GREED Greed (Avaritia) is the excessive love of wealth and the power which comes
with it. Like lust and gluttony, it is a sin of excess. Whethermanifested by hoarding or by lavish spending, it is a peculiarly earth-bound sin, looking to nothing beyond thematerial rewards of this life. LUST Lust (Luxuria) is usually thought of as excessive thoughts or desires of a sexual nature. It is a shared sin. Althoughmutual indulgence only serves to push both parties along the road toHell, it is not, in intention, wholly selfish. ENVY Envy (Invidia) differs from that of Pride in that it contains an element of fear. It is self-sufficient, rejectingwith contempt the notion that anybody can be equal or superior. To be envious is to be afraid of losing something by the admission of superiority in others, causing hatred upon other’s gifts and good fortune and taking every opportunity to run themdown or deprive themof their happiness. PRIDE Pride (Superbia) is considered the original of the seven deadly sins is the root of all sin others. It is defined as the excessive love of one’s self, the endeavour to bemore important or attractive than
others and failing to recognise the good in others. Dante’s definitionwas “love of self perverted to hatred and contempt for one’s neighbour.” SLOTH Sloth (Accidia or Akedia) is not merely idleness of mind and laziness of body: it is poisoning thewill as indifferent and the deliberate refusal of joy. It culminates inmorbid introspection and despair. Sloth is often seen as being considerably less serious than the other sins, more a sin of omission than of commission. GLUTTONY Gluttony (Gula) is an unjustified attention to the pleasures in life.More specifically, it is the over- indulgence and over-consumption of anything to the point of waste. WRATH Wrath (Ira) is also known as Rage and can be described as the blinding of judgment, ultimately causing uncontrolled feelings of hatred and anger. It presents with self-destructiveness impatience, revenge, vigilantismand violence.Wrath is the only sin not necessarily associatedwith selfishness or self-interest. Dante described vengeance as “love of justice perverted to revenge and spite”.
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