Nov 07 2008
On Moral Strength
“The world is a moral arena that requires your strength.” - Annie Dillard
Moral strength, qualities such as purity, honesty and all that “moral strength” refers to, would be no test if we just kept to ourselves. But just as the victories of the past and those of today exist within competition, so, too, does our test of moral strength require a meeting with our challenger.And what challenges us? It is the people and situations around us. And where do we meet our challenger? In the arena of the World.
When we climb out of bed in the morning, when we walk out our door each day, we face people, but we also face situations. Not all situations involve people - sometimes it is nature that challenges us — the weather, an accident, our even own shortcomings. But as each day progresses we have decisions to make, many are made based on our moral background. These are the ones that require our moral strength.This challenge of our moral strength reminds me of the study of a novel, and in truth, each day, each part of our day, is a mini-story. In analysis of fiction it is said the character faces Conflict. The classic conflicts are:
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Man versus man
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Man vs. nature
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Man vs. God
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Man vs self
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Man vs.society
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Man vs. machine / technology
So as we go through our day in the Arena of the World, our moral strength is required to meet the conflicts of the day. Be strong, morally, my friend and answer the conflicts the world sends to you.
