There are seven sins that are commonly referred to as the seven deadly sins. All sin, however, is deadly and tends toward the dehumanization of a person. Sin, in the Orthodox Christian view, is not an addition to one's humanity. Instead, it is a subtraction from it. Sin is not natural. It is unnatural. To sin is to be less than human.
The seven sins that are called the Seven Deadly Sins are: pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth. Each of these sins is the absence of a particular virtue or a set of virtues. Pride is the absence of humility. Greed is the absence of contentment and/or liberality. Lust is the absence of authentic love, self-control, and/or chastity. Anger is the absence of mercy, patience, and/or kindness. Gluttony is the absence of self-control or temperance. Envy is the absence of contentment, love, and/or humility. Sloth is the absence of diligence, perseverance, and/or self-control.
Since these sins are the absence of virtues, we can eradicate them by practicing virtue. Certain ascetical disciplines need to be practiced in order to gain the victory over these sins. Such ascetical disciplines include prayer, fasting, Bible reading, and the remembrance of death.
Receiving the Sacraments is also important in this spiritual warfare to gain virtue and eradicate sin. Jesus said:
I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (St. John 15:5, NKJV)
and:
He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. (St. John 6:56, NKJV)
We need to abide in Christ in order to bear the spiritual fruit of virtue. One of the things that we must be doing in order to be abiding in Him is to eat His flesh and drink His blood. We receive Christ's flesh and blood in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. In this Sacrament, our Lord disguises Himself as bread and wine and makes it possible for us to partake of Him. He imparts to us divine energy in this Sacrament to aid us in our spiritual battles. We also receive mercy from God in this Sacrament.
In some future blogs, I will talk more about these deadly sins and how to gain the victory over them.
Steve
The seven sins that are called the Seven Deadly Sins are: pride, greed, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth. Each of these sins is the absence of a particular virtue or a set of virtues. Pride is the absence of humility. Greed is the absence of contentment and/or liberality. Lust is the absence of authentic love, self-control, and/or chastity. Anger is the absence of mercy, patience, and/or kindness. Gluttony is the absence of self-control or temperance. Envy is the absence of contentment, love, and/or humility. Sloth is the absence of diligence, perseverance, and/or self-control.
Since these sins are the absence of virtues, we can eradicate them by practicing virtue. Certain ascetical disciplines need to be practiced in order to gain the victory over these sins. Such ascetical disciplines include prayer, fasting, Bible reading, and the remembrance of death.
Receiving the Sacraments is also important in this spiritual warfare to gain virtue and eradicate sin. Jesus said:
I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. (St. John 15:5, NKJV)
and:
He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. (St. John 6:56, NKJV)
We need to abide in Christ in order to bear the spiritual fruit of virtue. One of the things that we must be doing in order to be abiding in Him is to eat His flesh and drink His blood. We receive Christ's flesh and blood in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. In this Sacrament, our Lord disguises Himself as bread and wine and makes it possible for us to partake of Him. He imparts to us divine energy in this Sacrament to aid us in our spiritual battles. We also receive mercy from God in this Sacrament.
In some future blogs, I will talk more about these deadly sins and how to gain the victory over them.
Steve
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