Epictetus, My Favorite Roman Stoic Philosopher, Former Slave of a Former Slave

Epictetus is my favorite Roman Stoic Philosopher. The writings of Epictetus are accessible and easy to read, consisting of one maxim after another, resembling the teachings of the early Church Fathers in the Philokalia, echoing many of sayings in the Gospels and Epistles of St Paul. Many of his writings were his recollections of the sayings of his Stoic teacher, Musonius Rufus.

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To Epictetus, only the good can be truly happy, only the good can truly be free, tyrants may take all you own, but they can never take your most prized possession, your freedom of will; tyrants can throw you in jail, but they can never take away the freedom of your mind; tyrants can take your life, but they can never have your soul. Epictetus, the great philosopher of freedom, was a former slave, a slave to a freed man, and was both poor and a cripple, eking out a living by teaching philosophy.

Epictetus tells us of someone who stole his lamp one night, Epictetus got the better end of the exchange. For Epictetus only lost his lamp, but he kept his faith. The man who stole his lamp, in exchange for the lamp he consented to become a thief, becoming faithless.

I first learned of Epictetus from a series of Teaching Company lectures on Greek Moral Philosophers by Professor Timothy Luke Johnson. This a series of lectures that deeply affected me. The similarities between the stoic philosophers and the writings of the monastic eastern Church Fathers who preceded St Benedict, and to the Pauline Epistles and the Gospels, are so striking that I can truly say I am a better Christian for having read the Stoic Philosophers.

Likewise, the stoic philosophers are greatly treasured by Professor Johnson. He had by chance picked up a used book containing the writings of Epictetus and was deeply influenced by his teachings. It is puzzling why the stoic philosophers are so often neglected by modern scholars, they were far more highly prized in antiquity and by the early Christians and Church Fathers.
We include many more of the sayings of Epictetus in our video. Enjoy!

And the blogs for both Epictetus and Rufus:

Script for this video:
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As Socrates teaches us, the examined life is a life worth living. We would be fools if we did not desire to learn from our multitude of friends whose words live in the works of the classics that have survived from past centuries and millennia. The Stoic and moral philosophers of Greece and Rome saw philosophy as an evangelical enterprise, seeking to spread the joy of living a godly life for its own sake.

Our projects include:
Studying the teachings of the ancient and modern stoic and moral philosophers on how to better lead a godly life.
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Studying issues of morality in the Catholic, Orthodox, Protestant and Jewish traditions.

Everyone should join and participate in their local church. However, my internet persona is purposefully obscure so that I can be respectful of all genuine Judeo-Christian traditions, I do not wish to be disrespectfully polemical.

This is original content based on research by Bruce Strom and his blogs. Images in the Public Domain, many from Wikipedia, some from the National Archives, are selected to provide illustration. When images of the actual topic or event are not available in the Public Domain, images of similar objects and events are used for illustration.

All events are portrayed in historical context and for educational purposes. No images or content are primarily intended to shock and disgust. The ancient world was a warrior culture out of necessity, to learn from the distant past we should not only judge them from our modern perspective but also from their own ancient perspective on their own terms.