"I never did like talking about impurity. I would rather consider the
rich rewards that temperance brings. I want to see men who are really
men, and not slaves to cheap glitter, as worthless as the trinkets that
magpies gather. A manly person knows how to do without those things that
may harm his soul and he also comes to realise that his sacrifice is
more apparent than real; for living this way, with a spirit of
sacrifice, means freeing oneself from many kinds of slavery and
savouring instead, in the depths of one's heart, the fullness of God's
love.
Life
then takes on again shades and tones which intemperance had tended to
blur. We find ourselves able to care for the needs of others, to share
what is ours with everyone, to devote our energies to great causes.
Temperance makes the soul sober, modest, understanding. It fosters a
natural sense of reserve which everyone finds attractive because it
denotes intelligent self control. Temperance does not imply narrowness,
but greatness of soul. There is much more deprivation in the intemperate
heart which abdicates from self-dominion only to become enslaved to the
first caller who comes along ringing some pathetic, tinny cow bell."
