This is the Tradition We Hail From

“2,000 years ago today there was a woman who went into labor in a province of the Roman Empire, she couldn't find shelter, she was young, and she was scared. 150 years ago soldiers fighting to preserve the Union and to free their fellow man, found a way to celebrate Christmas in forts and trenches dividing a sundered Nation. Almost a century ago in the worst part of the Great Depression, parents around the world did what they could to cobble together gifts and a dinner for their hungry and exhausted families. Over 50 years ago behind the Iron Curtain huddled groups of East Berliners secretly commemorated the birth of their savior, as Soviet forces Patrol the city threatening them with arrest, or worse.”Ryan discusses how past Christmas’s relate to this year, and compares Jesus' and Seneca's teachings, on today’s Daily Stoic Podcast.***If you enjoyed this week’s podcast, we’d love for you to leave a review on Apple Podcasts. It helps with our visibility, and the more people listen to the podcast, the more we can invest into it and make it even better. Sign up for the Daily Stoic email: http://DailyStoic.com/signupFollow Daily Stoic:Twitter: https://twitter.com/dailystoicInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/dailystoic/Facebook: http://facebook.com/dailystoicYouTube: https://www.youtube.com/dailystoicSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. 📢 Share | ⚙️ Manage Subscription

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:04Ryan Holiday?

  Welcome to The Daily Stoic, where each day we read a short passage designed to help you cultivate the strength, insight, wisdom necessary for living the good life. Each one of these passages is based on the 2,000-year-old philosophy that has guided some of history's greatest men and women. For more, you can visit us at DailyStoic.com.

• 0:27Ryan Holiday?

  This is the tradition we hail from. 2,000 years ago today, there was a woman who went into labor in a province of the Roman Empire. She couldn't find shelter, she was young, and she was scared. 150 years ago, soldiers fighting to preserve the union and to free their fellow man found a way to celebrate Christmas in forts and trenches dividing a sundered nation. Almost a century ago, in the worst part of the Great Depression, parents around the world did what they could to cobble together gifts and a dinner for their hungry and exhausted families. Over 50 years ago, behind the Iron Curtain, huddled groups of East Berliners secretly commemorated the birth of their Savior as Soviet forces patrolled the city, threatening them with

• 1:12Ryan Holiday?

  arrest or worse. This year, millions of people are spending Christmas away from their families, wrestling with a global pandemic that is just one source of adversity in what has been a true anis horibilis. Is there some magical insight that can make all this go away, that can make everything better? No, of course not. That's never been what Stoicism is about. As it happens, though, in the very same year as Jesus, in another far-flung province of Rome, another boy was born. Seneca, who would go on to be an equally great and influential philosopher, would say that "just as fire tests gold, misfortune tries brave men." It's worth taking

• 1:56Ryan Holiday?

  a minute, then, this Christmas morning, to compare all the ways that Jesus and Seneca's teachings overlap. Seneca says, "Fire is the test of gold, adversity of strong men." Well, Jesus says, "Blessed is the one who..." perseveres under trial because having stood the test that person will receive the crown of life. As Seneca says, "Constant misfortune brings this one blessing to whom it always assails, it eventually fortifies." And Jesus says, "We can rejoice too when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance, and endurance develops strength of character." And then Seneca says, "Two elements must therefore be rooted out once and for all, the fear of future suffering

• 2:40Ryan Holiday?

  and the recollection of past suffering, since the latter no longer concerns me and the former concerns me not." And then Jesus says, "Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things, sufficient for the day is its own trouble." Now, Seneca was obviously just a man, a flawed and contradictory man at that, while Jesus, depending on your beliefs, was both a man and a God. But it is fascinating to think that they were both born the same year in the same empire and died bravely facing evil. Both would be immensely popular in their own time and long after. Both would run afoul of the powerful interests of their time. Both would be forced in their final moments to live their teachings. Jesus on the cross, asking for forgiveness for the people who had wronged them.

• 3:26Ryan Holiday?

  Seneca, as he comforted his friends and family when Nero's goons came to demand his suicide. Tacitus, who also tells us about the life of Christus, would note how Seneca had made plans for such an ordeal, writing that even in the height of his wealth and power, he was thinking of life's close. So too, the Bible tells us, was Jesus. Their words and example lives on. Especially here, as we bring 2020 to a close, wondering how we will get through this, how we'll survive. We'll make it by clinging to these timeless principles. We'll get it by following this grand tradition. We'll get by on love, on wisdom, on courage, on self-discipline. We'll find beauty in the ordinary. We'll be of service to others. We'll zoom out and look at the big picture.

• 4:11Ryan Holiday?

  We'll zoom in at what's immediately in front of us. We'll find something to be grateful for, because there is always something to be grateful for. Life is short, Seneca said. It was short for Jesus too. What matters is what you do while you're here. What matters is what you do with your year. In the days that you've been given, what matters is the example you leave behind for others to follow. Enjoy today. Don't be afraid. Do what's right. Follow in their footsteps. They have shown us the way.

• 4:42Ryan Holiday?

  Hey, everyone. Thank you so much for listening to this podcast. It's incredible to think that these episodes have been listened to more than 3 million times. If you could do us a huge favor and just leave a quick review of the podcast on iTunes, Google Play, or whatever you're listening to this on, we'd really appreciate it. The reviews help with visibility and help bring Stoicism to even more people. Thanks again. Talk soon.