“Seems like the less I get, the more I have to pay…”
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This past weekend found me attending the wedding of a friend in the area.
Needless to say, I was honored to be invited and witness the important, joyous occasion.
Sadly, I discovered I’m still too fat for my formal clothes (though working on changing that even harder now) and I’m a shamefully lapsed Roman Catholic.
But those aren’t the topic of today’s missive.
As I sat listening to the priest’s sermon, I contemplated a word he used with ample frequency.
That word?
“Sacrifice.”
It struck me just how poorly so many (lamentably, this otherwise commendable priest, included) employ it.
See, what it seems to mean – to far too many – is:
Loss.
But we have a word for that meaning.
[It’s “loss”, by the way.]
Sacrifice should mean, more than any other definition it may technically possess:
“The act of giving up something highly valued for the sake of something else considered to have a greater value or claim.”
Men are all too often called to “sacrifice” when really what they are being asked [read: ordered] to do is to lose something.
Their money.
Their time.
And, terribly, their very lives.
Now, to read this as saying men should not surrender specific treasured things at certain appropriate times, whether it be in love or war, would be to selfishly misunderstand me.
What I am saying, in the interest of clarity, is that – at such instances – something should be gained that is of even greater value in the eyes of the one sacrificing.
Anything else is punishment (at best) and theft (at worst).
In short (and to combine it with previous words of mine):
Bend the knee judiciously and be certain your sacrifice leads to a greater prize of your estimation.
3♥
80-Proof Oinomancy 
April 13, 2018 at 7:41 pm
There is no upper limit to the price we will be expected to pay. Women and society don’t even regard this as a transaction. They tell us what they expect from us and wait to receive it.
The first moment we will know masculinity is resurgent is when a plurality of men – regardless of creed or politics – demand more. Not simply refuse to play or drop out of sight, but actually say “This is ridiculous, I want a better deal than this.” And stand by it.
Now, there will always be some men who will pay whatever is asked. They can’t conceive of any other kind of world. But since the demanding parties don’t know the meaning of the word ‘Enough’, even these men will reach a point where they simply can’t do it anymore. They will let their balls drop, or die by their own hand.
We have nothing to prove to Women or Society. They’ve been strip-mining us for decades.
April 26, 2018 at 2:03 am
JD,
“…even these men will reach a point where they simply can’t do it anymore. They will… die by their own hand.”
I agree completely, although, I’d argue we’re already there (or at its threshold).
I wrote a book doing so, as you’ve read.
“We have nothing to prove to Women or Society. They’ve been strip-mining us for decades.”
Concur. In fact, perhaps I should go into more detail regarding my thoughts on our “nothing to prove” in a post at some point in the near future.
All the best,
A♠
April 26, 2018 at 9:39 am
A♠,
“A Holistic Guide To Suicide” is nothing if not timely, as we’ve discussed before. The suicide rate in our demographic is awful. Thanatos is slowly carrying away multiples of that number through self-medication and crushing depression.
“Mens’ hearts failing them from fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the Earth” – even if those expectations prove to be mere figments, it gets the job done.
An expansion on the theme of ‘nothing to prove’ should definitely go on your calendar somewhere.
Cheers my friend
April 15, 2018 at 12:06 am
Men are surplus producers, a necessity of the species to provide for women during their pregnancy and child bearing years. As adept as women are in exploiting this design feature, none have been more successful than the Holy Church of Rome. No entity survives uninterrupted for 2,000 years while providing essentially nothing physical in return, without having honed their methodology down to an art form.
From a marketing perspective, fear is the greatest product ever sold. We fear what we don’t understand, and the Church offers their services as a middleman to God. Men have bought this pitch for millennia. We do the same thing today handing over annual savings to investment brokers. Broker or priest, mammon or God, this is their field. They’ve dedicated their lives to understanding it. Some of my money is a wise investment for their counsel, or so the priest and broker will tell us.
The Priest, The Stock Broker, The Lawyer, The Politician—everyone is selling the same product, knowing full well you don’t have the time (or interest) to research every subject in it’s entirety. They’ve dedicated their lives to their field, you haven’t, so it’s easier to believe then than try to replicate their learnings. But they aren’t driven to help you, their primary goal is to draw from you. If you could know the absolute truth about any one subject of God, Money, Law or Politics, which would you choose to know?
If you wish to know something about me, the best person to ask is me. If you wish to know something about God, the best person to ask is God. The difference is that God doesn’t answer, which is the claim from anyone who’s never tried. God always answers, the problem is most don’t know how to listen. I offer two bits of understanding.
1) The universe is a big machine and it’s primary purpose is to provide you with whatever experience you desire. Your desire is manifested by your thoughts and beliefs. Every thought is a prayer, telling the universe what you’re interested in. Do a little exercise for a few months… pay attention to what you think about. Just try to remember. Then watch how many things are brought to you which align with thoughts you’ve had. Your beliefs as to what’s possible are like self imposed boundaries. The universe will not provide that which you believe to be impossible, as this would be a violation of your free will. Believe in everything and you can experience anything.
2) Changing your beliefs is the hardest thing you can ever do. There’s a reason governments, religions and educators are in such a hurry to gain access to the minds of children. Whatever belief system goes into the mind first will remain the strongest, and the hardest to displace. It’s like a concrete foundation for a structure, and everything else is built upon it. Pick any topic and examine your beliefs about it, then ask, “Is my belief based upon my own conclusions, or was my belief installed there by someone else?” This goes back to Ace’s posts on April 5 and March 19. Examine everything you believe. If it’s there from any source other than yourself, and if it does not serve your best interests, suspend the belief until you can install something yourself that serves you first.
If you write your own code, you can write anything.
April 26, 2018 at 2:07 am
Myopia,
While most of your comment resounds with me, I found this passage particularly apt:
“Do a little exercise for a few months… pay attention to what you think about. Just try to remember. Then watch how many things are brought to you which align with thoughts you’ve had.”
…since I recently tried to reopen a blog I (very infrequently) kept regarding magick and the Will.
Unsuccessfully, as I couldn’t recall the password, but it’d been on my mind so I thought I’d give it shot.
Synchronicity, indeed.
All the best to you,
A♠
April 19, 2018 at 2:02 am
I still need to read through this post a couple of times before I can leave a comment worthy of it.
Wald
April 21, 2018 at 5:33 pm
[…] Ace contemplates sacrifice this week in “Seems like the less I get, the more I have to pay…” […]
May 23, 2018 at 6:56 am
This cuts deep. Too often we label something “sacrifice” to ennoble our action (or lack thereof) and make it superficially bearable, rather than admit to ourselves that we’ve chosen to lose.
Though I can only speak for myself.