Pope Gregory the Great (d. 604) described Seven Deadly Sins in his Moralia in Job.
1. Superbia Pride
2. Invidia Envy
3. Ira Anger
4. Avaritia Avarice
5. Tristia Sadness
6. Gula Gluttony
7. Luxuria Lust
(Moralia in Job, XXXI cap. xlv).
The sin ‘Tristia’ was later replaced by ‘Accidia’, or Sloth (Wenzel (1967), 38). This sin was taken from earlier catalogues of vice, in particular, the eight evil thoughts listed by Evaagrius (346-99), and the eight principal vices proposed by the mid fourth-century writer Cassian (Wenzel (1967), 14-21). Some of the iconography of the Sins was derived from the descriptions of the Battles between the Virtues and Vices in the Psychomachia by the fourth-century poet Prudentius.
2. Why were they called ‘Deadly’?
The church made a division between sins which were venial and could be forgiven without the need for the sacrament of Confession and those which were capital and merited damnation. Capital or Deadly Sins were so called because they could have a fatal effect on an individual’s spiritual health. British wall paintings stressed the connection between committing the Deadly Sins and ending up in Hell.
A fourteenth-century text, known as Dan Jon Gaytrygge’s Sermon, associated with the Constitutions issued by Archbishop Thoresby for the Diocese of York in 1357, stated:
‘For als the venym of the neddire (adder) slaas manes body, swa the venym of syn slaas manes saule’.
(Perry (1867), 12)
3. Why did people need to know about these sins?
You might imagine that the church would want to prevent people even thinking about such spiritually dangerous actions. But there were two good reasons why churchmen felt it was important to educate people:
1. so that they would not commit these sins without realising how serious they were,
2. so that they would be able to confess any such sins and gain absolution.
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Impunity is an open wound in the human soul.
Originally Posted by psolisc
