles and offering him all the cities of the World, the Devil ultimately failed to get Jesus to fall by sinful temptation and mental/emotional inconstancy (Matthew 4:1-11). Essentially 96 banishing the Devil from his presence, the mental and emotional constancy exhibited by Jesus, the Messiah and Son of God, allowed him go on to defeat death and overcome the original sin of Adam and Eve that had afflicted the spiritual realm of the human race until then.

Clearly the concept of mental and emotional constancy, or constantia as Lipsius referred to it, represents the core theme of the Bible and Christian history itself. With that being said, another major component of Christian theology and the Bible appears alongside the theme of constantia. While Neostoicism 1.0 ultimately reflects the importance of mental and emotional control (or constantia), Neostoicism 2.0 builds upon that by emphasizing the theme of fearlessness as alluded to in the Bible and Christian history. What follows is the case for that core theme of a new Neostoic philosophy.

The theme of fear and its crippling effects on the psyche and emotional state of individuals is found throughout the Bible, as well as other textual accounts of Christian history. As referenced earlier in this book, a poignant passage in the New Testament illustrates the importance that Jesus himself placed upon his disciples in terms of handling and overcoming fear. Contained within the Gospels as Jesus addressed 97 his twelve disciples, he tells them the following:

“Look, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves... do not be afraid of them [men]. For nothing is concealed that will not be uncovered, or hidden that will not be made known...Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell” (Matthew 10:16;26;28)

The point that Jesus is making here is rather obvious: he’s commanding his disciples, as stoic warriors of the faith, to refrain from succumbing to fear in order to fulfill their mission of evangelizing the World following Christ’s death and resurrection. To properly deal with and overcome this or any kind of fear, Christ’s disciples of course must possess an enduring and immovable strength of mind, neither elated nor depressed. That of course being the mental and emotional constantia that Lipsius describes in his Neostoic text De Constantia. Here, Jesus is making the philosophical point that his disciples must exhibit that constantia towards one singular and especially pernicious emotional/mental state: that of course being fear, as well as all of its other forms of manifestation (i.e. anxiety, stress, unease, trepidation, procrastination, aggression, 98 anger).

Another pertinent example of fear cited in the Bible is the New Testament passage detailing Jesus Walking on the Sea of Galilee. Also commonly referred to as Jesus Walks on Water, the story begins as Jesus orders his disciples to enter into a boat and sail to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Becoming stranded by the turbulent waves the disciples’ boat becomes stuck in the middle of the sea. Jesus soon emerges towards them, walking atop the water of the sea. The remainder of the story goes as follows:

“when the disciples saw Him [Jesus] walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ’Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.’ And Peter answered Him and said, ‘Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.’ So He said, ‘Come.’ And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, ‘Lord, save me!’ And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, ’O you of little faith, why did you doubt?’ And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.” (Matthew 14:26-32) 99 Here again we can observe the importance that Jesus places upon his disciples in terms of overcoming fear. Certainly Peter was naturally confused and taken back by the sight of Jesus performing such a divine miracle in front of him, in the middle of the Sea of Galilee. Yet, what Jesus was trying to impart upon Peter and his fellow disciples is that to have faith, true faith, one must not become the victim of fear. Peter’s fear and trepidation of the wind and water as he walked toward Jesus essentially broke his mental and emotional constancy (or self-control) and he began to sink. Both literally and metaphorically in terms of his mentality. The temporal world around Peter at the moment, the wind and waves of the sea, superseded his mental concentration as well as his faith. And so he sank, but of course was saved by the grace of Jesus’ lending hand. A powerful and instructive passage that demonstrates the connected themes of constantia, fearlessness, faith and divine grace.

Looking upon numerous other stories in the Christian Bible, the failure of individuals to properly deal with and overcome fear is indeed quite prevalent. As a recurring theme at the core of Biblical scripture, the presence and consequences of fear can be observed in the story of Adam and Eve (through the fearful covering of 100 their naked bodies), Jonah & The Whale (Jonah 1-2), Daniel & The Lions’ Den (Daniel 6), Moses’ Uncertainty towards God (Exodus 4), and Saul Fearing David (1 Samuel 18). Of course, these are just a handful of many parables and accounts of individuals whose inability to overcome or control their fearful impulses led to God’s rebuke and disdain in the Christian Bible.

A plethora of New Testament passages from both the Gospels and the Apostles reference the need for followers of Christ to refrain from succumbing to the disaster that awaits the fearful and timid. The antidote to overcoming fear and all its various forms (i.e. anxiety, distress, procrastination, rebelliousness, etc) certainly requires a stoic constantia, a kind of stoic calm that produces mental and emotional stability to allow for rational actions. In addition, one must exude that which is the direct counter to fear, that being of course courage. The virtue of courage (or fearlessness as mentioned earlier) enables individuals to rationally overcome their fears in order to achieve their mission, goals or responsibilities. In fact so fundamental is the nature of courage, whether in the Bible, historical events or one’s personal life today, that it’s the sole virtue that allows all others to come about (including love, compassion, generosity, charity, patience, faith, hope, endurance, etc). 101 Courage and fearlessness is the foundational theme of Neostoicism 2.0 and it’s applicability can be directly observed in the Bible, the history of the Apostles, and other textual accounts of Christian history. The key to embracing fearlessness and courage requires the application of Stoicism in the form of emotional and mental self control, or constancy. Just as the great Stoic philosophers of antiquity stressed the importance of avoiding distractions or reliance on external events/materialism, so too does Neostoic philosophy as a way to fully embrace the virtues and ethics of Christianity as espoused by Jesus. To be fearless and courageous thus is to confront fear directly in whatever form it takes and overcome its effects in a rational, level-headed manner. For when one is able achieve this, then they are truly courageous and fearless...and can only then start to exhibit the higher virtues including faith, hope, endurance, patience, compassion, generosity, and ultimately true love.

The great author and Christian theologian CS Lewis here says it best:

“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but rather the form of every virtue at the testing point.”

102 Chapter 13 - The Neostoic Lifestyle

In the previous chapter I made the philosophical and historical case for a new interpretation of Christianity (and Christian theology) through the insights of Anicent Stoicism. That being the intellectual justification for Neostoicism as a valid and relevant philosophy. Here I will move on from the metaphorical chalkboard and lecture seat, and discuss pragmatic ways in which Neostoicism can be applied in the real world today.

Building upon Lipsius’ Neostoic concept of constantia in the first wave of Neostoicism from the European Renaissance, this newer version of Neostoicism also includes the concept of

103 fearlessness to the discussion. To be without fear, in the real world, is of course not to be rationally blind to dangers that exist in one’s environment. Obviously it would be foolish and idiotic to be fearless of engaging in activities of a criminal nature or actively jumping in front of moving train. Fearlessness as I propose in Neostoicism 2.0 doesn’t promote any such irrationality and recklessness. To be fearless from the perspective of Neostoicism is to liberate oneself from the fears, anxities, unease and procrastination that inflicts so many us in the modern, 21st Century.

For the Ancient Stoics as well as the great Christian theologians, to be anxious or fearful of things outside of one’s immediate control or unrelated to actually living a good, moral life were to be completely disregarded. This of course can be seen in the asceticism and simple living that individuals such as Diogenes the Cynic, Zeno of Citium, Epictetus, St Augustine, St Thomas Aguinas, and even Jesus himself exhibited. Other examples of course would include pioneers of other religions or belief systems including Gandhi, Buddha, and Confucius. Thus, what follows in this section are examples and ways in which we as people in the 21st Century can apply Neostoic fearlessness to bring about greater ease and tranquility in our lives.

104 Regina’s Story

Regina is a 30 year old single mother of two living in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana. Born and raised in the city, Regina is well aware of the personal and social struggles of living in New Orleans as she’s learned to deal with the difficulties surrounding her over time. While she lives in a mixed, relatively affluent area on New Orleans east side, the reality of crime, poverty and economic hardship are with her everyday as she ventures through the city to work two jobs. As a daily consumer of the local news, she’s become somewhat numb to the constant reports of arrests, shootings, gang activity, murders and drug activity in her city. While this reality concerns Regina for her own daily livelihood of course, it causes her even greater distress for that of her two young children, both of whom attend a secondary school in the city.

Regina is very much active in the lives of her two kids. She has to be, as a single mother whose former boyfriend fell into a life of crime and left the family to wander into the trappings of street hustling and gang activities. While he did provide some monetary support for a while through his illicit work activities, he soon found himself caught up in a violent alteraction that relegated 105 him to a jail cell where he’s awaiting prosecution for a variety of criminal charges. Thus, Regina is all one her own, working two jobs to support herself and her kids, neither of which pays very well on its own. With her long weeks of work coupled with what seem like endless responsibilities at home with the kids, Regina is running low on energy and emotional control. Every hour of everyday is a perpetual struggle, even if she lived in a better neighborhood, with better schools, better social resources, and with a job that paid better. Unfortunately she’s been dealt with none of those cards and the struggle is beginning to takes its toll.

On a Friday afternoon, as Regina went to pick up her kids from school before returning to finish her work shift, one of her kids mentions the latest craze going around the school. A number of young males (and a few females) in her class are starting to experiment with drugs. Namely weed (i.e. marijuana) but also more potent substances that apparently have been obtained from the medicine cabinet of a couple kids’ homes. Vicodin and hydrocodone are being passed around, according to Regina’s youngest daughter, and used recreationally by many of her classmates. Regina’s kid has been confronted firsthand with the drugs and even pressured to start using or, better yet, dealing the substances 106 within school and outside in the streets to earn some easy cash. The appeal of which is palpable: in both the school and the streets, many young adolescents and teens enjoy the perks of dealing drugs in the form of nicer clothing, sneakers, jewelry, fitted caps, and the freedom to go out and have fun in the city. Disturbed and visibily upset, Regina immediately stops the car and pulls over on the shoulder of the road heading to her neighborhood apartment.

Regina goes on to ask more questions of her youngest child as well as her other kid, a few years older but attending the same school. He expresses similar experiences and temptations, although he admits to not engaging in the activities mentioned. Following a long and emotional discussion in which Regina warns her kids of the dangers of succumbing to a life of drugs and illicit activities, she’s emotionally exhausted and short of patience. Work that evening is a killer and the stress has taken a serious tool on her mental and physiological well- being. The reality of the streets and the dangers lurking beneath the surface have unfortunately come full circle, yet again, for her and the family. Aside from her boyfriend’s incarceration, Regina has also experienced multiple family members close to her whose lives have been lost in the chaos of the streets of New Orleans, especially in 107 the inner-city Wards which populate Orleans Parish. Unsure of what to do to break this nefarious cycle, Regina soon gets a call from a friend....

Brittany is a close and lifelong friend of Regina going all the way back to their days as classmates and neighbors in New Orleans. Brittany too has a couple kids, although her family situation is slighty more stable than that of Regina’s. Brittany’s husband works a legitimate job for a local HVAC company and supports the family both monetarily and in person. Free of debt and living in an affluent neighborhood, Brittany certainly recognizes the struggles of her friend and routinely supports her with weekly phone calls and personal visits. Late this Friday night, she has called Regina who quickly details to Brittany the discussion with her kids along with her concerns and general fatigue over it all. Brittany goes on to console and offer support, as always, to Regina but also mentions a tool that she has found to be immensely helpful in dealing with similar struggles in her daily life.

The tool Brittany is referring to is a book by Epictetus in a modern edition entitled The Art of Living. First given to her by a friend actively involved in a local AA chapter in the city, Brittany swears by the book and its usefulness in 108 dealing with life’s struggles to Regina. So much so that, for Brittany, it has radically changed her life and perspective on how to mentally and emotionally approach nearly every circumstance that has come her way since. Whether it’s with her family, her job, the kids at school, managing finances, etc. Brittany has discovered the real benefits of applying Stoicism in her daily life. The benefits are very much real and reinforcing. She’s healthier, sleeping better, more productive at work, and her relationship with her husband and the kids has never been better. Immediately taken back and immensely intrigued, Regina makes a point to swing by the local bookstore downtown to get her own copy.

A month later, Regina’s life is still very much the same from the view of an outside observer. She still works two low-paying jobs, her boyfriend still awaiting trial and in jail, and her kids continue to attend school and resist the temptations of a nefarious street environment permeating with drugs and gang recruitment. And yet, oddly enough, Regina has never felt better or more empowered in her life. She’s read through Epictetus Art of Living text now 3 times and routinely cites many of the Stoic philosopher’s maxims in her daily walk, several of which she has already committed to memory. Regina has noticed, as well as from her kids and friends, a 109 kind of stoic calm and emotional stability that’s become habitual in her daily life. Now she hardly notices the change as its become so engrained into her personal life. She’s happier, more content and nearly everyday the once persistent issues of stress, anxiety and depression have become nonexistent. In fact, things are starting to materialize for the better around her, as she’s in line for a major promotion to a management position at one of her jobs. Soon Regina will no longer have to work two jobs to support herself and the kids. Life is indeed becoming more manageable, fulfilling and happier for this young 30 year old single mother of two.

110 What Regina’s story demonstrates is this: By applying the Stoic philosophy of Epictetus in her day to day life, Regina has embraced a kind of calmness, a stoic calm as Epictetus would refer to it, that allows her to better navigate and deal with the daily circumstances that present themselves to her. No longer is Regina handicapped by the emotional turmoil and distress of modern life. In fact she embraces it. She has become a kind of modern-day stoic soldier on the battlefield of the modern, 21st Century. She doesn’t fear nor feel anxious about problems that she experiences at work or at home. She is better able to maintain her mental health and impart Stoic wisdom to her two kids who have also benefitted greatly from the courageous mentality of their mother. Regina is no longer simply surviving day to day. She’s thriving and her life has never been better.

To concern oneself with the external things of life that are outside of one’s immediately control is a kind of mental illness that Epictetus and the early Stoics recognized. As such it became a core tenet of Stoicism to disregard these pressures, whether it be social pressure, material desires, outside events or even the actions of people nearby. All of these things were ultimately uncontrollable for the individual and to bring them into one’s life, either directly or indirectly, was to weaken an individual. Specifically, to take in the energy of 111 an outside person or event detracted the individual from truly focusing on living a meaningful, ethical and fulfilling life. Regina recognized this from reading the philosophy of Epictetus. While her story represents just one example here, it goes without saying that Stoic thinking and philosophy can indeed improve the lives of all people in one form or another in the modern, 21st Century.

Geoff’s Story

Geoff is in his late 20s and as a recent graduate of law school, he has landed a nice job at a prestigious law firm in downtown New Orleans. Graduating summa cum laude from his law school class at the University of South Carolina, Geoff has everything a young bachelor could want. His job pays well, he lives in a regal downtown studio apartment, and has an active social life with many friends from work and in the surrounding community. He lives the life of an upper class white collar professional and, well, he’s earned it. Given his intrepid work ethic and commitment, Geoff’s life is basically what he envisioned and even more. From the outside, one would think that he has it made. But one would be wrong...

112 Despite the luxuries and material blessings of his life, Geoff subtly deals with a significant amount of stress and anxiety in his daily life. While he finds his job to be meaningful and he expects to become a partner in the law firm in due time, he feels a sense of trepidation in dealing with the mountain of cases and docket presented to him. Trial law in particular is one of Geoff’s least favorite aspects of the job and causes him a great deal of anxiety and stress, both during and after any given case. Dealing with criminal defense and the torturous legalism that exists in the judicial circuit, Geoff often comes back to his downtown studio apartment feeling emotionally drained and exhausted. So much so that every week he takes extra long breaks from work, starting on Wednesday, to get out of the office to decompress. Sometimes he’ll even swing by a local bar just outside the French Quarter to drink a spirit and ease his emotional anxiety.

Soon Geoff’s coworkers and friends start to notice that he has less energy and appears more lethargic. He’s become less fun to be around and incessantly discusses his problems at work and in his personal life. Geoff has become a drain on his social network of friends and colleagues. He soon finds himself spending more time alone, arguging with himself essentially over the unfairness and what seems like an impossibly difficult work load 113 he’s dealing with. One afternoon, upon leaving work, Geoff is so emotionally exhausted and drained that he gets into a slight accident with his car. Confronting the driver he’s collided with, Geoff explodes with anger and frustration, giving full reign to his road rage mentality over what amounts to an inconsequential fender-bender accident. Later that night, Geoff drinks himself to sleep and remains isolated in his cave of a studio apartment the rest of the weekend.

A concerned coworker calls Geoff and comes by to check on him that weekend. Shocked and disturbed by what he sees, he’s able to convince Geoff to go with him to see a psychologist who’s well respected and known around the city. Reluctantly agreeing, Geoff makes an appointment and a few days later visits the psychologist for their first meeting. After divulging to the therapist all of his recent issues, both personally and professionally, the therapist recommends he start reading a book entitled Meditations by Marcus Aurielius. Geoff is actually quite receptive and intrigued by the therapists recommendation, having offered to him a text by a great Roman Emperor from ancient history. Geoff soon finds himself immersed in the book and can’t stop reading over Aurelius’ Stoic maxims contained within.

114 Just a few weeks later, Geoff returns for his next appointment with the therapist and immediately a change is apparent in Geoff’s demeanor. His emotional state is more settled and stable, he looks better and feels like he has 10 times the energy he previously had during his initial appointment. Geoff confesses to the therapist (along with his coworker) that Aurielius’ Meditations has had a profound influence on his perspective of life and the daily responsibilities he faces. Responsiblities which Geoff now finds much easier, even enjoyable, to deal with and overcome. No longer does he stress over his case load or feel frustrated with trial court. By focusing on what is truly within his control and what is not, Geoff has admittedly gained a new kind of enduring strength that’s both psychological and physiological. He’s no longer drinking in the daytime, he’s eating better, exercising regularly and even started actively dating for the first time since he graduated law school.

115 Furthermore, Geoff has started attending Mass again at a local Catholic Church in downtown New Orleans. Raised Catholic, he attended Mass regularly growing up as well as on weekends during his time as a law school student. Now, he has resurrected the habit of being a part of the church as he finds it gives him an even greater sense of tranquility and calm in his daily life. Geoff has also noticed a lot of similarities between the Stoic maxims of Emperor Aurelius in Meditations with that of Christian scripture and homilies by the Catholic priest at the church. All of which further reinforces Geoff’s Stoic- Christian attitude and mindset as he observes it directly paying dividends in his personal and professional life. Among his many recited lines from Meditations, Geoff’s personal favorite is one quoted by Aurelius that reads “You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” 116 Much like Regina’s story, Geoff’s experience similarly embodies the benefits of applying a Stoic mentality and philosophy in his daily life as 21st Century working professional. While at first Geoff felt overwhelmed by responsibilities and anxieties at work, which spilled over into his personal life, after seriously reading Marcus Aurelius’ Stoic text Meditations he has found a new life. For Geoff, his new life is not simply one that’s been temporarily fixed with surface level therapy or material things. The change for him is much deeper, even going as far as his soul.

By focusing on his mental approach and perspective towards life, Geoff is better able to analyze situations at work and elsewhere to make prudent and wise decisions. He has more energy and more self-respect as a result of applying Stoic ideals on ethics and the proper perspective of the reality that surrounds him. The fact that he attends Mass regularly and has started noticing deep-rooted similarities between Aurelius’ Stoic maxims and that of Christian theology is no surprise. Whether it’s through reading Meditations or reflecting on the message of his Catholic priest, Geoff has realized that when one views the nature of reality properly by focusing on what’s most important (i.e. ethics and a moral, 117 virtuous life, as opposed to concerns related to the work environment or social scene) he is able to more fully live and find fulfillment in his daily walk.

118 Chapter 14 - Neostoicism for the 21st Century

Expanding upon the examples and conclusions drawn from the previous chapter of adopting a Neostoic lifestyle, the case for a new kind of Neostoicism in the modern, 21st Century is indeed crystallizing. Far from simply being an archived philosophy relegated to the classroom or

119 library bookshelves, Neostoicism in the form of a mental approach to dealing with modern life through a Stoic interpretation of Christian theology is quite relevant. In my opinion, it’s not only relevant but in many ways quite overdue in its necessity. Today many of us, whether we’re Christian or not, religious or not, struggle with navigating a modern world that’s become infinitely complex. In many ways the struggles and expectations of living in advanced societies today (e.g. United States, Europe and other first world regions) have become more stress-inducing than any generation before could’ve imagined.

Take for instance the workplace. With the advent of advanced technologies such as computers, smartphones, virtual meetings, and the internet, the common notion is that work itself never ends. In some respects this is quite true. Telecommuting and work outside of the office is the norm for many, if not the majority, of people today particularly in the United States. Competition for jobs and promotion in the professional world is fierce, leaving those who succeed in achieving workplace advancement often suffering from chronic stress and workplace anxiety. For those who struggle or even fall off the corporate/professional ladder, the consequences can be even more severe. Even securing part-time or entry level work at the 120 minimum wage level is no simple task for the faint of heart. In the United States, for instance, a large portion of its citizens work temp jobs that pay minimum wage salaries that necessitate securing second or even third jobs in order to maintain an adequate standard of living above the poverty line. Even many people today with blue collar or entry level jobs have to rely upon government assistance in the form of welfare, food stamps or subsidized rent just to live day to day.

In our lives outside of the workplace, the struggle of modern, 21st Century life doesn’t let up. The seemingly omnipresent machine that is corporate media, entertainment and 24/7 news channels infiltrates our daily lives in ways many may not fully recognize. In relatively affluent societies, such as the United States or Western Europe, the entertainment and service sectors are major economic driving forces that propel individuals into lives of continuous consumption and expenditure. Everyday we’re bombarded with advertisements and marketing from corporate entities ruthelessly attempting to psychologically influence consumers to purchase and spend more. This reality manifests itself in a kind of nauseating “Keep up with the Jones” type mentality that unfortunately leads a lot of unsuspecting individuals and families into the 121 disasterous spiral of personal debt. The ability to acquire more and more has ironically produced a society that’s more and more concerned with materialism and a kind of anxiety about not keeping up with the latest trends or vogue statements that businesses use to prey on consumers.

In the United States, as of 2017 during the time this book has been released, the issues of economic inequality, national and personal debt levels, and political polarization within government only adds to our list of concerns and stresses on a daily basis. Many US citizens feel left out and hopeless not only about their government but also about the direction of the economy and the cultural fabric of the nation itself. Competing ideologies and political views have become more and more divergent, radical even, in 2017. So much so that to discuss social, political or cultural topics even with close friends or family is shunned. Civility and respectful discussions are increasingly rare as people, on both the right and left, refuse to listen much less acknowledge valid points or compromise on their perception of the world that surrounds them or what they wish for it to ultimately be like.

At the root of all these concerns, anxieties, and trepidations whether in the workplace or in our 122 social/personal lives is that of fear. Fear and all its forms of manifestation (anxiety, stress, unease, procrastination, anger, frustration, etc.) has become a common and near ubiquitious feature of the modern, 21st Century. So prevalent is this kind of personal and societal contagion that many fail to even recognize it’s subtle workings in our lives. For example, at the root of even something as simple as microaggression or passive- aggressive communication is a manifestation of one’s fear in actively confronting an issue that presents itself to an individual. At times it may be multiple issues or circumstances that trigger a fearful attitude within us. Whether it’s in the workplace, found in corporate advertising schemes, on the cable news or in the political environment, fear permeates throughout modern society and its effects prove to, at best, limit our ability to truly live a happy and joyful life and, at worst, lead us into the despair of depression and mental illness.

The prevalence of fear, anxiety, stress, microaggression, procrastination, and all its other destructive manifestations are very much real. Many readers will come to notice (if not already) the signs of this both in society and within themselves. Fear is the most palpable, victimizing and destructive emotional force humanity has ever known. Historian Robert Greene and 123 author/artist Curtis Jackson (2009) document the reality of fear in the world today explicitly in their book The 50th Law. Once a useful and necessary emotional force that protected our hunter-gather ancestors from real danger in the wilderness, fear that manifests itself in the 21st Century is now “a kind of prison that confines one within a limited range of action. [Hence] the less you fear, the more power you will have and the more fully you will live” (Greene & Jackson, 2009). The author duo concludes their thesis on fear by referencing the death of Seneca, the great Roman Stoic, under orders from Emperor Nero in 65 AD (Greene & Jackson, 2009, pp. 267-288). Confronting his mortality with ultimate bravery and stoic calm, Seneca demonstrated the transcendent fearlessness needed for one to truly overcome fear in its most sublime and real form. That being death. Thus, once one commits to a mentality of confronting their own mortality or death with stoic courage/fearlessness, that individual has become truly free to live.

Overcoming fear and all its pernicious forms (e.g. anxiety, distress, unease, procrastination, microaggression, passive-agreesiveness, anger) is the main theme of Neostoicism 2.0. While Justus Lipsius carried the message of embracing constantia in his original form of Neostoicism during the European Renaissance (i.e. 124 Neostoicism 1.0), Neostoicism 2.0 builds upon that by incorporating the need for a fearless attitude/mentality in approaching life. A point that is both highly relevant and necessary in navigating the trials and circumstances of life in the modern, 21st Century.

125 126 VII. CONCLUDING REMARKS

127 128 Chapter 15 - The Case for Neostoicism in Today’s World

Similar to the earlier chapter entitled The Neostoic Lifestyle, the case for embracing Neostoicism in today’s modern world is one that I will ultimately attempt to make by referencing the story of one individual. That individual is Ashanti Witherspoon and his life story is one that, at least in my opinion, most powerfully demonstrates both the benefits and necessity for Nestoicism in today’s society.

Ashanti Witherspoon is the name of an individual that most people are likely unfamiliar with. Sure, it’s not the name of celebrity in the modern sense of the term. He’s not a government leader or noted politican. Nor is he (as some might guess) a 129 historical figure much like the great Stoic and Christian pioneers I reference in this book. Ashanti Witherspoon though is a free man. A truly free man in the most detailed sense of the phrase. More so than perhaps any other individual alive today, the story of Ashanti Witherspoon proves in a very real and viseral way that Neostoicism does in fact have a permanent place in today’s society, through a mentality of embracing Stoicism for interpretating a Christian worldview and way of living. Through this kind of mentality and lifestyle, Ashanti Witherspoon became a free man and his story alone is likely to lead you into realizing that very same type of freedom.

Ashanti Witherspoon was not a free man at first. In fact for much of his life he was furthest thing from it. See, Ashanti Witherspoon was sentenced in 1972 to 75 years in prison on charges of armed robbery following a shoot-out with police in Shreveport, Louisiana, while under the influence of LSD. Witherspoon’s descent into what essentially amounted to a life sentence developed over time as he became involved in a militant gang and drug culture, first in his native Chicago and later in Louisiana. Following his conviction, Witherspoon was swiftly sent to serve his time at the Louisiana State Penitentiary just outside of Baton Rouge in Feliciana Parish. Louisiana State 130 Penitentiary, however, is more commonly known as Angola (or Angola Prison), deriving its name from the country where enslaved Africans came to work on the former plantation that occupied the Parish area.

To travel, visit or serve time at Angola is to take a trip back in time. As the largest functioning prison in the United States with over 6,000 convicted inmates serving life or near-life sentences, Angola is still in many ways very much the same as it was centuries ago. Inmates, including Witherspoon, work daily in the farm fields of Angola using only the most basic tools and equipment as a function of their required prison labor. Correctional Officers supervise the grounds and farms of Angola on horseback, armed with heavy ammunition to deter any attempts at escape or prisoner rebellion. Thus, Angola Prison is not too different than the Angola Plantation that operated on the same grounds centuries earlier.

Despite Witherspoon’s lengthy prison sentence, after more than two decades he was able to secure a parole board hearing at Angola. Such an occurrence would be highly uncommon for nearly any inmate serving time at Angola. However, Witherspoon was no ordinary inmate. As detailed in numerous documentaries and media outlets 131 (such as National Geographic, The New York Times and The San Francisco Chronicle), the once lawless Witherspoon had transformed himself, in the words of then-Prison Warden Burl Cain, into being the “model inmate” at Angola. So exceptional was Witherspoon’s disposition, discipline and compassion that he routinely was granted release from prison grounds to perform outreach work in the Baton Rouge community.

Witherspoon was able to achieve his stellar reputation and parole board hearing in 1999 as a result of exhibiting the highest degree of ethical and moral behavior while a prisoner at Angola. Rooted in his newly-found Christian faith, he became a mentor and example for other Angola inmates and even began giving testimonial sermons to audiences outside of Angola while under the supervision of the prison’s COs. Witherspoon’s exceptional character and Christian outreach earned him a 1999 parole verdict, which he was granted by the board. Witherspoon was finally a free man.

To this day, Ashanti Witherspoon lives a life of complete devotion to Christ and works as a kind of preacher/mentor to those in the Baton Rouge area. While still confined geographically due to his parole, he is very much a free man. Both in the literal and spiritual term of the phrase. Prior to 132 arriving at Angola, while technically free in the literal sense, Ashanti was very much a prisoner in the existential/spiritual sense of the term. Imprisoned both mentally and emotionally into an existence of crime, drugs and gang activities, to say that he was a “free man” would be to completely miss the point. Ashanti only became free, in the true sense of the term, upon being released from Angola and moving forward with his mission for Christ. The notoriety and fame that he has achieved is directly a result of his life’s story and ability to overcome personal and mental demons that once imprisoned him.

Just a brief encounter or experience with Witherspoon, whether in person or as a viewer of his many speeches/sermons, crystallizes the real- life example of Neostoicism. Mentally sharp, emotionally controlled and steadfast in his life’s purpose, Ashanti Witherspoon delivers his message in a way that the first and greatest Neostoic philosopher Justus Lipsius surely would applaud at the highest level. Witherspoon embraces a mental and emotional constancy (constantia) that allows him to bluntly and effectively connect with listeners. His stability, control and stoic calm ingratiates those in his audience, only further cementing his message of redeeming Christianity.

133 Beyond all of that, though, Ashanti Witherspoon is a truly free man because he is fearless. And not in the way some may interprete the term. For instance, some may view Ashanti’s prior life of crime as one of fearlessness, going about commiting criminal acts and a shoot-out with police despite the near certainty of death that awaited. Rather, Ashanti Witherspoon is fearless today in the Neostoic sense of the word. Built upon a firm foundation of mental and emotional constantia, he is able to be truly fearless in his approach to life and his daily work. No longer is Ashanti fearful of the police, of the dangers found in a life of deviance and crime. Now he is fearless as kind of modern-day Saint Peter who spreads the message of Christ’s life and teachings to those who need and wish to receive it. He is not robbing people by cowardly inflicting violence or evils upon the world. He is bravely and stoicly imparting Christian wisdom upon the world.

Set within his Christian roots, Ashanti Witherspoon’s Saul-to-Paul-like transformation was only achieved by embracing, either directly or indirectly, Neostoic philosophy. More specifically, his effectiveness as both a mentor and teacher (as well as a human being) is based upon his daily execution of the tenets found in Neostoicism 2.0

134 That of course being the compatible merging of Ancient Stoicism, Christianity, Neostoic 1.0 constantia, and Neostoic 2.0 fearlessness - all of which together produces true and sustained personal empowerment in today’s world.

Ashanti Witherspoon Twitter @GAshantiW Society of Servant Leaders - http://www.societyofservantleaders.com/

http://ashantiwitherspoon.com/Home.html

135 136 VIII. EPILOGUE

137 138 New Orleans, LA - Interstate 10 WB (3/30/2013)

The date was March 30, 2013. Fleeing from responsibilities at home and chasing after personal demons, I found myself parked outside of the Empire Express gas station on Louisa Street in the Gentilly neighborhood of New Orleans, Louisiana. Running low on energy and feigning from drug and opiate withdrawal, I soon caught the attention of a NOPD patrol car and was swiftly arrested on charges of minor drug possession (marijuana) and loitering. Despite my ill-fated attempts to resist the charges, I was immediately detained, vehicle impounded and transported in handcuffs to the in-take/processing unit of the Orleans Parish Prison (more 139 commonly referred to as OPP). It was there at OPP where my journey from selfish disobedience to outright hell began.

After being processed and booked on the above- mentioned charges, the reality soon hit that my life was about to change drastically. Surrounded by disgruntled COs, well over a hundred individuals in orange jail garb and community holding units that were more like wired cages, it was apparent that I had entered into an entirely different universe. Without food and access to only the most squalor sinks and toilets hardly fit for human use for upwards of 12 hours, I and the other inmates were given our orange onesies and lead out in a chain gang to what was referred to as “The Tents.” See, following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005 the Orleans Parish Prison itself became utterly deteriorated and facility space severly limited. Thus, dozens of makeshift cement tents were constructed outside the main prison complex to house inmates serving short sentences or awaiting trial. Upon entering the Tent any notion of convenience or safe space soon leaves your psyche. Overcrowded with at least 200 inmates to a tent, I was assigned a bunkmate and my bag of prison-issued personal items. The real darkness though was yet to come...

140 After just a couple hours, multiple altercations and assaults between competing cliches of inmates soon broke out. According to my bunkmate at the time, there was apparently escalating tension between two sections of the tent related to gang affiliation and street altercations that were “being dealt with” while in OPP. Unknown to me at the time, several of the inmates involved were part of a local New Orleans street gang known as the Gotti Boyz. Another couple were 9th Ward gang members. And yet to an outsider such as myself the signs of gang affiliation and criminality were obvious. Forehead soldier cross tattoos, teardrop tattoos and other graphic insignia often marked these individuals who possessed a killer, hair-trigger mentality that could pop off at any moment. Following subtle but repeated pleadings to the one CO monitoring the 200-plus inmate population of our Tent, I was granted a transfer to a separate unit of OPP. Now the darkness was to become hell...

Requesting a transfer out of the Tent essentially amounts to one being designated protective custody status (or PC for short). Following behind two COs, we soon made our journey back into the main OPP facility. In fact I was lead all the way up to the third floor, known as the PC or Psych Unit. While the OPP processing/in-take 141 area may simply be deemed seriously inconvenient and the Tent as borderline unbearable, the OPP Psych Unit is hell incarnate. Maybe even worse. The first thing that hits you as you walk the third floor halls of the Psych Unit is the smell. It’s pungent and fowl beyond what words can describe. The second feature that hits you is the noise. All you hear as you glance by the holding cells are the thunderous hollering and yells of inmates boarded up in what amounts to solitary confinement. Third are the visual sights. One single person cell contains three inmates, two of which are laying side-by-side on the cell floor. Another is filled with graffiti and human excrement that has overflowed underneath the cell door into the common area. It’s at this point I begin to tear up, my heart starts racing and my only thought is how to survive from moment to moment.

Now officially designated and orientated to the OPP PC/Psych Unit, I’m placed in a 10 by 5 foot cell with two other inmates, one bunk and a steel sink/tiolet unit. To say the living conditions are cramped is an understatement. To say that the other two inmates are at all pleased by my appearance is an obvious lie. To say that I am now in the Belly of the Beast is the blunt reality. My first night is spent in complete silence and as the newbie and only white guy in the unit, I’m 142 immediately sleeping on the concrete floor using a bundled up towel as a makeshift pillow. As I would soon discover this is just night one of my seven day long stay at OPP.

Most people associate hell with an afterlife of eternal damnation. A place of perpetual torment and suffering in never-ending fires. Others may think of hell as being one’s state of mind, perhaps a severe case of chronic depression or paranoia. For me, hell was a week of living in a delapidated, windowless cell with almost no room to move. Hell was the lights staying on 24/7 and trying to maintain your psyche and sense of sanity with little to no sleep. Hell was learning to deal with the stench of grotesque smells and deafening noise all around you. And when you’re in hell, even for just a week, you learn to have eyes in the back of your head, noticing everything around you to keep out of danger. But most of all, when you’re in the hell of OPP, you quickly learn that being stoic in your emotional disposition and sharp-minded in your thinking is not simply required; it’s the only way to survive, moment by moment.

In the PC/Psych Unit of OPP time slows down considerably and your life exists in 10 second intervals. An hour feels like a day and a day close to a lifetime. And day after day you essentially 143 die and are born again. That was the mindset of M.B., one of the inmates I shared the cell with for a week. My other cellmate, A.H., maintained a similar perspective...(here in the obvious interest of privacy I’m only referring to these individuals by their initials). M.B and A.H. were both from inner-city New Orleans (albeit different neighborhoods), in their early 20s and awaiting trial for their respective charges. I was a drug- addicted and troubled 24 year old college graduate from the suburbs of upstate South Carolina. In our 10 by 5 foot cell, our divergent universes and life experiences were colliding in the most unlikely of circumstances. And yet amongst the three of us, a passage way out of our shared hell was crystallizing.

For seven full and what seemed like eternally long days, M.B., A.H. and I shared stories, cracked jokes and contemplated the meaning of life in ways that will forever remain known only between the three of us. When you’re forced to live in such close confines and only allowed to exit your cell once every three days to shower, there isn’t much else to do to pass time. Despite what at first seemed to be our endless list of obvious differences (racial, economic, geographic, social, etc), the three of us formed a bond that ran deeper than external characteristics. What the three of us embraced in our thoughts 144 and behaviors was one of stoic calm and awareness, a unique kind of Neostoicism if you will. To survive in inner-city New Orleans and especially if you’re unfortunate enough to find yourself in OPP, you have to be stoic....you have to be mentally sharp, always attentive to the reality around you, and steady in your temperment. To act otherwise, in any way, is to place a target on your head in a concrete jungle that’s ready at any moment to help you lose it.

To say that hell hardens you mentally and emotionally is perhaps one interpretation of the term. To say that time spent at OPP hardens you mentally and emotionally is a guarantee. It’s inevitable and to resist that reality is to die...mentally, emotionally, spiritually and (sometimes) even physically. Within our cell M.B. pointed out one noticeable crevasse on the concrete wall opposite our bunk. It was a carving block for a shank which couldn’t have been any less than 6 inches in length, most likely utilized by the previous inmates in the cell before us. M.B. would go to describe in explicit terms how many criminalized inmates at OPP would use the concrete walls to sharpen their shanks. Something as simple as a plastic toothbrush and collection of single blade razors for shaving could be constructed into a deadly weapon that inmates would use to “kidney-stone” an unsuspecting 145 cellmate. To be kidney-stoned, in the parlance of OPP culture, was to use a sharpened shank (with blades contaminated in bacteria from excrement) to strike a victim in the side, penetrating into their kidney and basically assuring one of a painful and certain death.

As detailed in the Tent story, criminal activities and physical assaults don’t end at the street once one is booked into OPP. The violence of the streets transfers into the prison, often becoming worse due to the inhumane and squalor living conditions of individuals held in custody. OPP in fact has a long and deplorable history of failing to maintain security and safety within its walls, having been sued in Federal Court numerous times by organizations such as the ACLU, Justice Department and Southern Poverty Law Center. Crime and violence in the streets of New Orleans brings people into OPP and OPP syphens out many of those same individuals back onto the streets, even more violent and deviant than before. Such is the cycle of crime, violence, and poverty in the inner-city of New Orleans.

After finally getting my day in court on the charges pressed against me, I was released from OPP with a simple fine and payment for processing fees. M.B. would go on continue to serve a brief sentence at OPP and soon thereafter 146 was granted parole. A.H. was released early after his case was dropped based on new evidence that exonerated his charges. Upon returning to South Carolina, I served another brief jail sentence for an outstanding bench warrant related to the case in New Orleans. Yet soon enough the darkness was slowly starting to turn from my experience at OPP, but I still had a long ways to go in examining and overcoming the darkness of my own soul. As William Butler Yates famously stated, “It takes more courage to examine the dark corners of your own soul than it does for a soldier to fight on the battlefield.” For myself (along with M.B. and A.H.), the battlefield was Orleans Parish Prison. It took courage and a stoic mentality to maintain one’s life and sanity there. However, as I’ve reflected on the experience and my life since, it’s clear that the harder battle has been the self-reflection and contemplation of what OPP really meant. And what effect it had on my own soul.

In New Orleans the dead are buried above ground. The city is filled with enclosed and open aired mausoleum cemetries, not by choice but by necessity. See, New Orleans is a city with an average elevation between one to two feet below sea level. Surrounded by levees, bayou swamps and the massive Lake Pontchartrain, city planning requires above ground cemeteries and graves. 147 Thus, the dead remain elevated. The reality of death is a permanent fixture of the city. Among local residents, the above ground tombs in these cemeteries are referred to as “Cities of the Dead”. A vast amount of New Orleans folklore, history and voodoo beliefs center upon the concepts of death, judgment and morality. Many residents attest to the existence of various spirits and ghosts, demons and angels, saints and sinners within the city of New Orleans. Thus, when an individual spends any kind of significant time in the city, many believe that one becomes confronted with the existential and transcendent, the soul with which they carry.

With that, I’ve come to this conclusion: before entering OPP, I was lost and confused. I possessed a genuinely mixed soul that, while good, had remained untested by the crucible of reality in its most brutish form. As such I led myself (and my soul) astray into a life of drug abuse and addiction, ultimately coming to a head at the Empire Express gas station on Louisa Street in New Orleans on March 30, 2013. From that point forward, I was forced into full darkness, a kind of existential hell that I wouldn’t wish upon anyone. M.B, A.H. and many others were stuck alongside me as we found ourselves in the Lion’s Den that is Orleans Parish Prison. And yet, the hell we endured served to mold our souls 148 into something greater. The hardened soul of a stoic soldier, who with the right mental perspective is unstoppable. Fearless - because once you lose everything in your life (freedom, safety, comfort, security, material things, etc) then not even pain or death is of any concern. Ironically, the only thing M.B., A.H. and I came to detest or fear was the idea of losing any more time spent frivoulously or without purpose.

So now I work constantly to make up for lost time and because my soul requires it. Focusing on the subjects of Philosophy and Ethics, I’ve found that my life requires nothing less than near constant research, study, writing, publishing, video lectures and discussing the discipline with academics in the field (or anyone interested enough to talk about it with me). My life experience, both before and after New Orleans and OPP in 2013, has lead me (through what Zeno of Citium referred to as the divine logos) to write Neostoicism 2.0 in order to share Neostoic insights and philosophy with the public.

Neostoicism has become my new mentality, my new narcotic, that keeps me on the straight path of rationality and spiritual fulfillment. Regardless of your own goals or pursuits, I encourage you to embrace aspects of Neostoicism as part of your life as well. 149 New Orleans, Louisiana - Cityscape

Orleans Parish Prison - New Orleans, Louisiana

150 Processing/In-Take - Orleans Parish Prison

The Tents - Orleans Parish Prison

151 PC/Psych Unit Cell - Orleans Parish Prison

PC/Psych Unit Cell - Orleans Parish Prison

152 “Cities of the Dead” - New Orleans, Louisiana

Holy Name of Jesus Catholic Church - Loyola University (New Orleans, Louisiana)

153 154 Bibliography

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160 Stoic & Christian Maxims

“Freedom is the only worthy goal in life. It is won by disregarding things that lie beyond our control.” ― Epictetus

“Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” -Isaiah 40:31

“You have power over your mind - not outside events. Realize this, and you will find strength.” ― Marcus Aurelius

“The LORD is my strength and my defense ; he has become my salvation.” -Psalm 118:14

“Man conquers the world by conquering himself.” ― Zeno of Citium

“I can do all this through Him who gives me strength.” -Philippians 4:13 161 “Difficulties strengthen the mind, as labor does the body.” ― Seneca

“The LORD is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?” -Psalm 27:1

“It's not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.” ― Epictetus

“For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self- discipline.” -2 Timothy 1:7

“Very little is needed to make a happy life; it is all within yourself in your way of thinking.” ― Marcus Aurelius

“The LORD is my shepherd, I lack nothing. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the darkest valley,I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You 162 prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” -Psalm 23

“The goal of life is living in agreement with Nature.” ― Zeno of Citium

“Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be courageous; be strong.” -1 Corinthians 16:13

“True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future, not to amuse ourselves with either hopes or fears but to rest satisfied with what we have, which is sufficient, for he that is so wants nothing. The greatest blessings of mankind are within us and within our reach. A wise man is content with his lot, whatever it may be, without wishing for what he has not.” ― Seneca

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” 163 -Joshua 1:9

“The greater the difficulty, the more glory in surmounting it. Skillful pilots gain their reputation from storms and tempests. ” ― Epictetus

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” -1 Peter 5:6-7

“Seek not the good in external things ;seek it in yourselves.” ― Epictetus

“Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’ So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?” -Hebrews 13:5-6

“Here is a rule to remember in future, when anything tempts you to feel bitter: not "This is misfortune," but "To bear this worthily is good fortune.” ― Marcus Aurelius 164 “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” -1 John 4:18

“Ignorance is the cause of fear.” ― Seneca

“Only the educated are free.” ― Epictetus

“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” -Deuteronomy 31:6

“The soul becomes dyed with the colour of its thoughts.” ― Marcus Aurelius

“Any person capable of angering you becomes your master; he can anger you only when you permit yourself to be disturbed by him.” ― Epictetus

“First say to yourself what you would be; and then do what you have to do.” ― Epictetus 165 166 Supplemental Readings

Gottlieb, A. (2016). The Dream of Reason: A History of Western Philosophy from the Greeks to the Renaissance. New York: W.W. Norton.

Epictetus; Lebell, S. (Ed). (1994). The Art of Living: The Classical Manual on Virtue, Happiness, and Effectiveness. New York: HarperCollins.

St. Augustine; Bourke, V.J. (Ed). (1950). The City of God. New York: Image.

Woolston, R. (2017). Athena’s Owl: Philosophy Articles on Personal Growth, Modern Society & Hollywood Cinema [Deluxe Edition]. Greenwood, SC: PhilOwl Press.

Stark, R. (2005). The Victory of Reason: How Christianity Led to Freedom, Capitalism, and Western Success. New York: Random House.

Papineau, D. (Ed). (2016). Philosophy: Theories and Great Thinkers. New York: Shelter Harbor Press.

Greene, R. & Jackson, C. (2009). The 50th Law. New York: HarperCollins. 167 Seneca; Campbell, R. (Ed). (1969). Letters from a Stoic. London: Penguin Books.

Marcus Aurelius; Hammond, M. (Ed). (2006). Meditations. London: Penguin Books.

Holiday, R. & Hanselman, S. (2016). The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perserverance, and the Art of Living. London: Portfolio.

Holiday, R. (2014). The Obstacle is the Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph. London: Portfolio.

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