Daily Devotional: December 7th

Daily Prayer VII

O gods, shield me from accidents that may befall,

My mortal frame fragile, but my soul stands tall.

Immortal, divine, separate from earthly plight,

Let not misfortunes dim my inner light.

Grant me serenity in the exercise of my will,

Troubles that befall, let them not instill

Disruption in my pursuit of liberty,

Nor bind my soul to base necessity.

When the call for goodness resonates within,

Let not my mortal self shy away from the din.

Guide me to prioritize my immortal soul's quest,

In caring for it, may I truly be blessed.

Daily Meditation

"Only a child thinks that things are gods and not images of gods.”

—Celsus

On the True Doctrine IX

The images of the gods are not the gods themselves. Nobody worships stone, wood or other objects in the shape of a god. We worship the god. The image is but a reflection of that higher reality. Only a child would think otherwise.

Monthly Ascesis: Repentance

"Repentance is the beginning of philosophy"

—Hierocles

“Repentance is often seen as a particularly Christian idea, but philosophers were quite fond of reminding people to repent. Pythagoras, in particular, suggests two ways that we can begin to repent and take a better inventory of who we are. The word ‘repent’ is related to the Latin word for regret. The idea is that we should look over our actions and judge them if they are unworthy. However, the Greek word for repentance is metanoia, which means the transformation of the mind. Platonic repentance is about creating an inner change that leads us back to a life of holiness in harmony with the divine.

Pythagoras says we should “do nothing shameful, neither in the presence of others nor privately; Thus, above all things, sit as a judge over [ourself].” This suggests we should watch our actions, and when we do something wrong or shameful, we should repent, that is, regret that action. If we never do this or shun it as a practice, we effectively say we have no reason to regret our actions. However, regretting an action is recognizing an area where we fell short of our ideals. If we never regret or repent, we make any spiritual or ethical growth impossible. This is why Hierocles, commenting on Pythagoras, says, “repentance is the beginning of philosophy.””

Excerpt from Ascesis: The Handbook of Platonic Practice

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