“Why then are we offended? Why do we complain? This is the work of a skilled wrestler, whom fortune has brought forth as a fit antagonist, whose strength may be tried and improved by him. Must I, then, who have got such a stout and noble champion on whom to try my strength, be outdone with pleasure and pain? And how dull and unexercised must I appear, if I shrink from severity and the fire, if I cannot bear stern looks, or harsh words, incapable as I am of the true touch and test of Virtue!” - Hierocles