There are many things which are not wrong in themselves, but which are emphatically wrong when they are indulged in to excess, or in a self-indulgent and unbridled manner. It is necessary, for example, that we should eat and drink. To gratify hunger and thirst is, of course, most reasonable and right. However, when any feel inclined to eat or drink more than is needful, then they become guilty of the contemptible sin of gluttony, or of the hateful sin of drunkenness. This latter sin frequently leads to further wrong-doing, and is the source of so much sorrow and suffering, not only to the drunkard himself, but also to those also whom he should love most dearly. These are the very ones whom it should be one of his chief purposes in life to shield from distress.
Again, is necessary to rest, but if we are seldom ready for work, or do our work idly and carelessly, we become guilty of slothfulness.
Most faults are a perversion of some virtue. Violent anger, for example, is an outburst, visited upon the head of someone who has merely offended us. We may have a lawful feeling of indignation which the sight of cruelty or treachery should at once call us to oppose. However, these feelings and inclinations need to be regulated by the principle of obedience to the law of God through the grace of His Holy Spirit. We should never give the rein to our natural inclinations, but quietly yet firmly control them, so as to prevent them from hurrying us into folly and sin.
To do this is to exercise the virtue of temperance. “Use this world,” St. Paul says, “but do not abuse it.” That is, do not use it to excess, but properly and in moderation. Use any good it has to offer, any innocent pleasures it can afford, but use them temperately, knowing that only those who so use them really enjoy them.
Those who abandon themselves to any pursuit or amusement will weary of it. All things were given us richly to enjoy, but all who are wise will make St. Paul’s resolution their own: “I will not be brought under the power of any.”
Prayer
Grant me, O God, I beseech Thee, wisdom and strength, that I may be temperate in all things, through Jesus Christ our Lard. Amen.
The Cathedral Close 
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