I wish I could've hung out with Thomas Aquinas. He must've been a riot. The name may conjure stuffy intellectual images but it shouldn't. In his Summa Theologica, he draws our attention to an oft-ignored virtue: wit. “Jokes and plays are words and gestures that are not instructive but merely seek to give lively pleasure. We should enjoy them. They are governed by the virtue of witty gaiety to which Aristotle refers (Ethics II28aI) and which we call pleasantness. A ready-witted man is quick with repartee and turns speech and action to light relief.” I could totally see Thomas throwing down some sarcastic barbs at fellow members of the Domincan Order. Later Aquinas says: “It is against reason to be burdensome to others, showing no amusement and acting as a wet blanket. Those without a sense of fun, who never say anything ridiculous, and are cantankerous with those who do, these are vicious, and are called grumpy and rude.”
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