Fortitude

FORTITUDE IS A MORAL VIRTUE which, for the pose of doing good,

inspires us to great and difficult works, or enables us to suffer grave evils, even
death itself.

The hero, having strength of will and purpose, is held in admiration; the
coward, having weakness of will and purpose, is condemned. Yet men have
commonly called heroic that which demands physical prowess, physical
courage. Those noted for mental achievements have not been termed heroic,
though their genius is recognized. Still one who stands for principle, who
remains true to it, who resolutely follows it, is a hero.

Now heroism is not within marked limits. Just where it begins and ends and
where folly enters cannot be accurately determined. The quality of courage
should not lead to a false self-confidence, which ordinarily is expressed in
egotism, in a domineering spirit, in unnecessary risks. Self-reliance should not
be wilful neglect of prudent safeguards. Self-determination should not be
deliberate refusal to accept advice. Over-confidence is as bad as timidity. Both.
are abnormal and need to be made sane and reasonable. Foolishly to attempt
what is beyond one’s powers is to court disaster; not to try what one could
reasonably do is to accept failure.

Moral courage, that is, fortitude, is often lacking in those who have physical
and mental strength as well as in those who have not. Human respect and
timidity enter into what they do or avoid. They see a bad example and follow it;
they observe others doing wrong and they have not the courage to do right; they
are afraid of the opinion of others; they listen to things that they disapprove of;
they keep silent when they should speak. They become followers instead of
leaders.

Fortitude, greatness of soul, should incline us to heroic acts of every kind of

virtue. We do not allow ourselves to be presumptuous, that is, attempt what is
not prudent. Nor do we permit ourselves to be ambitious, that is, strive for
power for its own sake. Nor do we suffer vainglory to be the motive of conduct.
Nor should we allow weakness of character or false confidence to rule us. We
aim at perfection of virtue, though not all virtues at once. We seek holiness,
though the approach is slow and hard and little by little.

Have we worked in a truly heroic way? Most of us will not face grave
dangers or death by martyrdom. Still there is heroism in being faithful to
ordinary duties. It is no easy matter to be perfect from day today. It is hard to
give up one’s will completely, to be an exemplar of self-denial, to be prayerful,
to be sincerely humble, to keep rules perfectly, to avoid sin and imperfection
perseveringly, to love God with our whole heart and our neighbor as ourselves.
As a matter of fact there may not be perfection in every detail, but the great
thing to be accomplished is kept in mind and sought for constantly. There is an
effort to bring self into subjection. An absolute victory over self is heroism.

Temptation, of course, will try to prevent perseverance. If it cannot stop us

from starting, it will attempt to keep us from continuing. Now perseverance is
nothing less than forgetfulness of self. What is sought is kept in mind and not
the personal effort required to reach it. The burden and heat are borne for the
good cause that is sought. Our Lord thought of the work to be accomplished.
The Apostles were ready to be sacrificed because of the good tidings that they
were bringing to others for the sake of the Master. St. Paul expressed this
thought most adequately when he said that he was willing to be anathema if it
would serve the glory of God. That was complete forgetfulness of self. On the
contrary, we are inclined to put much on personal whim and fancy and diffi-
culty. Seemingly, we hate to work hard to acquire things, even those of value. If
perseverance were looked on with eyes of faith: an opportunity to serve God, a
chance to help others, a means of acquiring learning and holiness, then we
would face resolutely the mountain tops and struggle along securely and slowly
to reach them, knowing that our trust is not in self alone, but in God. Moreover,
if we look at perseverance as something that applies to the very action that we
are performing, and not as to some distant thing, we will face the future
confidently, trusting to God.

There will be temptations to waver. We have not developed perfect habits of

constancy. Steadiness of purpose has to be acquired. All of us are somewhat
weak and somewhat changeable. If we fall, if we break our resolutions, should
we not rise promptly, take heart again, and follow through to the journey’s end?

In other words, there will be difficulties. So many take the wrong view of
them. Temptations worry them; trials cause loss of peace of mind, bringing dis-
content and even discouragement; faithfulness to daily duties seem hard,
especially when there is lack of spiritual delight. A sane and spiritual idea of
difficulties should be had. They prove us; they test us; they give us an
opportunity to work harder for God. They do not mean that there is something
wrong with us or our spiritual life; when overcome, they do declare that we are
on the right road spiritually. To let them conquer us is to go along with the
current, following the line of least resistance and that leads to nothing great.
Life is a warfare. Cowards refuse to fight or offer feeble opposition. The
courageous glory in the chance to prove their mettle to God. There is joy in
victory that is fought for. The strong of heart do not give up.

Let our trust and our strength be in God. “The Lord is my protector; of
whom shall I be afraid?” Let us be constant in following good. Let us persever-
ingly overcome difficulties. Let us seek perfection in our ordinary affairs. Let us
strive unceasingly to love God, for then we shall do great things for Him.