Definition and Explanation

1. Catechism of the Catholic Church, point 1808: "Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the pursuit of the good."
2. Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologiae, IIaIIae, question 123:
   • • • • • Fortitude is the virtue by which man overcomes his will's disinclination to pursue that which is in accord with reason on account of some difficulty.
           • Fortitude is the perfection of the irascible appetite, which is the sensitive appetite that overcomes difficulties in choosing good or avoiding evil.
           • There is fortitude both of mind and of body, since difficulties must be overcome in pursuing bodily and mental goods.
3. Aristotle's Rhetoric, Book I, Chapter 9:
   • • • • • "Courage is the virtue that disposes men to do noble deeds in situations of danger, in accordance with the law and in obedience to its commands."