Catholic footballer Fernando Mendoza boldly declared, “I am a Catholic. I am a Catholic man.” He shared how the Sacrament of Confession and faithful attendance at Sunday Mass are vital to his Catholic life—strengthening his soul, guiding his choices, and grounding him as a true champion, on and off the field.

What It Takes to Be a Catholic Man: A “Brave Heart” According to Archbishop José H. Gomez

Be a Catholic man. A lot of modern talk about “manhood” is either sentimental (“just be nice”) or theatrical (“be a savage”). Neither one is a solid foundation for a life, a marriage, a family, or a faith.

In Men of a Brave Heart: The Virtue of Courage in the Priestly Life, Archbishop José H. Gomez argues that the real issue isn’t style—it’s virtue. Specifically, the virtue of courage (fortitude): the strength to do what’s right when it costs you.

Yes, the book is written with priests in view. But the core claim translates cleanly to every Catholic man because courage is not a “career virtue.” It’s the backbone of faithful Christian living.

1) A Catholic man rejects the counterfeit “macho” definition of masculinity

Gomez confronts a cultural confusion: we often confuse manliness with brute strength, rugged independence, and sexual aggression.

In a passage quoted from Men of Brave Heart, he writes:

“Manliness” is still largely equated with a brute strength, a rugged independence from others, and an aggressive sexuality… If we were to look at the tragic crisis of fatherhood and commitment in our society, we would see even more deeply how flawed our models of manhood have become.

That’s a direct challenge to the modern “prove yourself” mindset. Catholic manhood isn’t performative. It’s purposeful.

2) A Catholic man lives fortitude: love that can sacrifice

Courage, in the Christian tradition, isn’t adrenaline or reckless risk-taking. It’s stable strength—the ability to endure hardship for the sake of the good.

One of the best lines in the material citing Gomez’s theme puts it plainly: love is meant to be self-giving, and fortitude is what makes self-giving possible—especially when it hurts.

In real life, that looks like:

• telling the truth when it would be easier to spin

• staying faithful when temptation offers “an exit ramp”

• being patient when you’d rather withdraw or explode

• doing the next right thing when you feel tired, unseen, or disrespected

A Catholic man becomes dependable—not because life is easy, but because his backbone is formed by virtue.

3) A Catholic man stands firm in faith when the world pushes back

Gomez emphasizes that living the faith fully takes courage. It is not for the faint of heart, because there will always be pressure—social, sexual, professional, ideological—to treat faith like a private hobby.

In the same Father’s Day-themed text that quotes Gomez, the argument is explicit: a man must be courageous to stand firm in his faith amid attacks and ridicule.

Catholic manhood isn’t “going along to get along.” It’s living a unified life—faith not as a weekend accessory, but as the organizing center.

4) A Catholic man becomes a protector (not a controller)

In the Catholic moral imagination, protection is not domination. It’s responsibility.

Protection means:

• guarding your home from what corrodes it (porn, contempt, addictions, chaos)

• guarding your marriage from “little betrayals” (lies, secrets, emotional affairs, scorekeeping)

• guarding your children’s moral formation (not outsourcing everything to screens and trends)

• guarding your integrity when nobody is watching

That kind of protection requires courage—not the courage of the loud man, but the courage of the steady man.

5) A Catholic man chooses holiness over comfort

The blunt truth is that comfort makes cowards out of all of us.

Christian life—whether priestly, married, or single—demands a willingness to suffer for the good. Even the brief synopsis of the book frames it this way: perseverance in faith, closeness to suffering, and the need for “a courageous heart.”

Catholic manhood is the decision to be ruled by God instead of appetite, impulse, reputation, or fear.

A simple “brave heart” examination for Catholic men

If you want to boil this down to something practical, try these five weekly questions:

1. Where am I avoiding a hard good because I prefer an easy comfort?

2. Where am I performing “manliness” instead of living virtue?

3. Where do I need fortitude to love well—especially at home?

4. Where am I tempted to keep my faith “private” to avoid tension?

5. What would change this week if I acted like holiness—not comfort—was the goal?

Closing: Catholic manhood is courage with a purpose

Archbishop Gomez’s message (and the tradition behind it) is not complicated:

A Catholic man is not defined by swagger.
He is defined by fortitude—the courage to pursue the good, endure suffering, and remain faithful in love and in truth.

That’s what it takes to be a Catholic man: a brave heart.