Fear

Passages

Every passage tagged with this emotion in the Vela corpus. Search the body text, narrow by source or register, click through to a book’s profile to see how the passage sits with the rest of the work.

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• From Combating Cult Mind Control: The Guide to Protection, Rescue and Recovery from Destructive Cults (1988)

  These stories shed light on the full range of such organizations. Some are relatively unknown, such as the apocalyptic cult Eternal Values, or the Zen Buddhist organization Shasta Abbey or the Iranian terrorist group MeK. Others, such as Scientology and Transcendental Meditation (TM), are more recognizable to the average reader. Still others, such as Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Mormons, have been highly visible for many decades. In the early editions of Combating Cult Mind Control, I did not include stories about those aberrant Christian groups. However, over the years I have been contacted by many people who were born into those organizations, telling me how the book helped them. Paradoxically, because the earlier editions didn’t mention either group, the book wasn’t banned by church leaders, and so it was widely read by church members as a result. An Invitation To Safety The techniques of undue influence have evolved dramatically, and continue to do so. Today, a vast array of methods exists to deceive, manipulate and indoctrinate people into closed systems of obedience and dependency. Sadly, the essential information in this book is still not widely known or understood. People around the world remain largely unprepared for the new realities of mind control. But we are far from helpless. There is a great deal you can do to stay safe, sane, and whole—and to help the people you care about to do the same. And if someone you love is already part of a mind control group, there is much you can do to help them break free and rebuild their lives. This book will give you the tools you will need. As you read this book, you will learn to develop, use, and trust your critical thinking skills, your intuition, your bodily and emotional awareness, your ability to ask the right questions, and your skills at doing rapid and useful research. You will also learn to cultivate a healthy balance of openness and skepticism. As you will see, the entire process begins and ends with you. Welcome! Foreword to the 1988 Edition The phone was frighteningly loud. The clock read 4:30 a.m. It was difficult to take in what a reporter from The Berkeley Gazette was saying on the phone: “Margaret, I hate to bother you this early, but we have just learned that Jim Jones has decided to pull the trigger down in Guyana. I’ve been here all night at a house in Berkeley talking with ex-members of Peoples Temple and with relatives of persons down in Jonestown. There’s a mother here whose husband and 12-year-old son are down there and she is desperate. It is not known if everyone’s dead, or if there are survivors. I know I’ve told you not to work with ex-members of Peoples Temple because of the dangerous harassment that Jones’ so-called ‘Angels’ direct against former members. But these people need to talk with you and get some help with what has happened.”

• From The History of Christianity II: From the Reformation to the Modern Megachurch (2017)

  and worried about reconciling faith with science. Fights between fundamentalists and modernists started among descendants of that reformed tradition, Presbyterians and Baptists. õ Another factor: In the early 20th century, America was already a culturally diverse country, where vast distances separated different subcultures and an ocean—both geographic and cultural— divided Americans from the universities of Europe. For American fundamentalists, there was no sense of continuity or cultural kinship with the groundbreaking scholarship that flourished in Europe during the 19th century. õ Compare this with Canada, where most Christians felt themselves to be a part of the same intellectual culture as their peers in Britain. For example, they experienced Charles Darwin’s discoveries as events in their own society, and got used to them more gradually. American Christians were more likely to experience the theory of evolution or German theological ideas as foreign invasions. Fundamentalists fought these invasions with all the vigor they could muster. õ Additionally, American fundamentalism didn’t make much sense to Christians outside the West. American fundamentalists focused on proper Christian behavior, but they were also obsessed with the clash between faith and reason. They thought of scientists and university professors as vile enemies of the faith. They read the Bible in a very rationalistic way, as if it were a science textbook. As one Presbyterian theologian put it, “the Bible is a storehouse of facts.” õ This understanding of Christianity would not resonate much at all with, for example, Zulu tribesmen in South Africa, who were probably more worried about whether they would see their ancestors in heaven, or how to defend their children against witches, or how to survive the brutalities of the emerging apartheid system. 228 The History of Christianity II õ From the 1930s into the Cold War era, American fundamentalists tended to fuse their understanding of Christian orthodoxy with a nationalistic vision of American world dominance. Conservative Protestants in Europe and the Global South were a bit leery of allying with them. SUGGESTED READING Espinosa, William J. Seymour. Kalu, Ogbu. African Pentecostalism. Marsden, Fundamentalism and American Culture. QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER ä What aspects of modernity did Pentecostals and fundamentalists find frightening or dangerous? ä Why did so many worshippers at Azusa Street violate the social taboos of the day? ä How does the meaning of fundamentalist in today’s common speech compare to the term’s historical meaning? Lecture 23—Fundamentalism and Pentecostalism 229 LECTURE 24 APOCALYPTIC FAITH IN THE 1800s AND BEYOND This lecture tackles the question of what exactly the apocalypse is and how Christians have interpreted it. Then, the lecture digs into the ideas about the end times that became popular in 19th-century and 20th-century America and remain influential today. 230

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  AUGUSTINE. (Serm. in Mont. ii. 25.) Hereto it also pertains that we be not deceived by the name of Christ not only in such as bear the name and do not the deeds, but yet more by certain works and miracles, such as the Lord wrought because of the unbelieving, but yet warned us that we should not be deceived by such to suppose that there was invisible wisdom where was a visible miracle; wherefore He adds, saying, Many shall say to me in that day. CHRYSOSTOM. See how He thus secretly brings in Himself. Here in the end of His Sermon He shews Himself as the Judge. The punishment that awaits sinners He had shewn before, but now only reveals who He is that shall punish, saying, Many shall say to me in that day. PSEUDO-CHRYSOSTOM. When, namely, He shall come in the majesty of His Father; when none shall any more dare with strife of many words either to defend a lie, or to speak against the truth, when each man’s work shall speak, and his mouth be silent, when none shall come forward for another, but each shall fear for himself. For in that judgment the witnesses shall not be flattering men, but Angels speaking the truth, and the Judge is the righteous Lord; whence He closely images the cry of men fearful, and in straits, saying, Lord, Lord. For to call once is not enough for him who is under the necessity of terror. HILARY. They even assure themselves of glory for their prophesying in teaching, for their casting out dæmons, for their mighty works; and hence promise themselves the kingdom of heaven, saying, Have we not prophesied in thy name? CHRYSOSTOM. But there are that say that they spoke this falsely, and therefore were not saved. But they would not have dared to say this to the Judge in His presence. But the very answer and question prove that it was in His presence that they spoke thus. For having been here wondered at by all for the miracles which they wrought, and there seeing themselves punished, they say in wonderment, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? Others again say, that they did sinful deeds not while they thus were working miracles, but at a time later. But if this be so, that very thing which the Lord desired to prove would not be established, namely, that neither faith nor miracles avail ought where there is not a good life; as Paul also declares, If I have faith that I may remove mountains, but have not charity, I am nothing. (1 Cor. 13:2.)

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA. When the disciples saw that all men received help from Christ, it seemed fitting that they themselves also should in turn rejoice in the benefits of Christ. For no one regards that which happens in the person of another equally with that to himself. The Lord therefore exposed the disciples to the sea and the winds, as it follows, Now it came to pass on a certain day that he went into a ship with his disciples; and he said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake: and they launched forth. CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. 27. in Matt.) Luke indeed avoids the question which might be put to him with regard to the order of time, saying, that He went into a ship on a certain day. Now if the storm had arisen when our Lord was awake, the disciples either had not feared, or not believed that He could do such a thing. For this cause He sleeps, giving them an occasion for fear; for it follows, But as they sailed he fell asleep; and there came down a storm of wind on the lake. AMBROSE. We are told above, moreover, that He passed the night in prayer. How then does He here fall asleep in a storm? The security of power is expressed, that while all were afraid, He alone lay fearless; but He lay asleep in the body, while in the mind he was in the mystery of divinity. For nothing happens without the Word. CYRIL OF ALEXANDRIA. (ubi sup.) But it seems to have been especially and wonderfully ordained that they should not seek His assistance when first the storm began to affect the boat, but after the danger had increased, in order that the power of the Divine Majesty might be made more manifest. Hence it is said, And they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy. This indeed our Lord allowed for the sake of trial, that having confessed their danger they should acknowledge the greatness of the miracle. Hence when their great danger had driven them into intolerable fear, having no other hope of safety but the Lord of power Himself, they awoke Him. It follows, And they came to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, we perish. AUGUSTINE. (de Cons. Ev. l. 2. c. 24.) Matthew says, Master, save us, we perish. Mark, Master, carest thou not that we perish? There is the same expression in all of men awakening our Lord, and anxious for their safety. Nor is it worth while to enquire which of these was most likely to have been said to Christ. For whether they said one of these three, or some other words which no Evangelist has mentioned, but of the same import, what matter is it? Though at the same time this may have been the case, that by the many who awoke Him, all these things were said, one by one, and another by another.

• From The History of Christianity II: From the Reformation to the Modern Megachurch (2017)

  347Lecture 35—Revival and Repression in Korea Kim Il-Sung, the North invaded the South in 1950 and started the Korean War. The war ended with an armistice in 1953, not a treaty—so technically the north and south are still at war. õAs is the case with most communist regimes, Kim Il-Sung’s government did not technically ban all Christian worship. But Kim forced all church officials to join a new body called the Korean Christian Federation. If you didn’t join, then you were arrested. A lot of Christians f led south while they could, but those who didn’t escape and who didn’t fall into line were murdered. õIn the 1980s, North Korea adopted a new outward policy on religion that appeared slightly more tolerant: The government built one Catholic church and two Protestant churches, staffed with government-approved priests. The regime also claims to allow about 500 so-called house churches whose members are forced to live in housing units separate from the rest of the population, so they don’t spread the “virus” of Christianity. õThe state religion of North Korea is the worship of the Kim dynasty, folded into the North Korean ideology of juche, or “self-reliance,” which requires total loyalty of all subjects. Three years after Kim Il- Sung’s death, the government changed the calendar to start with the year of his birth. He is still officially the head of state, even though he died in 1994—to North Koreans, that was the end of his earthly life, but his political life is immortal. SOUTH KOREA õThe communists in the north drove many evangelical refugees south, where they became zealous church builders. Christianity became all the more important to them as a way of demarcating the difference between North and South Korea.

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xxviii.) He took His disciples with Him, and in a boat, that they might learn two lessons; first, not to be confounded in dangers, secondly, to think lowly of themselves in honour. That they should not think great things of themselves because He kept them while He sent the rest away, He suffers them to be tossed by the waves. Where miracles were to be shewn, He suffers the people to be present; where temptations and fears were to be stilled, there He takes with Him only the victors of the world, whom He would prepare for strife. PSEUDO-ORIGEN. (ubi sup.) Therefore, having entered into the boat He caused the sea to rise; And, lo, there arose a great tempest in the sea, so that the boat was covered by the waves. This tempest did not arise of itself, but in obedience to the power of Him Who gave commandment, who brings the winds out of his treasures. (Jer. 10:13.) There arose a great tempest, that a great work might be wrought; because by how much the more the waves rushed into the boat, so much the more were the disciples troubled, and sought to be delivered by the wonderful power of the Saviour. CHRYSOSTOM. They had seen others made partakers of Christ’s mercies, but forasmuch as no man has so strong a sense of those things that are done in the person of another as of what is done to himself, it behoved that in their own bodies they should feel Christ’s mercies. Therefore He willed that this tempest should arise, that in their deliverance they might have a more lively sense of His goodness. This tossing of the sea was a type of their future trials of which Paul speaks, I would not have you ignorant, brethren, how that we were troubled beyond our strength. (2 Cor. 1:8.) But that there might be time for their fear to arise, it follows, But he was asleep. For if the storm had arisen while He was awake, they would either not have feared, or not have prayed Him, or would not have believed that He had the power to still it. PSEUDO-ORIGEN. (ubi sup.) Wonderful, stupendous event! He that never slumbereth nor sleepeth, is said to be asleep. He slept with His body, but was awake in His Deity, shewing that He bare a truly human body which He had taken on Him, corruptible. He slept with the body that He might cause the Apostles to watch, and that we all should never sleep with our mind. With so great fear were the disciples seized, and almost beside themselves, that they rushed to Him, and did not modestly or gently rouse Him, but violently awakened Him, His disciples came to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us, we perish. JEROME. Of this miracle we have a type in Jonah, who while all are in danger is himself unconcerned, sleeps, and is awakened.

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  10:2323. But when they persecute you in this city, flee ye into another: for verily I say unto you, Ye shall not have gone over the cities of Israel, till the Son of man be come. CHRYSOSTOM. (Hom. xxxiv.) Having foretold the fearful things which should come upon them after His Cross, resurrection, and ascension, He leads them to gentler prospects; He does not bid them presumptuously to offer themselves for persecution, but to fly from it; When they persecute you in this city, flee ye to another. For because this was the first beginning of their conversion, He adapts His words to their state. JEROME. This must be referred to the time when the Apostles were sent to preach, when it was said to them, Go not into the way of the Gentiles; they should not fear, but may shun persecution. This we see the believers did in the beginning, when on a persecution arising in Jerusalem they were scattered throughout all Judea, and thus the season of tribulation was made the seedtime of the Gospel. AUGUSTINE. (cont. Faust. xxii. 36.) Not that the Saviour was unable to protect His disciples, does He here bid them fly, and Himself give them an example of it, but He instructed man’s weakness, that he should not presume to tempt God, when he has any thing that he can do for himself, but should shun all evils. AUGUSTINE. (De Civ. Dei, i. 22.) He might have suffered them to lay violent hands upon themselves, that they might not fall into the hands of their persecutors. Therefore if He neither commanded nor allowed this mode of departure from this world to His own, for whom He Himself had promised that He would prepare an eternal mansion; whatever instances may be brought by the Gentiles who know not God, it is clear that this is not lawful for those who believe one true God. CHRYSOSTOM. But that they should not say, What then if we fly from persecution, and again they cast us out thence whither we have fled? To remove this fear, He says, Verily I say unto you, ye shall not have completed, &c. that is, ye shall not have made the circuit of Palestine and return to Me, before I shall take you to Me. RABANUS. Or; He foretels that they shall not have brought all the cities of Israel to the faith by their preaching, before the Lord’s resurrection be accomplished, and a commission given them to preach the Gospel throughout the world.

• From Bad Behavior (1988)

  He’s precious and special. Whenever I think of someone trying to harm him—any of my children really, but especially him—I picture myself turning into a mother tiger and lashing out. I would do anything to protect him.” “Why would you think of anyone trying to harm him?” asked Lily. “Just out of the blue?” She woke up feeling guilty and frightened and angry at Lily. She dimly tried to sort it out. Why should she feel any of these things? The doctors hadn’t tried to tie her tubes. There had been no conversation with Lily. She went back to sleep. When Daniel was sixteen, he had another girlfriend. She was another small girl, with dark hair and light-brown glasses. She wrote poetry and talked a lot about feminism. Virginia still had a snapshot of them on their way to the junior prom. The girl looked embarrassed and distressed in her gown and corsage. Daniel was indifferently handsome. — Charles became a delicate, pretty adolescent. His eyes were large and green and long-lashed, his neck slender. He slouched like an arrogant little cat. Girls got crushes on him, they called and asked to speak to him in scared, high-pitched voices. He was rude to them and hung up. The only girl he liked was a homely, jittery kid who wore a leather jacket and bleached her hair. But that ended when the girl was sent to some kind of institution. — Camille got married a month after she graduated. She and Kevin flew to New Jersey for the wedding. They posed for snapshots in the den. They were radiant against the jumbled background of random shoes and scattered newspapers. Everybody walked around the house talking and laughing and eating hunks of white cake. Kevin’s father shook hands with Jarold. Kevin’s mother helped in the kitchen. Camille and Kevin went to Spain for their honeymoon. Then they moved to New York and got jobs. Camille wrote letters on heavy gray stationery with “Dr. and Mrs. Kevin Spaulding” printed across the top. — Magdalen was married the following spring. She married a Southern lawyer whom she had waited on in the health-food restaurant. “Wouldn’t you know it?” said Anne. “She probably did it to shock you. She couldn’t have Camille getting all the attention.” “It’s what she wanted all along,” said Betty. “A daddy.” John was ten years older than Magdalen. He was broad-shouldered and slow-moving, with lazy gray eyes. Magdalen cuddled against him, her hand quiet on his lapel. Jarold watched them with deep approval. It relaxed him to talk about them or look at them. Virginia was happy that Magdalen had found someone normal to take care of her. She was proud of her daughter’s wedding beauty and of her successful husband.

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  Whether there was contrariety of wills in Christ?Objection 1: It would seem that there was contrariety of wills in Christ. For contrariety of wills regards contrariety of objects, as contrariety of movements springs from contrariety of termini, as is plain from the Philosopher (Phys. v, text. 49, seq.). Now Christ in His different wills wished contrary things. For in His Divine will He wished for death, from which He shrank in His human will, hence Athanasius says [*De Incarnat. et Cont. Arianos, written against Apollinarius]: “When Christ says ‘Father, if it be possible, let this chalice pass from Me; yet not My will, but Thine be done,’ and again, ‘The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh weak,’ He denotes two wills—the human, which through the weakness of the flesh shrank from the passion—and His Divine will eager for the passion.” Hence there was contrariety of wills in Christ. Objection 2: Further, it is written (Gal. 5:17) that “the flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh.” Now when the spirit desires one thing, and the flesh another, there is contrariety of wills. But this was in Christ; for by the will of charity which the Holy Spirit was causing in His mind, He willed the passion, according to Is. 53:7: “He was offered because it was His own will,” yet in His flesh He shrank from the passion. Therefore there was contrariety of wills in Him. Objection 3: Further, it is written (Lk. 22:43) that “being in an agony, He prayed the longer.” Now agony seems to imply a certain struggle [*Greek, {agonia}] in a soul drawn to contrary things. Hence it seems that there was contrariety of will in Christ. On the contrary, In the decisions of the Sixth Council [*Third Council of Constantinople, Act. 18] it is said: “We confess two natural wills, not in opposition, as evil-minded heretics assert, but following His human will, and neither withstanding nor striving against, but rather being subject to, His Divine and omnipotent will.”

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  On the contrary, Augustine says (Confess. ii, 6): “Fear is startled at things unwonted and sudden, which endanger things beloved, and takes forethought for their safety.” I answer that, As stated about [1388](A[3]; Q[41], A[2]), the object of fear is an imminent evil, which can be repelled, but with difficulty. Now this is due to one of two causes: to the greatness of the evil, or to the weakness of him that fears; while unwontedness and suddenness conduce to both of these causes. First, it helps an imminent evil to seem greater. Because all material things, whether good or evil, the more we consider them, the smaller they seem. Consequently, just as sorrow for a present evil is mitigated in course of time, as Cicero states (De Quaest. Tusc. iii, 30); so, too, fear of a future evil is diminished by thinking about it beforehand. Secondly, unwontedness and suddenness increase the weakness of him that fears, in so far as they deprive him of the remedies with which he might otherwise provide himself to forestall the coming evil, were it not for the evil taking him by surprise. Reply to Objection 1: The object of hope is a good that is possible to obtain. Consequently whatever increases a man’s power, is of a nature to increase hope, and, for the same reason, to diminish fear, since fear is about an evil which cannot be easily repelled. Since, therefore, experience increases a man’s power of action, therefore, as it increases hope, so does it diminish fear. Reply to Objection 2: Those who are quick-tempered do not hide their anger; wherefore the harm they do others is not so sudden, as not to be foreseen. On the other hand, those who are gentle or cunning hide their anger; wherefore the harm which may be impending from them, cannot be foreseen, but takes one by surprise. For this reason the Philosopher says that such men are feared more than others. Reply to Objection 3: Bodily good or evil, considered in itself, seems greater at first. The reason for this is that a thing is more obvious when seen in juxtaposition with its contrary. Hence, when a man passes unexpectedly from penury to wealth, he thinks more of his wealth on account of his previous poverty: while, on the other hand, the rich man who suddenly becomes poor, finds poverty all the more disagreeable. For this reason sudden evil is feared more, because it seems more to be evil. However, it may happen through some accident that the greatness of some evil is hidden; for instance if the foe hides himself in ambush: and then it is true that evil inspires greater fear through being much thought about.

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  Objection 3: Further, anger is provoked by the infliction of wounds. But anger causes daring; for the Philosopher says (Rhet. ii, 5) that “anger makes man bold.” Therefore when man is in the midst of danger and when he is being beaten, then is he most daring. On the contrary, It is said in Ethic. iii, 7 that “the daring are precipitate and full of eagerness before the danger, yet in the midst of dangers they stand aloof.” I answer that, Daring, being a movement of the sensitive appetite, follows an apprehension of the sensitive faculty. But the sensitive faculty cannot make comparisons, nor can it inquire into circumstances; its judgment is instantaneous. Now it happens sometimes that it is impossible for a man to take note in an instant of all the difficulties of a certain situation: hence there arises the movement of daring to face the danger; so that when he comes to experience the danger, he feels the difficulty to be greater than he expected, and so gives way. On the other hand, reason discusses all the difficulties of a situation. Consequently men of fortitude who face danger according to the judgment of reason, at first seem slack, because they face the danger not from passion but with due deliberation. Yet when they are in the midst of danger, they experience nothing unforeseen, but sometimes the difficulty turns out to be less than they anticipated; wherefore they are more persevering. Moreover, it may be because they face the danger on account of the good of virtue which is the abiding object of their will, however great the danger may prove: whereas men of daring face the danger on account of a mere thought giving rise to hope and banishing fear, as stated above [1412](A[3]). Reply to Objection 1: Trembling does occur in men of daring, on account of the heat being withdrawn from the outer to the inner parts of the body, as occurs also in those who are afraid. But in men of daring the heat withdraws to the heart; whereas in those who are afraid, it withdraws to the inferior parts. Reply to Objection 2: The object of love is good simply, wherefore if it be increased, love is increased simply. But the object of daring is a compound of good and evil; and the movement of daring towards evil presupposes the movement of hope towards good. If, therefore, so much difficulty be added to the danger that it overcomes hope, the movement of daring does not ensue, but fails. But if the movement of daring does ensue, the greater the danger, the greater is the daring considered to be.

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  655. Similarly, if someone walks along a path which happens to lead directly to a well or a brook, he does not proceed straight along that path but seems to fear that he will fall into the well or brook. This happens because he judges that to fall into a well or a brook is not equally good and not good, but he judges absolutely that it is not good. However, if he were to judge that it is both good and not good, he would not avoid the above act any more than he would desire it. Therefore, since he avoids doing this and does not desire it, obviously he judges or thinks that the one course is better, namely, not to fall into the well, because fie knows that it is better. 656. And if this is true of what is good and what is not good, the same thing must apply in other cases, so that clearly one judges that one thing is a man and another not a man, and that one thing is sweet and another not sweet. This is evident from the fact that he does not seek all things to the same degree or make the same judgment about them, since he judges that it is better to drink water which is sweet than to drink that which is not sweet; and that it is better to see a man than to see something which is not a man. And from this difference in opinion it follows that he definitely desires the one and not the other; for he would have to desire both equally, i.e., both the sweet and the not-sweet, and both man and not-man, if he thought that contradictories were the same. But, as has been said before (349:C 655), there is no one who does not seem to avoid the one and not the other. So by the very fact that a man is differently disposed to various things inasmuch as he avoids some and desires others, he must not think that the same thing both is and is not. 657. It is evident, then that all men think that truth consists in affirmation alone or in negation alone and not in both at the same time. And if they do not think that this applies in all cases, they at least are of the opinion that it applies in the case of things which are good or evil or of those which are better or worse; for this difference accounts for the fact that some things are desired and others are avoided. 658. And if they (350).

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  I. On the first head it is to be noted, (1) That he enters into a ship who follows a holy life—S. Matt. 9:1, “He entered into a ship … and came into His own city,” just as by holiness of life man passes over and comes to his heavenly city. In the following Homily it will be explained why a holy life is likened unto a ship. (2) The disturbance of the sea by the tempest represents the temptations which rise up against holiness—Ecclus. 2:1, “Son, when thou comest to the Service of God stand in justice and in fear, and prepare thy soul for temptation.” (3) The cry of the disciples in the tempest is the prayer of the saints in tribulations and temptations—Ps. 120:1, “In my distress I cried unto the Lord, and He heard me.” (4) The calm of the tempest is the cessation of temptation—Tob. 3:2, “After a storm Thou makest a calm.” Of these four—Ps. 69:23–29, “I am come into deep waters” in the ship of holiness, behold the first; “The floods overflow me,” behold the second; “I am weary of my crying,” behold the third; “Thy salvation, O God, set me up on high” above my temptations, behold the fourth. II. On the second head it is to be noted that the tempest in the sea arose from the winds. Holy Scripture speaks of four winds when temptation arises, and trouble to the saints. Firstly, from the infestation of demons: this is a cold wind—Ecclus. 43:22, “The cold north wind bloweth, and the water congealeth into crystal.” Secondly, from the perverseness of heretics: this is a blasting wind—Gen. 41:6, 7, “Seven thin ears and blasted with the east wind sprung up after them,” and “devoured the seven rank and full ears.” Thirdly, from the cruelty of tyrants: this is a vehement wind—Job. 1:19, “Behold there came a great wind from the wilderness.” Fourthly, from the malignity of false Christians: this is a burning wind—Ecclus. 11:4, “He that observeth the wind shall not sow.” Of these four, Dan. 7:2—“The four winds of heaven strove upon the great sea.”

• From Saint Thomas Aquinas Collection (22 Books) (2016)

  I. On the first head it is to be noted, that peace with God implies three conditions—(1) That God must be feared: Ecclus. 1:22, “The fear of the Lord is a crown of wisdom, filling up peace and the fruit of salvation.” Again, Ecclus. 1:27, “The fear of the Lord driveth out sin.” (2) That God must be hoped in: Isai. 26:3, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on Thee.” (3) That the commands of God must be obeyed: Isai. 48:18, “O that thou hadst hearkened to My commandments! then had thy peace been as a river.” II. On the second head it is to be noted, that three things are needful if a man would have peace with himself—(1) That he should submit himself wholly to God: Job. 22:21, 22, “Acquaint now thyself with Him and be at peace; … lay up His words in thine heart.” (2) That he should ever guard his good-will: S. Luke 2:14, “On earth peace, good-will towards men.” (3) That he should regulate every motion of the mind and body according to wisdom: Rom. 8:6, Vulg., “The wisdom of the spirit is life and peace.” S. Matt. 5:9, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” Gloss., “The peacemakers are all who order the motions of the mind and subject them to reason, and who do not disagree in these things.” III. On the third head it is to be noted, that three things are necessary to the man who desires to be in peace with his neighbour—(1) That he should do those things which are pleasing to God: Prov. 16:7, “When a man’s ways please the Lord, He maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.” (2) That he should do no injury to anyone: 2 Cor. 6:3, “Giving no offence;” and Ps. 119:165, “Great peace have they who love Thy law.” It is the law of God that the things which we are unwilling should be done to us, we should not do to others; but that which we should wish to be done to us, that we should do to others. (3) That we should show kindness to all: Rom. 2:10, “Glory, honour, and peace to every man that worketh good. IV. On the fourth head it is to be noted, that there are three things which chiefly destroy peace—(1) Pride: Job 9:4, Vulg., “Who hath resisted Him and hath had peace?” (2) Anger: Ecclus. 28:11, “A passionate man kindleth strife, and a sinful man will trouble his friends, and bring a debate in the midst of them that are at peace.” (3) Any kind of iniquity: Isai. 48:22, “There is no peace, saith the Lord, unto the wicked.” He who desires in this present life to have peace with God, with himself, with his neighbour, and the peace of eternity for the future, must avoid these three stumbling-blocks; to which peace may we be led, &c. Amen. HOMILY V

• From Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (2016)

  I thought you were a stranger. We’re good then.” It became a tool that served me my whole life. One day as a young man I was walking down the street, and a group of Zulu guys was walking behind me, closing in on me, and I could hear them talking to one another about how they were going to mug me. “Asibambe le autie yomlungu. Phuma ngapha mina ngizoqhamuka ngemuva kwakhe.” “Let’s get this white guy. You go to his left, and I’ll come up behind him.” I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t run, so I just spun around real quick and said, “Kodwa bafwethu yingani singavele sibambe umuntu inkunzi? Asenzeni. Mina ngikulindele.” “Yo, guys, why don’t we just mug someone together? I’m ready. Let’s do it.” They looked shocked for a moment, and then they started laughing. “Oh, sorry, dude. We thought you were something else. We weren’t trying to take anything from you. We were trying to steal from white people. Have a good day, man.” They were ready to do me violent harm, until they felt we were part of the same tribe, and then we were cool. That, and so many other smaller incidents in my life, made me realize that language, even more than color, defines who you are to people. I became a chameleon. My color didn’t change, but I could change your perception of my color. If you spoke to me in Zulu, I replied to you in Zulu. If you spoke to me in Tswana, I replied to you in Tswana. Maybe I didn’t look like you, but if I spoke like you, I was you. — As apartheid was coming to an end, South Africa’s elite private schools started accepting children of all colors. My mother’s company offered bursaries, scholarships, for underprivileged families, and she managed to get me into Maryvale College, an expensive private Catholic school. Classes taught by nuns. Mass on Fridays. The whole bit. I started preschool there when I was three, primary school when I was five. In my class we had all kinds of kids. Black kids, white kids, Indian kids, colored kids. Most of the white kids were pretty well off. Every child of color pretty much wasn’t. But because of scholarships we all sat at the same table. We wore the same maroon blazers, the same gray slacks and skirts. We had the same books. We had the same teachers. There was no racial separation. Every clique was racially mixed. Kids still got teased and bullied, but it was over usual kid stuff: being fat or being skinny, being tall or being short, being smart or being dumb. I don’t remember anybody being teased about their race. I didn’t learn to put limits on what I was supposed to like or not like. I had a wide berth to explore myself. I had crushes on white girls.

• From Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (2016)

  When I walked into that holding pen, I was a smooth-skinned, fresh-faced young man. At the time, I had a giant Afro, and the only way to control it was to have it tied back in this ponytail thing that looked really girly. I looked like Maxwell. The guards closed the door behind me, and this creepy old dude yelled out in Zulu from the back, “Ha, ha, ha! Hhe madoda! Angikaze ngibone indoda enhle kangaka! Sizoba nobusuku obuhle!” “Yo, yo, yo! Damn, guys. I’ve never seen a man this beautiful before. It’s gonna be a good night tonight!” Fuuuuuuuuuck. Right next to me as I walked in was a young man having a complete meltdown, talking to himself, bawling his eyes out. He looked up and locked eyes with me, and I guess he thought I looked like a kindred soul he could talk to. He came straight at me and started crying about how he’d been arrested and thrown in jail and the gangs had stolen his clothes and his shoes and raped him and beat him every day. He wasn’t some ruffian. He was well-spoken, educated. He’d been waiting for a year for his case to be heard; he wanted to kill himself. That guy put the fear of God in me. I looked around the holding cell. There were easily a hundred guys in there, all of them spread out and huddled into their clearly and unmistakably defined racial groups: a whole bunch of black people in one corner, the colored people in a different corner, a couple of Indians off to themselves, and a handful of white guys off to one side. The guys who’d been with me in the police van, the second we walked in, they instinctively, automatically, walked off to join the groups they belonged to. I froze. I didn’t know where to go. I looked over at the colored corner. I was staring at the most notorious, most violent prison gang in South Africa. I looked like them, but I wasn’t them. I couldn’t go over there doing my fake gangster shit and have them discover I was a fraud. No, no, no. That game was over, my friend. The last thing I needed was colored gangsters up against me. But then what if I went to the black corner? I know that I’m black and I identify as black, but I’m not a black person on the face of it, so would the black guys understand why I was walking over? And what kind of shit would I start by going there? Because going to the black corner as a perceived colored person might piss off the colored gangs even more than going to the colored corner as a fake colored person. Because that’s what had happened to me my entire life. Colored people would see me hanging out with blacks, and they’d confront me, want to fight me. I saw myself starting a race war in the holding cell.

• From Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (2016)

  At the time, black South Africans outnumbered white South Africans nearly five to one, yet we were divided into different tribes with different languages: Zulu, Xhosa, Tswana, Sotho, Venda, Ndebele, Tsonga, Pedi, and more. Long before apartheid existed these tribal factions clashed and warred with one another. Then white rule used that animosity to divide and conquer. All nonwhites were systematically classified into various groups and subgroups. Then these groups were given differing levels of rights and privileges in order to keep them at odds. Perhaps the starkest of these divisions was between South Africa’s two dominant groups, the Zulu and the Xhosa. The Zulu man is known as the warrior. He is proud. He puts his head down and fights. When the colonial armies invaded, the Zulu charged into battle with nothing but spears and shields against men with guns. The Zulu were slaughtered by the thousands, but they never stopped fighting. The Xhosa, on the other hand, pride themselves on being the thinkers. My mother is Xhosa. Nelson Mandela was Xhosa. The Xhosa waged a long war against the white man as well, but after experiencing the futility of battle against a better-armed foe, many Xhosa chiefs took a more nimble approach. “These white people are here whether we like it or not,” they said. “Let’s see what tools they possess that can be useful to us. Instead of being resistant to English, let’s learn English. We’ll understand what the white man is saying, and we can force him to negotiate with us.” The Zulu went to war with the white man. The Xhosa played chess with the white man. For a long time neither was particularly successful, and each blamed the other for a problem neither had created. Bitterness festered. For decades those feelings were held in check by a common enemy. Then apartheid fell, Mandela walked free, and black South Africa went to war with itself. RUN Sometimes in big Hollywood movies they’ll have these crazy chase scenes where somebody jumps or gets thrown from a moving car. The person hits the ground and rolls for a bit. Then they come to a stop and pop up and dust themselves off, like it was no big deal. Whenever I see that I think, That’s rubbish. Getting thrown out of a moving car hurts way worse than that. I was nine years old when my mother threw me out of a moving car. It happened on a Sunday. I know it was on a Sunday because we were coming home from church, and every Sunday in my childhood meant church. We never missed church. My mother was—and still is—a deeply religious woman. Very Christian. Like indigenous peoples around the world, black South Africans adopted the religion of our colonizers. By “adopt” I mean it was forced on us.

• From Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (2016)

  I turned and ran into the dead end. Teddy broke the other way. Half the mall cops followed him, half followed me. I got to the fence and knew exactly how to squirm through. Head, then shoulder, one leg, then twist, then the other leg—done. I was through. The guards hit the fence behind me and couldn’t follow. I ran across the field to a fence on the far side, popped through there, and then I was right on the road, three blocks from my house. I slipped my hands into my pockets and casually walked home, another harmless pedestrian out for a stroll. Once I got back to my house I waited for Teddy. He didn’t show up. I waited thirty minutes, forty minutes, an hour. No Teddy. Fuck. I ran to Teddy’s house in Linksfield. No Teddy. Monday morning I went to school. Still no Teddy. Fuck. Now I was worried. After school I went home and checked at my house again, nothing. Teddy’s house again, nothing. Then I ran back home. An hour later Teddy’s parents showed up. My mom greeted them at the door. “Teddy’s been arrested for shoplifting,” they said. Fuuuck. I eavesdropped on their whole conversation from the other room. From the start my mom was certain I was involved. “Well, where was Trevor?” she asked. “Teddy said he wasn’t with Trevor,” they said. My mom was skeptical. “Hmm. Are you sure Trevor wasn’t involved?” “No, apparently not. The cops said there was another kid, but he got away.” “So it was Trevor.” “No, we asked Teddy, and he said it wasn’t Trevor. He said it was some other kid.” “Huh...okay.” My mom called me in. “Do you know about this thing?” “What thing?” “Teddy was caught shoplifting.” “Whhaaat?” I played dumb. “Noooo. That’s crazy. I can’t believe it. Teddy? No.” “Where were you?” my mom asked. “I was at home.” “But you’re always with Teddy.” I shrugged. “Not on this occasion, I suppose.” For a moment my mom thought she’d caught me red-handed, but Teddy’d given me a solid alibi. I went back to my room, thinking I was in the clear. — The next day I was in class and my name was called over the PA system. “Trevor Noah, report to the principal’s office.” All the kids were like, “Ooooohhh.” The announcements could be heard in every classroom, so now, collectively, the whole school knew I was in trouble. I got up and walked to the office and waited anxiously on an uncomfortable wooden bench outside the door. Finally the principal, Mr. Friedman, walked out. “Trevor, come in.” Waiting inside his office was the head of mall security, two uniformed police officers, and my and Teddy’s homeroom teacher, Mrs. Vorster.

• From Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (2016)

  It’s somebody’s gun.” “Officer, we really don’t know,” Bongani said. He slapped Bongani hard across the face. “You’re bullshitting me!” Then he went down the line, slapping each of us across the face, berating us about the gun. We couldn’t do anything but stand there and take it. “You guys are trash,” the cop said. “Where are you from?” “Alex.” “Ohhhhh, okay, I see. Dogs from Alex. You come here and you rob people and you rape women and you hijack cars. Bunch of fucking hoodlums.” “No, we’re dancers. We don’t know—” “I don’t care. You’re all going to jail until we figure out whose gun this is.” At a certain point we realized what was going on. This cop was shaking us down for a bribe. “Spot fine” is the euphemism everyone uses. You go through this elaborate dance with the cop where you say the thing without saying the thing. “Can’t we do something?” you ask the officer. “What do you want me to do?” “We’re really sorry, Officer. What can we do?” “You tell me.” Then you’re supposed to make up a story whereby you indicate to the cop how much money you have on you. Which we couldn’t do because we didn’t have any money. So he took us to jail. It was a public bus. It could have been anyone’s gun, but the guys from Alex were the only ones who got arrested. Everyone else in the car was free to go. The cops took us to the police station and threw us in a cell and pulled us out one by one for questioning. When they pulled me aside I had to give my home address: Highlands North. The cop gave me the most confused look. “You’re not from Alex,” he said. “What are you doing with these crooks?” I didn’t know what to say. He glared at me hard. “Listen here, rich boy. You think it’s fun running around with these guys? This isn’t play-play anymore. Just tell me the truth about your friends and the gun, and I’ll let you go.” I told him no, and he threw me back in the cell. We spent the night, and the next day I called a friend, who said he could borrow the money from his dad to get us out. Later that day the dad came down and paid the money. The cops kept calling it “bail,” but it was a bribe. We were never formally arrested or processed. There was no paperwork. We got out and everything was fine, but it rattled us. Every day we were out in the streets, hustling, trying to act as if we were in some way down with the gangs, but the truth was we were always more cheese than hood. We had created this idea of ourselves as a defense mechanism to survive in the world we were living in.

• From Born a Crime: Stories from a South African Childhood (2016)

  There were easily a hundred guys in there, all of them spread out and huddled into their clearly and unmistakably defined racial groups: a whole bunch of black people in one corner, the colored people in a different corner, a couple of Indians off to themselves, and a handful of white guys off to one side. The guys who’d been with me in the police van, the second we walked in, they instinctively, automatically, walked off to join the groups they belonged to. I froze. I didn’t know where to go. I looked over at the colored corner. I was staring at the most notorious, most violent prison gang in South Africa. I looked like them, but I wasn’t them. I couldn’t go over there doing my fake gangster shit and have them discover I was a fraud. No, no, no. That game was over, my friend. The last thing I needed was colored gangsters up against me. But then what if I went to the black corner? I know that I’m black and I identify as black, but I’m not a black person on the face of it, so would the black guys understand why I was walking over? And what kind of shit would I start by going there? Because going to the black corner as a perceived colored person might piss off the colored gangs even more than going to the colored corner as a fake colored person. Because that’s what had happened to me my entire life. Colored people would see me hanging out with blacks, and they’d confront me, want to fight me. I saw myself starting a race war in the holding cell. “Hey! Why are you hanging out with the blacks?” “Because I am black.” “No, you’re not. You’re colored.” “Ah, yes. I know it looks that way, friend, but let me explain. It’s a funny story, actually. My father is white and my mother is black and race is a social construct, so...” That wasn’t going to work. Not here. All of this was happening in my head in an instant, on the fly. I was doing crazy calculations, looking at people, scanning the room, assessing the variables. If I go here, then this. If I go there, then that. My whole life was flashing before me—the playground at school, the spaza shops in Soweto, the streets of Eden Park—every time and every place I ever had to be a chameleon, navigate between groups, explain who I was. It was like the high school cafeteria, only it was the high school cafeteria from hell because if I picked the wrong table I might get beaten or stabbed or raped. I’d never been more scared in my life. But I still had to pick. Because racism exists, and you have to pick a side. You can say that you don’t pick sides, but eventually life will force you to pick a side. That day I picked white.