Gratitude: the Memory of the Heart

Gratitude: the Memory of the Heart 1

Gratitude, it has been said, is the most fragile of virtues. This virtue’s feebleness was nowhere more apparent than in the treatment given to American soldiers returning from the Vietnam War. They were sometimes spat upon at airports by fringe groups of hippies. Times have changed. American soldiers returning from the Middle … Read more

Greatness Gained Through Submission

Greatness Gained Through Submission

“We will take to the streets right now, we will de-legitimize Bush, discredit him, do whatever it takes, but never accept him.” As Jesse Jackson’s words ripped through the agitated crowd, the bow of racial tension was once again stretched taut. “And indeed African-Americans were targeted,” Mr. Jackson continued, “80 percent of … Read more

The Great Siege: Malta 1565

The Great Siege: Malta 1565 3

The year is 1565. Soleyman the Great, the Ottoman Turk’s greatest leader orders an advance on Malta in an attempt to finish once and for all with the Knights of Saint John of Jerusalem (Hospitallers), his greatest enemy. Encouraged by his victory over them at Rhodes 42 years earlier, he is certain … Read more

Beyond the Call of Duty

Beyond the Call of Duty 1

Americans love heroes. Something about them grips the American soul. Perhaps the attraction lies precisely in going against the zeitgeist of this hedonistic age. Heroes are outside the box. They do not fare well in a culture where real living has been reduced to pre-packaged experiences and media-generated events. They get lost … Read more

Garcia Moreno: Heroic President of Ecuador

Garcia Moreno, President of Ecuador, Writes to His Holiness Blessed Pius IX 1

Manly Catholic of intransigent principles, slain by the enemies of the Faith because of his consistency and courage in defense of the Church and Papacy Gabriel Garcia Moreno was born in Guayaquil, in southern Ecuador on December 24, 1821. His father, Gabriel Garcia Gómez was Spanish, while his mother, Doña Mercedes Moreno, … Read more

Was Youth Made for Pleasure or Heroism?

Was Youth Made for Pleasure or Heroism?

With the guitar hanging around his neck and the microphone in his hand, Elvis Presley is shown in the photo singing and dancing before a frenzied public. In man, the intelligence ought to direct the will, and both of them should in turn enlighten the sensibility, guiding it and supporting it to … Read more

A Hero Hollywood Will Never Mention

A Case for Moral Courage: How Colonel John Ripley Exemplified the Trait – and What We Can All Learn from Him

Mediocrity and egoism are engrained in the modern world. Heroism, self-sacrifice, and honor are often unwelcome and seldom given the admiration they deserve. After all, we are taught that comfort, security, and personal advancement come first. How many men are willing to go beyond the call of duty for an ideal greater … Read more

Heroism

Heroism 1

American soldiers face the prospect of serious injury and death with unflinching courage. Their existence within a nation dominated by a self centered “me culture” is yet another paradox which can be found “only in America.” When Todd Beamer boarded Flight 93 on September 11, he never dreamed that terrorists intended to … Read more