Book VI. On the Spirit of Fornication. We Have Thought Best to Omit Altogether the Translation of This Book · Book VIII. Of the Spirit of Anger
Chapter XVII
Page 442 of 1,144
That the peace of our heart does not depend on another's will, but lies in our own control.
The chief part then of our improvement and peace of mind must not be made to depend on another's will, which cannot possibly be subject to our authority, but it lies rather in our own control. And so the fact that we are not angry ought not to result from another's perfection, but from our own virtue, which is acquired, not by somebody else's patience, but by our own long-suffering.
Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series II, Volume 11, ed. Philip Schaff and Henry Wace (1890–1900). Public domain. Text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library.