Page 13 - Michael 2024 May

None of us knows if the righteous people in our righteous are not moralists who don the robe of the
world are numerous or if they are as rare as pre- censor, but upright people who “hunger and thirst for
cious pearls. But they are people who draw grace righteousness” (Mt 5:6), dreamers who yearn in their
and blessings both upon themselves and upon the hearts for universal brotherhood. And, today espe-
world in which they live. They are not losers com- cially, we are all in great need of this dream. We need
pared to those who are “cunning and shrewd”, for, to be righteous men and women, and this will make
as Scripture says, “He who pursues righteousness us happy. v
and kindness will find life and honour” (Pr 21:21). The Pope Francis

The virtue of fortitude:

the courage to say “no” to evil

We can know what is right, what is good, but fighters succumb before they even begin the chal-
not have the courage, the strength to say it, to do lenge! (...)
it, for fear of persecution, for example. That’s why In addition to internal trials, there are external
we also need the virtue of strength, which was enemies, which are life’s trials, persecutions, diffi-
precisely the subject of Pope Francis’ catechesis culties that we did not expect and that surprise us.
on Wednesday, April 10, 2024. Like Louis Even, Indeed, we can try to predict what will happen to
we need to have the courage to say to Financiers: us, but to a large extent reality, is made up of im-
“No, you don’t have the right to steal from us! And ponderable events, and in this sea sometimes our
to governments: “No, you do not have the right to boat is tossed about by the waves. Fortitude, then,
be the accomplices of these Financiers!” makes us resilient sailors, who are not frightened
Today’s catechesis is dedicated to the third of or discouraged.
the cardinal virtues, namely fortitude. Let us begin Fortitude is a fundamental virtue because it
with the description given in the Catechism of takes the challenge of evil in the world seriously.
the Catholic Church: “Fortitude is the moral vir- Some pretend it does not exist, that everything is
tue that ensures firmness in difficulties and con- going fine, that human will is not sometimes blind,
stancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens that dark forces that bring death do not lurk in his-
the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome tory. But it suffices to leaf through a history book,
obstacles in the moral life. The virtue of fortitude or unfortunately even the newspapers, to discover
enables one to conquer fear, even fear of death, the nefarious deeds of which we are partly victims
and to face trials and persecutions” (1808). This and partly perpetrators: wars, violence, slavery,
is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church says oppression of the poor, wounds that have never
about the virtue of fortitude. healed and continue to bleed.
Here, then, is the most “combative” of the The virtue of fortitude makes us react and cry
virtues. If the first of the cardinal virtues, that is, out “no”, an emphatic “no” to all of this. In our com-
prudence, was primarily associated with man’s fortable Western world, which has watered every-
reason; and while justice found its in the will, this thing down somewhat, which has transformed the
third virtue, fortitude, is often linked by scholas- pursuit of perfection into a simple organic develop-
tic authors to what the ancients called the “iras- ment, which has no need for struggle because
cible appetite”. Ancient thought did not imagine a everything looks the same, we sometimes feel a
man without passions: he would be a stone. And healthy nostalgia for prophets. But disruptive, vi-
passions...must be educated, they must be chan- sionary people are very rare. There is a need for
nelled, they must be purified with the water of someone who can rouse us from the soft place in
Baptism, or better with the fire of the Holy Spirit. which we have lain down and make us resolute-
A Christian without courage, who does not turn ly repeat our “no” to evil and to everything that
his own strength to good, who does not bother leads to indifference. “No” to evil and “no” to
anyone, is a useless Christian. Let us think about indifference; “yes” to progress, to the path that
this! (...) moves us forward, and for this we must fight.
There are internal enemies we must defeat, Let us therefore rediscover in the Gospel
which go by the name of anxiety, anguish, fear, Jesus’ fortitude, and learn it from the witness of
guilt: all forces that stir in our innermost selves the saints. Thank you! v
and in some situations paralyse us. How many Pope Francis

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