Tag Archives: 7 Sins

7-Sins-Collage

Here are the 7 Sins, and here come the 7 Virtues?

In January, I wrote a series of posts called the 7 Sins:

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

I plan to write a series of 7 Virtues over this coming week, in addition to my regular daily posts, then auto post them the following week while I take a social media break. I will be deleting my Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram Apps off of my phone and only using my phone or a laptop with notifications turned off for my sabbatical. On that note, if you regularly read this blog from my Facebook Story or Facebook Timeline, please ‘Like’ this FB page, because during my social media break I won’t be manually adding the posts to my Story or Timeline. You can also get Daily-Ink by email.

Here are 7 Virtues that I am thinking of writing about: (The order might differ.)

  1. Love (including Chastity and Loyalty)
  2. Discipline (including Patience, not just Diligence or Temperance)
  3. Empathy (including Compassion)
  4. Integrity (including Honour and Courage)
  5. Kindness (including Charity),
  6. Humility
  7. Forgiveness

Am I missing anything? Any suggestions?

7 Sins, Part 7 – Sloth

Sloth is procrastination without the pressure of a looming deadline. It is void of inspiration. It leaves us wanting less, doing less, accomplishing less.We all feel reluctance and laziness at points in our lives, resistance to things we know we must do.

Sloth is our enemy masked as a friend. It sits there exuding complacency, comfort in lethargy, inviting us to join it on the couch, in front of the television. Sloth tells us the 5th hour of a Netflix series binge is entertainment we deserve. It convinces us that the gym can wait until tomorrow. It comforts us as we scroll, aimlessly lurking on social media. It permits us to tidy up and clean up another day… soon, or maybe just later, yes, later sounds much better than soon.

Sloth is an ailment that convinces you there is no cure. It convinces you that there is no ailment. You are fine just the way you are. Sloth clears your agenda, and gives you less new information and less new experiences to stimulate your mind, making nothing something comfortable to do. In this way, sloth perpetuates itself. It is a sickness that blind you to itself, dulling your experiences and numbing your thoughts of new and different opportunities.

The remedy to sloth is action, no matter how small it may seem. It is turning off the TV, putting down your phone, getting off the couch and going for a walk. It is raising your head and looking around, calling a friend, or getting 15 min of exercise. The wonderful thing about the remedy to sloth is that action invites more action. Just as sloth perpetuates itself, so does the cure. Once we have momentum, it is easy to recognize that the best time to start something new is now!

7 Sins Series

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

7 Sins, Part 6 – Greed

Greed is the selfish desire for more. The desire for more can overwhelm and overpower the original desire. Greed can be blinding and all-consuming. Baboons can be captured by making a small hole in an ant hill and placing seeds within it. The baboon will grab the seeds making its first too big to pull out of the hole, but the baboon won’t let go of the food to allow escape. This is a good example of how greed can be blinding.

We live in a greedy society. ‘More’ is sold as better. ‘More’ is more satisfying. ‘More’ will make you happier. A bigger plate, a second item at half the price, a free gift with purchase, a second helping… more will satiate you with more power, more wealth, and more material things.

The band The Flying Lizards have a song titled Money, in which the main verse says, “The best things in life are free, but I want money.” This materialistic desire is easy to buy into, and ‘the best things’ can be seen as only those things money, power, and fame can provide. But at what cost?

Greed does not get satiated. It does not have a happy ending. Greed will always leave you wanting more. It is selfish and unfulfilling. It is empty of satisfaction and undermines happiness. Greed will always leave you wanting more…

7 Sins Series

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

7 Sins, Part 5 – Wrath

There is a distinct line between justice and vengeance. You wouldn’t learn this from watching movies. Moviemakers love to romanticize the idea of vengeance and wrath. Anger permits an eye-for-an-eye retaliation and wrath is accepted as a just and fair response to an injustice. But in real life does wrath provide solace and resolution?

Doesn’t anger beget anger? Doesn’t wrath produce wrath? How do we respond to hurtful people? This is not easy to answer.

I see much anger and wrath these days being pointed towards ignorance and ignorant people.

“You should know better.”

“What’s the matter with you?”

“You are a condescending jackass.”

And I also see far worse behaviour and wrath from ignorant people. Racism and intolerance is worse when coupled with wrath.

“You people are so… ”

“Your culture is so rude.”

“Why don’t you just go back home.”

I understand the nuance of how these examples differ, how the first examples can seem justifiable while the latter example seem inexcusable. My examples do not seem to be comparable, not deserving of equal footing. They are indeed not equal but my point is simply that wrath, no matter where it comes from, does not move us forward in a positive way.

Wrath is ugly. Responses can bring rage and retaliation or they can foster resolution. Wrath and anger do not solve problems. Wrath and vengeance does not bring peace. Wrath and vindictive behaviour does not inspire civility and neighbourly love.

When we are seething and seeing red, we can lash out in ways that are unbecoming of us. Wrath does not elicit resourcefulness. It does not inspire qualities we want to share, or that we want shared with us. Wrath is not a response we want, even to wrath itself.

Wrath can be fed, or wrath can be diffused. The power we have lies in our ability to respond in civil ways, that invite conversation and understanding rather than anger. However angry responses to wrath are easy, and compassion and forgiveness take effort. The effort is worth it if you do not want the wrath outside you to become wrath within you.

7 Sins Series

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

7 Sins, Part 4 – Lust

“Sex sells.”- We have grown used to this phrase in words and in visual form through advertising. Sexual tension and the fantasy of unreachable desire are invitations to lust… to the craving for physical intimacy that is not rooted in love.

Love is exploited in movies and television by intertwining it with lust, and making the two seem interchangeable. Storylines are fraught with sexual tension and the importance of the first physically intimate moments being consumed with lust. Plots are fast-forwarded by showing lust-filled intimacy to establish the love two people have before a plot twist. Infidelity is ‘explained’ by lack of lust and intimacy.

Action films are no better. If the action star is put into dire straits, it is likely for the love of a child, or if it is for a love interest then that person is as likely to betray the star as to find happiness. Infidelity is a plot developer, love is fleeting and easily lost.

What are the stories of lust, of unrealistic desires, of sensual intimacy, and of sexual passion that we are exposed to in story plots, magazines, and social media? How does that contrast with stories of love? For even stories of love suggest loss (think Romeo & Juliet) or betrayal (think Indecent Proposal or Fatal Attraction).

Sex sells. Lust sells. Romantic love is reserved for comedies and for overcoming the pain caused by lust. Romance, heartfelt caring, and devotion to a loved one are things to be destroyed and devoured in modern day stories.

Our media outlets and movie plots may not share this, it does not sell in the same way, but in the end, lust leaves one feeling empty and alone, while love prevails.

7 Sins Series

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

7 Sins, Part 3 – Pride

Pride in small doses can give a sense of accomplishment, value, and even self-respect. ‘Wow, look what I am capable of.’ This is not yet the sin of pride. The sin of pride comes with arrogance, self-righteousness, bragging, superiority, and disdain.

The sin of pride is ugly. It struts in front of the accomplishment, and steps into the limelight in full display. It steals attention from others that supported the accomplishment, and undermines teamwork.

Arrogance and superiority are allies of pride. Together, they blind one to the possibility that humbleness is endearing, that compliments can complement success, and satisfaction is better felt when feeling appreciative rather than smug.

Who got you where you are today? Whose support would you struggle without? Who inspired you? Who paved the way for you? Who did the work you could not have done on your own? Who deserves to share in the accomplishment? At least one of these questions should give you an answer that helps you see the selfishness of being smug.

Enjoy your accomplishments, but let them fuel you and those around you, rather than letting them fuel your pride.

7 Sins Series

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

7 Sins, Part 2 – Envy

We start envy at a young age, with envy of possessions. We see another kid with a toy we want and we aren’t happy until we can have it. I can remember fighting over who had more Play Doh with my sister, and it got so heated that my parents brought out a scale to weigh our pieces. After divvying it up, and seeing that it was equal, I no longer wanted to play with it. This bugged me enough that it is still one of my youngest memories. I wanted to just give it all to my sister, but I was too angry. Then afterwards, I felt guilt and shame. It was a valuable lesson, I realized that I cared more about my sister than a stupid piece of Play Doh.

Later, we feel envy about other’s qualities, their popularity, or their looks, or their athletic abilities. They might exude another sin, pride, but we feel envy, wishing we had what they seem to have without effort. If it makes you work harder or appreciate talent, then it is no longer envy, but inspiration. If it spurs jealousy, hate, or bitterness, then envy creates a toxic environment of gossip, slander, and unhealthy interactions with those you are envious of.

Then there is the irrational envy of luck. If you believe luck comes to those that are prepared, then your envy comes from your own sloth. If you believe that luck is dumb, then how dumb are you to envy pure chance?

Envy is ugly, it provides no gain, it ensures only sadness and disappointment. Letting go of envy, can instil generosity, inspiration, and even an openness to favourable opportunities… maybe even luck? When envy strikes you, what can you do to reshape the ugliness into a gift that inspires you to be better, or to wish the other person continued success?

7 Sins Series

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth

7 Sins, Part 1 – Gluttony

The holidays seem to be a time when food comes in abundance. Snacks fill the table and side tables within all the living spaces, second helpings are an expectation, and when you feel absolutely stuffed then desserts come out. Leftovers fill the fridge and the eating continues the following day.

If this only happened once a year, it would be fine, but there is always a birthday or holiday celebration. What makes this challenging is that we have a gluttony of sugary snacks available in stores that make up some of the cheaper foods available. Worse yet, there are food deserts in poor communities that make buying junk food not just far cheaper but also much more accessible than eating something healthy.

Junk food is eaten in sinful amounts. The world is getting fatter. Diabetes is becoming epidemic. And sugary food is probably the addiction that affects more people than any other addiction in the world.

It is said that knowing the problem is half the battle. It isn’t. Acting on that knowledge is the hard part. Here are 3 suggestions:

1. Cut out snacks after dinner. Have a glass of tea, drink some bubbly water, or just go for a short walk instead of having a snack. I’m willing to bet that 99% of the snacks you eat after dinner are sugary and/or unhealthy.

2. Read the label before you buy. Ingredients are put in order of the largest ingredients first. If sugar is one of the first 4 ingredients, look for another choice to fill your shopping cart. If it doesn’t make it into your home, it won’t be able to tempt you later.

3. Eat on smaller plates.

You’ll enjoy the food just as much and can end up eating almost 1/4 less food.

Gluttony is easy to succumb to. It can take effort to overcome. Reduce the opportunities for food to tempt you and you will find pleasure in living healthier, rather than giving in to the sinful pleasure of eating too much.

7 Sins Series

  1. Gluttony
  2. Envy
  3. Pride
  4. Lust
  5. Wrath
  6. Greed
  7. Sloth