Podcast Summary: All Things Catholic with Dr. Edward Sri

Episode: Why Self-Control Leads to Greater Joy

Date: August 19, 2025
Host: Dr. Edward Sri

Episode Overview

This episode dives deep into the virtue of temperance, commonly misunderstood as mere deprivation or repression. Dr. Edward Sri reframes self-control as a joyful practice that opens us to greater pleasures—the highest goods God intends for us. By moderating our desires, especially around food and drink, we make space in our lives for richer relationships, deeper love, and profound communion with God and others.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Reframing Temperance: Not Deprivation, but Freedom

Timestamp: 03:00 – 05:10

• Temperance is often seen negatively, but Dr. Sri urges a Catholic understanding:
  • Temperance creates space in our souls to enjoy the “highest pleasures” in life, not just lesser, bodily pleasures.
  • If we let bodily desires dominate, we risk missing out on what truly fulfills us: love, truth, beauty, and friendship with God and others.

“It's about making space in our soul to enjoy the highest pleasures of life so we're not weighed down and become slaves to the lower pleasures.” (03:45, Dr. Sri)

2. The Analogy of Chips and Salsa

Timestamp: 07:30 – 09:24

• Dr. Sri uses a relatable restaurant example—filling up on chips and salsa before the main meal—to illustrate how lesser pleasures can crowd out greater experiences.
• Similarly, overindulgence in lower pleasures leaves us less able to enjoy deep friendship, meaningful conversation, or God’s presence.

“When we fill ourselves up with the chips and salsas of life... we don't have the space to appreciate friendship with other people.” (09:15, Dr. Sri)

3. Human Nature: More Than Bodily Pleasure

Timestamp: 09:25 – 11:17

• Unlike animals, humans possess intellect and will: the capacity to know truth, love others, and seek God.
• Overindulgence in bodily pleasures inhibits spiritual growth and authentic relationship.

"We're made not just for food or not just for drink or not just for sexual pleasure. We're made to know truth, goodness and beauty. We're made to know and love other people. And we're ultimately made to know and love God.” (10:30, Dr. Sri)

4. The Childishness of Intemperance

Timestamp: 12:00 – 13:45

• Drawing on Aristotle, Dr. Sri explains how intemperance is a “childish fault,” leaving us enslaved to immature desires, like a toddler demanding treats or comfort without thought for others or long-term good.

5. A Deeper Examination of Gluttony

Timestamp: 14:15 – 30:10

Common Misconceptions

• Gluttony isn’t just overeating or being overweight.
• It can involve:
  • Eating more than necessary (“Am I eating more than I need?”)
  • Being overly particular or picky about food
  • Eating too quickly or greedily
  • Consuming more than one’s share
  • Insisting on eating whenever or however one wants

Five Ways Gluttony Manifests

• How much we eat: Eating past satisfaction out of desire, not need. (16:00)
• What we eat: Being so particular that it inconveniences others (“Do I impose my foodie culture?”). (18:45)
  • Memorable story: Dr. Sri learned to eat salad at a friend’s house “just to be courteous.” (23:20)
• How we eat: Eating too quickly disrupts fellowship and diminishes enjoyment. (25:10)
• Eating greedily: Taking more than your share, which can be inconsiderate in communal settings. (27:20)
• When we eat: Insisting on eating immediately or alone, rather than waiting for and serving others. (28:30)

“A meal isn’t simply for the sake of getting food into our stomachs... it is about fellowship together.” (26:10, Dr. Sri)

“[Gluttony] is not just how much we eat, but being too attached to what we eat.” (21:30, Dr. Sri)

6. The Social Dimension: Charity at the Table

Timestamp: 25:30 – 29:40

• Meals should foster conversation and connection.
• Acts such as waiting for others, eating at their pace, or sacrificing preferences for communal harmony are forms of everyday charity.

“…If I all of a sudden just down all this food and I’m done and then they’re all still eating, it’s just a little awkward. It can make them feel uncomfortable. I want to be with them, and so I’m going to try to eat in pace with them. That’s an act of charity.” (26:50, Dr. Sri)

• Memorable moment:
  • Story of a young boy who, after a baptism, waited until others had eaten and gave up his chair to Dr. Sri’s wife out of kindness (34:05).

7. The Key to Self-Control: The Virtue of Fasting

Timestamp: 31:00 – 36:35

• Fasting isn’t just for Lent; it’s a consistent discipline recommended by Jesus and the Church (prayer, almsgiving, fasting—central to Christian life).
• By regularly denying ourselves in small ways, we become free to make greater sacrifices and serve others joyfully.

“By giving up something I like… I’m learning to say no to little things so that strengthens my will and gives me the ability to say no to bigger things.” (35:05, Dr. Sri)

• Action Item: Build some form of fasting or self-denial—weekly or daily—into your routine, to train your will and foster genuine interior freedom.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Purpose of Temperance:

  “It’s not about repression, it’s about freedom to enjoy the highest goods.” (03:50, Dr. Sri)

• On Gluttony’s Subtlety:

  “We can fall into gluttony by not just how much we eat, eating more than we need, but also being too attached to what we eat.” (21:32, Dr. Sri)

• On Mealtime Charity:

  “I should be looking around at the table and be thinking about, oh, am I pacing myself with the pace of this table? …That’s an act of charity. It’s an act of kindness.” (26:50, Dr. Sri)

• On the Power of Fasting:

  “When I practice fasting in my daily life… I’m learning to say no to little things so that strengthens my will and gives me the ability to say no to bigger things.” (35:05, Dr. Sri)

• On Freedom through Self-Control:

  “When I don’t practice the virtue of fasting, I’ll likely fall into gluttony… and then I’m just not free. I become a slave to my attraction to food and that’s what’s governing me.” (35:55, Dr. Sri)

Practical Takeaways

• Temperance is the joyful path to greater joys, not a route to misery.
• Examine not just how much but how, what, when, and why you eat.
• See mealtime as a space for love and fellowship, not just fueling the body.
• Embed fasting into your routine as a way to grow in genuine freedom and service.

Closing Resources

• Dr. Sri’s book: The Art of Living: The Cardinal Virtues and the Freedom to Love (link in show notes)
• For those wanting to practice intentional Catholic living, aim to integrate these virtues into daily family, community, and spiritual life.