The Four Cardinal Virtues

In freemasonry we hear mention of the four cardinal virtues Prudence, Temperance, Fortitude and Justice. These virtues we should study and apply in our lives, and it occurred to me that we hear the words and then forget to discover the meaning behind them.

Prudence is the ability to govern and discipline oneself by reason, which is most definitely a good lesson and one would think that the ability to distinguish between virtuous and vicious actions is one that we could all do well with, since we most definitely would not want to have someone be vicious to them, without thinking they can easily behave like that to someone else.

Temperance is easy since it pertains to moderation and voluntary restraint in all things. That is to say all areas. Eating, drinking, excesses and hobbies. Being able to be calm under pressure. If only it were so easy.

Fortitude is the mental and emotional strength in facing difficulty, adversity, danger or temptation. This is what I call the strong virtue. The pick yourself up by the coat tails and get on. Only tonight, a friend has mentioned about some bad luck going on in their life right now, since I know they read the blog, fortitude right now will help you.

Justice governs our view on moral correctness as regards to law, equity, ethics and religion. Justice is perhaps the hardest virtue to apply, since being just isnt always the easiest option, or the most beneficial.

In short, we can learn a lesson, and be more respectful of others by considering the four cardinal virtues every now and again.

Related articles

• Virtues and sins (arcticjournal.com)
• Stoicism and Christianity (verbosestoic.wordpress.com)