Choose a topic from Part 2B:

133. Faintheartedness or Pusillanimity

1. Faintheartedness or pusillanimity is a culpable dispositionto refuse to face up to situations of difficulty that one mightwell handle and overcome. By presumption, a man takes on more thanhe can handle; by faintheartedness, a man refuses to do what hecan. This faintheartedness is a sin. The servant who buried his onetalent because he was too fainthearted to engage in trade with it,was punished, as for a sin (Matt., chap. 15).

"God speaks to us without ceasing by his good inspirations."
The Cure D'Ars

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"The essence of perfection is to embrace the will of God in all things, prosperous or adverse. In prosperity, even sinners find it easy to unite themselves to the divine will; but it takes saints to unite themselves to God's will when things go wrong and are painful to self-love. Our conduct in such instances is the measure of our love of God."
St Alphonsus de Liguori

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"The more you know and the better you understand, the more severely will you be judged, unless your life is also the more holy. Do not be proud, therefore, because of your learning or skill. Rather, fear because of the talent given you."
Thomas á Kempis

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