|
Vice
|
Virtue against which it sins
|
Brief description
|
|
Pride
|
Humility
|
Seeing ourselves as we are and not comparing ourselves to others
is humility. Pride and vanity are competitive. If someone else's pride really
bothers you, you have a lot of pride.
|
|
Avarice/Greed
|
Generosity
|
This is about more than money. Generosity means letting others
get the credit or praise. It is giving without having expectations of the
other person. Greed wants to get its "fair share" or a bit more.
|
|
Envy
|
Love
|
"Love is patient, love is kind…" Love actively seeks
the good of others for their sake. Envy resents the good others receive or
even might receive. Envy is almost indistinguishable from pride at times.
|
|
Anger
|
Kindness
|
Kindness means taking the tender approach, with patience and
compassion. Anger is often our first reaction to the problems of others. Impatience
with the faults of others is related to this.
|
|
Lust
|
Self control
|
Self control and self mastery prevent pleasure from killing the
soul by suffocation. Legitimate pleasures are controlled in the same way an
athlete's muscles are: for maximum efficiency without damage. Lust is the
self-destructive drive for pleasure out of proportion to its worth. The seeds
of lust are immaturity and low self-esteem.
|
|
Gluttony
|
Faith and Temperance
|
Temperance accepts the natural limits of pleasures and preserves
this natural balance. This does not pertain only to food, but to
entertainment and other legitimate goods, and even the company of others.
|
|
Sloth
(Apathy)
|
Zeal
|
Zeal is the energetic response of the heart to God's commands. The other sins
work together to deaden the spiritual senses so we first become slow to
respond to God and then drift completely into the sleep of complacency.
|
