2-16-13 i had a realization earlier today.

I was reflecting on courage and what are the characteristics of a man who has courage. I've always thought in my mind it's a man who's willing and even eager to beat up a man who threatens or messes with his significant other in any way. I've thought of men who can get aggressive a nd don't take crap from people who insult them. But then I realized that Jesus was the ideal man and he wasn't anything like that. He was strong but gentle, a nd not once in the Bible did he ever even hit someone, and I'm sure there were p lenty of opportunities for him to do so. He never became violent with anyone. He was tender with the people He cared about and even strangers He healed. He w asn't loud or verbally aggressive, He was soft-spoken and not talking all the ti me. He never got into name calling, even when people insulted Him. I also real ized that Jesus came down to earth to save us, but also to be an example of the way all humans, but especially men, should live. He lived His life on Earth kno wing all future generations of people would have His example to look to, and He purposefully did what He did to show us how to be men of love, courage, and wisd om. Nowadays our culture has glorified violence and tough guys who don't take crap from anyone, but Jesus showed us that the men who easily get dragged into conflicts and fights are the fools, the men who learn how to avoid fights are th e wise ones. The courageous man is the one who stands up to his enemies and tak es their blows without throwing a punch, but just defending the defenseless and standing his ground, showing he isn't afraid of them even if they can hurt him. That's what Jesus did, and today He'd be seen as a wimp, but in reality His act ions reflected a man who didn't need to be violent to make a point and let his n on-violence speak louder than his words or actions. When we look back in histor y, we see that all the most courageous and wise men were the ones who fought evi l with their intellects and with their defiance of evil through non-voilent acts . MLK helped defeat segregation this way, JP2 defeated communism this way, Ghan di changed the world this way, and all the martyrs of the Church won glory in He aven this way. Courage isn't posturing, it isn't boasting or intimidating other s, it's something that comes from the inside. It's an act of the will, a determ ination to do something or defend someone in the face of either evil or tragedy, knowing there's a good chance you'll be harmed in some way. It's doing what' s right when it's not convenient and often when you're the only one doing it. I t's facing your fear, whatever that fear might be, and overcoming it for the gre ater good, for a cause greater than yourself. It's not getting involved in figh ts over trivial things, to the contrary, it's only getting involved in a conflic t when you have no other choice because people need your help and the situation demands your intervention. Finally, it's not hurting those who deserve it even when it's very tempting to do so, and instead being an example to all those who are witnessing the evil or tragedy you're witnessing by being a man of peace, f ortitude, and most of all, courage. It's trusting that God always gets revenge on those who wrong you and others who are defenseless, even if they get away wit h bad things here on Earth. Courage is a show of faith in the presence of evil, pain, horror, and tragedy, letting the people involved know that your strength comes not from yourself but from God and that no matter what happens to your min d or body, they can never destroy your soul if it's connected to God.