What Makes a Righteous Man or a Righteous Woman? – J. Persico and Metis (AI Assistant)

19 Jul 2026 4 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I want to talk about the idea of righteousness in my blog today.   Of course, I did not invent this concept.   But I do have my own definition for the concept.   I am going to give you my definition and then some popular definitions from other perspectives.   

A righteous person consistently places truth, justice, compassion, and integrity above personal gain.  They willingly sacrifice wealth, comfort, reputation, or even life itself when necessary to protect others, uphold justice, or defend what is right.  They serve others without expecting reward, listen with humility, admit mistakes, practice self-control, and continually strive to become a better human being.  They freely share credit, accept responsibility, and recognize that most worthwhile human achievements are built upon the efforts of many rather than the glory of one.  Their character inspires trust because their thoughts, words, and actions remain aligned even when doing so comes at great personal cost.  Following are a few examples from history of righteous people who were not afraid to die for their beliefs and actions. 

Martin Luther said, “Here I stand.  I can do no other.” 

Socrates said,  “And if you say to me, “Socrates, we will let you go free but only on condition that you stop your questioning,” then I will reply, “Men of Athens, I honor and love you.  But I must obey God rather than you, and while I have life and strength I will never stop doing philosophy.”

Jesus said: “You would have no power over me at all unless it were given to you from above.” Pontius Pilate had claimed that he had the authority to release or crucify Jesus.

Nelson Mandela said, “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society… It is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.”

Sophie Scholl, shortly before her execution by the Nazis said, “I am, now as before, of the opinion that I did the best that I could do for my nation.  I therefore do not regret my conduct and will bear the consequences that result from my conduct.

Now let us look at how some religions with considerably more wisdom than I have define the idea of a Righteous Person. 

✡️ Judaism

Perhaps the religion that has done the most to bring the concept to the attention of the world.   In Judaism, a righteous person (tzaddik) is someone who strives to live according to God’s will as revealed in the Torah.  Righteousness is demonstrated through faithful obedience to God’s commandments (mitzvot), justice (tzedek), mercy, humility, honesty, and compassion.  A righteous Jew seeks to honor God not only through worship but also through ethical treatment of others, caring for the poor, welcoming the stranger, and pursuing peace (shalom).  The Hebrew prophets consistently taught that righteousness is measured as much by moral conduct and social justice as by religious observance.  While no person is considered perfect, the righteous continually repent, grow in character, and seek reconciliation with God and others.  Righteousness is ultimately expressed in covenant faithfulness, integrity, and living a life that sanctifies God’s name.

✝️ Catholicism

In Catholicism, righteousness is living in a right relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ, participation in God’s grace, and cooperation with that grace through a life of holiness.  While salvation begins as God’s free gift, righteousness is nurtured through the sacraments, prayer, scripture, charity, and faithful obedience to God’s commandments.  A righteous person seeks to imitate Christ by practicing the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love, along with the cardinal virtues of prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance.  Genuine righteousness is reflected in love for God and neighbor, concern for the poor, forgiveness, humility, and a commitment to justice.  Catholics understand righteousness as both an inner transformation by grace and an outward life of good works inspired by that grace.

✝️ Protestantism

Most Protestant traditions define righteousness primarily as being made right with God through faith alone (sola fide) in Jesus Christ.  Human beings cannot earn righteousness through good works; instead, Christ’s righteousness is credited to believers through faith.  Good works do not produce salvation but naturally flow from genuine faith as evidence of a transformed life.  A righteous person trusts in God’s grace, seeks to obey Scripture, grows in holiness through the Holy Spirit, and demonstrates love, integrity, compassion, forgiveness, and service to others.  While Protestant denominations vary in emphasis, they generally agree that righteousness begins with God’s grace, is received by faith, and is demonstrated through a life increasingly shaped by Christ’s character.

🕉️ Hinduism

In Hinduism, righteousness is living according to dharma—one’s moral, spiritual, and social duty in harmony with the cosmic order.  A righteous person practices truthfulness (satya), nonviolence (ahimsa), self-discipline, compassion, generosity, and respect for all forms of life.  Because dharma may differ according to one’s stage of life and responsibilities, righteousness involves faithfully fulfilling one’s obligations while acting without selfish attachment to results, as taught in the Bhagavad Gita.  Such a person seeks spiritual growth through right action, devotion, knowledge, or meditation.  By cultivating virtue and reducing selfish desires, the righteous gradually purify their karma and move toward liberation (moksha), the ultimate realization of unity with the Divine.

☸️ Buddhism

In Buddhism, righteousness is not defined by obedience to a creator God but by living in accordance with the Dharma—the truth about reality and the path that ends suffering.  A righteous person cultivates wisdom, ethical conduct, compassion, mindfulness, and mental discipline.  They follow principles such as the Noble Eightfold Path, avoiding actions that produce harm while developing loving-kindness (metta), compassion (karuna), generosity, patience, and equanimity.  Right intention, right speech, right action, and right livelihood are central expressions of righteous living.  Rather than seeking divine approval, the righteous Buddhist seeks to overcome greed, hatred, and ignorance, benefiting both themselves and others while progressing toward enlightenment (nirvana).

☪️ Islam

In Islam, righteousness (al-birr) is wholehearted submission to Allah through faith, obedience, and sincere devotion.  The Qur’an teaches that righteousness includes belief in God, His prophets, revealed scriptures, angels, and the Last Day, along with faithful performance of prayer, charity (zakat), fasting, honesty, justice, patience, mercy, and kindness.  A righteous person possesses taqwa—a deep awareness and reverence for God that guides every aspect of life.  Following the example (Sunnah) of the Prophet Muhammad, they strive for purity of heart, integrity, generosity, forgiveness, and compassion toward others.  Righteousness is measured not only by religious rituals but by moral character, social responsibility, and sincere intentions.  Ultimately, the righteous seek to please Allah in both private and public life.

✴️ Bahá’í Faith

In the Bahá’í Faith, righteousness is living in harmony with God’s will while recognizing the unity of humanity and the progressive revelation of God’s messengers.  A righteous person reflects divine attributes such as truthfulness, justice, compassion, humility, trustworthiness, generosity, and love.  Bahá’ís believe that spiritual growth occurs through prayer, service, moral discipline, and continual self-improvement.  Righteousness is expressed not only in personal virtue but also in active efforts to promote peace, eliminate prejudice, advance equality between women and men, pursue justice, and contribute to the betterment of society.  Service to humanity is regarded as a form of worship.  A righteous person strives to align thought, word, and deed with God’s teachings while fostering unity among all people, regardless of race, nationality, or religion.

Looking at the above definitions might lead one to conclude that there are several common principles that all have in common.  You would be right.  I have summarized them in the table below and then provided a description following the table.  I hope that as you read this, it will not be strictly an academic exercise.  I think the concept of being a “righteous” person is an excellent concept to live by.  Ask yourself, which of these principles reflect beliefs and more important actions.  Then apply these to the next lawyer, politician or anyone else you decide to work with. 

Here are six principles that are found, in one form or another, in every one of these religions.

Universal PrincipleJudaismCatholicProtestantHinduBuddhistIslamBahá’í
1. Moral Integrity (Truth & Honesty)✓✓✓✓✓✓✓
2. Compassion & Love for Others✓✓✓✓✓✓✓
3. Justice & Fairness✓✓✓✓✓✓✓
4. Self-Discipline / Self-Control✓✓✓✓✓✓✓
5. Service to Others✓✓✓✓✓✓✓
6. Personal Spiritual Growth✓✓✓✓✓✓✓

1. Moral Integrity

Every religion insists that righteousness begins with being truthful and honest.

  • Judaism: obey God’s commandments honestly.
  • Christianity: live truthfully before God.
  • Islam: truthfulness is a mark of taqwa.
  • Hinduism: satya (truth) is one of the highest virtues.
  • Buddhism: Right Speech forbids lying.
  • Bahá’í: Truthfulness is called “the foundation of all human virtues.”

Without integrity, none of the others consider a person righteous.

2. Compassion

Every religion teaches that righteous people care about others.

This may be called

  • Love
  • Mercy
  • Compassion
  • Loving-kindness
  • Charity
  • Benevolence

but it always means putting another person’s welfare ahead of selfishness.

Interestingly, compassion is probably the single most universal religious virtue.

3. Justice

All seven religions insist that righteousness requires fairness.

Examples:

  • protecting the weak
  • honesty in business
  • fairness in judgment
  • defending the oppressed
  • respecting human dignity

Justice may be defined differently, but no religion praises selfish exploitation.

4. Self-Control

This one surprised me when I first start studying the different religions.

Every one teaches that righteousness requires mastery over one’s own desires.

Examples include

  • resisting temptation
  • controlling anger
  • avoiding greed
  • practicing humility
  • moderation
  • discipline

In Buddhism this means overcoming attachment.

In Christianity it is resisting sin.

In Islam it is submission to Allah.

In Hinduism it is mastery over desire.

Different language—same principle.

5. Service

A righteous person does not merely avoid evil.

They actively do good.

Examples include

  • helping the poor
  • generosity
  • charity
  • hospitality
  • kindness
  • community service
  • peacemaking

This principle appears almost universally.

6. Continuous Spiritual Growth

No religion says,

“You’re righteous now.  You’re finished.”

Instead they all teach continual growth.

Judaism:
Become more faithful.

Catholicism:
Grow in holiness.

Protestantism:
Sanctification.

Islam:
Increase in taqwa.

Hinduism:
Purify karma.

Buddhism:
Progress toward enlightenment.

Bahá’í:
Develop divine virtues.

Every religion sees righteousness as a journey rather than a destination.

An Even Deeper Commonality

Looking at these traditions side by side, they all point toward one overarching principle:

A righteous person is someone who continually seeks to bring their inner character and outward actions into harmony with the highest moral reality they recognize.

For Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and the Bahá’í Faith, that highest reality is God.

For Hinduism, it is dharma and ultimate reality (Brahman).

For Buddhism, it is the Dharma and the true nature of reality.

The metaphysical foundations differ, but the practical direction is remarkably similar: transform yourself so that your thoughts, words, and deeds consistently express truth, compassion, justice, self-control, and service to others.

I find it striking to think that if you met seven truly righteous people—one from each of these religions—you might notice their theological differences, but you would likely recognize many of the same virtues in their character. That shared moral core has been one of the enduring insights of comparative religion.

Go back now and review my definition?  Does it hold up?  Does it reflect any or some of the principles noted in the religions named? 

Conclusions:

I want to end with some questions.  Years ago, I always ended my blogs with questions but somehow I lost this idea.  It is especially important because questions help us to reflect on life.  “The unexamined life is not worth living,” it is a decent quote to live by.  Here then are some questions to help you lead an examined life. 

Are you a righteous person?  Why or why not? 

Would others say that you are a righteous person?

Do all of the above principles apply to your actions as well as your stated beliefs?

Do you know when you are being a hypocrite or when you stray from your beliefs?

How charitable would people say that you are if you included charity to the entire human race and not just your tribe, religion, friends, or family?

How many friends do you have that you would say were righteous people?

Are you satisfied that you are on the right moral, ethical and spiritual path? 

The One-Third Rule of Revolutions: What We Must Do to Restore Democracy in America! —By John Persico with Metis

20 Jan 2026 8 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

For years I’d heard a curious idea, that most revolutions are won by only a third of the population.  Supposedly the American Revolution broke down this way—one third for independence, one third against it, and one third sitting on the fence.  I began wondering whether this pattern was unique to America or common across world history.  And if it was true, even in spirit, how is it possible for a minority to defeat a larger group?

Let me get something very straight with this blog.  This is not about theory.  This is about praxis.  We are in the midst of a cold war rapidly becoming a hot war in the country.  One third of Americans want a democracy.  One third want a Hitler.  One third don’t give a damn.  I want to see the winning side be the side for democracy.  I am posting this blog so that we can all understand what it will take to win this war.

I am under no illusions that this war will be won overnight.  I have no illusions that the mid-term elections will make more than a ripple in this war.  I have no illusions that releasing the Epstein files will make any more difference than getting Trump’s tax reports make.  I have no illusions that Trump supporters will suddenly join the “good” guys.  I have no illusions that Congress, the Senate or the Supreme Court will help us to win this war.

The only illusion I am under is that we need a large mass of people who will stand up, speak out, march and refuse to settle quietly into a country dominated by autocrats, plutocrats and oligarchs.  As Patrick Henry so bravely stated “I know not course what others may take but give me liberty or give me death.”  If you want to live under a democracy, you must be willing to fight for it.  You must even be willing to die for it.  Nothing less than this will help to restore democracy to America.

As usual, my friend Metis helped me uncover a deeper truth: while the “one-third rule” is more myth than precise statistic, it captures something essential about how societies change.

Revolutions are not majority events.  They are minority movements that succeed when the conditions are right.  But we do not have to wait until the conditions are right.  In fact, one will only know when the conditions were right.  That is, it is something we can only know after the fact.  We must act on the assumptions that our efforts will create the right conditions and indeed that is the only possibility that exists.

Myth and Reality: Was the American Revolution Really One-Thirds?

Historians don’t agree on exact numbers.  Loyalists (Those who wanted to stay with King George III) probably made up 20–30% of the population; active Patriots only 40–45%.  The rest moved with the winds of power, fear, or convenience.  But the spirit of the one-third idea is accurate:

Revolutions rarely begin with majority support.  They are propelled by determined minorities, resisted by others, and observed passively by the rest.  Today we may be in the minority.  However, as this blog will show, it does not matter.  We can still win the war and restore democracy if we meet certain conditions which I will discuss.

This same dynamic repeats across Paris in 1789, Russia in 1917, Cuba in 1959,  Iran in 1979,  and even some modern uprisings today.  The numbers vary, but the structure remains: a committed minority clashes with a protective minority, while most people watch and wait.

If Numbers Don’t Decide Revolutions, What Does?

Here is where the history becomes fascinating.  Revolutions are not democratic moments.  They are power struggles, and the deciding factors are not how many people agree but how many crucial systems shift.  The enemies of democracy today have shifted several crucial systems in their favor.  This includes the Congress, Supreme Court and religious systems across the spectrum as well as across the country.

Metis helped me understand that six forces usually determine the outcome of a revolution.

  1. The Power of the Narrative
  • The side that wins is often the side that tells the most compelling story.
  • American Patriots framed independence as liberty versus tyranny.
  • The Bolsheviks promised “Peace, Land, Bread.”
  • Iranian revolutionaries cast the Shah as un-Islamic and corrupt.

When one group claims the moral high ground—and gets people to believe it—it gains legitimacy, the most valuable currency in any upheaval.  The political legitimacy concerning a moral high ground has shifted from the beginning of the USA up to present times.  When the Republican party was against slavery, they held the moral high road.  This legitimacy shifted to the Democratic party when they began to espouse fair treatment and wages for working class people.  The legitimacy has now shifted back to the Republican party as they have assumed the high ground against efforts to reduce income inequality and a decent wage for all people.  They have created this new legitimacy by their constant hammering on what they call “Trickle Down Economics” and the danger presented to the USA by anything that bears a faint resemblance to socialism or (GOD FORBID) Communism.  Trickle Down Economics much like the Prosperity Gospel promises untold wealth to people based on their religion or willingness to defer gratification to someone else. This someone else is either the Uber-Rich controlling the corporations or the Ministers selling the tickets to heaven.

  1. The Weakness of the Old Regime

Revolutions succeed when the ruling system is already coming apart because of:

  • Economic crisis
  • Political division
  • Corruption
  • Military overstretch

 The American colonists fought an empire spread thin.
The French monarchy was bankrupt.
The Russian Tsar faced famine, inflation, and a collapsing army.

A revolution doesn’t topple a strong system—only a wounded one.  The downfall of the Democratic party as the “Ruling Party” did not happen overnight.  Democrats maintained nearly unbroken control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate for roughly 60 years, from the early 1930s until the mid-1990s.  While the presidency alternated more frequently, legislative control and overall party identification favored the Democrats for most of the century.

As the Democratic party shifted from their traditional alliances with labor and working class people to supporting corporate driven efforts like NAFTA, their former allies shifted their allegiance.  The Republican Party starting promising to deliver on issues like

  • Removing gun control: The rights of individuals versus the “overreach of the Government. This went beyond gun control to encompass many other efforts to reduce Government power or regulations.
  • Repealing Roe Versus Wade: Family Values became a consistent Republican theme.  Beginning in the 1970s, the Democratic Party’s platform became more progressive on social issues, which alienated many religious and culturally conservative voters.
  • Elitism versus Popularism: As the Democratic Party became increasingly associated with college-educated professionals and urban “elites,” many working-class voters without degrees began to feel culturally alienated. Issues such as environmental regulations (which affected mining and logging jobs) and “identity politics” were often framed by Republicans as evidence that Democrats had lost touch with “average Americans”
  • Economic Disillusionment and Deindustrialization: For decades, the “New Deal Coalition” was held together by white working-class labor unions. However, the economic crises of the 1970s (stagflation) and the decline of American manufacturing (the “Rust Belt” phenomenon) led many to feel the Democratic Party’s policies were no longer working for them.
  • Scapegoating: One strategy that always works to win supporters is to blame someone else for our problems.  The Republicans became very adept at blaming criminals and crime for all of America’s drug problems and Immigrants for the lack of jobs and disintegration of our manufacturing industries.
  1. Military Defection: The Decisive Factor

This may be the single most important factor.  It is also the most difficult one to harness to any efforts at change.  Throughout history, if the army remained loyal to the old regime, revolutions died quickly.  But if even a portion of soldiers defected—or refused to suppress protesters—the balance shifted overnight.  We are seeing this factor play out right now as people like Senator Mark Kelly speak to soldiers about the rules of the UCMJ and as Congress and the courts attempt to bridle the power of the Presidency to use the US military for “Insurrectionist” causes.

  1. Organization Beats Majority

A united minority will defeat a divided majority.  Samuel Adams said that he didn’t need the people, only “An irate, tireless minority keen to set brushfires of freedom.”  He understood the mathematics of commitment: organized passion overwhelms scattered opposition.

This explains everything from Lenin’s disciplined Bolsheviks to Castro’s small, cohesive guerrilla force.  Passion and commitment can win out over elements like greed and fear.  If we can gain the moral clarity that we need to appeal to a large minority of people and couple that with a zeal and passion that reflects more than economic need or even religious fervor, we can surely topple the anti-democratic elements in our country.  This is not to say that many of these people are not also driven by passion and fervor for what they believe is right.  Unfortunately, the passion and fervor of the Republican positions is even more aligned with greed and fear.  There is a decided lack of empathy and compassion in Republican policies for the poor, minorities and underprivileged.

  1. Support from Outside Powers

The Patriots needed France.  Vietnam needed the Soviet Union and China.  Afghanistan’s Mujahideen needed the United States.  Revolutions are seldom isolated.  When outside powers tilt the scales, even a small domestic movement can triumph.

It has become increasingly apparent that the Anti-Democratic forces in America are alienating not only our enemies but also many of our former allies.  The recent moves by Trump to annex or acquire Greenland, together with his unilateral invasion of Venezuela has angered many of our NATO partners.  Add to this the Non-NATO countries that are horrified by Trump’s actions and you have a phalanx of countries that believe America’s foundation for world peace is unstable and unreliable.

It is not clear to me what impact the attitudes of other nations can have on our efforts to restore a Democratic country, but seldom in history has a Tyrant nation lasted when faced with a united opposition from the rest of the world.  Trump is digging a grave for America with each of his so called efforts to “Make America Great Again.”

  1. The Middle Third Doesn’t Stay Neutral Forever

Here is the most intriguing factor.  That passive third—the cautious, undecided, go-along-to-get-along crowd—will eventually move.  The forty million Americans who did not vote.  They will  tend to shift toward whichever side appears:

  • More legitimate
  • More competent
  • More likely to win
  • More capable of maintaining order

Revolutions are psychological events.  People want to be on the right side of history—or at least on the side that won’t punish them.

As Metis reminded me, “When the middle begins to believe one side is the future, the tipping point arrives.”

So Which Third Wins?

It isn’t the largest group.  It’s the group that hits the Five-Factor Threshold:

  1. A powerful, morally compelling story
  2. A weakened ruling order
  3. Some degree of military support
  4. Strong organization and cohesion
  5. External allies or neutrality from the outside world

Meet these conditions, and even 20% of the population can win a revolution.  Fail dramatically at any one, and even 70% support may not be enough.

History is not a democracy—it’s a contest of energy, legitimacy, and timing.

A Deeper Personal Reflection

I’ve shared with Metis that I look back nostalgically at times when integrity seemed to matter more, when people believed in duty and morality.  Our culture has grown cynical, sometimes preferring anti-heroes to actual heroes.

The lesson from the one-third rule is both sobering and hopeful:

A society can decline even when most people are decent—if the active minority pushes it downward.

But society can also be uplifted if a committed minority of citizens with integrity act with courage and clarity.

Small groups bend history.  Which means that every generation—including ours—must decide which minority will shape the future.

Either choose Democracy or choose a Dictatorship.  The choice is yours!

The Four Most Important Searches in Our Lives — The Search for Authenticity

20 Aug 2023 9 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , ,

authenticity2

Authenticity is being true to yourself.  It is being who you really are versus who others want you to be.  It is being true to a set of values, morals or principles that define a good life.  It is defining oneself and not letting others define you.  “In existentialism, authenticity is the degree to which a person’s actions are congruent with their values and desires, despite external pressures to social conformity.” — Wikipedia

What do you want your life to be like?  What will you stand up for?  What is worth living for and dying for?  These questions frame a Search for Authenticity which will continue our entire lives.  It is not that we never find authenticity, it is that as our roles change in life, the meaning of authenticity will change.  We must continually redefine ourselves in terms of being authentic.

It will not matter whether you are rich or poor, whether you are educated or uneducated.  It will not matter who you know or what you know.   Authenticity comes from the heart and soul and not from the brain.  You cannot buy authenticity.  You cannot acquire authenticity by fame or fortune.  Knowing celebrities and being a celebrity are no guarantees of authenticity.  You cannot go to school and get a degree in authenticity.  Think for a minute.  Who is the most authentic person you know?  What makes them authentic?

authenticity-2

Two things have escaped me in my life.  When I was young, I wanted to be rich and famous.  Often, I still dream of it.  Not an unusual desire given American values.  Over the years, I have read many books about famous people.  I have read most of the great philosophers.  I studied a Harvard Business course on the histories of the richest entrepreneurs like Getty, Rockefeller, Carnegie, and Mellon.  These were the predecessors of Gate, Musk, and Buffett.  The results would show that I am nowhere near successful in my twin goals.  Neither fortune nor fame has cast its shadow over my life.  Perhaps I am blessed because of this.  Knowing how immature and ungrateful that I have often been, either the money or fame would have been squandered or it would have destroyed me.

Today, I am happier than I have ever been.  I have more than some people and less than others.  I have good friends and a loving wife and sister.  My ex-relationship with my daughter is not wonderful but it is no longer on rocky grounds.  What does my life have to do with authenticity?  Why my story here?  Well, over the years I have pondered the reasons that my goals of fame and fortune were never attained.  My answer lies in what it means to be authentic.

I have never chosen money over knowledge.  Money has never been as important to me as learning and education.  I would sooner spend an afternoon in a library as in an office.  I have never chosen money over ethics.  My clients always knew that I would tell them the truth, even if it was not always tactfully done.  I never dreamed of getting ahead in business by developing a network of influential friends or meeting clients on the golf course.  In fact, I purposely never learned to play golf.  I wanted to be respected for what I knew and not who I knew.  This is a major mistake in the world of commerce.  When my boss at the consulting firm asked me where my list of contacts was for networking, I was befuddled.  I had to go back into his office and ask him to explain networking to me.

Being a rich successful businessperson was not in my genes.  I came to accept that fact over time.  The answer for how you get to Carnegie Hall is “Practice, practice, practice.”  I was never willing to take the time to be a businessperson.  I would rather do other things like travel and meet new people, see new places and explore new ideas.  I would not practice the skills needed to succeed in business.  I valued time more than money.

I also was not willing to take the risks needed to be an entrepreneur.  I remember reading a biography of the great African American entrepreneur John Johnson who founded Ebony Magazine.  When he needed money to meet a deadline for publishing an issue of Ebony, he pawned his mom’s furniture.  He had already invested his last cent in the business.  It would be interesting to know what his mom said when she came home and found her furniture gone.  I was never a risk taker when it came to money.  I still have never bought a lottery ticket.  I cannot imagine hocking my furniture much less my mom’s furniture.

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Being authentic means being true to who you are in spirit.  Integrity and authenticity go hand in hand.  Integrity is upholding those unique values and virtues that make you authentic.  Oxford Online dictionary defines integrity as: “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness.”  If you say that you value honesty, then you must practice honesty.  If you say that you value truth, then you must practice truthfulness.  If you say that you value democracy, then you must support democratic values and principles.  First though, you must ask yourself what it is that makes you alive?  What makes you human?  What is truly meaningful to you?  The answers to these questions will determine your integrity.  People with little or no integrity can be authentic.  There are authentically “bad” people.  However, I believe that authenticity must always be allied with good character development and that means authenticity must meld with integrity.  Unfortunately, it seems that sometimes the two do not find each other.

Today we are faced with a tsunami of public figures who seem to have no integrity.  Lawyers lie and spin devious schemes to protect their clients and themselves.  Politicians take oaths and contributions from PACs which ensure that they will ignore the will of the majority.  Sports figures use their influence to take advantage of others.  Celebrities have no qualms about ethics and will do anything to continue their celebrity status.  So called journalists are more interested in advertising revenue than in the veracity or merits of any news.

Being authentic only has merit if you also have integrity.  Father Stokhal of Demontreville used to say that if you do bad actions, you can tell yourself all day long that you are a good person, but you will never be good until you stop the bad actions.  If you have grievous character defects such as lying and cheating others, being true to yourself has no merits or value to the world.  Jesus said that if the salt loses its flavor, what good is it.  Socrates believed that the ultimate goal of human existence was not just to live but to live a good, meaningful, and virtuous life.  A good life was guided by virtue and moral principles.  Being authentic means to find the virtues and morals that will help you to lead a good life.  Integrity is sticking to those virtues and morals that you believe in through thick and thin.  You do what is right regardless of what others may think or how much you may or may not profit by your actions.  Here is an example of the lack of authenticity and integrity that plagues politics today.  This concerns the upcoming Republican debate.

KNDebates

Yesterday, I was reading the following story on several different news outlets.  One headline on the N.Y. Times read “Defend Trump and ‘Hammer’ Ramaswamy: DeSantis Allies Reveal Debate Strategy.”  The principal points that the coaches suggested to DeSantis were as follows:

  • Take a sledgehammer to Vivek Ramaswamy, the political newcomer who is rising in the polls.
  • Defend Donald Trump when Chris Christie inevitably attacks the former president.
  • Attack Joe Biden and the media no less than three to five times.

If the guidance above does not smell to you as garbage, then I apologize.  But please don’t tell us that “Well, this is politics.”  I hope we all expect more of our politicians than people who ignore authenticity and integrity to score cheap points in a debate.  Nevertheless, this is what politics in America has become.  Now there always was and always will be devious and unethical methods used to get elected.  Study the history of Thomas Jefferson and you can see the media at work two hundred and fifty years ago to smear his name because of his alleged affair with a slave named Sally Hemings.  But if we don’t start expecting more, when will things change?

We may be at a crossroads in America.  A large percentage of people no longer respect politicians and lawyers (they seem to go together).  Many people are clamoring for less government.  Governmental agencies have lost a great deal of their former influences due to the actions of our leaders.

A study on respect for government found the following:

A Pew Research Center survey finds that just 20% of Americans say they trust the federal government just about always or most of the time. — Dec 5, 2021

Two studies on feelings towards lawyers in the USA found:

In a Gallup poll from 2015, only 4% of respondents rated the “honesty and ethical standards” of lawyers as “very high.” In that same poll, more than one-third (34%) rated attorneys’ honesty and ethical standards as low (25%) or very low (9%).

A landmark study for the American Bar Association found even harsher truths underlying the popular perception of attorneys:

74% of those surveyed agreed that “lawyers are more interested in winning than in seeing that justice is served.”

69% believed “lawyers are more interested in making money than in serving their clients.”

These studies were done eight years ago.  I would bet you a 100 to 1 that feelings towards lawyers today are even worse than they were eight years ago.  Former Vice President Pence recently referred to “Trump’s gaggle of crack pot lawyers.”  Trump and eighteen other cohorts have now been indicted in respect to his scheme to overthrow the 2020 presidential election.  Seven of those indicted were lawyers.  If you ever believed that lawyers follow a “Code of Ethics” you may well wonder where Trump’s lawyers went to school.

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You might wonder if authenticity and integrity are just for the average person.  It certainly seems that “above” average people including the rich and famous do not subscribe to the same playbook that is recommended for the rest of us.  Why then worry about a “Search for Authenticity?”  Will it keep you happy?  Will it make a difference in your life?  Here is what some other people and religions have to say about it.

“Authenticity is a collection of choices that we have to make every day. It’s about the choice to show up and be real. The choice to be honest. The choice to let our true selves be seen.”  ― Brene Brown, The Gifts of Imperfection

“If you don’t know who you truly are, you’ll never know what you really want.”  ― Roy T. Bennett

“Only the truth of who you are, if realized, will set you free.”  ― Eckhart Tolle

“But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your “yes” be yes and your “no” be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.” — James 5:12 ESV

“The objective of Islamic ethics is to illuminate the virtues that enable a person to perfect his or her humanity.” — Omar Qureshi, Finding the Authentic Self

“In Buddhism, living authentically means living with honesty and being willing to look at your own illusions and self-deceptions. It also means questioning your self-images and self-limiting identities, and examining the stories you weave about yourself.” — Tricycle, The Buddhist Review

Conclusions:

  • Do not believe what I am telling you. Search for your own authenticity.
  • Find out what it means to “Be Yourself.” What is yourself?
  • Find a mentor, partner or someone who will be honest with you. Do an authenticity check with them every so often.  Ask them if you are an authentic person.
  • Who do you most admire? Are they authentic?  Do they have integrity?  If not, why do you admire them?
  • Are you voting for and supporting people who are authentic and have integrity? Why not?
  • What barriers exist in your life to being authentic?

Next week we will look at Man/Woman’s Search for Love.

I doubt that a person ever existed who did not want or search for love.  Love is older than the Greek gods, older than the Bible, older than the universe.  Everyone knows what love is and no one knows what love is.  Everyone wants love but few really know how to give love.  Love may be the most frequently used word in any language.   It is probably the most frequently misused word in any language as well.  We search for love and many of us will never find it.  Some of us will find it at a very old age and some will find it while very young.  No amount of arguing will ever stop anyone from looking for love.

  1. Arabic: حب (habb)
  2. Chinese: 爱 (ài)
  3. Filipino: Pag-ibig
  4. Swahili: upendo
  5. Hindi — मोहब्बत (mohabbat)
  6. Indonesian: cinta
  7. Japanese: 愛 (ai)
  8. Persian: عشق (ishq)
  9. Punjabi: ਪਿਆਰ (pyaar)
  10. Russian: любовь (lyubov’)
  11. Spanish: Amor

PS:

At the first Republican debate Wednesday night, Seven of the eight Republican presidential candidates on the debate stage raised their hands to confirm that they would support former President Trump as the 2024 GOP nominee, even if Trump is convicted in a court of law. Former Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson was the only candidate to keep his hand down.  Some readers have commented that one or the other of these candidates have set themselves apart from Trump and are no longer sycophants.  I think these raised hands are enough evidence to prove that there is little or no integrity in the Republican Leadership today. 

 

 

Who Speaks for Integrity?

11 Dec 2021 6 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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When I wrote my series of blogs on the Seven Most Important Virtues, I neglected to add Integrity.  Limiting myself to seven, I felt that the seven I identified were more important than any other virtues.  This was simply a judgement call.  I have been challenged on it several times and indeed I challenge myself on the list.  There is hardly a day goes by that I wonder if I should not have numbered Integrity among the Seven.  Well, as they say, that is water under the dam.  What I would like to do in this blog is discuss Integrity.  What is Integrity?  Why is Integrity so important?  How do we get Integrity?  Finally, how do we sustain Integrity?

What is Integrity?

download (1)Integrity is everything to lose and nothing to gain, except your self-respect.  Integrity is standing up for what you believe is right even when everyone is against you.  Integrity is the ability to put compassion and kindness ahead of self-interest.  Integrity cannot co-exist with greed.  It cannot co-exist with lust.  It cannot co-exist with a thirst for power.  It cannot co-exist with a drive for money, fame, or fortune.  All of these elements are like Kryptonite to Integrity.  Kryptonite was the one thing that could rob Superman of his powers.  Lust, greed, money, fame, and power all have the ability to rob one of his/her integrity.

One example of a man without integrity was Goethe’s Faust.  Faust was considered the smartest man alive.  He was a genius and a consummate intellectual.  There was little that he did not know about or could not speak intelligently about.  Yet, Faust was unhappy.  Old age had creeped up on him.  His desire for youth and sex overcame his ability to think with the maturity befitting his status.  He sold his soul to Satan and in the bargain sold his integrity.  His lack of integrity lead to the death of another human being and to his own banishment to hell.

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There are many examples of men and women with integrity.  I think of the whistleblowers who sacrifice their careers and sometime their lives to report issues that might be dangerous to others.  I think of the journalists in countries like Mexico who risk their lives every day to report injustices.  I think of the prosecutors and law enforcement officers in countries where criminals have the ability to enact retribution and death when they are charged with a crime.  In all these examples, there is nothing for these courageous people to gain and everything to lose by their standing up for what they believe is right.  This is integrity.

Why is Integrity Important?

I believe that it is fair to say that never before in the history of America has there been so little integrity shown by our political leaders.  Right, Left, Democrat, Republican, Independent, it does not matter.  There are too many political leaders who are driven by greed and a desire for power.  You may argue with this analysis but when I see even a third of our elected officials calling for term limits, I will recant my assertion.  When I see a third of our elected officials with a plan to eliminate paid lobbyists, I will recant my assertion.

Political_Integrity_-_iStock.com-Bobboz_resizedPolitics is a sham in America today.  We have men and women who are elected for life and spend more time campaigning then they do in serving their constituents.  Public servants who start collecting money to run their next campaigns within days of winning their present office.  We have a system of government where money is the most important factor in who gets elected and who gets reelected.  Our politicians are more worried about losing votes than they are in the constitution or in protecting our democracy.  What Integrity is there in supporting a riot to overthrow a fair election that every court and every state in America found was fairly conducted?  The media seized on the outrageousness of the Big Lie to sell news.  The losing party seized on the credibility of millions of gullible supporters to buy the Big Lie and try to maintain their power.

imagesThe media in America has become another hallowed institution gutted by greed and a desire for more and more money.  Reporters, writers, and journalists in America today are more interested in selling advertising than they are in balanced objective reporting.  You can divide the news up by whether they lean Right or Left, Liberal or Conservative, Democrat or Republican.  Each side has a mirror image on the other side of the political spectrum.  CNN is opposed by Fox News.  The New York Times is opposed by The New York Post and the Washington Post is opposed by the Washington Times.  One side supports the Right and the other side supports the left.  This is not balanced reporting, and no truth comes out of the dynamic between the two sides.  What both sides have in common are reporters who will report the most useless, tasteless, uninformative stories if they perceive that these stories will sell advertising or if they can figure out a clickbait title that will attract readers and thereby expose them to paid commercials.

I see few solutions to the problems I have noted above except to start holding our leaders and media to standards of Integrity that do not seem to exist.  This brings us to the issue of where Integrity comes from.

How Do We Get Integrity?

I do not believe humans are born with Integrity.  I do not think that there is a gene or DNA for Integrity.  Humans learn Integrity like they learn to speak.  The morals, ethics and traditions of any society become part of the fabric of learning that a child goes through.  Integrity is a virtue.  It may be valued more in some families and cultures more than others.  There is an Index of Public Integrity that measures five factors that the developers link to Integrity and is used to assess a countries capacity to control corruption and ensure that public resources are spent honestly.   The six scales used in this index include:

  1. Judicial Independence
  2. Administrative Burden
  3. Trade Openness
  4. Budget-Transparencies
  5. E-Citizenship
  6. Freedom of the Press

Idownload (3)f you want more of a description of each scale you can follow the hyperlink above.  The USA ties for 10th place with Great Britain on this index.  I can see some correlation with Integrity, but I can see many differences.  I think honesty is one component of Integrity, but Integrity is more complex than being simply honest.  An honest person can still lack integrity if they are unwilling to stand up for what they believe.  Cowardice and Integrity are incompatible.

Professor Stephen L. Carter of Yale Law School points out in his book “Integrity,” one cannot have integrity without being honest, but one can be honest and yet lack integrity. … Integrity in its bare-bones essence means adherence to principles.

You cannot buy Integrity.  You cannot inherit Integrity.  Fortunately, Integrity does not have a price tag.  It is open to everyone.  Young people, old people, women, men, and people from different ethnic backgrounds all can find Integrity.  I use the work “Find” because you must seek Integrity.  It is a treasure, and you must look for it.  You can acquire Integrity, but you can also lose Integrity.  However, you cannot give it away and no one can steal it from you.  It is one of the most unique treasures in the world.  So, where do we find this treasure?  There are three rules for finding Integrity.

  1. It must be something you value personally
  2. You must value it more than your life, your career or anything else that you might ever possess.
  3. You must not expect applause or accolades. It is more likely you will be criticized and condemned. 

If you can accept these three rules, then finding Integrity is easy.  Simply establish a set of morals, virtues, and ethics that you believe in and start standing up for them.  When they are challenged, you must speak out.  Your actions and behaviors must reflect our values.  Do not preach one thing and do another.  Do what you say you will do.  When you feel like taking the easy way out, you must take the road that leads to consistency with your actions and values.  The simple formula to remember is that:

Integrity = Morals + Behavior + Consistency

How do We Sustain Integrity?

Integrity can be lost as well as found.  There are many examples of people who once were exemplars of shining Integrity but who succumbed to temptations for greed and power.  It takes a great deal of fortitude and courage to maintain a life of Integrity.  I think of people like Jesus Christ who was not tempted by the devil and went to his death for what he preached.  Pilate gave him opportunities to recant but Jesus refused.  Socrates went to his death also after refusing to recant his beliefs.  I would like to share the example of one more recent person of great Integrity.

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“María Santos Gorrostieta Salazar (1976 – 2012) was a Mexican physician and politician of the Party of the Democratic Revolution (PRD).  From 2008 to 2011, she served as mayor of Tiquicheo, a small town in the Mexican state of Michoacán.  In spite of three failed assassination attempts during her tenure as mayor, Gorrostieta Salazar continued to be outspoken in the fight against organized crime.  In a fourth attack, Gorrostieta Salazar was kidnapped and assassinated by suspected drug traffickers on 15 November 2012.” – Wikipedia

To this date, there has been no one charged and tried in connection with her murder.  How many people do you know who would stand up to a drug cartel after even one attempt on their lives?  Maria was a physician.  She could have lived a life of relative ease and prosperity simply by ignoring the crimes going on around her.  Instead she stood up for the law and standing up cost Maria her life.  Who is saying her name today?

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Like any skill or talent, you must practice it.  Practice is one means of sustaining Integrity.  Part of practice is an honest self-reflection.  Each day or week you need to ask yourself if you have been a person of Integrity.  What did you do that showed Integrity?  What did you do or say that allowed you to stand up for your values and ethics?  What did you do that was not consistent with your values?  How could you be more consistent with your values and behaviors?

There is a popular meme that says, “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?  Practice!  Practice! Practice!”  There can be no Integrity without practice, action, and reflection.  Stand up for your values and morals and you will be a Person of Integrity.  Every person who can say that they are a Person of Integrity is one more person that will help to change the world for the better.

“The supreme quality for leadership is unquestionably integrity. Without it, no real success is possible, no matter whether it is on a section gang, a football field, in an army, or in an office.”- Dwight D. Eisenhower

“The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.”- Bob Marley

 

Reconstructing the Great Speeches – Martin Luther: “Here I Stand”

08 Jul 2020 22 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

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I have attended over 35 Jesuit retreats at Demontreville Retreat Center.  Every year at the end of each retreat, I have received a Plenary Indulgence bestowed by the Pope on people who complete a retreat.  Unlike in the day of Martin Luther, I do not have to pay for these indulgences.  My understanding is these indulgences will knock some of the time off that I have to spend in purgatory as reparations for my less than mortal sins.  You still cannot get time off for mortal sins without going to confession.

I am not sure how much time will be knocked off and since I am an atheist or sometimes an agnostic, I am not sure whether or not they will be valid.  I once wondered if I could put them up on eBay and maybe get some money from them.  This would be more in line with the uses that were associated with these plenary indulgences in the time of Martin Luther (1483 to 1546).

Reformation.crop_528x396_2,0.preview (1)There are many who would consider Martin Luther the father of the Protestant Reformation.  Growing up Catholic, we regarded Protestants as heretics.  We all knew that the one true religion was Catholic, and Protestants did not know what they really wanted.  What does the name Protestant even mean?  Taking it at face value, it would seem to mean to protest against.  The dictionary defines a Protestant as someone who has broken from the Roman Catholic church.  If you are a Protestant you practice a form of Christianity in protest to the Catholic form.  There are over 200 major Protestant denominations in the USA and over 35,000 independent or non-denominational Christian churches which are ostensibly Protestant.  During the past few decade, we have seen numerous splits in Protestant churches over such issues as gay marriages, gay clergy, women ministers.  Even though I am a non-Catholic myself, I can’t help but be amazed at the dissension and disunity among Protestants.  I wonder what Martin Luther would have thought if he were alive today.

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In any case, Luther protested against the selling of Indulgences by the Catholic Church and the Pope.  He published his famous 95 Theses (which were polemics primarily against the monetary abuses of the Church) by nailing the theses on the door of All Saints’ Church and other churches in Wittenberg, Germany.  An extremely dramatic way to advance his opposition.  The theses were quickly reprinted and spread like wildfire throughout Europe.  And thus, began what is known as the Protestant Reformation (1517 – 1648).  It actually started even earlier but Luther’s theses were the proverbial straw that broke the camel’s back.

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Martin Luther’s position and actions were quite bold, even audacious.  Luther’s ecclesiastical superiors had him tried for heresy, which culminated in his excommunication in 1521.  This retaliation on the part of the Catholic Church was quite serious.  Luther risked life and limb with his attack on the Church.  The following is a list of people executed for challenging Catholicism during the period from 1500-1600 CE.

  • Ipswich Martyrs († 1515–1558)
  • Jean Vallière († 1523)
  • Jan de Bakker († 1525), 1st martyr in the Northern Netherland
  • Wendelmoet Claesdochter († 1527), 1st Dutch woman charged and burned for the accusation of heresy
  • Michael Sattler († 1527), Rottenburg am Neckar, Germany
  • Patrick Hamilton († 1528), St Andrews, Scotland
  • Balthasar Hubmaier (1485–1528), Vienna, Austria
  • George Blaurock (1491–1529), Klausen, Tyrol
  • Thomas Hitton († 1530), Maidstone, England
  • Richard Bayfield († 1531), Smithfield, England
  • Thomas Benet († 1531), Exeter, England
  • Thomas Bilney († 1531), Norwich, England
  • Joan Bocher († 1531), Smithfield, England
  • Solomon Molcho († 1532), Mantua
  • Thomas Harding († 1532), Chesham, England
  • James Bainham († 1532), Smithfield, England
  • John Frith (1503–1533), Smithfield, England
  • William Tyndale (1490–1536), Belgium
  • Jakob Hutter († 1536), Innsbruck, Tyrol
  • Aefgen Listincx († 1538), Münster, Germany
  • John Forest († 1538), Smithfield, England
  • Katarzyna Weiglowa († 1538), Poland
  • Francisco de San Roman († 1540), Spain
  • Étienne Dolet (1509–1546), Paris, France
  • Henry Filmer († 1543), Windsor, England
  • Robert Testwood († 1543), Windsor, England
  • Anthony Pearson († 1543), Windsor, England
  • Maria van Beckum († 1544)
  • Ursula van Beckum († 1544)
  • Colchester Martyrs († 1545 to 1558), 26 people, Colchester, England
  • George Wishart (1513–1546), St Andrews, Scotland
  • John Hooper († 1555), Gloucester, England
  • John Rogers († 1555), London, England
  • Canterbury Martyrs († 1555–1558), c.40 people, Canterbury, England
  • Laurence Saunders, (1519–1555), Coventry, England
  • Rowland Taylor († 1555), Hadleigh, Suffolk, England
  • Cornelius Bongey, († 1555), Coventry, England
  • Dirick Carver, († 1555), Lewes, England
  • Robert Ferrar († 1555), Carmarthen, Wales
  • William Flower († 1555), Westminster, England
  • Patrick Pakingham († 1555), Uxbridge, England
  • Hugh Latimer (1485–1555), Oxford, England
  • Robert Samuel († 1555), Ipswich, England
  • Burning of Latimer and Ridley, Oxford, 1555
  • Nicholas Ridley (1500–1555), Oxford, England
  • John Bradford († 1555), London, England
  • John Cardmaker († 1555), Smithfield, London, England
  • Robert Glover († 1555), Hertford, England
  • Thomas Hawkes († 1555), Coggeshall, England
  • Thomas Tomkins († 1555), Smithfield, London, England
  • Thomas Cranmer (1489–1556), Oxford, England
  • Stratford Martyrs († 1556), 11 men and 2 women, Stratford, London, England
  • Guernsey Martyrs († 1556), 3 women, Guernsey, Channel Islands
  • Joan Waste († 1556), Derby, England
  • Bartlet Green († 1556), Smithfield, London, England
  • John Hullier († 1556), Cambridge, England
  • John Forman († 1556), East Grinstead, England
  • Pomponio Algerio († 1556) Boiled in oil, Rome
  • Alexander Gooch and Alice Driver († 1558), Ipswich, England
  • Augustino de Cazalla († 1559), Valladolid, Spain
  • Carlos de Seso († 1559), Valladolid, Spain
  • María de Bohórquez († 1559)
  • Pietro Carnesecchi († 1567) Florence, Italy
  • Leonor de Cisneros († 1568), Valladolid, Spain
  • Dirk Willems († 1569), Netherlands
  • Giordano Bruno (1548–1600), Rome, Italy

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The famous scientist Galileo was forced to recant his idea that the earth revolved around the sun.  This was widely known among many scientists, but it was opposed by the Catholic Church which held to the view that the sun revolved around the earth.  Thus, in 1521 Galileo was charged with heresy.  After a rather lengthy trial, Galileo retracted his theory preferring to live rather than to be right.  Nevertheless, he spent the rest of his life under house arrest.  Publication of any of his works was forbidden, including any future works.

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Martin Luther’s Speech at the Imperial Diet in Worms (18 April 1521)

On 18 April 1521 Luther stood before the presiding officer, Johann von Eck at the ongoing Diet in Worms.  Luther was called before the political authorities rather than before the Pope or a council of the Roman Catholic Church.  Eck acting on behalf of the Catholic Church informed Luther that he was acting like a heretic.  Pope Leo X had demanded that Luther retract 41 sentences included in his original 95 Theses.  Luther had been questioned the day before, but he had requested time to think about his response to the charges.  Thus, began Luther’s short but famous speech.   His life depended on his response.

“I this day appear before you in all humility, according to your command, and I implore your majesty and your august highnesses, by the mercies of God, to listen with favor to the defense of a cause which I am well assured is just and right.  I ask pardon, if by reason of my ignorance, I am wanting in the manners that befit a court; for I have not been brought up in king’s palaces, but in the seclusion of a cloister; and I claim no other merit than that of having spoken and written with the simplicity of mind which regards nothing but the glory of God and the pure instruction of the people of Christ.”

Luther begins his speech with humility and with apologies for any lack of etiquette or procedure, but no apologies for his actions.  He is certain that he is right.

“I have composed, secondly, certain works against the papacy, wherein I have attacked such as by false doctrines, irregular lives, and scandalous examples, afflict the Christian world, and ruin the bodies and souls of men. And is not this confirmed by the grief of all who fear God?  Is it not manifest that the laws and human doctrines of the popes entangle, vex, and distress the consciences of the faithful, while the crying and endless extortions of Rome engulf the property and wealth of Christendom, and more particularly of this illustrious nation? Yet it is a perpetual statute that the laws and doctrines of the pope be held erroneous and reprobate when they are contrary to the Gospel and the opinions of the church fathers.”

Luther’s words could not be stronger here.  He accuses the Pope of offense that are scandalous, immoral, and perhaps even criminal.  He softens his words here not one bit.  He is not on the defense but on the offense.  Here is a man not dissembling or hedging his words.  If he is afraid for his life, his words show no fear or caution.  He is doing no political two step or making effort to appease the Pope.  Perhaps Luther knew that he was in little danger of being executed but the fact that he spent the next nine months of his life in hiding would suggest differently.

“In the third and last place, I have written some books against private individuals, who had undertaken to defend the tyranny of Rome by destroying the faith.  I freely confess that I may have attacked such persons with more violence than was consistent with my profession as an ecclesiastic: I do not think of myself as a saint; but neither can I retract these books.  Because I should, by so doing, sanction the impieties of my opponents, and they would thence take occasion to crush God’s people with still more cruelty.”

Luther does not back down one bit.  He confesses to more passion than might have been required but he will not retract anything he has written.  I am no saint he says but I will not be a hypocrite.  Just think of the people surrounding President Trump and contrast their lies, obfuscations, and baffling oratory with the quite clear words of Martin Luther: “What, then, should I be doing if I were now to retract these writings?”  “What if I said my president was lying?  What if I said my president was engaging in double speak?  What if I admitted that my president actually said the words which he claimed that he did not say?  Would I be subject to trial by fire or would I be burned at the stake?”

What makes someone lie on behalf of someone else?

The ending of Luther’s defense was epic.  Perhaps no more forceful words have ever been spoken in history.

“I neither can nor will retract anything; for it cannot be either safe or honest for a Christian to speak against his conscience.  Here I stand; I cannot do otherwise; God help me!  Amen.”

Emperor Charles V passed the Edict of Worms, which banned Luther’s writings and declared him a heretic and an enemy of the state.  Luther fled and although the Edict mandated that Luther should be captured and turned over to the emperor, it was never enforced.  Bear in mind the list of heretics who came after Luther and was executed.

Luther was a German professor of theology a composer and a priest.  He was no warrior or fighter.  In many ways, he was average, except in one especially important way that mattered and would make him a hero for all time.  He was not afraid to stand up to tyranny and to stand up for his beliefs and to speak out on behalf of what he believed.

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Imagine if more citizens were courageous enough to stand up for what they believed and to speak out forcefully and not meekly on behalf of these same beliefs.  It has been said that “Evil triumphs when good people do nothing.”  Doing nothing or saying nothing are one of the same cloth.  If you want to allow a dictator, bully, or tyrant to take power, simply stay quiet and bemoan the fact that you can do nothing.  Or you can write, speak, march, protest and organize against injustice wherever it can be found.  Any less makes us guilty of a conspiracy of silence.

“A conspiracy of silence, or culture of silence, describes the behavior of a group of people of some size, as large as an entire national group or profession or as small as a group of colleagues, that by unspoken consensus does not mention, discuss, or acknowledge a given subject.  The practice may be motivated by positive interest in group solidarity or by such negative impulses as fear of political repercussion or social ostracism.”  —  Wikipedia

3563– Tuesday, July 30, 2019 – Can We Ever Really Find Ourselves?

30 Jul 2019 4 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , ,

identity-confusion

Over the years, I have often found myself searching:  Sometimes for my purpose in life, sometimes for the meaning of my life, sometimes for who I really am.  Goals, strategies, plans for my life always seem to revolve around the answers that I find to these questions.  Sometimes these questions seem like fantasies or to paraphrase the famous nihilist philosopher Max Stirner: “Wheels in my Head.”  My wheels spin around and around and around and I wonder if I ever come back to a new place or am I just a hamster on a spinning wheel.

It is very difficult to know anyone else.  I frequently attribute motives and behavior to others based on a very weak assessment of their intent.  We all want to know why someone did something and we assume that if we can only find the right information, we will be able to understand why.  Why did he do this?  Why did she do that?  We are sure the answer must exist.  If only, they had left a note or a manifesto.

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Can we ever learn the real motives of others?  Is it ever possible to walk a mile in anyone else’s shoes?  Do they really know why?  I wonder if it is even possible to know our own selves let alone anyone else.

It is difficult to look into our true selves since a great deal of our ego and self-image is based on skewing the results of what we find.  We paint ourselves as better than we might really be.  We look into a mirror and seldom see how much we have aged.  We look into our hearts and perhaps never see how hard they have become.

I think I am smart and wise, but more often I am just very judgmental.  What seems as a positive trait to me can and does come across as presumptive and derogatory of others.  I prefer to think of myself as intelligent and not judgmental.

I pride myself on being competent.  I always finish what I start.  I believe that I do a good job at everything I do.  But I am dismissive of quitters and I am a perfectionist who looks down at the work of others.  I have very little compassion for people who I think are fuck-ups.  I prefer to think of myself as competent and not compassionless.

I think I am pretty tough.  I am no wimp.  I can take pain, high temperatures, low temperatures, rain or hail and I will slog through the muck and mire with the best of them.  But I am defensive and thin skinned.  It takes very little to rub me the wrong way and then I will launch a withering attack designed to protect myself and preserve my image.  I prefer to anoint myself as tough and not defensive.

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I take no shit from anyone.  I speak my mind.  I voice my concerns and I will defend my positions regardless of who I am dealing with.  Be it boss, client, spouse or friend, I stand up for what I believe.  I often seem angry.  I can be mean, sarcastic and ill-spirited towards friends and foe alike.  I am heedless of when I say things and how I say things.  I am more concerned with being right than understanding what right is.  I prefer to think of myself as a man of integrity and not an angry man.

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I am a very resourceful person.  No matter what the situation, I can usually find a solution to a problem.  I pride myself on being quick thinking and creative.  Pride can lead to intolerance and I am cold to those whom I think are incompetent or who do not measure up to my standards.  I prefer to think of myself as resourceful and not cold-hearted.

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I love creative adventures and delight in coming up with new ideas for places to visit, things to see and events to attend.  I am always on the lookout for novelty and adventure.  Karen lists this as one of the things that she loves about me and how it keeps our relationship interesting.  Talking about places that I have been and things that I have done can be boastful and off-putting to many people.  Who besides Karen and I care that we have been to thirty-three countries?  Seldom, do our children, let alone our friends, want to see all the pictures of the latest trip we have taken.  I prefer to think of myself as adventurous and not boastful.

I pride myself in having a wide range of knowledge about many different subjects.  I read a great deal and I spend a significant amount of time studying and learning about new ideas and new things.  I have always enjoyed being on the forefront of new technology.  To some, I am too opinionated and think I know more than I really do.  Some see my search for knowledge as a way to be superior to other people.  I prefer to think of myself as knowledgeable and not opinionated.

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I think I have a great deal of insight into human nature and I think that I am very tolerant as a result of these insights.  Nevertheless, there seems to be a large group of people who think I am intolerant of their views and opinions.  I am often seen as too opinionated and dismissive of contrary viewpoints.  I prefer to think of myself as insightful and not opinionated.

I am John Persico, a man of intelligence, competence, toughness, directness, resourcefulness, creativity, knowledge and insightfulness.  To others, I am John Persico, a judgmental man who is often without compassion, defensive, angry, cold, boastful, opinionated and intolerant.

Who is the real me?  Like Jekyll and Hyde, who will I be today?  Does anyone see the real me?  Do I see the real me?  Is there a real me?  Am I a chameleon or totally schizophrenic?

“A self is not something static, tied up in a pretty parcel and handed to the child, finished and complete.  A self is always becoming.” — Madeleine L’Engle,  “A Circle of Quiet”

 

 

 

Once Upon a Time, I thought I knew Everything.

04 Mar 2019 2 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

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The older I get, the less I know.  Isn’t it supposed to work the other way around?  A friend of mine, Jerry, gave me this quote from Bertrand Russell the other day “The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt.”  The Greek philosopher Socrates was once proclaimed to the wisest man in the world. The day before he died, Socrates declared that he knew nothing.  On that same day, the Oracle at Delphi was asked “Who is the wisest man in the world?”  She replied “Socrates is the wisest man in the world.”  This was reported back to Socrates who said “When I was young, I knew everything but now I know nothing.”  The Oracle, who was never wrong, was asked “How can Socrates be the wisest man in the world when he knows nothing?” She replied “Only the wisest man in the world would know that he knows nothing and have the courage and humility to admit it.”

Facts

We go to school to learn many facts and figures.  We study history to learn the story of humanity, we study physics to learn the theory of the cosmos, we study biology to learn how animals grow and develop and we study science so we will know how the world really works.  We learn more and more and are coerced into theories and opinions and positions.  We become more and more certain that we are wiser and smarter.

The more degrees that are conferred on us, the smarter we are supposed to be.  If we are really smart, we begin to feel that all of these facts and data bits are not really helping us to understand the world.  The older most of us get and the more learned most of us become, the more we suspect that there are no truths to the world.  We begin to see that there are always truths behind the truths that we think we have found.  Our profundities become curiosities as we age until at some point they wither away and become obsolete.  How many theories have you seen that were proven wrong?  How many times have you had to eat humble pie because something you were absolutely positively sure about was proven conclusively wrong?

horrible face

I remember seeing a picture in the paper the other day of a man accused of sexually molesting a young girl.  He was accused of pedophilia and charged with a felony offense.  I took one look at the visage staring out of the paper at me and promptly proclaimed “If there were ever a guy who was a pedophile, he sure is.”  A few weeks later, a more complete investigation proved him completely innocent of all offenses and the young girl admitted that she made the story up for some unknown reason.  I was beyond having egg on my face.  You would think that at my age, I would have learned to avoid a rush to judgment.  I can make no excuses for my blatant stupidity.

Every few months, the media finds some new tragedy or murder case to focus on.  A few years ago it was the Trayvon Martin case.  It seemed that every day we were confronted with some new facts that supported a change in who the media wanted us to think was guilty.  Trayvon initiated the encounter.  Zimmerman initiated the encounter.  Trayvon provoked Zimmerman.  Zimmerman provoked Trayvon.  Trayvon was a good kid.  Zimmerman was a good guy loved by all of his friends.  Trayvon was a racist.  Zimmerman was a racist.

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Tapes, witnesses, photo enlargements, medical information, acoustic information, video tapes, the entire gamut was presented daily with one expert after another telling us what they think.   This same scenario plays itself out over and over again in the media.  The “crime of the century” has been replaced by the “crime of the week.”

Right Way

Each day regardless of what news we read or what cable show we watch, it appears we know more and more about less and less.  What are we doing here folks?  Are they looking for truth or are they selling papers?  Are we voyeurs to some weird witch hunt?  Are we taking sides so we can become right?  If so, we will truly have become a Roman Circus instead of a civilized society of laws and courts and presumptions of innocence until proven guilty.

If we can somehow get pass this media circus that pretends to convey the truth,  there are lessons that we need to learn.  If you remember the famous story Rashomon, you may realize that truth is often a matter of perspective and not hard cold facts.

Time for Questions: 

What can you help do to overcome the types of bias and prejudice that the media often promotes?  How can you avoid your own “rush to judgment?”  What does it mean to “judge not others, less you be judged yourself.”  How often do we see the mote in others eyes but ignore the pole in our own?

Life is just beginning.

“We live in a culture where everyone’s opinion, view, and assessment of situations and people spill across social media, a lot of it anonymously, much of it shaped by mindless meanness and ignorance.”  — Mike Barnicle

Is Civility Overrated?

06 Jan 2019 3 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

be fucking civil

All the talk these days by political pundits, news reporters, columnists, journalists and of course politicians seems directed towards decrying the lack of civility in politics.  It is common knowledge that there is a war between the Democrats and Republicans going on.  Each side sees the other as bent on destroying democracy, mom, god and apple pie.  They have become bitter enemies, and no one is taking prisoners.

To study this problem more, I decided to invoke Santayana’s famous dictum on “those who forget the past.”  I fired up my trusty time machine and selected four eras and events from the past where it seems civility had also been called for.  As you perhaps know, when journeying to the past, you become invisible and there is no way that you can influence any past events.  This is in accord with Novikov’s Self-Consistency Principle.  I report on these events in the following four narratives as I witnessed and remembered the discussions.

Moses and Rameses – 1440 BCE

Moses:  Let my people go

Rameses:   Not on your life

Moses:  Then I will bring numerous plagues to smite you Egyptians

Rameses:  Go ahead.  See if I give a dam

A few weeks later:

Rameses:  Look Moses, can’t we be civil about this

Moses:  Sure, let my people go

Rameses:  Not happening

Moses:  Then I will bring a new plague that will strike all first-born Egyptians dead

Rameses:  I thought we agreed to be civil.  Can’t we discuss this more?

Moses:  Let my people go

Rameses:  The hell with you Israelites

One week later:

Rameses:  Moses, I thought we agreed to be civil.  Look how many of my people you killed

Moses:  Let my people go

Rameses:  To hell with you, get out and don’t come back.  I hope I never see you again

Moses:  Now that is what I call being civil.  Goodbye!

in pursuit of civility

War of Independence – 1776 CE

King George:  You dam colonists.  Who do you think you are?

Benjamin Franklin:  We are your loyal servants my lord, who merely want to be treated with the same rights as Englishmen in your country

King George:  You are low-lifes with no civility.  I can’t believe you dumped all that tea in the harbor?  Furthermore, you don’t even have tea-time each day like we do.

Benjamin Franklin:  My lord, the customs in our country are very different

King George:  Different my ass, you people are nothing but barbarians

Benjamin Franklin:  All we want is to eliminate taxation without representation

King George:  Do I look like I care what you want?  I’m the king

Benjamin Franklin:  I am afraid we are prepared to go to war over this issue my lord

King George:  We want to have a civil discussion and you dare to threaten me?

Benjamin Franklin:  What does civility mean to you my lord?

King George:  Your people stop whining about our taxes and get their asses back to work

Benjamin Franklin:  I will bring your message to my people your lord, but I don’t think they will agree

King George:  Then we will crush them like we crush all the enemies of the empire.  They will be begging for tea and not coffee.  You are dismissed.

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Somewhere in Mississippi – 1860 CE

Plantation Overseer:  How many times Moses have I told you that you can’t run away?  You are going to get another whipping boy

Moses:  Yes, master

Plantation Overseer:  How many lashes do you think you should get Moses?

Moses:  I don’t rightly know master

Plantation Overseer:  Look Moses, I want to be civil about this, so I am asking your opinion.  I was thinking that since it was fifty last time, we should add ten making it sixty.  That would be ten for each time you ran away – agree?

Moses:  Go to hell!

Plantation Overseer:  Mind your mouth boy.  I thought we were having a civil and friendly conversation and now you go ahead and insult me with your vile mouth.  I am going to add ten lashes to your whipping.  That will teach you to be more civil!

Moses:  Go to hell!

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Hollywood Producers Office – March 15, 2018 CE

Producer:  Look Emily, I would like for you to get on the couch and take your clothes off

Emily (Aspiring actress): I don’t understand what taking my clothes off has to do with an audition

Producer:  Well, you have heard of “quid pro quo” right?  Well, I just want you to do me a little favor and then I will do you a bigger favor

Emily:  And what if I refuse?

Producer:  Can’t we be civil about this?  We are both adults

Emily:  I do not plan to screw my way to a role in your production

Producer:  I am tired of trying to be civil, now get your ass on that couch

Emily:  Unlock the door!  Please let go of me!

Producer:  Just relax, you will enjoy it more

Emily:  Get off me, I will scream!

Producer:  Can’t you be more civil Emily?  I am just doing this for your own good

Emily:  Fuck you, get off me!

Producer:  Not until I finish what we started

Emily:  Crying

Producer:  See it wasn’t so bad was it? Maybe after this we can be more civil to each other

Emily:  Screw you!

trump on civility

Well, that is all the time I had for my time journeys. I report the above narratives to the best of my memory.  I was wondering what messages or meaning I could ascribe to these events in terms of the problem of civility that I mentioned earlier.  I know Trump, McConnell, Graham and many others on both sides of the aisle have all called for more civility in politics.

Somehow though, I question when and where civility is appropriate and where a good “Screw you” is more appropriate.  I have no doubt that civility is of value in some circumstances but like any value, perhaps it can be overdone.

death of civility

Webster’s defines the term Civility as: 

1:  Archaic : training in the humanities

2a: Civilized conduct, especially : COURTESY, POLITENESS

b: A polite act or expression

If we dismiss the first definition, we are left with courtesy and politeness as being the sine qua non of civility.  But I ask, who and when should we be courteous to?  Should we be courteous to:

  • Someone who is robbing us
  • Someone who is trying to kill us
  • Someone who is obviously lying to us
  • Someone who is preaching hate and fear
  • Someone who is taking money from the poor to give to the rich
  • Someone who will deny others the chance for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness

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There is a time for civility.  I have no doubt.  But there is a time for anger and indignation.

It takes more courage to stand up to bullies and wrong doers than to merely stand passively by and acquiesce to calls for civility.  To conclude, I observe this about civility:

  • It is often a call by the more powerful to the weaker to be subdued and humbled
  • It can be used to hide evil of the first order and should be suspect
  • It is of merit only when it is reciprocated

Beware the Trojan horse!  Beware those who want civility without justice, truth and freedom!

Time for Questions:

Are you always civil?  When are you not civil?  Why?  Do you agree that civility is not always a virtue?  Why or why not?

Life is just beginning.

“In politics, disagreements between opponents is the sign of a healthy and flourishing democracy. When politicians show too much deference to each other, fundamental ethical questions are likely to get buried and power can go unchecked. Meyer points out that insults are a non-violent way of curbing the excesses of the powerful, and he argues that politics must therefore ‘allow for a boorishness typically at odds with polite society’. Similarly, Kennedy argues: ‘The civility movement is deeply at odds with what an invigorated liberalism requires: intellectual clarity; an insistence upon grappling with the substance of controversies; and a willingness to fight loudly, openly, militantly, even rudely for policies and values….” Meyer, ‘Liberal Civility and the Civility of Etiquette’, 79; Kennedy, ‘The Case against “Civility”’, 85.

The above exercpt is from:  “Six Questions About Civility” by Nicole Billante and Peter Saunders, 2002

 

 

 

Tommy:  A Boy for all Seasons

30 Jul 2017 4 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , , ,

This is a story about my best friend in high school.  His name was Thomas Donnelly.  This story took place over fifty years ago.  I still think of the influence that these events have had on my life.  Many of you will be repelled by the story that I narrate.  If you can suspend your morality, you might be able to accept that the culture I grew up in made these events very normal even if you do not consider them to be moral.

Street Corner Gang

It happened one hot Saturday afternoon in the summer.  I was hanging out on our Manton street corner.  As with all Italian teenagers, we hung out in a certain geographic area and this association led to our identity as the “Manton Gang.”  Manton was a suburb of Providence R.I. and a primarily Italian neighborhood.  My father was Italian and my mother was Irish.  It was just the reverse for my best friend Tommy.  His mother was Italian and his father was Irish.  Nevertheless, anyone with Irish or Italian blood was accepted into our street corner gang.

At fourteen to eighteen years of age, few of us were interested in anything except gambling and sex.  Gambling tended to be a regular event on the corner where we hung out but sex was much more episodic.  Good Italian girls in the sixties still did not have sex outside of marriage.  This left us to find those “bad girls” whose discrimination did not tend towards marriage or even long-term love affairs and who were much less choosy in terms of selecting “affairs of the heart.”

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Tommy and I were sitting on the corner discussing nothing important when a blue and white 56 Ford four door Fairlane pulled up to the curb and started honking.  At first, we did not recognize anyone in the car.  Two guys were in the front seat and no one was in the back seat.  We finally recognized Dave and Bob.  Dave was an infrequent corner member but Bob was a regular.  We sauntered over to the car.  It was always important to look cool and nonchalant when we were growing up.  As we approached the open window on Dave’s side, he yelled out.  “Hey, you guys want to get laid?”

“What’s up” I said.  Dave replied, “Get in and I will tell you on the way.”  Both Tommy and I jumped in the back seat.  Bob already had shot gun.  Dave gunned the accelerator and off we went.  “Okay, so where are we going” asked Tommy.  Bob said, “Well, there is this chick and she is hot to go with anyone who comes over to her house.”  “You mean she will take all of us?  What’s wrong with her?” I wanted to know.  Bob continued, “Who knows.  She is just really open to more than one guy.”  “Well, where are her parents,” I persisted.   “She lives with her dad who is a police chief” said Dave.  “What, are you crazy” both Tommy and I said in synchrony.  “Don’t worry” said Bob, “her dad will not be home.”

new england houseThe idea of sex in our minds easily overrode any caution or concern about getting caught by her father.  We arrived at her house.  She lived out of town somewhat in Scituate which was a more rural area of R.I. in the sixties.  When we arrived, Bob said “I will go in first and check things out.  If it is okay, you guys can come in.  Bob went inside the small average looking New England Colonial house with two upper dormer windows and came out a few minutes later.  “OK guys” Bob said, “She is willing.”  We all trotted inside the house to the first room which was a kitchen with a small table and four chairs.  Dave, Tommy and I sat on the chairs and Bob headed up a small staircase.  “I will go first” said Bob “and Dave is next.  You and Tommy can decide who goes after Dave.”  “Oh”, said Bob, “her name is Barbara and she likes to be called Barb.”  No one challenged this order of affairs as it was taken for granted that since Bob had set this up, he had first dibs.

Bob went up the stairs while Dave, Tommy and I just sat and kibitzed.  I wondered what was in store for me when I went up the stairs.  Bob came down about twenty minutes later looking quite proud and content.  “She likes to talk a little before” said Bob, “so you have to be a little patient.  But be persistent and she will get on with it.”   It was Dave’s turn next and he wasted no time going up the stair case.  Sometime later Dave came down, also looking very proud and content.

Tommy and I decided that I would go next.  Up the staircase I went and into a small bedroom where I found Barb half-dressed and sitting on the edge of the bed.  She was a very attractive young girl of sixteen or seventeen years of age.  She had long brown hair and a small frame that was nicely curved.  She had a very pretty face and could easily have been a cheerleader.  She was probably about five feet four inches in height but it was somewhat difficult to tell as she was sitting cross legged on her bed.

sad girl on bed

I introduced myself.  We started some small talk and I learned that her mother had left her father some time ago and that she now lived alone with her dad.  She had no other siblings.  Her dad was very strict and would not let her date.  She said that he scared most of her friends away and was very difficult to live with.  I sensed that her escapades today were a chance for her to rebel against her father’s strict sexual codes.  She was willing to go all out and did not care about any side effects.  No birth control or sexual disease prevention even came up as an issue.

We small talked for about a half hour or so and I sensed that I had better get on with the action or she would talk forever.  A real man talks less than he acts and I had talked longer than most real men would have.  I started to lay Barbara down on the bed.  She put up no resistance and meekly laid back against the sheets.  I placed my body down over hers but before starting to remove any of our clothes, I gazed into her eyes.  They were brown and sad.  I stopped to think.  This poor girl is looking for someone to love her and does not really know how to go about it.  I would just be taking advantageous of her.  I can’t do this.  I lifted her back up and quietly left the room.  She never said a word to me and I left without another word.

Feeling very guilty, I walked back down the staircase.  I did not say much when I met Tommy.  Both Dave and Bob had gone back out to the car and were now playing cards in the front seat.  Hi Low Jack was a popular game on the corner and we played it for money whatever chance we had.  I said to Tommy, “It’s your turn.”  Tommy went up the staircase and returned about thirty minutes later.  We silently left the house and went out the front door to the car.  I never saw Barb or that house again.

guys in car

We piled back in the car with Dave and Bob.  There was some minor discussion about Barbara and how hot she was on the way back to the corner but most of it took place between Dave and Bob.  Neither Tommy or I said I word.  Truth be told, I would never have admitted to either Dave or Bob that I did not have sex with Barb.  Tommy and I were dropped back at the Manton Street corner where our friends all hung out and Dave and Bob drove off together.

Tommy and I sat in silence for a while.  I finally broke the silence and asked Tommy “well how did it go?”  Tommy looked very pensive and replied, “I did not do a thing with Barb except to talk to her.”  I was somewhat stunned as I figured that I had wimped out but that Tommy (who was one of the best-looking guys on the corner) would have scored a home run in sixty seconds flat.  I asked Tom “why?”  I did not tell him that I had also struck out.  At the time, that is how I felt.  Like a batter who comes up to the plate, takes three swings and strikes out.

Tommy quietly replied “I did not want to take advantage of her.  She was lonely and scared and needy.  She needed a friend more than she needed getting laid.”  I had felt the same way but many years ago, pride and ego would not allow me to admit that I had also not gone all the way with Barb.  I persisted with Tom “Well, what are you going to tell the other guys.”  Tom then replied with a statement that I have remembered all the rest of my life.  Tommy said, “I don’t care what they think, I have to live with myself.” 

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Over the years, I have lost touch with Tommy.  We have traveled very different roads.  Tommy became a minister and works with the poor.  I became an educator and management consultant.  Many years and many different philosophies now separate us.  But I will never forget the lesson that I learned from Tommy that one hot summer afternoon about integrity and being who we are called to be and not who the world wants us to be.

Time for Questions:

Why do I call Tom a “boy for all seasons?”  What does it mean to have integrity?  How do we go about developing integrity?  How do we increase our empathy for other people?  What does it mean to be ourselves?  Are people naturally good or evil?

Life is just beginning.

“That’s what Jamie didn’t understand: it was never just sex.  Even the fastest, dirtiest, most impersonal screw was about more than sex.  It was about connection.  It was about looking at another human being and seeing your own loneliness and neediness reflected back.  It was recognizing that together you had the power to temporarily banish that sense of isolation.  It was about experiencing what it was to be human at the basest, most instinctive level.  How could that be described as just anything?”  — Emily Maguire, Taming the Beast

My Life:  The Story of a Penny

17 Jul 2017 3 Comments

by Dr. John Persico Jr. in Uncategorized Tags: , , , , , , ,

penny

It wasn’t always this way.  If you are old enough you may well remember.  Once upon a time, I was admired and looked up to.  I was put in the mouth of deceased humans to pay Charon the boat man for taking them to the afterlife.  People made a big deal out of receiving me.  I was avidly saved and respected.  Abraham Lincoln walked two miles to return me to a customer who had been overcharged.  Children were given penny banks when they were of age to appreciate my value.  Many youngsters found that with only five of me, they had enough money to buy a candy bar or go to a movie.  A very popular saying was “A penny saved is a penny earned.”

I was the first currency of any type authorized by the newly formed United States of America.  I was born (or minted at they call it) on April 21, 1787, when the Congress of the Confederation of the United States authorized a design for an official copper penny, later referred to as the Fugio cent.  Benjamin Franklin was my designer and on one side I had thirteen chain links interlocked with the words “We are one” representing the union of the first 13 American states.  On my other side, I had a picture of the sun and the sun dial with the words “Mind your business.”  Over the years, I have had many different designs printed on me.

old original penny

I was made legal tender by the Coinage Act of 1864.  I was so popular in my middle years that Abraham Lincoln’s visage was put on one side of me and on my other side was Lincoln’s tomb and the Latin words “E Pluribus Unum” meaning “out of many one.”  Honest Abe well knew the value of a penny.  For over two hundred years, I have represented the business and entrepreneurial spirit of America.  Those were my golden years.  There was no shame in saving a shiny new penny or even an old worn and scratched penny.

How the times and fortunes have changed my life!  Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say how the Fortune 500 has changed my life.  Inflation and stock values have continued year after year to erode my value until I am now just a shell of what I once was.  There is even talk of doing away with me as not worth the metal it takes to mint me.  People leave me in little baskets at convenience stores and young children simply drop me or throw me down the street.  I get run over by cars, motorbikes, bicycles and pedestrians.  Hardly anybody will bother to pick me up off the sidewalk.  I am looked down upon and despised.

5.-Frugality-1024x524Those who say that I am not important or who ignore me are part of a new generation that values image over substance.  The word “frugal” is now associated with cheap and the word “thrifty” is associated with the idea of miserliness.  It seems the world of finance is dominated by short-sighted individuals who have forgotten the old values that made this country great.  Hard work and prudence were values that resonated among the early pioneers like so many notes in a great symphonic piece.

piggy bankWith hard work, you earned a penny.  With prudence, you saved your pennies until they became dollars.  In the old days, no one would ever have thrown me away or ignored me when laying in the street.  Too many people have forgotten the value that I represent.  From early times, there have been people who really understood my value.  Even before I was an official U.S. coin, the value of a penny was recognized by some.  I regard these people as paragons who really understood the meaning of money.  Let me tell you a few of their stories.

Back in the days of Jesus Christ, there was a poor widow who gave her last two cents.  The story is told by Mark 1:41-44 in the New Testament:

Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury.  Many rich people threw in large amounts.  But a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a few cents.

Calling his disciples to him, Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others.  They all gave out of their wealth; but she, out of her poverty, put in everything—all she had to live on.”

Both Jesus and the poor widow understood the value of money and that it was not how much money you had but what you did with it that mattered.

Then, there is the story of little Hattie May Wiat.  This was a young girl who lived in Blue Bell Pennsylvania around the end of the 19th Century.  She loved to go to a nearby church but it was often so crowded that she could not find a seat.  She decided to start saving her money to help build a bigger church.  Her parents were very poor and sadly she died about two years after she had started saving her pennies.

When they were preparing her body for burial, they found beside her a little purse with fifty-seven cents inside and a note scribbled in her handwriting which read, “This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School.”  This so inspired the minister of the church that he started a fund-raising campaign that turned Hattie’s initial pennies into nearly a quarter of a million dollars.  The church was expanded and many more people would eventually be able to come to church.

penniesHattie had faith in money.  Money requires faith but it is a faith that rests on the good that money can do and not simply how much money one can acquire.  Hattie had this kind of faith and it persisted beyond her death.

A more recent story is about John the runner.  John goes out jogging four or five times a week regardless of the weather.  Some days he feels great running and other days he is just anxious to get his run over with.  Nevertheless, no matter how long he has run or how tired he is from his daily run, if John sees me on the street, he will always stop to pick me up.

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John believes that if he becomes too proud to pick up a penny, where will it end?  When will he become too proud to pick up a nickel or a dime?  John brings me home in his fist and puts me in a large glass jar shaped like a coke bottle.  I am in good company there with quarters, half dollars and even some Susan B. Anthony dollars.  When John is ready to go on a vacation, he takes me down to the bank and converts me into cash for his trip.

John does not relish wealth or the mere accumulation of money.  It is not his greed that compels him to pick me up but his acknowledgement of the symbolism that I represent.  Whether it is a hundred-dollar bill or one penny laying on the ground, the meaning is the same.   Money should never be taken for granted.

There are hundreds of other stories I can tell to show you that many people throughout history have understood the idea that “if you watch your pennies, the dollars will take care of themselves.”  This is still a very valuable lesson that needs to be taught in all finance and business classes.  From what I see, it is a lesson that too many people today have never learned.

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So, the next time you see a penny on the street, think about my life and what it stands for.  Do not think I simply represent 1/100 of a dollar.  I represent far more than that.  I represent the start of a global business.  The start of a financial fortune.  Even more importantly, I represent the start of needed surgery for a poor child in a developing country.  The start of a fund to help protect the environment.  The start of a young girl’s education.

Time for Questions:

Do you stop to pick up a penny?  What does frugality mean to you?  What does thrifty mean to you?  Do you think being frugal is a vice or a virtue?  Do you save for a rainy day?  Do you think credit cards have made the idea of thrifty better or worse?  Why?

Life is just beginning.

“The question is very understandable, but no one has found a satisfactory answer to it so far.  Yes, why do they make still more gigantic planes, still heavier bombs and, at the same time, prefabricated houses for reconstruction?  Why should millions be spent daily on the war and yet there’s not a penny available for medical services, artists, or for poor people?  Why do some people have to starve, while there are surpluses rotting in other parts of the world?  Oh, why are people so crazy?”  — Anne Frank

 

 

 

 

 

 

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