Patience Increases Fortitude

It’s important to note that the virtue of patience is different from ordinary experiences of waiting. The English word patience is derived from the Latin patientia and specifically refers to a particular type of endurance that takes place in an experience of suffering. Thus, patience is more than just dealing with the inconvenience of delayed gratification.

Patience is the virtue that allows us to persevere faithfully and even joyfully in the midst of difficulty and trial. True patience increases fortitude and leads to purity of heart in which a person clarifies the greater values, which are the reasons for enduring the suffering in the first place.

Patience is not warranted when there is a just, faithful and virtuous way to resolve the particular cause of the suffering. This is particularly important when the suffering is being endured by someone else who is vulnerable and for whom we are responsible.