CARDINAL VIRTUES: Prudence, Justice, Fortress, Temperance.
At the begining of every year, and now of the 2020, we all have desires, purpuses, and I would like to share my own; hoping they can help someone.
It is a small list, and I will try my best to be succesfull about them, my first purpuse is in living better the Cardinal Virtues, since they help us to be a better person. In second place let me mention that I want to put more order in my personal life, using the best way my time, and in a better organiced way, and third and more important, to be nearer to Jesus Christ and the Holy Virgin. As you see it consists in only three matters, but let me tell you, that I am not trusting in my own forces, I as every one, need the help of God all Migthty, since alone we cannot succed in any thing, but with Thy Help, we can obtain our goals. So in my intent to be closer to God, and my prayers will include asking for his help to achive my goals.
Looking a Little about the Cardinal Virtues, seems to be
indicated, due to the carácter of the other two wishes that are so personal.
It is said by specialists that all virtues are a system in
wich all human virtues are involved, and
that they are all related, in one or
other manner, also they teach us that these four virtues are called Cardinal
because from them derive all other human virtues. It is also thaugth and it is a great truth, that in order to be able to live
the theological virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity, we have to perform well on
the human virtues.
PRUDENCE is always mentioned in the first place and a
definition of
it could be: Prudence is the virtue that prepaers our spiritual soul to choose in
all circumstances our true good, and to elect the means to realice it.
Prudence is the virtue that allows our spirit to discern in any situation our
own true good and to elect the means to obtain it.
So any action that is judged to be adecuate to obtain the
good and the mandate to reach it, is a
prudent way.
Prudence is related to inteligence, it is radical to
practical reason. It is orientd to praxis. In it we find four acts advice
(concilium), practical judgement (iudicium),
precept (praeceptum), and imperium (imperium).
The first step of our prudence is to have the humility to
admit that we cannot reach every thing and in all circumstances, so it is
advisable to find counsil from some one that is realy prepared to give it. That
will give us the opportunity to act prudently. But we do not have to reach only
the prudent way to do something, we have to do it, prudence is a virtue of
action, of doing what we must, once we are sure that we are in the possition to
do it, and in the best way to act.
Prudence must be performed not only in the person´s life, it
also is needed inorganizations. In them the colegiate decision are better that
personal, due to the examination of more points
of vieu, and more persons involved in the responsablity.
Some times prudence is associate to being bold, this may seem
to be a contrary possition, but it is not, audacity is adviseble in taking prudent
decisions, measuring the responsabilities involved.
JUSTICE has been defined with very few words, for centuries
is is said
to be: to give each its own. Of course this can be explained in more ample
manner. We could say that justice is: to always respect what belongs to others
wether it is material or spiritual. (
just as an example)
Here a question araises: what belongs to God? and the answer is simple: all, every thing.
But in spite of this, the justice to wich we refer is betwen equals and the
diference between Creator and creature is such, that there cannot be what we consider
justice among us. So justice has its praxis between creature to creature.
St. Joan says to us (1 Jn 4,8) God is love, this is what
gives us the clue to live the just way
with God, and this is in our own nature, the one that has been given to us
mankind, to be created in image and similarity to God, so the capacity to
respond with love to our Creator, is the one to love thy.
In relation to the justice between human creatures we have to consider the rigths of the others
and the first one is the rigth to live,
others are : freedom, property, fame, payment of our debts, specially salaries
that must be proper, respect of dignity, etc. but we cannot forget that there
is a legislative way of life that we admit in order to guarranty justice, and a
person can even be subject to loose its liberty, and become a prisioner due to
unlawfull commitment of acts.
Some actions are injust in relation to others, but are
examined when we speak of the virtue of charity, which is a Teological Virtue.
Since we love God and Thy loves all its creatures, of our
love of God must araise our love for all Thy creatures, specially the human
kind. We must consider wrong not to love all humans.
FORTRESS is to have the courage to overcome the dificulties and our
limitations. A phrase from Seneca says: “Per aspra ad astra”. Its meaning:
trough dificulties to the stars. So we could define fortress as the virtue of
efffort to obtain what is of value.
It is necessary to
make efforts, we have to smooth what is rough, to solve problem after problema,
that is what life consits of. Our sigth should alwais be in higher objectives, nothing is difficult for those who really
want. It is part of human nature to be weak in some manners, that is the reason
why fortress is highly valued due to the
capacity of sacrifice in order to come
out victorious in the pursue of good things.
The Holy Scriptures teach us that our fortress comes from God, we alone are not
able of obtain difficult things by
ouselves, but with the example of Jesus
Christ and his help we will get the necessary grace to perform adequately.
Other facet of this virtue is the act of
resisting the adverse, the unpleasant, the tough, and be able to solve
them adecuately. Patience in a very close virtue associated to fortress, as
well as persevence. We must think of this association.
TEMPERANCE, this virtue consists in the armonic way that
makes possible to the person choosing
well, what ever is of goodness. It is of great
importance that in this life we enjoy goods, in liberty, but not leting them to
make us their slaves. Pope Franciscus
says that temperance is “the sense of measure”.
Temperance allows us
not to loose the compass pointing, that always is directed to God. The general
objective is to obtain our salvation and be happy in so, if vice and avarice
for money, power or fame hoards the life of persons, then the objective is
lost. We must preserve the purpose for wich we live, is to love and serve God over all things.
This virtue helps us to mantein the “equilibriun”
in serving others and be happy about it. Who is far away from God is so with
himself and only will find himself after finding God, here we should remember
St. Agustin´s famos sentence: “ You made us, God for you, and our heart is not
still, until it rests in you”.
Jorge Casas y Sánchez.
