The Qur'an describes Satan's fatal flaw as that of pride. "I am better than him!" Satan cries when God would have him bow down before Adam. Satan's pride, and his hurt ego, lead him to defy God, and to a host of other sins, including a couple of the deadly ones...envy and anger. Today too, it seems there is a plethora of ills arising from the same sin.
Whether it be terrorists who claim to promote an Islamic lifestyle, Christian fundamentalists who want to bring their understanding of morality into American law, Jewish Zionists who support the subjugation and decimation of Palestinians, or Hindu nationalists who want a "pure" India, the idea that "I know better. My way is better" is rampant in our religious communities. It creates a climate of intolerance and religious totalitarianism, and has been responsible for countless acts of violence from terrorist acts, to intercommunal warfare, to western military interventions around the world.
It is also rampant in our personal lives. Far too many of us justify gluttony, lust, greed and sloth with the notions that we deserve the things we want. 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.
Like most sins, pride can be a source of good. It can lead us to live with integrity, with compassion and excellence in all the things that we do. We do the things that we perceive as being the things a good person would do. It is only in overabundance that pride is harmful.
Unfortunately, it seems we have not a mere overabundance on our hands, but a veritable treasure chest of pride inhabiting the hearts of far to much of humanity.
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