Fortiter in re suaviter in modo

Fortiter in re, suaviter in modo or Suaviter in modo, fortiter in re is a Latin phrase, meaning "Resolute in execution, gentle in manner".

It was coined by the Jesuit Claudio Acquaviva, who wrote in Industriae ad curandos animae morbos (Curing the illnesses of the soul, §2, 4) about interacting with others that one should not compromise in matter (i.e. Christian faith), but should present them in a gentle way, i.e. fortiter in re, suaviter in modo.

It is the motto of the Essendon Football Club, the Estonian Students' Society and Concordia College (a secondary school in South Australia).