It seems to me that the essay makes a claim about the nature of stoicism and how it could be expected to influence modern fans of the philosophy, and you are ma

It seems to me that the essay makes a claim about the nature of stoicism and how it could be expected to influence modern fans of the philosophy, and you are making a claim about the magnitude or degree to which modern students of the philosophy actually commit themselves to it. I'm not sure there is a genuine contradiction here. She may be correct in saying that, to the degree that one adopts the precepts stoicism, it will tend to have such and such an effect on you; and you may be correct to point out that modern students of stoicism are not likely to commit themselves to the philosophy with religious fervor. By the way, I would say a better thesis statement is found in the final paragraph: Because I think it’s important that we mingle some Voltaire in with our Seneca, and remember that stoicism’s invaluable advice for taking better care of ourselves inside can–if we fail to mix it with other ideas–come with a big blind spot regarding the world outside ourselves, and whether we should change it.