Few things are as important to society as moral courage. “From lack of moral strength empires fall,” Mary Baker Eddy writes on page 268 of Miscellaneous Writings 1883–1896. The good news is that we all have the God-given ability to face the enemy of self-doubt, to conduct our daily business with intrepid bravery, and to be unafraid of evil’s claims to overpower good.  

To better understand and express our inherent moral courage, as opposed to animal courage, we need to understand that God, Spirit, is good, and that spiritual good is the only real power. This understanding gives us the ability to resist an “eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth” mentality, and to express the courage taught by Christ Jesus, who did good in the face of evil, taught us to return kindness and love for hatred, and to face down negativity with hope, expectation, and healing. 

Expressing this spiritual dominion denies power to immoral and sinful behavior by proving it to be powerless. Jesus said: “Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: but I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also” (Matthew 5:38, 39).

Examples of moral courage run through the Bible. Take Moses for example. Mary Baker Eddy defines Moses in part as: “moral courage; a type of moral law and the demonstration thereof” (Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, p. 592). Moses is recorded as saying to the Israelites, “Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee” (Deuteronomy 31:6).

This biblical message is one of hope, which identifies where fearlessness, moral courage, and spiritual power really come from—God. God, the divine Mind, is the only source of power and the only consciousness man can truly possess. Men and women, as the reflection of Mind, possess that “mind … which was also in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 2:5).­­

But what do we do if we come up against lawlessness that defies reason? We read in Science and Health: “It requires courage to utter truth; for the higher Truth lifts her voice, the louder will error scream, until its inarticulate sound is forever silenced in oblivion” (p. 97). We cannot be rendered helpless by mortal resistance to spiritual truth, because God, Truth, is supreme. The supremacy of Truth gives us dominion over any intrusive suggestion—any thought not from God.

While moral courage sometimes calls for big strides in doing what’s right, it more often involves smaller experiences that call for bravery in facing material predictions about ourselves or loved ones. 

My mother, a Christian Scientist, was a strong example of this. During my first year and a half of high school, I was failing or nearly failing most of my classes. A counselor called my mother in for a conference and explained in direct terms that I would never be “college material” and that I lacked the ability to succeed. This was devastating for me to hear. However, my mother knew right away that this was an impersonal and unjust evaluation of me by material sense, and her moral courage would never allow her to believe such an evaluation. 

Directly contradicting this negativity, my mother said to the counselor, “That is not true,” basing this denial on what she knew about my true spiritual selfhood as intelligent and fully capable. She rested her statement authoritatively on the omnipotence of God, and the infinite capability that I reflected as the expression of God’s infinite nature.

I don’t remember being nagged about studying, but there was prayerful support. I went from the bottom of my graduating high school class to the top 10 percent, completed four years of college, and received two master’s degrees. It took me longer to get my doctorate, but I accomplished that about nine years ago, again with the support and encouragement of my mother, who convinced me to stick with it. 

Standing on Principle, God, gives us the moral courage we need to defend ourselves, to deny evil’s attempts to instill fear, and to acknowledge who we really are as the children of God. This strength comes as we pray, which brings the acknowledgment that the “kingdom of God” is within us.