St Vincent Seminary - Symposium Yearbook (Latrobe, PA)

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Sllillllllllllll Elllllli Lai, ' I I ' glll - :llllll . . , Y , u , . 1 I S X . 'N 'K . . . , 0 5 , U 0 . Y Y 'Y that habit in living beings is due to their plasticitvg which makes Y Y Y 1 Y ' YY , . . . Y Jllllllll I IL l I 5 l Ill Ill l T f by active being capable of boundless energy,-asceticism becomes a welcomed term a much-sought means to an end. DoctorVerner Moore remarks Impulses are ineradicable and it is vain for us to attempt to dominate them by uprooting them, but they can be-and must be-balanced by other impulses. You hear of no negative suppression in these words, but there are implications of a skillful guidance and direction of action--the spirit of true asceticism Asceticism does not imply the stunting of man's progress, nor a negation of his powers. It rather stimulates their develop- ment rules effemmacy out of society, pleads for, and gives, a noble vigorous manhood provides a stability which wonders at the fickleness of man supplies a virility which thwarts the at- tack of false freedom In its ultimate analysis asceticism marks man as a truly rational animal, placing reason ever in her sublime coign of vantage for leadershipg and manifests a will untrammeled by the unrelenting appeals of the animal. VVith these few words as preface, our subject shall be con- sidered indirectly by proposing what it really means when understood in the light of true psychology and in the light of that ideal which IS our true aimg the end after which we strive for the attainment of which we constantly pray. So considered asceticism involves knowledge of man in the power of his weak- ness or as a creature subject to habit. It is a weakness in man to be so facile yet in this very weakness he manifests his strength. Professor james in his classic chapter on habits maintains them weak enough to yield to an impulse, but strong enough not to yield at once. Organic matter, especially the nervous system seems to be endowed with an extraordinary degree of through the blood stream and the stimuli pouring into the brain from the sensory nerve roots. Once in these currents must find a way out' right here IS an opportunity to counter the march of an old habit with a new. It is not our intention to treat of the na- ture of neurones synapses or what takes place in the building up and breaking down of habit. We shall only consider the nature of the end-result Habit has been aptly called a second nature. Habit is ten times nature! the Duke of Wellington exclaimed. The truth of this statement may be readily recognized from an analysis of man s daily life of men about us: of society itself. Few men ever take the time to note which shoe they slip on first in the morning ll34ll -IIIIIIIIIIIIE jlllg gllllllg + illli 0 llllllllllllll mmlulmll. plasticity. The brain moreover, is subject to habit formation llll- :mmnmmi

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zlllllla Ill! - ,,! ' ,rf-1.1.5 .1 an auumumr X , ' ' i ' ff xv., , The Pursuit of cm Ideal JOHN F. ROACH, A B ROM the moment the infant opens his eyes and puckers up his little mouth, until those eyes are closed 1n the cold sleep of death, man rises and falls-the enigma of creation. Throughout the world stand his works. What a brain they mani- fest! How powerful in wrestling the secrets of nature! How almost infinite in understanding! How wondrous his achievements! How inspiring his arts! Yet these are but cold, inert, lifeless aspects of the true man. Man-not his works-remains the most interesting study. To really know him, we must study him in that aspect which is by far the most fruitful, stimulating, and fi ,nf gnmmuuu ' lil , M mmmu.. 5 mQm, 5 L 9 . V .. . I . XX 1 unumnun Q - PIC . 9 . t K 0 , I 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 . . 4' :mmm mg - . 3 5 - s ' s 3 5 ilmlmnmf beautiful-we must study man in his almost unlimited potenti- ality for good. Perhaps no subject is more' calculated to incite the aversion of an audience than the subject of asceticism or self-discipline. Immediately the mind conjures up associations linked with the foibles and the excesses of men who lived in the so-called Dark Ages. The prejudices against this word are an almost universal acquisition of the human race. They are a great obstacle in less educated minds and in educated minds they are manifested in no less a person than William james who treats this subject with the sarcastic chuckle of a cui bono? However a little introspection manifests the fact that this antipathy is too often the result of an argument between con- science and self-love, or traces its source to a misunderstanding of true asceticism Conscience wishes us to follow the ideal. Self- love replies 'that's too difficult for me. Quite .unconsciously one acquires a paratawus of defense, manifesting itself in a parti- cular odium for knowledge concerning this matter. No one who is acquainted with the facts, can truthfully deny that there is no little misunderstanding of the word and the spirlt of asceticism Even the minds of the clergy are not entirely immune from a distorted notion of 1tS meaning. Of course there is some founda- tion for these prejudices in the past and not a little abuse in the present. But 1f asceticism is examined in the light of true psy- chology- a psychology which emphasizes the positive side of these practices which further demands that man build upon his God-given endowmentsg and which looks upon man as an A speech delivered before the St. Vincent Seminary Unit of the Catholic Students Mission Crusade. X52 !l33ll r I t nf palrfgf R , , .4-2 Jigga' as I l 1 - I l 1 I I l l CHI ll lllllt El li 'mm mum r 9 . 5 E ' ll:

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:mummuu Sllli Elllllli :...E illlllllllllllll . C 2 ' ' . . 3 ! C . . 7 . . . 7 . . I .x . . . . . . . . . . . ' ii 7 . . 7 . . , . . . . 7 . . . 7 . . 1 1 . . , . ? fl I ! . . . ,, . . Jllllllllllllh . . s H lllilllll or how they button their shirt, or how many strokes they give their hair, or on what side of their mouth they begin to brush their teeth, or which shoe they first unlace at bed-time. These facts prove the tremendous influence of habit in man's daily life. Habit obviously plays a predominant part in man's make-up And since man and his character are inseparable, habit marks off his character as strong or weak, vacillating or firm, courageous or effeminate noble or despicable. But habit is not character and man s character is called a bundle of habits only in an analogical sense For character is life dominated by principles and habits are secondary and flow from the exercise of these principles in daily life Habits manifest the character, strengthen the character and aid it in carrying these principles into action Hence they are the builders of character Is it any wonder then that Professor James declares that the 'great thing in all education is to make our nervous system our ally instead of our enemy as soon as possible. In other words, he advises men to build good habits of thought and action, in- timatmg that efficiency of self depends upon the strength of habit. Work will become easier: decision will trample upon in- decision. VVill power increases, so that what formerly lured us away from truth and virtue will now be scoffed at. One great question confronts all men. This question is the manner of ac- quiring good habits and eliminating those which are harmful. Professor Bain has some practical advice upon this question In his chapter on Moral Habits he remarks that, we must launch ourselves with as strong and decided an initiative as possible to build agood habit or to counter an old one with a new. Stir up powerful motives for actiong tell some friend of the resolution which has been made' make engagements incompatible with the old habit' devise situations that will demand the new habit and reject the old ' Above all never suffer an exception to occur till the new habit is securely rooted in your life. Such a catastrophe wears the old channel more deeply into the nervous system and deflects the new one. Never lose an engagement. Success begets encourage- ment and victory satisfaction, while the sting of defeat leaves the poor will shivering fearful to start anew. Seize the very .first opportunity to act on every resolution you make' and on every emotional prompting you may ex- perience in the direction of the habit to which you aspire to gain. St Paul 1n one of his epistles warns against the foolish wi ull lllflll I ' ':.- I I : .1 an :4 . ,. ,: fal Tllllllll IIIR 1 . . 7 . . illllllllllllls glllg gllllllg sllIs Hllllllllllillf