The power of good is shown not by triumphantly conquering evil, but by continuing to resist evil while facing certain defeat.
Why is it that, among men, physical courage is a trait so plenteous yet moral courage is a trait so rare?
Nothing emboldens the wicked so greatly as the lack of courage on the part of the good.
I do not regret having braved public opinion, when I knew it was wrong and was sure it would be merciless.
Greatness is telling the truth & being courageous in pursuit of justice. The worst thing you could tell young people is to be successful but become well-adjusted to an unjust status quo as opposed to being great & being maladjusted to an unjust status quo.
Of all evil I deem you capable: Therefore I want good from you. Verily, I have often laughed at the weaklings who thought themselves good because they had no claws.
Moral courage is the most valuable and usually the most absent characteristic in men
Courage doesn't always involve physical heroism in the face of death. It doesn't always require giant leaps worthy of celebration. Sometimes, courage is the willingness to speak the truth about what you see and to own what you say.
A man's moral worth is established only at the point where he is ready to give up his life in defense of his convictions.
Wickedness is weakness.
The brave man seeks not popular applause, Nor, overpower'd with arms, deserts his cause; Unsham'd, though foil'd, he does the best he can, Force is of brutes, but honor is of man.
The chief cause of our misery is less the violence of our passions than the feebleness of our virtues.
I lack what the English call character, by which they mean the power to refrain.
Blessed is the memory of those who have kept themselves unspotted from the world. Yet more blessed and more dear the memory of those who have kept themselves unspotted in the world.
It seemed incredible to me, that physical courage should be so commonplace and revered, while moral courage . . . is so rare and despised.
Physical bravery is an animal instinct; moral bravery is much higher and truer courage.
Be this thy brazen bulwark, to keep a clear conscience, and never turn pale with guilt.
The just man having a firm grasp of his intentions, neither the heated passions of his fellow men ordaining something awful, nor a tyrant staring him in the face, will shake in his convictions.
It can take greater courage to stand in opposition to the views of your neighbors or nation than to confront an enemy in combat.
Philosophy teaches us to bear with equanimity the misfortunes of others.
Is any one able for one day to apply his strength to virtue? I have not seen the case in which his strength would be sufficient.
We are not to be isolated but insulated, moving in the midst of evil but untouched by it.
Freedom and victory belong to those who remain true and strong despite temptation to be dishonest and weak.
It may here be justly said, that genuine morality is preserved only in the school of adversity, and a state of continuous prosperity may easily prove a quicksand to virtue.
When moral courage feels that it is in the right, there is no personal daring of which it is incapable.
