Build Up or Break Down
An EDGE Night on Virtue and Sin
St. John Neumann Parish
March 20, 2017
We are all called to be people of virtue. This week the church celebrated the feast of St.
Joseph, and he certainly was a man of virtue. In fact, all the saints were men and women of
virtue and serve as models for us in how we should strive to be. What, exactly, is a “virtue”
though?
The Catechism defines a virtue as “an habitual and firm disposition to do the good” (CCC
#1803. This means that a virtue is a habit, as in it is not an accident. If I brush my teeth before
going to bed only once a month, that really isn’t a habit. So a virtue is a good habit. But a virtue
is also a “firm disposition,” which means that it is a clear choice, a clear commitment on the part
of the will. If I wake up as soon as my alarm goes off only when I feel like it, I do not have a
firm disposition to do so. If, however, I commit to studying for my math test an hour every day
so I can ace the exam, I have a “firm disposition,” I am committed to it. Finally, a virtue is about
being firmly committed to “do the good.” This means that the habit and the commitment is to
doing what is good which, ultimately, is what God wants for us and what will help us live well.
So now that we understand a little bit more what a virtue is, we can ask “Well, what are
the virtues?” Traditionally, the virtues are broken up into two categories.
The first category is the human virtues, sometimes called the “cardinal” virtues. This
word, cardinal, comes from the Latin word for “hinge,” like the hinge on a door. Just like a door
swings open on its hinges, so the moral life “swings open” on its hinges, the cardinal virtues.
There are four cardinal virtues and all of them can be improved through learning and practice.
The cardinal virtues are prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance.
Prudence is the virtue that helps “discern our true good in every circumstance and to
choose the right means of achieving it” (CCC #1806). In a word, prudence is the ability to look
at the situation we are in, to correctly judge what is the best choice to make, and then to make it.
Justice is the virtue of a “constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor”
(CCC #1807). Justice means giving to others what is owed to them. For example, if your parents
hire someone to do their taxes and they do the work, they are owed the agreed-upon payment. In
the same way, as creatures, we owe worship to God as the Creator.
Fortitude, also known as courage, “ensures firmness in difficulties and constancy in the
pursuit of the good. It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and to overcome the obstacles
in the moral life. . . . It disposes one even to renounce and sacrifice his life in defense of a just
cause” (CCC 1808). Fortitude means doing the good even when there are obstacles, in
persevering to the end. When there is a fire, our first reaction is to run and get to safety. For a
1
firefighter, however, it is different; he or she is committed to going to help anyone who might be
in danger. That is an example of fortitude.
Temperance is the human virtue that “moderates the attraction of the pleasures and
provides balance in the use of created goods. It ensures the will’s mastery over instincts and
keeps desires within the limits of what is honorable” (CCC 1809). Temperance is the
“Goldilocks” virtue: not too hot, not too cold, but just right! The temperate person doesn’t sleep
one hour a night, but also not twenty hours.
The second category of virtues is the theological virtues. We do not get these virtues by
our own effort, like the human virtues, but, instead, receive them as gifts from God, infused in us
at baptism and through living a sacramental life. The theological virtues are faith, hope, and
charity (also called love).
Faith is the virtue “by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said and
revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because he is truth itself” (CCC
1814). Hope is the virtue “by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as our
happiness, placing our trust in Christ’s promises and relying not on our own strength, but on the
help of the grace of the Holy Spirit” (CCC 1817). Charity is the virtue “by which we love God
above all things for his own sake, and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God” (CCC
1822).
Now that we know what a virtue is and what the virtues are, we can better understand the
opposite of virtue, which is vice. If a virtue is a “good habit,” then a vice is a “bad habit.” We all
know that the more we do something, the easier it is to do and, on the other hand, the harder it is
to change. That’s why it’s so important to form good habits, to practice the human virtues!
Vices are sinful. Sin is an offense against God, an offense against reason and truth. In sin
we turn away from God and turn to our own selfishness. Sin cuts us off from the only true source
of our joy, God, and therefore leads to misery. Sin is broken up into two categories, mortal sin
and venial sin.
The first category of sin, and the most serious, is mortal sin, called so because it literally
kills the soul. Mortal sin kills charity in our hearts and cuts us off from God. To return to the
state of grace, we must go to the Sacrament of Reconciliation and confess our mortal sins which
God is always waiting and ready to forgive through the sacrament.
There are three elements necessary for a sin to be mortal. First, it has to concern “grave
matter,” or serious moral issues. A good guide to what is “grave matter” is the 10
Commandments: if it falls within the 10 Commandments, you can be sure it’s grave matter.
Second, you must know that the act is sinful. Third, you must freely choice to do it anyway. If
these three elements are present, then a mortal sin has been committed.
2
The second category of sin is venial sin. While every sin is bad and to be avoided, venial
sin is less severe than mortal sin. Venial sin weakens charity in our hearts and weakens our
relationship with God. While venial sins do not cut us off completely from God, they do make it
easier and more likely that we will commit mortal sin if we continue in them without repentance.
Sin impacts everyone, not just the individual person who might commit a sin. Sin wounds
our relationship with God, but also our relationship with others. We suffer from our sins and also
from the sin of others, whether our family, friends, school, or the whole human race. Remember
that sickness and death, too, are ultimately a result of sin.
Sin is a reality that we must face in our lives so we can make the choice to renounce it,
turn away from it, and run back to God, who is always calling us to return to Him. If we find
ourselves in a state of sin (and, let’s be honest: we are all sinners!), we should run to experience
God’s mercy and forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Lent is a special time of the
year for conversion, for turning back to God, and Confession is the most important element in
this and the way we encounter God’s mercy. There is no sin God will not forgive if brought to
Him with sorrow and repentance, and we should all go to Confession to prepare for Easter in a
few short weeks!
3