butterflyxlife's Journal

You know.. I got on an interesting train of thought yesterday. I was writing in my other journal about qualities in individuals that I think should be restored and passed on to our children.

I don't actually have children.. but when I do.. and someday I will.. I just... want what any parent wants.. to have good children, and to instill good values and morals--

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Somehow in my mind, I felt that I wanted people to have a sense of pride in their lives. Of their accomplishments. Then it hit me that pride is one of the seven deadly sins.

I began to ask myself.. how does that work? Is it not a good thing for you to feel proud of certain accomplishments in your life? Or if your child does something extremely well.. are you not supposed to be proud of your child? Would that condemn you to hell?

So I looked up what the seven deadly sins were. "Pride, envy, gluttony, sloth, lust, wrath, and greed."

Every single one of those, with the exception of Pride alone, is a sin of excessive behavior.

Envy is a "painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage"

Gluttony is "1 : excess in eating or drinking 2 : greedy or excessive indulgence"

Sloth - "1 a : disinclination to action or labor : INDOLENCE b : spiritual apathy and inactivity"

Lust - "usually intense or unbridled sexual desire"

Wrath - "1 : strong vengeful anger or indignation"

Greed - "a selfish and excessive desire for more of something (as money) than is needed "

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And yet Pride is "a reasonable or justifiable self-respect" or "delight or elation arising from some act, possession, or relationship".

How is having a sense of pride wrong?

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Upon further searching, I also realized that the sin pride, is really also called hubris.

This term I find MUCH more compatible to my understanding of excessive behavior.

Hubris - "exaggerated pride or self-confidence"

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So too much pride is a sin? I find that different from all of the other sins in that -- a little bit of pride is ok?

But is a little bit of gluttony ok? Is a little bit of greed ok? A little bit of lust? Envy? Sloth? Wrath?

I can't say it is or isn't.. but in my heart I feel that those are all bad things to be. It's not ok to be a little bit greedy, because then you are greedy. It is not ok to be a little be envious, because you should be happy and thankful for what you do have. It is not ok to have a little bit of wrath, because by having it at all, you have it.

Yet why do I not feel the same way about Pride?

It's really rather confusing to me.

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I do not want to go to hell, but I am proud of myself.

I have pride in my accomplishments.

And I think that is important for everyone to have. A sense of pride in themselves.