practice Catholic chivalry

This goal needs less explaining for a man. But for me personally, it means I am in need of a true conversion from selfishness. I must live for my King and my Queen, Jesus and Mary, and not for myself. There is both a temporal and a spiritual side of this. On the temporal side, to my girlfriend I must be both a gentleman and a strong leader. I must be obedient to authority and faithful to my obligations. I must care for every person and defend the weak. All of these principles are mirrored on the spiritual side. I must be obedient to God by loving His Church and fleeing the slightest hint of immorality. I must wage war against sin and battle tirelessly through prayer, sacrifices, and acts of charity for the salvation and sanctification of souls, especially my girlfriend and those close to me. I cannot be proud, and I must not be a man of excuses.

I don’t know if this will sound like an odd goal for a woman; but I believe that there is a feminine counterpart to masculine chivalry. It is simply expressed differently. I think it means being a true lady at all times, being as “Mary-like” as possible. For example, a chivalrous man may wage physical war to defend someone weaker than himself; a woman may wage spiritual war (through prayer, the rosary, sacrifices) for those within her sphere of influence. Or, she chooses to dress in feminine, modest clothing in order to protect men from visual temptation to sin in their imaginations. She is maternal, sisterly, daughterly. She is the “valiant woman” of scripture (Proverbs 31, Douay-Rheims version). She is both gentle and courageous, and adorned with works of charity. This is what I aspire to be.