Moderation as a practice is a practice of patience, maturity and time. It is a practice that when done intentionally, matures as we mature.
John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church once stated that “buying, selling, and drinking of liquor, unless absolutely necessary, were evils to be avoided.” This statement followed a period known as the “Gin Craze” in the early 18th century where the production and consumption of gin skyrocketed in England. Wesley would be one of the earliest religious figures vocalizing against alcohol use, which allowed it to gain traction in Britain. Subsequently, the temperance movement not only gaining traction in Britain, would also gain a following in North America leading to significant social upheaval in the government’s attempt to regulate alcohol.
This week, I want to look at moderation through the lens of Aristotle’s Golden Mean.
Aristotle’s Golden Mean
We are first introduced to the notion of the Golden Mean in Aristotle’s book, Nicomachean Ethics and is his theory that excellence lies in the middle way between two extreme states: excess and deficiency. Aristotle’s ethics was centered around the pursuit of eudaimonia, meaning happiness or flourishing — and he believed we could achieve eudaimonia by using reason excellently in everything we do.
People according to Aristotle appeal to ‘virtues’ when it comes to guiding their behavior: courage, honor, justice, prudence, generosity, and so on. In American culture, we are influenced heavily by Christian ideologies that sometimes blur the appropriate amount of these virtues. There is sometimes a heavy emphasis on following the biblical examples of these virtues blindly.
Aristotle is less interested in blindly following such traits, and more interested in establishing what makes them virtuous. His answer is that the virtues are just examples of excellent rational activity: those who exhibit courage, honor, justice, and the like, Aristotle argues, are just using reason well.
This connection between virtue and reason is made clear, Aristotle thinks, when we recognize that all ‘virtues’ lie in the middle way between two extreme states: excess and deficiency. For instance:
Courage is the middle way between cowardice (deficiency) and recklessness (excess).
Confidence is the middle way between self-deprecation (deficiency) and arrogance (excess).
Generosity is the middle way between stinginess (deficiency) and profligacy (excess).
Virtue lies not in the exact middle, but at the so-called ‘golden mean’, which will sometimes be closer to one extreme than the other.
Moderation as a Spiritual Practice
As a spiritual practice, moderation finds its roots deep in the wisdom of finding balance. Not a one-time practice, it extends to all areas of our lives. It is the art of honoring and recognizing the middle path. One who engages in these practices begins to take their life seriously in a way that considers themselves and others as we begin think about how our actions impact ourselves and others. Moderation can be seen as an antidote for the many excesses that permeate our social media and other platforms of media we are exposed to today. Many of these excesses may be entertaining to watch and profitable for those who can enjoy it, but often these excesses have meant suffering in some way for others.
Spiritual Practices to Consider When Considering Moderation
Gratitude
Perhaps one of my favorite practices is gratitude. I find that when I practice this, I feel more connected with those around me. My world often gets much smaller as I genuinely feel this interconnectedness. While I still have my own stressors and concerns, they are balanced with the knowledge that I do not suffer alone.
Cultivating gratitude is an important practice in the cultivation of moderation. It helps shift our focus from what is lacking in our life to what is already abundant. It teaches us to appreciate what we have and diminishes the need for excess.
Justice
As a practice, justice much like gratitude considers the other person or peoples around us. Justice too considers the part of us that we do not treat kindly. This can be especially true for people with disordered eating and other body image issues. Lack of moderation stemming from a poor sense of self can find themselves with a whole host of behavioral and mental health concerns.
As a practice, justice enhances our dignity and sense of equality with ourselves and others.
According to Mary and Frederic Brussat:
Often we are propelled into the struggle for justice when we experience an injustice ourselves; we are not treated fairly at work or our friendship is exploited by an associate. One day while reading the newspaper, we may be shocked to learn of the treatment of certain groups in our society. Or we may step back and realize that we have been ignoring what are clearly injustices around us. Our very lack of concern can wake us up to the need for justice.
There is also a “shadow” side to this spiritual practice. Sometimes in our fervor for justice we decide that we can ignore the rights and dignity of those who oppose us. Instead of being justice seekers, then, we become fanatics.
By engaging in excesses, we can become unaware of how our actions impact our sense of self and our sense of awareness of others.
Silence
Daily sitting is an important practice for me. Sitting quietly after a session, a run, time with my kids and most importantly, at the beginning of the day offers times of deep introspection. Deep introspection helps evaluate our habits and behaviors. It helps us understand where we are in space and time and where we may be diverting our attention and desires to extremes.
The practice of silence enhances our ability to be contemplative and mindfully aware. This time of awareness then helps provide insights into our motivations and helps us align our actions with our goals.
Embracing Moderation
The Judaism of Jesus’ time and today is all about community and being invested in each other. Jesus calls out the rich young ruler by saying give all you have to the poor. Interpreted in many ways across thousands of sermons, here we can see Jesus leaning into the practice of moderation. While an extreme example, of giving all, it challenges the man to consider others.
The practice of moderation is about cultivating a state that foster’s inner peace and balance and an external awareness of the world and community around you. It is a journey of self-discovery that encourages us to listen to our inner voices. It teaches us to respect our limits and ultimately life with love and harmony with the world around us.
In living towards a moderate life, we will find ourselves deeply grounded and attuned to our inner and outer world.
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