A philosopher is a gadfly.

The philosopher is always considered a necessary evil. He is hated by most because he questions all, and will not shy at undermining even the highest authority. Yet he is also relied on in every age, for without his questioning, we would have no answers and no progress. This very same philosopher can be loved and hated within any individual, for every individual is a philosopher, with him sometimes urging one on to seek the truth, and sometimes tormenting one relentlessly when one makes a poor decision.

A philosopher is a gadfly. If you kill him within yourself to end the pain he inflicts on your conscience, rest assured that the pain and hell you will experience without him will be far greater suffering, that you would prefer ending life itself than living without this necessary evil within you. This necessary evil, urging you on to perfection, certainty, and highest purpose.

For a philosopher is nothing but a lover of Wisdom, and Wisdom is Christ.

The difficulty, my friends, is not in avoiding death, but in avoiding unrighteousness; for that runs faster than death. -Socrates, The Apology