More Fruits of Solitude by William Penn (1718) Part 14 190-197 (Of Jealousy)
Bonus:
Summary: Jealousy bad.
Commentary:
192. This Civil Dissension in the Mind, like that of the Body Politick, commits great Disorders, and lays all waste.
And if a house be divided against itself, that house cannot stand. Mark 3:25
I think I knew that was from the Bible and not originally Lincoln, but I forgot.
Summary: Don't scam people!
Commentary:
181. Justice is a great Support of Society, because an Insurance to all Men of their Property: This violated, there ’s no Security, which throws all into Confusion to recover it.
Something I find interesting in these readings is how the "right to property" has basically disappeared from discourse in the last 75 years. It's all over the Enlightenment, and you see it occasionally out to the early 1900s, but it peters out after that. I think it's mostly replaced by "freedom from want", which is related (no one can take the stuff you need to live) but doesn't fully align (no one can take your stuff in general, because stuff=work=you).
More Fruits of Solitude by William Penn (1718) Part 12 173-180 (Of the Mean Notion we Have of God)
Bonus:
Summary: You can't do enough good to make up for your bad.
Commentary:
177. Of what Benefit is it to say our Prayers regularly, go to Church, receive the Sacraments, and may be go to Confessions too; ay, Feast the Priest, and give Alms to the Poor, and yet Lye, Swear, Curse, be Drunk, Covetous, Unclean, Proud, Revengeful, Vain and Idle at the same Time?
178. Can one excuse or ballance the other? Or will God think himself well served, where his Law is Violated? Or well used, where there is so much more Shew than Substance?
179. ’T is a most dangerous Error for a Man to think to excuse himself in the Breach of a Moral Duty, by a Formal Performance of Positive Worship; and less when of Human Invention.
I think the answer to this is honestly yes. You can't never make a mistake, but you can try to do good things as much as possible. We all forgive a "good" person who does something bad occasionally. We tend to have less patience for someone who is a continual asshole.
More Fruits of Solitude by William Penn (1718) Part 11 170-173 (Of Formality)
Bonus:
This stopped working for like a week, worked again last night, and now doesn't again after I updated everything. Ughhhhh
Summary: Don't just be formal for formality's sake.
Commentary:
170. Form is Good, but not Formality.
171. In the Use of the best of Forms there is too much of that I fear.
Ahhh, Plato!
’T s absolutely necessary, that this Distinction should go along with People in their Devotion; for too many are apter to rest upon What they do, than How they do their Duty.
Zero character contraction.
More Fruits of Solitude by William Penn (1718) Part 10 155-169 (Of the Rule of Judging)
Bonus:
Summary: Ask questions, and be willing to be proved wrong. Change your mind if you are.
Commentary:
155. In all Things Reason should prevail: ’T is quite another Thing to be stiff than steady in an Opinion.
There's a lot of jokes here, but it's also fair advice.
Bonus:
Summary: True Friendship can never die, our things own us, you'd be happier if you listened to God.
Commentary:
128. Death cannot kill, what never dies.
137. They narrow their own Freedom and Comforts, that make so much requisite to enjoy them.
Someone tell my wife!
146. It must be therefore a gross Fault to strive so hard for the Pleasure of our Bodies, and be so insensible and careless of the Freedom of our Souls.
I should count how many times this comes up if I ever do a reread.
Stop
118. It is safer to Learn, than teach; and who conceals his Opinion, has nothing to Answer for.
William Penn on school shootings.
121. Beware also of Affectation in Speech; it often wrongs Matter, and ever shows a blind Side.
No anime girls for William Penn.
More Fruits of Solitude by William Penn (1718) Part 14 190-197 (Of Jealousy) Bonus: I'm thinkin' Lincoln Summary: Jealousy bad....
