The Fifth Stoa 

In the past five years, there has been an astonishing increase in people who call themselves Stoics. The Stoicism Facebook group now has around 50,000 subscribers. There are organized Stoic groups in some 60 cities around the world. They meet in lecture rooms, cafes, and pubs on an ongoing basis to discuss Stoicism. Possibly the largest of these groups in the world—the Toronto group—has nearly 900 members. 

The annual Stoic conference, Stoicon, which attracts some 500 people around the world, is called the largest gathering of Stoics ever (although I can’t vouch for this). There are dozens of Stoic websites and blogs, hundreds of YouTube videos, thousands of Twitter feeds, podcasts, and books. 

And then there are therapies such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and rational emotive behavioral therapy (REBT) based on Stoic principles. Army veterans use Stoic principles to help them overcome trauma. (See the story of Abbillyn Johnson in this issue.) 

Massimo Pigliucci describes the current surge of Stoic activities as the fifth wave of Stoicism or the Fifth Stoa. 

Why this magazine? 

This is the first issue of our magazine, THE STOIC. What inspired me to do this? I already have a day job unrelated to Stoicism, am involved in different businesses, write books on other subjects, and travel frequently. Why this additional undertaking? Even though many resources are available to Stoic practitioners, there is no Stoic magazine—a resource that is useful, light and topical. It seemed to me the time is right for a magazine like this. 

What THE STOIC hopes to achieve 

First and foremost, THE STOIC aims to bring you articles to help you practice Stoicism. We may publish articles on theory, but our main focus will always be on applying Stoic principles to live a better life every hour of every day: How do we live the good life? How do we make life run smoothly? 

The second purpose is to inspire and remind us to apply Stoic principles to our daily life through Stoic quotes and anecdotes. 

The third purpose is to be a central resource for Stoic happenings such as Stoic meet ups, events, and publications around the world. 

Our Advisory Board 

We have assembled an impressive diverse Advisory Board (see elsewhere in this issue): men, women, academics, behavior therapists, physicians, writers, and bloggers. It includes some of the most active figures in modern Stoicism. They lead busy lives and yet were generous enough to agree to be on our Advisory. I thank them for their generosity. 

If you would like to get involved 

If you want to be involved, you can: 

Talk to us. Let us know how you like the magazine and what we can do to better serve you. 

Share your story. If Stoicism helped you personally to overcome problems, share your story with us. Feel free to comment on the articles. 

Tell others. Subscribe to THE STOIC and let others know about the publication. If there are any upcoming Stoic events in your area, please let us know. 

The Fifth Stoa is probably the strongest stoa in history. Let us make it work for everyone. 

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Chuck Chakrapani, Editor-in-Chief 

 

 

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