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GROWING
EDGES
 This
issue of the Perspective focuses
on one of the great cardinal virtues–fortitude.
But before we get to fortitude I need to
say a little about virtue, trying, if I
can, to redeem the word for you. Unfortunately
this word tends to get associated with many
bad feelings and attitudes; like perfectionism
or legalism, or like the kind of snobbery
where others are constantly looking down
their noses at all the rest of us. In fact
for many people the very mention of virtue
makes them feel like someone is snooping
around their lives to see if they are having
a good time and trying to stop it.
But
virtue has nothing to do with any of these
things. Simply put, virtue is good habits
that we can rely upon to make our lives
work. (Conversely, vice is bad habits we
can rely upon to make our lives not work.)
When the old writers spoke of “a virtuous
life”, they were referring to a life that
works, a life that functions well.
Now,
the cardinal virtues are called that because
they are the “hinge” virtues, that is, those
qualities of life that swing open the door
onto a good and fully functioning life.
(“Cardinal”, in Latin, means hinge.) And
fortitude is a key cardinal virtue. Indeed
we cannot practice any of the other virtues
very long without bringing fortitude into
play.
A
Double Meaning
Fortitude actually has a double meaning,
or perhaps two distinct aspects of one meaning.
First, it means courage, bravery, valor,
heroism. You know, all of those qualities
that are rather out of fashion in our day,
but which we sure hope the person next to
us has when the chips are down. The second
meaning is endurance, tenacity, perseverance.
It is that ability to stay with a task in
the midst of every conceivable discouragement
and setback. Courage and endurance–it’s
this great combination that is summed up
in the virtue of fortitude.
One
of the finest ways we have of understanding
fortitude is by studying examples of it
in various settings and from different angles.
This is why I hope you will look carefully
at the several books we are offering in
this issue for they all speak to us of fortitude.
Nee To-sheng (Watchman Nee) of China, Eberhard
Arnold of Germany, Rosa Parks of the United
States, Alexander Solzhenitsyn of Russia,
Karol Wojtyla (John Paul II) of Poland,
and Dorothy Day of the United States–each
one teaches us about fortitude. And the
variety of angles and settings serve to
deepen our understanding. Happy summer reading.
Peace
and joy,
Richard J. Foster
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