Spiritual Power?

 If there is one thing that our current society is not happy with it is "Restraints."  We do not want others telling us what we can and cannot do. We do not want limits. We do not want to have to hold in our feelings. We thinking that it takes great courage to express ourselves and to voice our protest loudly. If you feel passionately about a cause, then you need to express yourself vigorously.

So it was a little surprising to me to read the opinion "Spiritual strength consists of two things: great power of will and great power of self-restraint.  Spiritual power requires two things: great strong feelings and great ability to control and have command over those feelings."

To have great passion, to feel deeply, to be affected by events profoundly and to immediately express those feelings is really a sign of great weakness. Your emotions control you.  You are chaff blowing in the wind of your passions.

To have those great rages at injustice, to feel great passion for the sorrowing, to grieve deeply for those with great pain and to be able to be master of those emotions so that you can act in ways that channel and focus those emotions in a much more powerful way is to have Spiritual Strength.  Seems to me to be what Jesus is suggesting in "turn the other cheek."  Seems to me why Non-violence is such a great instrument for good. It is the kind of Spiritual strength that Jesus shows on the cross as his emotions are so deep but he remains in control and prays for their forgiveness.