Envy — It’s a Killer

CatholicExchange.com ^ | 11-04-06 | Fr. James Farfaglia

[Salvation]

	by Fr. James Farfaglia Other Articles by Fr. James Farfaglia Contact this Author

Envy — It’s a Killer

11/04/06

		Quick — what do Cain, Satan, and Claudias (Uncle of Hamlet) have in common? And do you have it in common with them?
In This Article... Bad Company The Envy Trap Be Transformed

Bad Company

I’m talking here about envy, one of the seven deadly sins. They all had it — Satan still has it — and if you have it, well, suffice it to say you may not want to be in their company.

To diagnose whether you have envy — or whether envy has you — consider what it is. Envy is the act of being saddened by another's qualities or good fortune as if that good constituted a threat to our own superiority.

Many times envy may include desiring to see another person deprived of that particular quality or good fortune that offends us. Unchecked, envy becomes an extremely destructive force. Lucifer is said to have rebelled because he was envious of the Word, the Second Person of the Blessed Trinity. Those ruled by envy are dangerous and cause terrible divisions in families, neighborhoods, the business world, and in the Church.

This appalling vice is rooted in pride because the envious must always be superior. Always perceiving others as threats, the envious can never allow potential rivals to collaborate with them unless they can retain control. Their envy always fastens on some brilliant quality, virtue, or aspect of character of another. When others achieve recognition or success, the envious are saddened and are moved to do everything in their power to destroy the object of their envy. Thus the envious may employ character assassination, calumny, and physical harm — even murder — in their quest for dominance.

Moreover, the envious create terrible dissension. Christian unity is lost in communities where the envious contend. The envious know no interior peace because they are always seeking anything that will further their quest for superiority. They ruthlessly seek positions of power and do all that they can to remain in power, even if this means destroying those in their way. They use excessive work as a means of satisfying this inner lust for supremacy. The envious live in unending torment until they can eclipse those they perceive to be their rivals. Many obsessed with envy are made insane with power and commit horribly destructive acts or become mentally ill.

Human history provides abundant examples of envy. From the Bible, Cain envied his brother Abel; Joseph was envied by his brothers; and the Prodigal Son was envied by his older brother. Shakespeare illustrates this sin in Hamlet. Claudius, Hamlet's uncle, envied Hamlet's father, his brother. His envy spawned lust and murder, and led to the innocent deaths of Ophelia, Gertrude and Hamlet.

For some strange reason, the sin of envy is a cancer within much of the clergy. Many holy and zealous priests are frustrated in their ministry precisely because their brothers do not want them to succeed. As you can see, envy is a terrible sin.

The Envy Trap

Envy is a mortal sin when the impulses are fully consented to and put into action; one is then fully culpable. Its effects are very corrosive. Furthermore, envy is classified as a capital sin, one of those sins so pernicious that in the words of the Catechism, “it engenders other sins, other vices" (1866). This terrible sin is made more terrible because it arouses sentiments of hatred toward those we may envy. All capital sins can be mortal sins, but not all mortal sins are capital sins. The capital sins, or deadly sins, are at the root of other sins.

"They came to Capernaum and, once inside the house, he began to ask them, 'What were you arguing about on the way?' But they remained silent. They had been discussing among themselves on the way who was the greatest” (Mk 9: 33-34).

The Apostles fell into the envy trap. As fallen creatures they were prone, like us, to sin. Jesus continually taught His disciples how they must be. Even at the Last Supper, the Apostles were seeking places of honor, and Jesus gave them a final lesson by assuming the office of a slave by washing their feet. Jesus gives us the antidote for envy. He reminds us once again that every true disciple must be humble. "If anyone wishes to be first, he shall be the last of all and the servant of all" (Mk 9: 35).

Be Transformed

Ambition is a very powerful force in the human psyche. Jesus does not tell us to live passive and uninteresting lives. He challenges us to channel our ambition by dying to our selfish tendencies and living out the spirit of service so characteristic for those who desire to live authentic Christianity.

To drive His point home, Jesus points to an innocent child and says, “Anyone who welcomes one of these little children in My name, welcomes Me; and anyone who welcomes Me welcomes not Me but the One Who sent Me” (Mk 9: 37).

The lesson here is clear: serve one another without looking for anything in return. Commonly we form friendships in order to get ahead or achieve a particular goal. This is especially true in the business world. But Jesus is telling us to serve without any hidden selfish motives.

What does all of this have to do with envy? If we break the cycle of selfishness, envy will disappear, too. But dying to self is not an easy enterprise. True Christianity demands intense daily mortification and a profound spiritual life.

However, selfishness is a serious problem for many Catholics nowadays, one unrecognized cause being the hardening of hearts through the contraceptive mentality so prevalent today. It saddens me to hear married practicing Catholics affirm that they do not want to have any more children. Such egotism generates other forms of selfishness as well. Envy is one of them, and the lack of volunteerism is another — as is not putting our fair share in the Sunday collection basket — and so is failure to use the sacrament of Confession.

We need to eradicate all forms of selfishness from our lives if we really want to be transformed into authentic Christians. The ultimate goal of the Christian way of life is transformation into Christ. He is the way, the truth and the life. Selfishness has to be dealt with very seriously and the terrible sin of envy must be rooted out as the danger it is. We need to die to our egotism so that we may become more and more like the Risen Lord.

© Copyright 2006 Catholic Exchange


Father James Farfaglia is Pastor of St. Helena of the True Cross of Jesus Catholic Church in Corpus Christi, Texas. Originally from Ridgefield, Connecticut, Father has founded and developed apostolates for the Catholic Church in Spain, Italy, Mexico, Canada and throughout the United States. He may be reached by email at Icthus@GoCcN.org.

[Tax-chick]

You have more hope than I do regarding converting such people.

Note that I included "otherwise neutralized." While I do think we should pray for the conversion of even the most dangerous people, practical considerations of preventing their doing more harm have to happen at the same time.

Sometimes being "neutralized," imprisoned, for example, can open a door for conversion.

[Lurker]

Sometimes being "neutralized," imprisoned, for example, can open a door for conversion.

Indeed it can. We should all rejoice when such a conversion genuinely happens.

L

[cornelis]

I think it's attention. One of the most common forms of envy is directed at someone else getting attention.

Professionals talk about attention deficit disorder (ADD), but we should remember that there are two forms. One is a deficiency in paying attention. The other is a deficiency in getting it. Our social structure in American society seems to be deficient in getting it in daily recommended doses. People do strange things to get it; especially when they notice someone else is.

[franky]

In a survey on the 7 Capital Sins Envy was listed as number 5. www.whitestonejournal.com/seven/

Of the seven deadly sins, this ONE is my biggest failing:
Lust 35%
Anger 18%
Pride 12%
Sloth 10%
Envy 10%
Gluttony 9%
Greed 6%

The sin of envy is offset by love as indicated by St. Paul:

"Love is patient, love is kind…"

Love actively seeks the good of others for their sake. Envy resents the good others receive or even might receive. Envy is almost indistinguishable from pride at times.

The real question is, does the sinner know that he/she is committing a sin and must confess it? With the lack of people seeking confession, it would seem the 7 Capital Sins do not exist.

[Mad Dawg]

Relax a little, FRiend.
Be glad that the powers that be did not give our brains a stir with a fork while they were handing out this and that.

Possible responses:
(1)It's gonna take more than a little relaxing to get ME to delight in any man's legs.
(2) Relax? This isn't tension, it's hypomania! (and that leads to:)
(3)Are you sure there wasn't some stirring goin' on 'roun' here?

Okay, enough foolishness. This is a good thread. I'm just pushing the Augustine through Dante through Mad Dawg view that envy is when I don't love you enough to be happy for you that all those nice things happened to you -- a deficiency of charity. My addition was that I also don't trust God to give me what I need, becuase the simeple articulation of envy, the "subjective principle of volition" has two parts -- or maybe it's that there's simple envy:"Hey how come HE gets to drink Balvenie ...," and there's the self-pitying component, "... while all I can afford is Pearl Beer?"

[GOP Poet]

I think it's attention. One of the most common forms of envy is directed at someone else getting attention.

So intricate. I love it. That is not one I had thought of, but being the youngest of a large Catholic family one would have thought . . . :-). Yes. I think you make an excellent point. That would also answer to other envies, that would be motivated by reason of wanting attention. Very astute and insightful.

[Mad Dawg]

That would also answer to other envies, that would be motivated by reason of wanting attention. Let me play a little here:

Why do I want attention? Au fond, I want to be affirmed as lovable and as loved.

Why do I envy you? You have something I wish I had? Yeah, but why am I not happy for you? Because I'm too preoccupied with our comparative status or somesuch to be happy for you. Or, put it another way, I don't love you enough to be happy for you. I see your gain as my loss, as though happiness were a zero-sum game.

So envy is a failure of Charity, Faith, and Hope, it seems to me.

What do I believe (in my better moments)? That God loves me so much that He will use, has used, and is using everything he has to get me just exactly what is right for me? What do I hope in? God's trustworthiness? With the confidence that OUGHT to come from that faith and hope, I should see that your success does not diminish me and therefore I should be free to rejoice in the good things that happen to you.

Maybe that's simple-minded, but it seems to me to be an explanation which accounts for all the intra-psychic phenomena AND which drives me to pray more and to use those means which God has kindly given us to grow closer to Him with His Son, in the Spirit. and in the communion of the Holy People and the Holy Things.

I like simple.

[GOP Poet]

Beautifully stated. I like simple too. :-)

Mad Dawg wrote: So envy is a failure of Charity, Faith, and Hope, it seems to me.

Yes. Good point and I would add love as someone else mentioned earlier on.

Mad Dawg wrote: What do I believe (in my better moments)? That God loves me so much that He will use, has used, and is using everything he has to get me just exactly what is right for me?

Because he does.:-) Thank you for sharing this. Great reminders in there too.

[hosepipe]

[ People do strange things to get it; especially when they notice someone else is. ]

Acting like you get it when you could care less is also an option.. Clubism, the groupie syndrome.. "Can't we all just get along", can be a gambit..

"You MUST be born again"-Jesus... else you're still a Monkey.. snapping branch's for effect and making noises..

[reductio]

I wish I had written that article. Why can't that article be my article?

[redhead]

"What satisfies envy?"

Peace. Any fruit of the Holy Spirit: Love, Joy, Peace, Patience, Kindness, Humility, Long-suffering, and Purity.

[pissant]

For all of you who are busy envying my good looks, just stop it now! /s

[Cookie123]

Envy can have some positive aspects to it as well. When I realize that I am envious about something that another has I don’t, I can either wallow in my anger and resentment about that, or I can resolve to amend my own behavior so as to achieve the thing desired. Sometimes I don’t reach that second stage until I’ve “wallowed around” in the first for awhile. Long enough to realize the pointlessness of it. Another outcome is the realization that perhaps I don’t NEED whatever it is it in the first place. In that respect acknowledged envy, dealt with in a healthy way (and with a hefty dose of God’s grace), can lead to a maturation of my values. Seems to me that UNacknowledged envy is the problem.

[Salvation]

Thanks for posoting the seven capital sins. I don't think most Catholics are aware of them. And basically, all Christians should be aware of them too.

[Salvation]

**Also in my case when I am envying another I am no longer grateful to God for what I have or have been given.**

So powerful a thought. Thanks.