“For the Catholic there is no room for cowardice," says Frank Dado. “Cowardice is the opposite of the moral virtue of fortitude. Cowards are weak in difficult times and inconsistent in the pursuit of good. They are unable to resist temptation and easily succumb to sin. They fear death, trials, and persecutions. It is from either pride or cowardice that sin takes hold and grows. A Catholic coward will quickly become a Judas and sell-out his faith, his church, and his people.”
Most Chaldeans are secure about their faith. A legacy of courage in the throngs of tragic trials and persecution has proven Chaldeans do not break easy. “Evil has tried to penetrate the church walls of Chaldeans since the early formation of the church. The walls remain. Our church leaders are assassinated, thinking the flock will scatter. We do not,” says Dado defiantly. “Evil has now changed its strategy. It can not break Chaldeans, so it is trying to melt us.”
Dado refers to the slow burn Chaldeans endure in the West. “Forced to flee Iraq, rather than convert from their faith, Chaldeans now have to contend with the steady fire of Western sin.” Western society and culture continues to promote forbidden deeds as trendy, modern, progressive, or hip. Dado says Chaldeans are afraid to take action against what they know is immoral and evil. “Instead children call their parents boaters and misguidedly run into the arms of evil thinking it is cool or that they will be accepted.”
The pressure to remain silent or tolerate evil is real. Schools and college campuses have long used humiliation and shame to force Catholics and other pious groups into silence. This is why Dado considers them cowards. He says the cowards have been frightened into obeying what they know to be wrong.
They make excuses as to why they should not get involved. Dado says they say things like it does not matter or it’s useless to object. “Those that truly believe in their faith, defend their faith,” Dado says.
“As Catholics we need to be firm and un-wavering in our beliefs. We believe what we believe because we know its true. If is sad, but true that people with such strong convictions are looked upon with jealousy, envy, anger, and hatred. Catholics are the target of discrimination and hateful attacks. That is how you know evil is guiding the Catholic bashers and attackers. If it were goodness guiding them, they would look upon those they belive to be misguided with compassion, empathy, and assistance. Instead it is with mockery, anger, and hatred. The fingerprints of evil.”
A significant majority of American’s feels the media and entertainment industry is biased and unwilling to allow opposing views to the liberal culture that encourages deviant and bad behavior. Research and many studies confirm the sentiments of what most Americans feel. However, the same respondents feel that they are too busy, powerless, or cowardly to do anything to fight back.
Dado reminds Chaldeans that the legacy of Chaldeans is to defend against evil. “In Iraq we lived meekly and protected one another. In America we must be vigilant and unafraid to speak truth to evil. The wise say, we do not remember the words and deeds of our enemies, but the silence of our friends. Chaldeans and other Catholics should be frequently reminded it is of these occasions that our faith’s heroes or cowards are revealed.”