Cynicism, Therese, and Lent

We were watching Jeopardy last night. The final question had something to do with Greek philosophers and cynicism. I know that Greek philosophy had some influence on the early Christian church but truthfully, I don’t know a lot more than that. I was also intrigued by the word cynicism. In current times this denotes scorn and distrust. I decided I needed to do a little research.

For one who practices the classical philosophical tenet of cynicism, “the purpose of life is to live in virtue, in agreement with nature. As reasoning creatures, people can gain happiness by rigorous training and by living in a way which is natural for themselves, rejecting all conventional desires for wealth, power, and fame.” My husband said that sounds like the way a monk would live. I agreed, though I would venture to say all practicing Christians should be striving for these qualities.

If that wasn’t hard enough already, we have to fight against our temperaments. Being a person who reacts first and then tries to think things through, plus having to correct the hurt and damage I’ve inflicted by my initial reactions, this seems insurmountable.

Then I thought of St. Therese of Lisieux. She was one of five surviving children born out of nine. Her mother died when she was four years old, and the elder sister who became a second mother to her, left for the convent when Therese was nine. Naturally these losses had an effect on Therese, making her anxious, overly sensitive, and somewhat neurotic. However, Therese experienced a conversion when she was thirteen and at fifteen, she followed her sisters into the convent. However, she still experienced struggles due to her personality. Biographer Kathryn Harrison wrote, “her temperament was not formed for compromise or moderation...a life spent not taming but directing her appetite and her will…” St. Therese was not the syrupy sweet, plaster saint she is so often made out to be. I would venture to say she was right up there with the Greek Cynics, living her life in the cloister, where every trait, both good and bad, is brought into sharp focus, and vices are pruned by the Sacraments, by penance, and perhaps also by community living.

So how does one practice virtue and train themselves while living in the world? Pray for grace! One cannot white knuckle their way to detachment from vice and secular values. Lent is a perfect time for this. Sometimes it seems the veil between heaven and earth is a little thinner during Lent. Maybe it’s because we are more open to change and asking for help at this time. And although this verse is out of context for this post, I echo the words of Peter to Jesus, "LORD, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” ~ John 6:68