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THE QUESTION
Seven Deadly Sins
In Christian theology, there are Seven Deadly Sins: pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger, greed and sloth. Which of these do you think is the worst? Which is most prevalent and harmful in our society today?
Posted by
Sally Quinn and Jon Meacham on January 16, 2008 5:22 AM
FROM THE PANEL
The Problem with Ethnocentrism
Ethnocentric pride's most deadly incarnation is seen in the ethnic-cleansing that has been a tragic part of much of global history. Pride can be seen in tribal warfare, genocides, and the Shoah.
Posted by Gabriel Salguero, on January 21, 2008 8:26 AM
Structural Sin
The exaltation of greed constitutes the structural acceptance of one of the Seven Deadly Sins. It goes against the teachings of my religion, if not also most religions, to reward the rich and punish the poor.
Posted by Anthony M. Stevens-Arroyo, on January 21, 2008 7:26 AM
Greed Gets My Vote
We Jesus-people have heard that we cannot serve the god of material things like money, but we don't pay too much attention to that accent of Jesus, and devote energies to satisfying our greedy impulses which, by definition, cannot be satisfied.
Posted by Martin Marty, on January 21, 2008 7:15 AM
Hinduism Advises to Stay Away from Sinner
In Hinduism, shunning of sinner is advised as sin is thought to be transmittable by physical contact, by thought, and by speech.
Posted by Rajan Zed, on January 21, 2008 6:33 AM
The Sins That Destroy Us
Greed has corrupted our practice of Christian faith with the heresy that God exists to satisfy our lusts and gluttony.
Posted by Gardner Calvin Taylor, on January 20, 2008 9:58 PM
The Cold Sin of Greed
My vote goes to greed: greed is the sin most prevalent and harmful in the world today. Greed goes to the heart of many social and societal issues. Greed keeps war, violence and destruction of lives, limbs and property a dominating experience in the lives of many citizens of this planet.
Posted by Lauren Artress, on January 19, 2008 7:10 PM
Pride as American as Apple Pie
Pride is the great motivator for 21st Century success and accomplishment.
Posted by Samuel Rodriguez, on January 19, 2008 6:54 PM
Generosity Shames Greed
GREED is my choice. It’s both the worst and, in our society today, the most prevalent and harmful. But greed can be shamed by generosity, as in the life and work of Muhammad Yunus.
Posted by Willis E. Elliott, on January 19, 2008 5:52 PM
Pride Before Many Falls
From my choice to join the Marines, to cramming through law school nights, to marrying into the right family, to angling for my position as Special Counsel to the President, I had been driven out of pride.
Posted by Charles "Chuck" Colson, on January 18, 2008 12:14 PM
The Infection of Society
It appears, at least to me that selfishness is the seed of all sin; murder, robbery, lying, cheating, road rage, child abuse, embezzlement, discrimination, hatred and the list goes on.
Posted by Lyle Dukes, on January 18, 2008 8:05 AM
The Sinful Pride of the Post-Modern World
Our pride in being western post-enlightenment humans (or indeed our pride in having attained the degree of sophistication to call ourselves post-modernists!) gives us the further license to make up our own rules.
Posted by Nicholas T. Wright, on January 17, 2008 2:32 PM
The Value -- and Temptation -- of the List
The question itself—which is the worst of the sins?— is a temptation. It assumes a list, and it plays to our love of ranking and categories. But not so fast.
Posted by William Tully, on January 17, 2008 1:37 PM
Pride Caused Us to Attack Iraq
Prideful behavior on every level is what caused this administration to violate 1,600 years of Christian moral reasoning, the Just War theory, and attack Iraq. This kind of prideful behavior is not only a political and strategic error, it is a fundamental faith error.
Posted by Susan Brooks Thistlethwaite, on January 17, 2008 9:10 AM
Sins and Virtues
There is no list of “Deadly Sins” in Jewish theology, nor is there a list of worthy virtues. We do not believe that good and evil are defined by particular qualities.
Posted by Adin Steinsaltz, on January 17, 2008 8:20 AM
Self-Indulgence: A Chronic Human Failing
Shedding innocent blood, habitual lying or calculated divisiveness are far worse than many or all on the list of the “deadly seven.”
Posted by Michael Otterson, on January 17, 2008 7:36 AM
Global Sin
As bad as all these things are, it may be gluttony and greed that will do us in as a species.
Posted by Thomas J. Reese, S.J., on January 17, 2008 6:38 AM
Greed is the Seed of All Sins
In my opinion the most deadly of the seven sins is GREED. It not only makes people selfish but it enables people to rob the poor for their own personal aggrandizement.
Posted by Arun Gandhi, on January 16, 2008 12:53 PM
Envy: Personal and Political Poison
Although there's nothing good to be said on behalf of gluttony and greed (and American society is certainly filled with both), it seems to me that envy is the most prevalent and destructive of all sins.
Posted by Susan Jacoby, on January 16, 2008 9:25 AM
Only One Truly Deadly Sin
There is no "gradation" of sin in Scripture.
Posted by Cal Thomas, on January 16, 2008 8:05 AM
Greed and Other Social Sins
GREED and its brothers and sisters ARROGANCE AND SELFISHNESS lead the pack.
Posted by Bob Edgar, on January 16, 2008 7:08 AM
Pride and Other All-Consuming Sins
Americans in particular consume excessively (both in terms of gluttony and lust, and in terms of electricity, gas, and other natural resources) while giving only a pittance to the poor of the world.
Posted by Pamela K. Taylor, on January 16, 2008 6:08 AM
FEATURED COMMENTS
Al: Sin can be understood as that which causes suffering. Not eternal suffering, but suffering as long as one violates natural Law.
It's prett...
Garyd: That would be Catholic theology. In Reformation and Protestant theology there is but one deadly sin and that is to blaspheme against the Ho...
JoeT: Analytically speaking, there's only one candidate for the biggest sin - Pride. It is the philosophical root of the other six, which are sim...
