Previously, we have addressed the Deadly Sins of pride, avarice, envy, and anger. This week, we will look at the antidote to the Deadly Sin of sloth. We are not talking about the slow-moving mammals which spend their days hanging upside down in the trees of the tropical rain forests of South and Central America. Sloth is defined by St. Thomas Aquinas as “‘sorrow about spiritual good’, or joylessness when faced with God as our supreme joy.”[1]
Sloth is a sin against charity, one of the three theological virtues, which directs our hearts toward God. “Faith, hope, and charity are our spiritual glue,” says Peter Kreeft. “Whatever dissolves this glue is mortally sinful; whatever can remove faith, hope, and charity can kill God’s life in our soul. And sloth does just that.”[2] Sloth robs us of our thirst for God, our desire for Him as our ultimate good. A slothful person stops seeking God, complacent in the matters of the faith. In response to God’s offer of eternal salvation and friendship with Him, sloth says, “I’m good. Thanks, but no thanks.”
