What Does It Take To Be BRAVE

 THE BRAVERY

Bravery according to Longman dictionary can be defined as someone who is courageous, fearless, and ready to suffer danger or pain. Or to face or risk facing (danger, pain, or trouble) without showing fear.

In common term, bravery is someone who is able to resist opposition such as hunger, poverty, marriage challenges, academic challenges, political powers, etc.

Bravery takes many forms. It can be in the form of politics, religion, social, business initiatives, scientific, moral and immoral, and regional or tribal etc. depending on the state of the situation.

In our world many people think being brave refers to a person who has been able to make it in life financially, but do not consider the belief or spiritual, physical, political, power or authority, and other aspects of bravery.  As already stated, being bravery means been able to resist oppositions no matter the extent of the opposition.

Many people succeed in bribery and corruption, arm robbery, lying, killing or murdering, and other immoral or deviant life and call themselves bravery. This is not bravery, but rather immorality or deviant behaviour.  

Some Forms of Bravery:

Religious bravery

Religious bravery is when a person is faithful to his or her religious doctrine and able to resist oppositions. There are so many religious oppositions which exist to frustrate people in a particular religion. For instance, the Bahai opposes the teachings of Christians, the Muslims also opposes the teachings of Christians and vise versa.
Christianity is not really a religion in the context of the bible but in some context can be classified as a religion.  It is a way of life, ‘Christ – like life’ Jesus life style exhibits by His followers.  A Christian is said to be brave when he or she is faithful, love others, obey God’s word, and can resist temptations and depend on JESUS for eternal life.

The reason why many Africans are suffering is because of the lack of braveness to overcome challenges.   People attend Church or worship place with no faith and limits God or their god. In my country Ghana more than 60% are Christians but are not bravery.  Many people call themselves Christians but do not practice Christianity. They waver between hot and cold, are not faithful, kindly, lovely etc.   

Political bravery

In Africa, when a person is able to become president through war, or blood shedding, people consider it to be bravery. Also when a person succeeds in coup de ta he is considered to be bravery.

Politically, bravery means a person whose vision and mission is accepted by the majority of the people and he or she is supported to become president through election, or by any constitutional means.

The America president His Excellency Barrack H. Obama was bravery to resist all the abusive languages, frustrations, threats, and many others to become president through constitutional election.  He resisted oppositions from the day he entered into politics.

The former South African late president, His Excellency Nelson Mandela was brave to resist the colonial masters and the citizens who were opposing him. He stood firm to capture power for his people. He resisted all the insults, torcher, and marital challenges to gain independence for his people.

Social bravery

In stages in life there are so many oppositions. The challenges of peer influence, biological adolescent challenges, physiological, self-identity, and many others. 

Socially people are tempted to do or accept certain philosophies, and doctrines. It is very hard at the adolescent stage where there are many biological and physiological changes.  Boys feels and influence to have sexual intercourse with the girls, engaged in many social vices, and vise versa.  People are influence social.

Social bravery is where people are able to resist social challenges and are not influenced by external forces. Here the person is focus and do not attend to immoralities or be a disobedient person.

Business initiative

For a person to succeed in life, he has to be of sound mind, able to think and reason logically. A person who fails to think and take initiatives or even provide advice to others to take initiative and is lazy is not brave.

It takes bravery for people to take initiatives. Many university graduates are jobless or unemployed because they are not brave in taking initiatives and always depend on government or public sector jobs.  Many have turned to become arm robbers, prostitutes, corrupts, etc. because they are not brave to come out with little business plan. Attempting and lacking funds is better than not attempting it at all. Most of the time when business initiatives are taking, people who are business oriented may support.

In business initiatives one does not need huge sums of money before he or she starts. It is step by step. All the millionaires and wealthy people in the world started very little and have ended big.  

Scientific bravery

Discovering of knowledge takes braveness. It is braveness that led to the invention of heavy machines and equipment. Why bravery is needed is because it is do and die affair. Without bravery there wouldn’t have been discoveries of oil, space, gold, silver, and many others.

Scientific bravery is when a person is focus and determines to discover the hidden no matter the challenges.

Moral and immoral bravery

A decent and moral behaviour is where majority of the people expect from an individual. The majority who do not like decent and moral life are themselves immoral.

Arm robbery, prostitution, stealing, lying, greediness, hatred etc. are immoral bravery.  No society accepts these norms.

In conclusion, bravery means being able to resist oppositions and becoming the ruler of the opposition.

  

By Maxwell Kobina Acquah (PhD)

www.mkacquah.webs.com

www.facebook.com/mkacquah