Cicerone
De Senectute

Cicero composed the "De Senectute" in the early months of 44 B.C., during a period of enforced political inactivity – inactivity imposed on him by Julius Caesar.

Out of the scene, in those days of solitude and bitterness, he had time to be with himself and reflect on how he could make the remaining years of his life productive.

This essay, which has brilliantly stood the test of time, is a serene response to the clichés about old age as the early death of the individual. Through Cato, Cicero tells us that, contrary to common opinion, the evening of life can be a happy phase of existence – at least for those who, in their youthful years, have learned to practice moderation.

I will not review the entire book. What interests me here is to quote the author's reflections on lust. These are surprising and very timely words. Words that today's priests – even when they are decent priests – are afraid to pronounce:

"Let it not be thought that I have declared war on pleasure, of which there is a certain limit imposed by nature. Rather, I have declared war on the obsession with pleasure. When asked if, weakened by age, he still enjoyed venereal pleasures, Sophocles replied: 'Gods forbid! I am happy to have escaped from these things as from a rude and furious master.' When our master is sensual passion, there is no room for temperance and virtue. Not only that. Nature, or God, has given man nothing greater than intelligence. Well: nothing is as contrary to this gift as lust. Nothing more than lust – defined by Plato as 'the bait of all evils' – hinders reflection, is an enemy of prudence, and hates everything that is honorable."

Writing these "perennial" lines is no bigot. It is a great pagan who seems to speak prophetically to the present world. A world that no longer believes in God because it has made sex its god. And in the human being, there can be room for only one God.

But Cicero surprises us not only with his j'accuse to the deification of sensuality. He also surprises us with his thoughts on death:

"Death can lead to the annihilation of the soul or it leads the soul to a place where it will be eternal. Tertium non datur. So what should I fear if, when I fall asleep forever, not only will I be not unhappy, but even blessed?"

Truth is timeless. And it is not bound to any religion.