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.
In my tradition, we try to remember to make a crucial distinction between sins and Sin. Those who talk endlessly about sins seem to want to scrutinize the behavior of others. And where there’s scrutiny, moralizing will follow, and close behind will come judgment and the call for laws. The presidential campaign trail is already littered with calls to put someone’s moral code into civil law. And religion is reduced to our nanny.
To talk of sin in the singular is to slow the rush to judgment and open a more thoughtful and honest consideration of the human condition, something we all share. In both theological and psychological terms, we say we humans are created good—and powerful. We can use our power to serve that underlying good, but we seem to have a tendency to exceed our power, to play God.
I think calling that “total depravity,” as some in my own tradition have and still do, is excessive. But I take seriously the root lust for power in humankind. To confess that, to work on amending our approach to life requires work, the spiritual support of others, and a humility that can only be received and never grasped for.
Eventually that work can lead to an inventory of tendencies, and the famous list of seven is a good place to start. Each of them is an instance of our condition, but none alone tells our whole story.
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