When I was growing up, a shopping trip wasn’t complete to me unless my mom or grandma bought me a soft pretzel or doughnut before we left the store or mall.
As a parent, I have become keenly aware that stopping for a treat during a trip to the grocery store is not always practical. I often find myself saying "no" to my three children. But my mother always had a good response when a pretzel or doughnut wasn’t in my future when we were shopping. She would say, "Patience is a virtue."
In the Catechism of the Catholic Church, the church defines a virtue as a "… habitual and firm disposition to do the good. It allows the person not only to perform good acts, but to give the best of himself." (#1803)
The four cardinal virtues — prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance — play a pivotal role in governing our actions, ordering our passions and guiding our conduct according to reason and faith. The three theological virtues (faith, hope and charity) "are the foundation of Christian moral activity; they animate it and give it its special character." (CCC #1813)
In this column, and in the Everyday Faith blog over the next four weeks, we will look at the four cardinal virtues. This summer we will look at the three theological virtues.
Prudence
Aristotle defined prudence as "right reason applied to practice." More practically speaking, prudence obliges us in our judgments to define what is right and what is wrong and make our decisions based on that definition. It is a guide to the other cardinal virtues. By prudence we determine the rules, and we measure our decisions based on those rules.
Justice
The notion of justice has been getting a lot of attention lately by our politicians and media. But does their notion of justice match the church’s definition of the virtue of justice? "Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good." (CCC #1807)
Fortitude
"Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome obstacles in the moral life." (CCC #1808) Some may call this courageous, but fortitude is different in that it allows us to overcome our fears and temptations but not to put ourselves in danger.
Temperance
St. Thomas Aquinas ranked temperance as the fourth of the cardinal virtues because it serves the other three cardinal virtues. Temperance is simply the moderation of the attraction of those things that give us pleasure and the just use of created goods. This moderation of pleasure and just use of created goods is essential to acting rightly (prudence), giving each man his due (justice), and standing strong in the face of adversity (fortitude).
The four cardinal virtues become a part of our daily lives via education, purposeful action and firmness in struggle.
Sorry, Mom, patience is not a cardinal or theological virtue, but it is a personality trait that I could perfect.
Sherwin (rsherwin@dioceseofgreensburg.org) is managing director of the Office for Evangelization and Faith Formation.