Daily heroism for all

To be sure, heroism can and, in fact, should be attained by everyone. It’s not meant only for a few. The fruit of love, of self-giving, the expression of a generous, magnanimous heart, heroism is the law and goal of our life. It’s the other name for sanctity.

We are actually made for it, and if we bother to examine ourselves closely, our spiritual DNA bears it out. We are wired for it. Again, if we strip ourselves of the many conditionings that color our life, we can actually discern a native longing for loving and for heroism.

We don’t have to wait for some spectacular, dramatic moments to show and prove it. We don’t need to be shot by a firing squad to become heroes, nor to do some whoppingly extraordinary act that can grab“public attention like some digital wildfire.

“Heroism is at the easy reach of everyone. Chances for it practically beckon us every day and in every moment. Opportunities for it lie waiting for us not so much in the big but occasional things in our“life as in the small, routine, hidden things of our daily life.

It’s just a matter of choosing to follow what Christ has told us—to love God with all our might, and to love our neighbor as ourselves. It’s a matter of loving, of giving our all, which is what love is all about, in whatever we are doing, whether in our human estimation it is big or small.

Remember that we can only be ready for heroism in the big things if we are consistently heroic in the small things. “He who is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much. And he who is dishonest in a very little is dishonest also in much.” (Lk 16,10)

We have to be wary of doing things just to do away with an unavoidable task or to meet certain expectations from others. We have to be wary of doing things pro-forma alone, that is, just for show, without the real substance inside.

We need to do things really out of love that involves our mind and heart, our whole being, to such an extent that it can be felt and seen. Whether witnessed by others or not, we do things simply because we want to or we love to. That is, we do things very well, extraordinarily well, because we love God.““        Remember Christ telling us: “When you give alms, let not your left hand know what your right hand does, so that your alms may be in secret, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” (Mt 6,3)

In other words, to give ourselves wholeheartedly and properly, to love truly, to become genuine heroes, we have to purify our intention. It should only be driven by love for God, and because of that love, it is also driven by love for souls, since loving God and loving others always go together.

If we are clear about this law and formula for heroism as articulated by Christ, we can really say that heroism is easy. Yes, there will be difficulties, suffering and all that drama, but in the end, we cannot deny the fact that more than us, it is God who is most interested that each one of us becomes heroes and saints.

For his part, God will always give us the necessary graces. He will always be patient with us, willing to forgive and recover us as many times as needed. He is slow to anger and rich in mercy.

We also have to be clear that heroism is not a matter of whether we are regarded as heroes by people or not. Heroism can only be bestowed on us by God, though it may be acknowledged and given publicity by people. And so, we should not worry if our heroism does not end with a monument of ourselves. What we have to be most concerned is that every day we realize God is inviting us to become heroes and saints in the little things of each day. So, we have to look at our ordinary daily and hidden duties and tasks from this perspective.

Imagine how a task as simple as washing dishes, doing our school assignments, tackling the usual pinpricks of the day, can already make us heroes and saints if done with true love for God and for others!

Isn’t it a very nice deal, very much doable and irresistibly attractive? Let’s be heroes and saints then on a daily basis!