The Archbishop on Virtue and Less

Most Reverend José H. Gomez, S.T.D. Archbishop of San Antonio

In society today, temperance gets a bad name. In fact, it may be the one virtue that is the most “un-American.”

Our consumer culture can be a culture of extremes and excesses. We are told in commercials that we should want things all the time and we should want a lot of them. This is the culture, after all, that invented the concept of “all you can eat” restaurants and food portions that are “super-sized.”

Living in this kind of culture makes it hard to practice temperance. But we must if we are going to make progress in our spiritual lives.

All of the cardinal virtues that we have been talking about in recent weeks — prudence, justice, fortitude and now temperance — belong together as necessary ingredients for us to live a good life, the life that God intended for us.

It is the special work of temperance to help us to keep our instinctive appetites under control. The Catechism says that temperance directs our appetites to what is good and teaches us restraint, discretion, and balance in our use of things. (no. 1809)

Many of the problems people have in their lives are rooted in a lack of temperance. I’m thinking especially of addictions — to alcohol, tobacco, drugs, gambling or other vices. There is also workaholism, the excessive love of work, that breaks up too many homes and families.

Even environmental issues such as pollution, and economic justice issues can be linked to our collective inability to moderate our desires and our attachments to the world’s goods.

We are made to enjoy the good things of God’s creation. Temperance can never be mistaken for a sad-faced or gloomy approach to life. We have to remember the portrait of Jesus in the Gospels. Jesus was a man who enjoyed food and drink and the fellowship of his friends.

Some of his critics, the sad-faced types, were offended by this. They took to calling him a “glutton and a drunkard.” (Lk 7:34) He wasn’t, of course. Our Lord knew that the good things of this world are meant for us to use for our pleasure and the satisfaction of our needs — but always in moderation.

The rule for the Christian is that of St. Paul. He said that whatever we are doing, even if we are eating and drinking, we should do everything for the glory of God. (1 Cor 10:31)

So what practical things can we do to grow in this virtue?

The disciplines of this holy season of Lent — fasting, abstinence and almsgiving — can all help us grow in temperance.

For example, we might try to fast one day a week or a couple of times each month — eating just a simple dinner while limiting ourselves to bread and water for the rest of the day. We can “fast” from other things besides food — such as limiting the amount of TV we watch, or the amount of text-messages we send, or computer games we play.

We might try eating less at every meal, and taking shorter showers. Remember, when you make these little mortifications: we don’t just give things up for the sake of giving them up; nor do we give things up because they are “bad.”

We give them up because the best thing we can do with the best things in life is to offer them to God — as a sign of our love and our desire to grow in holiness.

How do these acts of love and self-giving help us grow in temperance? They help us get used to doing without so much; they help us learn to live with less. That, in turn, helps us to moderate our appetites and attachments for things.

Another way to grow in temperance is to learn to think more about others and less about ourselves. Perhaps we can help an elderly neighbor with her chores or spend some time talking with a person who is lonely or shut-in.

We are about half-way through Lent. Let us strive in the remaining weeks to grow in the virtue of temperance, and in all the cardinal virtues. Let us take to heart the words of St. Augustine, quoted in the Catechism (no. 1809): “To live well is nothing other than to love God with all one’s heart, with all one’s soul and with all one’s efforts; from this it comes about that love is kept whole and uncorrupted (through temperance). No misfortune can disturb it (and this is fortitude). It obeys only God (and this is justice), and is careful in discerning things, so as not to be surprised by deceit or trickery (and this is prudence).”

Prayers for Virtue