I cannot believe this girl is still breathing, it is some kind of miracle. Courage is an ethical reality, but it is based in the whole breadth of human existence and ultimately in the structure of being itself. Therefore, to be understood ethically, it must be considered ontologically. Virtue is knowledge, and ignorance about what courage is makes any action in accordance with the true nature of courage impossible. The lack of courage is a basic problem of human existence. The understanding of courage presupposed an understanding of humanity and of the World, its structures and values. Only one who knows this knows what to affirm and what to negate. Courage can show us what being is, and being can show us what courage is. “Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yourselves of all ungodliness; and ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfected in Christ; and if by the grace of God ye are perfect in Christ, ye can in nowise deny the power of God,” reports Moroni 10.32. Courage as the universal and essential self-affirmation of one’s being is an ontological concept. The courage to be is the ethical act in which a person affirms one own being in spite of those elements of one’s existence which conflict with one’s essential self-affirmation. #RandolphHarris 1 of 14

Courage is relayed to the element of the soul and it possess the intellectual and sensual elements on human beings. It is the unreflective striving toward what is noble. As such it has a central position in the structure of the soul, it bridges the cleavage between reason and desire. “And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of our sins, that we become holy, without spot,” reports Moroni 10.33. This is how we represent what is noble and graceful because it is impossible for us to have living and vital intercessions unless we are perfectly and completely sure of God. Out of our assurance arise wisdom, and then this wisdom is fortified by our courage. “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit,” reports Ephesians 6.18. A beautiful noble deed is a deed to be praised. Courage does what is to be praised and rejects what is to be despised. One praised that in which a being fulfills its potentialities or actualizes its perfections. Courage is the affirmation of one’s essential nature, one’s inner aim or entelechy, but it is an affirmation which has in itself the character of in spite of. #RandolphHarris 2 of 14

Courage includes the possible and, in some cases, the unavoidable sacrifice of elements which also belong to one’s being but which, if not sacrificed, would prevent us from reaching our actual fulfillment. And the greatest destroyer of that confident relationship to God is our own personal sympathy and preconceived bias. Thus, this sacrifice may include pleasure and happiness and for some people there very existence. In any case it is praiseworthy, because in the act of courage the most essential part of our being prevails against the less essential. It is the beauty and goodness of courage that the good and the beautiful are actualized in it. “Behold, I have come unto the World to bring redemption unto the World, to save the World from sin,” reports 3 Nephi 9.21.  Therefore it is noble. Perfection is realized in degrees, natural, personal, and social; and courage as the affirmation of one’s essential being is more conspicuous in some of these degrees than in others. Since the greatest test of courage is the readiness to make the greatest sacrifice, the sacrifice of one’s life, and since the soldier is required by his or her profession to always be ready for this sacrifice, the soldier’s courage is and somehow remains the outstanding example of courage. #RandolphHarris 3 of 14

Courage is a universal knowledge of what is good and evil, wisdom and courage converge and it became again characteristic of nobility. The knight is one who represents courage as a soldier and as a nobleperson. They possess the high, noble and courageous spirit. In Germany, even in the past, soldiers were looked at as being firm, weighty, important and powerful. They were seen as members of the upper strata of feudal society. Never sympathize with someone who find it difficult to get to God; God is not to blame. It is not for us to figure out the reason for the difficulty; but only to present the truth of God so that the Spirit of God will reveal what is wrong. When the truth is preached, the Spirit of God bring each person face-to-face with God himself. Courage is the strength of mind, capable of conquering whatever threatens the attainment of the highest good. It is untied with wisdom, the virtue which represents the unity of the four cardinal virtues (the other two being justice and temperance). “For it is time for judgment to begin with the family of God; and if it beings with us, what will the outcome be for those who do not obey the gospel of God? And, if it is hard for the righteous to be saved, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” reports 1 Peter 9.17-18. Courage, untied with wisdom, includes temperance in relation to oneself as well as justice in relation to others. #RandolphHarris 4 of 14

The question then is whether courage or wisdom is the more comprehensive virtue. The answer is dependent on the outcome of the famous discussion about the priority of intellect or will in the essence of being, and consequently, in the human personality. Under the dominance of wisdom courage is essential the strength of mind which makes obedience to the dictates of reason (or revelation) possible, while venturing courage participates in the creation of wisdom. “For it is God’s will that by doing good one should silence the ignorant talk of foolish people. Live as free people, but do not use your freedom as a cover-up for evil; live as servants of God. Show proper respect to everyone: Love the fellowship of believers, fear God, honor the king,” reports 1 Peter 2.16-17. Perfect courage is a gift of the Divine Spirit. And if we ourselves are free with the liberty of Christ, others will be brought into that same liberty—the liberty that comes from realizing the absolute control and authority of Jesus Christ. Through the Spiritual natural strength of mind is elevated to its supernatural perfection. This however means that it is untied with the specifically Christian virtues, faith, hope, and love. Thus a development is visible in which the ontological side of courage is take into faith (including hope), while the ethical side of courage is taken into love or the principles of ethics. #RandolphHarris 5 of 14

The reception of courage into faith, especially insofar as it implies hope, as courage listens to reason and carries out the intention of the mind. It is the strength of the soul to win victory in ultimate danger, like those martyrs of the Old Testament who are enumerated in Hebrews 11. Courage gives consolation, patience, and experience and becomes indistinguishable from faith and hope. In the light of this development we can see that every attempt to define courage is confronted with these alternatives: either to use courage as the name for one virtue among others, blending the larger meaning of the word into faith and hope; or to preserve the larger meaning and interpret faith through an analysis of courage. “Behold, I am coming soon! Blessed is one who keeps the words of prophecy in this book,” reports Revelation 22.7. Creativity is the ability or power to produce originality of thought and expression. In terms of human behavior, creative refers to being innovative, coming up with new or novel ideas, actions, or constructions. A person is creative when one can take the already existing elements, ideas, thoughts, experiences one finds in or around one and put them together in new and different ways. Inventors and artist are usually mentioned as good examples of creative people. However, they are far from being the only ones. #RandolphHarris 6 of 14

A person is creative when one discovers a new way of getting to work that may save one time or money or energy, or one that merely enables one to experience different things along the route. A mother may be extremely creative in finding new ways to get her housework done or in enlisting the help of her children. A student who tries out several student techniques and finds one that works well for him or her—even though one may not have invented it—is creative. In fact, it would be a rare person who has never engaged in some creative act and produced something new and valuable for at least one other individual. What then is creativity? Is it a quality of a circumstance? It is something you are born with or which you can develop? It is a gift or a curse? The answers are still in process, but the results of some of the studies can be used as guide lines. One study, for instance, shows us that creativity is much more a matter of potentials being unfolded or developed than being an inborn trait of gift. This study found that certain person displayed higher than ordinary amounts of originality, adaptiveness, and realization, the ability to bring an original insight to full elaboration and development. Some of the noblest figures in later antiquity and their followers in modern times have answered the problem of existence and conquered the anxieties of fate and death by being creative. #RandolphHarris 7 of 14

A person who is defined by oneself and by others using rating scales as being creative shows several interesting traits. One is: an effective leader, takes an ascendant role in one’s relations with others. Is persuasive; tends to win other people over to one’s point of view. It turned to for advice and reassurance. Id efficient, capable, able to mobilize resources easily and effectively. A creative person is also active and vigorous. Is an expressive, ebullient person. Seeks and enjoys aesthetic and sensuous impressions. Is natural; free from pretense, unaffected. Is self-reliant, independent in judgment; able to think for oneself. This is but one of the many lists of traits that have a high beneficial correlation with creative productivity. If all people can develop creativity, and this seems to be the case, how do we foster it? What are the environmental conditions that nurture it? How it is stifled? Creative people generally were given many opportunities for self-fulfillment as children. They were encouraged to explore, not only their physical surroundings, but their own ideas and feelings. They were given guidance and instruction when it was requested, but the initiative was seldom taken away from them except when they were in danger. #RandolphHarris 8 of 14

Perseverance means more than endurance, more than simply holding on until the end. Entrust yourself to God’s hands. For instance, one parent of an exceptionally creative and self-reliant child declares that when the boy was learning to walk, they encouraged him, helped him t stand up, set up all the conditions necessary for a successful effort, and let him go. When he started to totter or fall, neither parent rushed in to catch him. They knew he would fall on a soft carpet, that there were no hard object for him to hit, that he would learn from falling. In the process, he also learned that he was loved and paid attention to, that his right to try was freely given, and his right to fail also. H knew that he was loved for himself, not for succeeding or in spite of failing. The same kinds of learning occurred in most tasks that he undertook. The only people our Lord will use in his building enterprises are those who love him personally, passionately, and with great devotion—those who have a love for him that goes beyond any of the closet relationships on Earth. When God inspects us with his searching and refining fire, will he detect that we have built enterprises of our own on the foundation of Jesus? #RandolphHarris 9 of 14

Creativity, then, seems to have a lot to do with autonomy and faith and self-reliance. Many studies confirm this. It also as much to do with a certain degree of nonconformity. Self-actualizing nonconformity is not adolescent rebellion or stubborn resistance to what is asked of a person. It is more a matter of willingness to try a different approach, deviate from the usual, easy, or traditional way of doing things. It calls for living experimentally, a willingness to run the risk of failure, of being rejected, of alienating others, and of losing one’s direction. However, the person may be willing to run these risks—for what in life is not risky?—because intrinsically one has self-confidence, one has known much love and acceptance, one values freedom and expression, and one respect oneself and therefore has courage to be. What of those people who do not have the Emotional Bank Account upon which to write checks for experimental living? Some can use what they do not have and hope that it will get them by. Other can profit from education and example: patterning behavior on that of others and by identification and experiencing small success adding to the bank balance. Some will require professional help. Sensitivity training is one avenue. Encounter groups in school, church, business, or privately can be a source of great help. #RandolphHarris 10 of 14

Psychotherapy, from simple counseling by a clergyperson or school counselor to intensive ongoing psychoanalysis, may be the most effective approach. Whatever the method, the journey is long and hard. It takes a lot of courage. After all, it took many years to damage or kill that creative spirit, that curiosity manifested by all healthy youngsters. However, to revitalize it is well worth the effort spent. More and more people are discovering that it is not an entirely lonely quest, that their lives were empty and meaningless before the attempt. That knowledge gives them the courage and incentive to continue trying. This sounds very much like what was said earlier about the difficulty of the search for significance. It is. Significance as a human being includes all of these things. As different as they all are, creativity, emotional richness, self-realization, courage, and meaningful experimental living are all aspects of living fully that are present in each of us in the potential sense. They are readily undercovered and developed in a few people, but in the large group they have been discouraged, neglected, deprecated, put down, crippled, or badly damaged. Parents often unwittingly stifle the creative impulse by the way they communicate, by the way they try to teach and instill values and skills. #RandolphHarris 11 of 14

Never allowing a child to experiment or do it oneself is one of the ways that parents stifle creativity and courage in children. Often unconsciously, parents perceive danger where danger is only remotely probable, or they attach important to actions that from a child’s viewpoint or of no consequence. Similarly, behavior that is socially unacceptable for an adult is discouraged in the young, even though that behavior (for example, playing with power tools) is totally outside the social realm in early childhood. The advocated, even necessary, parental attitudes are nearly impossible to achieve, for they involve, as sensitive educators and psychologists will maintain, perceiving as a child perceives. About the best we can do is to strike a balance. Nobody is going to advocate putting a child into a dangerous situation unnecessarily. However, sometimes a stubborn, pertinacious child can be taught the meaning of hot by guiding (and controlling) his or her hand toward a hot oven or iron (NOT recommend as it could be dangerous). A slight but memorable burn is often excellent protection against more dangerously free actions. Somehow, to strike the balance, parents must be watchful, objective, and permissive—but all to a point. Parenthood is probably the most difficult function and individual ever faces. #RandolphHarris 12 of 14

Creativity is fostered by encouraging the child to try oneself out in a variety of tasks. Success in the task may add to the child’s self-esteem and also provide the child with a monument of one’s own selfhood. However, failure need not be a mark of worthlessness; it can be a chance to discover where self-resources were lacking or in error. The experienced artist does not worry about messing up one’s canvas, since one knows both the one can correct the mess and that is shows one something about one’s technique. Schooling provides the actualizing student with opportunities to try oneself out in a number of different situations. One can interact creatively with the instructor, who hopefully responds to this kind of interchange, by the kinds of questions and answers one makes, by the kinds of projects one undertakes, by the kinds of papers one turns in, and by the sort of roles one plays in class. One can interact creatively with the subject matter by the way one studies, by the kinds of sources utilizes, and by the openness with which one views the subject area. One can interact creatively with one’s peers, one’s classmates and others one lives and works with on the campus. #RandolphHarris 13 of 14

The commercial work scene is changing slowly to permit more people to experience a creative part in their jobs. Suggestion boxes did not begin the process, but they are a small part of the program. Conferences between employees, middle management, and employers are increasing, enabling all participants in the life of the corporation to give and take openly. Employers are also finding new vitality and creativity arising from employee participation in encounter and sensitivity group experiences. Creativity is a valuable part of the life of not only the individual but the entire society. Creative people, those who act courageously to explore new ideas and ways of doing things, build a society that can meet changing conditions and become what it is capable of becoming. Metaphysical truth is found in the conformity between our ideas and those in the mind of God; logical truth, in the conformity between our ideas and the things of which they are ideas. We cannot apprehend the former kind of truth; but since the latter involves knowing the unknowable, logical truth is reduced to consistency. The satisfaction we feel at certain consequences, and the pain we suffer at others, are ordained by God and are signs that we are already under his government. Thus, a consideration of his nature alone shows that we must acknowledge the place of God in our lives. #RandolphHarris 14 of 14