What is Courage?

A Reflection on the Second Reading for Sunday, October 5th, 2025:
Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

---

2 Timothy
1. 6-8, 13-14

Beloved: I remind you to rekindle the gift of God that is within you through the laying on of my hands; for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and self-discipline. Do not be ashamed, then, of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner, but join with me in suffering for the Gospel, relying on the power of God.

Hold to the standard of sound teaching that you have heard from me, in the faith and love that are in Christ Jesus. Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit living in us.

​Pause. Pray. Reflect.

In this week’s second reading, Paul is writing to Timothy from prison, exhorting his brother to remain steadfast in the mission of sharing the Gospel of Christ. Paul is eventually beheaded for his faith, but not before reminding Timothy that there is no need to be afraid of trials and suffering for the sake of God - “for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice [...] Guard the good treasure entrusted to you, with the help of the Holy Spirit.”

Fortitude is both a cardinal virtue and a gift of the Holy Spirit. As a virtue, it “ensures firmness in difficulties and [...] enables one to conquer fear in defense of a just cause” (CCC 1808). Unlike the theological virtues, which are infused in us by God’s grace, the cardinal virtues are acquired by human effort, education, and deliberate acts (CCC 1804, 1810). As a gift of the Holy Spirit, fortitude is given as the Lord wills, to whom He wills, for His glory and the building up of the Kingdom. 

So, for some of us, we may be given the gift of fortitude by the Holy Spirit. But even gifts from the Holy Spirit need to be “activated.” For all of us, then, being courageous requires a human choice to act and flex our “courage muscle” from time to time.

The Latin root of the word courage is cor, meaning heart. The first step to being courageous is confidence that our choices are made from a whole and healthy heart. This means we aren’t acting from a “chip on our shoulder," a wound, or any motivation other than Jesus Christ. When practicing fortitude, we must always consult its sister cardinal virtue - prudence. Prudence will help us ensure we are discerning the true good in every circumstance, and to choose the right means of doing it. Prudence, as Aquinas puts it, is right reason in action. (CCC 1806).

Secondly, we should know that good decisions are not made out of fear. Usually we won’t experience the worst case scenario when we step out in courage. But, even if there is some suffering involved, we can recall Paul in prison, asking Timothy to join him in suffering, reminding him that we can always rely on God for strength and supernatural power. 

Finally, we can remember that every act of courage does not need to be a giant sacrifice. There are many ways to be courageous. Most of us will not take a bullet or be beheaded for what we believe. But we take heart from those witnesses, and make small, courageous choices that free us from fear or despondency, and help us find joy in living out our faith for others to see.




Michelynne Gomez

---