Thursday, November 7, 2013
Preach Not!
Today in class we noted an aspect of Lincoln’s
character that I find particularly interesting and admirable. The fact that he completely refrained from
drinking alcohol, and yet did not engage in moralistic condemnations of those
who did, is highly significant in coming to better understand his moral
character. It is curious that someone
can be capable of such strong moral convictions in regards to their own
actions, and at the same time be highly understanding of the shortcomings of
others. By that I don’t mean that it
does not make sense. I only mean that it
is remarkable. What is particularly
interesting to me is that Lincoln also seemed to have an ability to, in a
sense, prioritize his tolerances.
Whereas he did not seem particularly interested in criticizing other
people’s drinking habits, he took a slightly different approach to more
important issues such as slavery.
Although he clearly made an effort to refrain from being overly moralistic,
he nonetheless did make strong arguments in public in defense of his moral
reasoning. He seemed to not only have
genuine respect for views and circumstances of others, but also had a keen
awareness that “preaching” was not an effective way of convincing people to
change.
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I completely agree with your statement that it certainly does make sense, but it is remarkable that Lincoln actually had the ability to do this. And it is very true that he was always careful to be overly moral or opinionated towards certain issues, but was very aware of the ones he needed to change. Although alcohol was unproductive it was not overly harmless. On the contrary, slavery was horrifying, and Lincoln recognized this.
ReplyDeleteHi Sean,
ReplyDeleteWell, I think it is safe to say that no one likes a preacher! They are obnoxious and often too in-your-face. People who preach their moral values and try to pass them off to others, I think, are often hypocrites. There is a fine line that politicians and anyone who is arguing their point must walk. Lincoln, as you said, understood the effectiveness of not preaching. Also, as you stated, Lincoln’s compassion for others is, indeed, remarkable. It is very difficult to not pass judgment on others, especially those who have opposing arguments. Lincoln was definitely a unique individual.