Back to Basics: The Seven Deadly Sins

The opposite of the cardinal virtues are the seven deadly sins. We'll be going through these one by one, as well as the virtues that remedy each, in future posts.

As you may have guessed, along with cultivating good habits, some bad habits need to be avoided. The Church maintains that seven vices in particular lead to breaking one or more of the Ten Commandments. These particular bad habits are called the seven deadly sins because, according to Catholicism, they're mortal sins -- sins that kill the life of sanctifying grace. The Church believe that if you commit a mortal sin, you forfeit heaven and opt for hell by your own free will and actions.

A mortal sin is any act or thought of a human being that turns away from God and which turns toward a created thing instead. In other words, mortal sin is the complete turning away from God and embracing something else in place... Three conditions are necessary for moral sin to exist.

• Grave Matter: the act itself is intrinsically evil and immoral. For example, murder, rape, incest, perjury, adultery, and so on are grave matter.
• Full Knowledge: The person must know that what they're doing or planning to do is evil and immoral...
• Deliberate Consent: The person must freely choose to commit the act or plan to do it. Someone forced against his will doesn't commit a mortal sin...

Venial sins are any sins that only meet one or two of the conditions needed for a mortal sin but do not fulfill all three at the same time, or they're minor violations of the moral law, such as giving an obscene gesture to another driver while in traffic. Venial sin is less serious than mortal sin...[they] aren't deadly to the life of grace, but like minor infections in the body, if casually ignored and left untended, may deteriorate into a more serious condition...

The seven deadly sins are pride, envy, lust, anger, gluttony, greed, and sloth and Pope Gregory the Great made up the list in the 6th century.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next up: Deadly Sin #1.

The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things

The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things, Hieronymus Bosch

The painting is oil on wooden panels and is presented in a series of circular images.

Four small circles, detailing the four last things — Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell — surround a larger circle in which the seven deadly sins are depicted: wrath at the bottom, then (proceeding clockwise) envy, greed, gluttony, sloth, extravagance (later replaced with lust), and pride, using scenes from life rather than allegorical representations of the sins.[4]

At the centre of the large circle, which is said to represent the eye of God, is a "pupil" in which Christ can be seen emerging from his tomb. Below this image is the Latin inscription Cave cave d[omi]n[u]s videt ("Beware, Beware, The Lord Sees").

Above and below the central image are inscription in Latin of Deuteronomy 32:28–29, containing the lines "For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there any understanding in them", above, and "O that they were wise, that they understood this, that they would consider their latter end!" below. ...

Each panel in the outer circle depicts a different sin. Clockwise from top (Latin names in brackets):

• Gluttony (gula): A drunkard swigs from a bottle while a fat man eats greedily, not heeding the plea of his equally obese young son.
• Sloth (acedia): A lazy man dozes in front of the fireplace while Faith appears to him in a dream, in the guise of a nun, to remind him to say his prayers.
• Lust (luxuria): Two couples enjoy a picnic in a pink tent, with two clowns (right) to entertain them.
• Pride (superbia): With her back to the viewer, a woman looks at her reflection in a mirror held up by a demon.
• Wrath (ira): A woman attempts to break up a fight between two drunken peasants.
• Envy (invidia): A couple standing in their doorway cast envious looks at a rich man with a hawk on his wrist and a servant to carry his heavy load for him, while their daughter flirts with a man standing outside her window, with her eye on the well-filled purse at his waist. The dogs illustrate the Flemish saying, “Two dogs and only one bone, no agreement”.
• Greed (avaricia): A crooked judge pretends to listen sympathetically to the case presented by one party to a lawsuit, while slyly accepting a bribe from the other party.

The four small circles also have details. In Death of the Sinner, death is shown at the doorstep along with an angel and a demon while the priest says the sinner's last rites, In Glory, the saved are entering Heaven, with Jesus and the saints, at the gate of Heaven an Angel prevents a demon from ensnaring a woman. Saint Peter is shown as the gatekeeper. In Judgment, Christ is shown in glory while angels awake the dead, while in the Hell demons torment sinners according to their sins.

Wikipedia

I really do love Hieronymus Bosch. Maybe because I like intricate things with lots of details. Click the image for full size. Also, the Wikipedia article shows each of the details much larger.

What Do I Want for Christmas? Seven Deadly Sins, Please!

Well, actually I want John Zmirak's latest book, The Bad Catholic's Guide to the Seven Deadly sins. Ian from Aquinas and More says the books are finally in stock.

I am a dedicated fan of the "Bad Catholic" books, so much so that I've had this book on my wish list since I found out months ago that it was close to publication.

I'll let Ian give you the samples and then you can go pick up your own copy of at least one of those books.

So who should you send this latest guide to? I’ll let Mr. Zmirak give you his thoughts on that:

Think of the person who most gets on your nerves with the scruples he likes to share, who spams you with email sob stories, or sniffs disgustedly at your jokes. You know, the person who makes you bite your tongue for fear of piercing his preternaturally thin skin…Put this book down right away, find some really tasteful wrapping paper, wrap the book up, and give it to him.

Here’s a sample from the introduction:

One way of describing the Seven Deadly Sins might be “the seven key areas of life where Jesus ruins our fun.” By this, I mean the categories of normal human experience that make up the bulk of our lives – where our instincts, habits and egos have patched together perfectly serviceable habits of schlepping through, day to day. We’d just as soon our coping strategies weren’t disrupted by some fish-multiplying, wonder-working God-Man who speaks in riddles. But hey, thanks for thinking of us.

Back to Basics: Greed

The sixth of the seven deadly sins is greed.

Greed is the inordinate love of and desire for earthly possessions. Things are cherished above people and relationships. Amassing a fortune and foolishly trying to accumulate the most stuff is greed, which is sometimes called avarice. Next to anger, envy, and lust, more crimes have been committed due to greed than any other deadly sin. "It's never enough. I've got to have more." That's the battle cry for greed.

Greed is also a sign of mistrust. "I doubt that God will take care of me, so I try to gather as much as possible now in case no more is left later." ...

Generosity, however, is the best weapon against greed. Freely giving some of your possessions away, especially to those less fortunate, is considered the perfect antithesis to greed and avarice. Generosity promotes detachment from material things that come and go...

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next up, the last one in our list of seven deadly sins ... Sloth.

Back to Basics: Sloth

The last of the seven deadly sins is sloth.

Sloth (sometimes called acedia) is laziness -- particularly when it concerns prayer and spiritual life. It centers on doing nothing or doing just trivial things. Sloth is always wanting to rest and relax, with no desire or intention of making a sacrifice or doing something for others. It's an aversion to work -- physical, mental, and spiritual. Sloth inevitably leads to lukewarmness and tepidity and then deteriorates into disinterest, discouragement, and finally despair. Sloth breeds indifference, which prevents joy from ever being experienced.

Spiritual laziness can only be overcome by practicing the virtue of diligence, which is the habit of keeping focused and paying attention to the work at hand -- be it the work of employment or the work of God. Diligent prayer and diligent worship can make you more reverent. Diligence in all things ensures that you don't become idle ...

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

I have to say that, upon finishing this little review of these seven core sins I was surprised to find definite identification with two of them specifically. For the moment at least that has resulted in an identification of them in my daily life and an effort to move away from them through practicing the virtue prescribed as a remedy. Perhaps this is a sign to myself that whenever I feel too complacent it is time again to read through the list of sins and virtues to see what else I find.

Back to Basics: Pride

The first of the seven deadly sins is pride. It also is the mother, the author, of all other sins. This was a new concept for me when I first came across it but so very obvious upon reflection. In the end it all comes down to a distortion of truth, does it not? How important am I? How much better am I than others? Easy to see and understand, yet this is so very hard to keep in check ... because it can manifest itself in any and every aspect of one's life.

The sin of pride is an inordinate love of self -- a super-confidence and high esteem in your own abilities. It's also known as vanity. It exaggerates your abilities, gifts, and talents, and ignores your weaknesses, frailties, and imperfections.

In Catholicism, sinful pride is the deviation or distortion of the legitimate need of self-affirmation. Liking yourself isn't sinful. In fact, it's healthy and necessary, but when the self-perception no longer conforms to reality, and you begin to think that you're more important than you actually are, the sin of pride is rearing its ugly head...

Pride is the key to all other sins, because after you believe that you're more important than you actually are, you compensate for it when others don't agree with your judgment. You rationalize your behavior and make excuses for lying, cheating, stealing, insulting, ignoring, and such, because no one understands you like you do. In your mind, you're underestimated by the world.

That's the extreme expression of pride. A subtler example is when you refuse to accept the authority of someone else over you, be it a parent, teacher, employer, pastor, bishop or pope. Most resentment toward those in authority has nothing to do with the occasional instances of abuse of power in the course of human history. Rather anti-authoritarianism is rooted in pride: "No one is going to tell me what to do." ...

Pride also prevents you from seeking, listening to, or applying advice from others. It fools the mind into thinking that it alone has or can discover all the answers without help from anyone...

The Catholic Church teaches that humility is the best remedy for pride. It's not a false self-deprecation ... It's not denying the truth ...

In other words, although acknowledging your talents is good, humility should remind you that your talents come from God. Pride fools you into thinking that you're the source of your own greatness.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next up: Envy.

Back to Basics: Envy

The second of the seven deadly sins is envy.

Envy, another deadly sin, is the resentment of another person's good fortune or joy. Catholicism distinguishes between two kinds of envy.

• Material envy is when you resent others who have more money, talent, strength, beauty, friends, and so on, than you do.
• Spiritual envy is resenting others who progress in holiness, preferring that they stay at or below your level instead of being joyful and happy that they're doing what they're supposed to be doing. Spiritual envy is far worse and more evil than material envy.

Note that some spiritual writers and moralists make a distinction between envy and jealousy. They maintain that envy is the resentment of what others have, such as possessions, talent, fame, and so one, whereas jealousy is the fear of losing what you already have... Jealousy is considered to be as much a sin as envy, because it resembles that deadly sin a whole bunch...

The Church maintains that meekness or kindness can counter envy.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next up ... Lust.

Back to Basics: Anger

The fourth of the seven deadly sins is anger. This is one that I think our society has let get out of control in the name of healthy self-expression.

You have no control over what angers you, but you do have control over what you do after you become angry. The deadly sin of anger is the sudden outburst of emotion -- namely hostility -- and sustaining thoughts about the desire for revenge...

Patience, the virtue that allows you to adapt and endure evil without harboring any destructive feelings, is the best countermeasure for anger. When you give yourself the time and opportunity to cool off, anger dissipates and more practical concerns come to the front line.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

And on we will go next to Gluttony.

Back to Basics: Gluttony

The fifth of the seven deadly sins is gluttony.

Like lust, gluttony focuses on pleasure and finds it in food and drink... Both enslave the soul to the body, even though the soul -- being superior to the body -- should be in charge. Gluttons don't eat out of necessity or for social reasons, but merely to consume and experience the pleasure of taste...

Legitimate eating disorders, such as anorexia and bulimia, aren't gluttony. They're medical conditions that require treatment and care. The sin of gluttony is freely choosing to over-consume. Gluttony is voluntary and merely requires self-control and moderation...

Periodic fasting, restricting the amount of food you eat, and abstinence, avoiding meat for some favorite food, are the best defenses against gluttony. Unlike dieting where the goal is to lose weight, fasting and abstinence are to purify the soul by controlling the desires of the body...

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Downward and onward ... Greed will be up next.

Back to Basics: Lust

The third of the seven deadly sins is lust.

The Catholic Church believes that it's normal and healthy to be attracted to and appreciate the opposite sex. That's not lust, and it's not considered a sin.

Lust is looking at, imagining, and even treating others as mere sex objects to serve your own physical pleasures, rather than as individuals made in the image and likeness of God. Lust is having someone become something merely to please you, in fantasy or reality.

The Church says that lust depersonalizes the other person and the one having the lustful thoughts. It makes both parties nothing more than instruments of enjoyment instead of enabling them to focus on the unique gift of personhood. And it seeks to separate, divide, and isolate what God intended to be united -- love and life, the unitive and procreative dimensions of marriage...

Chastity, the virtue that moderates sexual desire, is the best remedy for lust. Chastity falls under temperance and can help to keep physical pleasure in moderation.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next up ... Anger.

Heavenly Habits: Fortitude

The last but not the least of the cardinal virtues.

Fortitude is the ability to persevere in times of trial and tribulation -- the ability to hang in there when the going gets tough. It's courage to do the right thing no matter what the cost.

It's not enough to be fair, use self-control, and be prudent and know what, when, and how to do something. The virtue gives you the strength to fulfill your commitments to God, family,and friends...

When practiced faithfully and consistently, fortitude empowers people to remain courageous and overcome even the fear of death in order to help others and/or do the right thing for the right reason.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next, we'll look at the seven deadly sins, including how the virtues counteract them.

Defending the Faith and Contentiousness

Heaven only knows that I can get contentious. We probably all go through our ornery, argumentative phases. However, the tendency toward contentiousness is something that I notice a lot around St. Blog's and also other Christian sites. That's probably why this chapter really spoke to me. So I'm going to post in pieces ... it's a little more digestible that way, I think.

When it comes to religious differences, there are three options: we can exaggerate or accentuate them; we can ignore or minimize them; we can recognize them, give them their due, but keep them in their proper place in the scheme of things. The last is the best of course, but taking it requires making distinctions, which some apologists, out of excessive zeal or prejudice, do not always do.

Some religious differences are largely if not purely terminological. The Eastern Orthodox talk about "the Divine Liturgy," while the Latin Catholic refer to "the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass." They are referring to the same thing. Other differences are matters of taste or emphasis. Baptists believe Jesus dies on the cross for our sins but usually do not have crucifixes in their churches. For them, an empty cross speaks of Jesus' Resurrection. Catholics, who also believe Christ rose from the dead, put a corpus on the cross to proclaim that he died for our sins. There is no real difference of belief, only of emphasis.

How Not to Share Your Faith:
The Seven Deadly Sins of Apologetics
by Mark Brumley

To be continued ...

I Love It When a Plan Comes Together

WALK! THAT WASN'T PART OF THE DEAL!
-- Homer J. Simpson

If we are to understand spirituality, we can begin by taking a look at how Ignatius wrote about it in his text: spirituality is a practice, a regular endeavor through which we come to build our lives on the love of God -- to order our lives according to God's plan for us. Its focus, then, is not primarily ourselves but, rather, God. In naming his spiritual practices "exercises," Ignatius sought to suggest something about how we ought to approach them: as undertakings we must repeat again and again in order to progress slowly toward a goal. We can see spiritual exercises, then, as a part of regular maintenance for the soul. If we practice them, we will give ourselves the chance to know God more intimately and to know God's will for us. Why is this important? Because, to paraphrase the themes of Psalm 139, God knows us better than we know ourselves. If God called us into existence and continues to intimately shape our existence very second, then God counts every hair on our heads and wants our good. Too often our lives bring us suffering, which seems so meaningless; and our natural reaction is to fight our suffering -- and often God, too -- in order to rid ourselves of it. Faith, I think, is the gift that enables us to suspend our judgments so that we might retain the belief that even through our suffering, God seeks our ultimate good.

The key word here is ultimate. Clearly, when I am suffering, I can't see any good in it. But if my concern is my ultimate good, then there are times when I must inevitably accept suffering. Back to our model then: if my life were devoted to the elimination of all suffering, then I could never grow strong. I would avoid all exercise because exercise sometimes involves certain levels of pain (no pain, no gain, right?). Taking this a step further, though, let us recognize that the objective is not pain per se -- not all pain is acceptable. There is a difference between the pain of my burning lungs after a good hard cardiovascular workout and the pain of a pulled muscle. Athletes must learn to distinguish good pain from bad pain, and in so doing, they learn how to tolerate the good and avoid the bad. Similarly, then, in the spiritual life, we must be concerned with learning how god helps us confront certain kinds of suffering that help us grow and how he helps us avoid the suffering that only breaks us down. Moreover, we can see from this example that the spiritual life must be more than simply avoiding suffering; rather it must be learning to discern among types of suffering and accepting the kinds that leads us to greater spiritual growth.

Exercise! Not a fan. Nope. But I never really thought about it applying to my spiritual life. You'd think that is the sort of thing that is a no-brainer but no ... it was an eye opener for me and that is just from part of the introduction to The Ignatian Workout: Daily Spiritual Exercises for a Healthy Faith by Tim Muldoon. If I'd have excerpted all the text that gave me "aha" moments then I'd have reproduced then entire introduction here for you.

Maybe this wouldn't have hit me so hard if it wasn't essentially the last whack from that holy 2 x 4 God keeps having to haul out for me.

KNOW THYSELF

The Operative: Do you know what your sin is?
Capt. Malcolm Reynolds: Aw hell, I'm a fan of all seven... but right now, I'm gonna have to go with wrath.

Serenity

Preparing the series on the seven deadly sins I'd nod my head here or shake it there over various of the individual sins. Let's face it, it is the rare soul who doesn't recognize at least a bit of themselves in most of them. However, when I got to Sloth I was taken aback. Somehow though I knew it was a sin I didn't really think about it ... certainly not to the point where I saw most of my major failings being described as seemed to be happening at that moment (now y'all can't wait for me to get to that post I know).

Ahem. Talk about a definition of why I am having a hard time with getting things done, especially in being disciplined about my prayer life. It was like a dash of ice water in my face. Time to wake up. Time to stop letting myself get so distracted and get focused on doing one thing at a time ... UNTIL IT IS DONE.

IN TRAINING

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us.

Hebrews 12:1 (English Standard Version)

Time to apply the remedy ... diligence.

With that in mind, I will be beginning the 34-week online retreat on Monday with two friends. These two wonderful women are not only great friends but they are great advisors. Both are so grounded and so different from me ... and that is all to the good when getting help in staying on the straight and narrow.

Also, I have begun listening to the Pray-as-you-go daily podcasts. Each is only ten minutes long but I was literally shocked at how often I was impatient simply while praying and meditating during the first session. Another wake up call, more ice water at how far I had slid from the days when I would gladly shut myself into our spare room three times a day for a few minutes of prayer.

Finally, we come to this book, which I first heard of through the Spirited Talk Today podcast. Anyone see a trend here? I sure do, reaching clear back to when I was Surprised by Jesuits.

There is definitely a plan and I am certainly being pointed in that direction. Of course, it's easy to recognize problems, to talk about solving them. The hard part is staying the course and doing it. Which is where that self-knowledge and diligence are going to come in on my part ... and leaning on my friends whether here or in that cloud of witnesses ... and, of course, God.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Applying the Virtues to Everyday Life

Raising Up Mommy
Virtues for Difficult Mothering Moments
Heidi Hess Saxton

Hospitality: The Feminine Face of Generosity

Order and proportion, beauty and moderation. To embrace these principles of artistry within the home is to create an environment where the senses of family members are liberated to appreciate the fullness of God's design. A single bit of sun-ripened peach dances on the tongue with a far greater satisfaction--and far less guilt--than a quart of factory processed frozen yogurt.

True hospitality--the ability to tend to another person's needs while simultaneously putting that person at ease--demands both an empathetic perspective and an artistic touch. The generous person slips a check in a get-well card; the hospitable individual also leaves a jar of homemade chicken-and-dumplings or an inspirational book on tape.

But what does practicing the art of hospitality have to do with combating greed, one might ask? Just as the greed attaches to material things out of fear or pride, the one who practices true hospitality meets the physical needs of others out of an inner conviction of faith and trust, demonstrating by their own detachment a firm reliance on the only true Source of good things.

The motivation behind the act is as important as the act itself. Some people, for example, give not out of a sense of gratitude, but out of neediness--a need to be liked, or to be in the limelight.....

Contrary to the title, this book is actually about how women can practice the virtues in their lives, whether they are mothers or not. As Saxton guides us through the virtues, showing how they are antidotes for the seven deadly sins, we can see how practicing the small opportunities yields spiritual flowering in our own lives and those around us. I could relate all too well to Saxton's frequent confessions of her less than perfect moments of mothering or wifeliness. However, I think it is the rare women who cannot relate this realistic linking of sins and virtues to their own lives, whether at work, with friends, or even when alone.

I am a big fan of the virtues but all too frequently I am good at reading about them but then forget to practice them. This book will help anyone who reads it, myself included, see the many opportunities we are given to practice the virtues every day. Saxton makes the goal of living our vocations as Christians eminently more "do-able" through the insights in this book.

Highly recommended.

Update: I see that Heidi also has a new book out ... about Mary. Read a review at Just another day of Catholic pondering.

Bonus Review

Let Nothing Trouble You: 60 Reflections from the Writings of Teresa of Avila
(The Saints Speak Today)
Heidi Hess Saxton

When I was looking around for sales links to put with the above book, I realized that I have been an unwitting fan of Heidi Saxton's for a long, long time. At the time I became Christian, I was looking around for books about prayer and came across a short series of books about praying with the saints. I really wish the series had been longer, however, it was through these that I was introduced to my first two saintly "pals," St. Augustine and St. Teresa of Avila. (The other two books feature St. Thomas More and St. Francis of Assisi.) Saxton wrote the Teresa of Avila book.

I still love these books which combine simple but insightful combinations of 60 day's worth of morning and evening readings featuring scripture and readings from the saint. I pick up used copies whenever I come across them to give to new converts. Recently, I gave one to a friend of Hannah's who just entered the Church and heard back that she really loves it.

A much belated, but heartfelt thank you for that book!

Highly recommended.

Update: Heidi tells me that she has copies of this for sale at her place. Just click through.

Metropolis — Nuts in a Good Way

 

I watched this 1927  silent film as part of my 2021 Book and Movie Challenge. I knew it was really influential. I knew it was a big story set in 2026 about the downtrodden workers under the city and the rich people living in a futuristic city of splendor. This made it seem as if it would be preachy and boring, although with gorgeous sets.

Forget all that. This movie was nuts. And I mean that in a good way.

Let's start with a sexy female robot, mad scientist, forbidden love, a rooftop chase with fistfight, a horrifying chase of the heroine through the catacombs, and a really effective double role for Brigitte Helm playing both the heroine and the evil robot. All set off with amazing style in which I could see influences for Frankenstein movies, Bladerunner, Star Wars, and a ton of other movies. All the times I'd read about this movie no one said it was science fiction. I was actually on the edge of my seat at times wondering where this crazy story would go next.

I was really surprised also to see a lot of religious symbolism throughout. This begins when the hero leaves his world to see what lies below and has a vision of the workers being fed to the demon Moloch. Numerous references to the Apocalypse, complete with Biblical readings, are accompanied by Dies Irae  music to carry the theme home. Crosses, the seven deadly sins, the Tower of Babel, a flood, and the importance of the coming of "the Mediator" are just a few of the other things rounding out the religious references.

There aren't tons of title cards telling us the dialogue but we usually know what everyone's talking about. As Norma Desmond said in Sunset Blvd., "We didn't need dialogue. We had faces!" Sometimes the acting is way over the top which is understandable since a lot of these actors came from theater where you've got to go big to reach the back rows. However, there was surprisingly subtle acting sometimes where closeups allowed. 

 In many ways I was aided by many years of watching indie or foreign movies where you learn to just let them wash over you in the hopes of the big reward by the end. And, I was helped by our Indian movie watching where you learn you won't catch every line or reference but you'll get most of it by the end. Also, Bollywood has trained me to be very tolerant of "big" acting.

As you can probably tell from what I've said, this isn't what you'd call a subtle movie but it is amazingly effective at being both entertaining and getting the point across.

Heavenly Habits: Temperance

Continuing our look at the cardinal virtues with number three up close and personal.

Temperance is the virtue by which a person uses balance. It's the good habit that allows a person to relax and have fun without crossing the line and committing sin.

The Catholic Church believes that human beings are permitted to participate in legitimate pleasures but that, often, society and culture lures people into excesses in the direction of either extreme...

... practicing temperance means knowing when to say when. It's knowing your limits and keeping them. For example, a kiss and a hug don't have to end in passionate sex, and an argument doesn't have to deteriorate into a fist fight. Temperance is establishing, respecting, and enforcing boundaries. Self-control is the key. Having a good time without it becoming an occasion of sin or a sinful act is what temperance is all about.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next up: Fortitude.

Back to Basics: Justice

Continuing that examination of the cardinal virtues.

Justice is the virtue that seeks to promote fair play. It's the desire and resolve to give each person his due. It demands that you reward goodness and punish evil. Justice can be one of three different types: commutative. Distributive, and social.

Commutative justice concerns the relationship between equals -- between two people, such as a customer and a merchant. [This involves fair prices and honesty about merchandise, not cheating the merchant, and restitution in case of theft of damage to property.]

Distributive justice involves the relationship between one and many -- between an individual and a group. This kind of justice is most obvious in the relationship between a citizen and his or her government [such as charging fair taxes or knowing where one's taxes go].

Social justice concerns the relationship of both individuals and groups between one another and everyone. The bottom line is the common good -- the public welfare of all. Social justice is concerned with the environment, the economy, private property, civil rights and church-state relations.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Next up: Temperance.

UPDATE
Once again Father Stephanos has words of wisdom that round out our contemplation of this subject.

Sometimes people set up a false dichotomy between justice and charity. Read the following.

----
Catechism of the Catholic Church
1807 Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. "You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor." "Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven."
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Justice makes charity a duty, not an option. Charity serves the glory of God and the authentic good (not necessarily convenience) of my neighbor. Justice is, in the words of the CCC above, "the constant and firm WILL to give" glory to God and to do what is authentically good for my neighbor. It is justice that receives charity as an OBLIGATION. As Jesus put it:
"I give you a new COMMANDMENT-- love another as I have loved you."

When we behave without justice, charity is already dead.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Back to Basics: Prudence

Examining the cardinal virtues a little more in-depth.

Prudence is basically practical common sense. It's saying or doing the proper thing, at the proper time, and in the appropriate manner. It's also the ability to know and judge whether to say something or do nothing at all...

Prudence takes time and practice, In the olden days, when good manners were more important than income, portfolio, or net worth, noblemen and peasants alike strove to show respect for their fellow man through the practice of prudent speech. Today, manners come in two extremes: The politically correct fear of offending anyone and saying nothing controversial -- even when someone is in danger, and alternatively, the shock-jocks who bluntly bludgeon you over the head with the raw, unadulterated truth, hoping to hurt your feelings and get a violent reaction rather than help you. Prudence, on the other hand, is in the middle of the two extremes. Prudent people speak the truth when needed and appropriate and in a way that doesn't offend, but they never lose their force and conviction.

Acting prudently requires mature deliberation [thinking carefully before acting or not acting], wise choice [determining which option is feasible and appropriate], and the right execution [swiftly and thoroughly follow through without procrastination and haste].

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Recommended reading: Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. He examines the virtues in depth and also looks specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins. Not a new concept but one that he writes about superbly (as always).

Father Stephanos adds:

Of those for "hinge" or "pivotal" virtues, the one that is the "coordinator" of all other virtues is the virtue of prudence.

Prudence even governs our exercise of charity.

CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH:
1806 Prudence is the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it; "the prudent man looks where he is going." "Keep sane and sober for your prayers." Prudence is "right reason in action," writes St. Thomas Aquinas, following Aristotle. It is not to be confused with timidity or fear, nor with duplicity or dissimulation. It is called "auriga virtutum" (the charioteer of the virtues); it guides the other virtues by setting rule and measure. It is prudence that immediately guides the judgment of conscience. The prudent man determines and directs his conduct in accordance with this judgment. With the help of this virtue we apply moral principles to particular cases without error and overcome doubts about the good to achieve and the evil to avoid.

Good stuff, eh?

Next up: Justice.

Tags: Catholicism, Christianity

Heavenly Habits: Cardinal Virtues

I'm going to rerun this look at the virtues mostly for myself, but also for anyone else interested. I see that I had two separate series which ran in 2006 and 2008. Yes, it's time to get back to basics on these.

Despite God’s help and our best intentions we often fall. We often turn down the wrong road, whether accidentally or deliberately. There is, however, a frequently overlooked way that we can strengthen ourselves and increase our odds of success in following Jesus. Of course, we cannot do this without God’s grace, but just as athletes train for both strength and muscle-memory, we can do the same for our souls. We can train ourselves by striving to acquire the virtues.

A virtue is a habit that perfects the powers of the soul and disposes you to do good. Catholics believe that divine grace is offered to the soul, because without God's help, humans can't do good on their own. Grace, which is God's intervention, bolsters a person's soul. providing the necessary oomph to do the right thing, that is, if the recipient recognizes its value. Catholics believe that virtues prepare and dispose people so that when the grace is offered, people readily recognize, accept, and cooperate with it. In other words, God's grace is necessary, but virtues make it easier to work with.

Traditionally, the cardinal virtues number four ... The root meaning of cardinal is cardio, which is Latin for hinge. These four virtues are the hinges on which the rest of the moral life swings:

• Prudence
• Justice
• Temperance
• Fortitude

The four cardinal virtues are also called moral virtues to distinguish them from the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love (charity), which are given to the soul at Baptism.

Catholicism For Dummies by John Trigilio

Now there's a way of looking at it that isn't common, at least to me. What habits can I cultivate to make it easier for me to recognize and receive God's grace? I like that.

A great book to read on this subject, and on that I should reread is Back to Virtue by Peter Kreeft. Along with talking about virtues, Kreeft lines up specific virtues and Beatitudes as antidotes to each of the seven deadly sins.

Next we'll look at the four virtues separately. First up: Prudence.

Lent-ish Links

An examination of conscience from Zenit. Via Holy Fool.

A history lesson on what Lent used to be like. Via Mrs. Darwin.

Doing Nothing or Nothing Doing? from Confessions of a Hot Carmel Sundae isn't precisely Lent oriented I suppose except that as I have exactly the opposite nature it made me begin thinking about what God wanted me to do ... which translated into Lenten thinking.

How the Seven Deadly Sins All Start From Good Things by TO. Another that isn't specifically for Lent but I found quite it made a good contribution toward pondering what to keep an eye on in my life and, specifically, in terms of Lenten practices. You might like it that way too.