The Seven Deadly Sins
The following was printed in "The Anglican Digest"
for Eastertide A.D. 1981 page 12.
The list [of the Seven Deadly Sins] has been used since the time
of Gregory the Great (540-604). They are also called the "root
sins" because they are the primary instincts which give rise to all
the sins which we commit. They are: Pride, Gluttony, Sloth, Covetousness, Anger, Lust and Envy. The late
Kenneth Kirk, 42nd Bishop of Oxford and the most distinguished
Anglican moral theologian of the century, points out that each of
them is the parent of many others:
- Pride
- gives rise to presumption, hypocrisy, obstinacy,
quarrelsomeness and disobedience. top
- Gluttony
- prompts drunkenness, vain joy, imaturity, selfishness and love
of ease. top
- Sloth
- suggests hatred of spiritual things, weakness in prayer,
dullness of spirit, moral cowardice and dispair.
top
- Covetousness
- sustains fear of loss, anxiety, worldly sorrow, callousness,
dishonesty and uncharitableness. top
- Anger
- eggs on suspicion, ingratitude, resentment, mental agitation
and rancor. top
- Lust
- encourages blindness of mind, hardness of heart, inconstancy
and cruelty. top
- Envy
- says "right on" to falsehood, calumny, evil interpretation and
contempt. top
--The Anvil (Diocese of British Columbia)
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