News from the Church in Malta
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
After having concluded our overview of the vices, it is now time to take a look at the mirror image, which is in opposition to the experience of evil. The human heart can indulge evil passions, it can pay heed to harmful temptations disguised in persuasive garb, but it can also oppose all of this… Read more »
Cycle of Catechesis. Vices and Virtues. 10. Pride
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In our catechetical journey on the vices and virtues, today we come to the last of the vices: pride. The ancient Greeks defined it with a word that could be translated “excessive splendor.” Indeed, pride is self-exaltation, conceit, vanity. The term also appears in that series of vices that Jesus lists to explain that evil always comes from the heart of man (cf. Mark 7:22)… Read more »
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today we examine two deadly vices that we find in the great lists that the spiritual tradition has left us: envy and vainglory.
Let us start with envy. If we read Holy Scripture (cf. Gen 4), it appears to us as one of the oldest vices: Cain’s hatred of Abel is unleashed when he realizes that his brother’s sacrifices are pleasing to God… Read more »
Dear brothers and sisters,
Among all the capital sins there is one that is often overlooked, perhaps because of its name, which is often incomprehensible to many: I am talking about acedia. Therefore, in the list of vices, the term acedia is often substituted by another, much more commonly used: sloth, or laziness. In reality, laziness is an effect more than a cause… Read more »
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In our itinerary of catechesis on the vices and virtues, today we will look at a rather ugly vice, sorrow, understood as a despondency of the soul, a constant affliction that prevents man for feeling joy at his own existence.
First and foremost, it must be noted that, with regard to sorrow, the Fathers drew an important distinction: it is this… Read more »
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Today we will pause to reflect on the vice of wrath. Now we are talking about vices and virtues: today it is time to reflect on the vice of wrath. It is a particularly dark vice, and it is perhaps the easiest to detect from a physical point of view. The person dominated by wrath finds it difficult to hide this impulse: you can recognize it from the movements of his body, his aggressiveness, his laboured breathing, his grim and frowning expression… Read more »
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
We are continuing our catechesis on vices and virtues, and today we will talk about avarice, that form of attachment to money that keeps man from generosity.
If is not a sin that regards only people with large assets, but rather a transversal vice, which often has nothing to do with the bank balance… Read more »
Brothers and sisters, good morning!
And today, let us listen well to the catechesis, because afterwards there will be a circus that will perform for us. Let us continue our journey concerning vices and virtues; and the ancient Fathers teach us that, after gluttony, the second ‘demon’ – that is, vice – that is always crouching at the door of the heart is that of lust, called porneia in Greek… Read more »
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
In our journey of catechesis, in this path of catechesis we are doing, on vices and virtues, today we will take a look at the vice of gluttony. Gluttony.
What does the Gospel tell us about it? Let us look at Jesus. His first miracle, at the wedding at Cana, reveals His sympathy towards human joys: He is concerned that the feast should end well and gives the bride and groom a large quantity of very good wine… Read more »
Dear brothers and sisters, good morning!
Last week we introduced the theme of vices and virtues. It refers to the spiritual struggle of the Christian. Indeed, the spiritual life of the Christian is not peaceful, linear and without challenges; on the contrary, Christian life demands constant striving: the Christian striving to preserve the faith, to enrich the gifts of faith in us… Read more »
