Part III (Secunda Secundae) Part 235 (2/2)
Reply Obj. 1: A true judgment may be destroyed in two ways. First, universally: and thus in matters of faith, a true judgment is destroyed by unbelief. Secondly, in some particular matter of choice, and unbelief does not do this. Thus a man who commits fornication, judges that for the time being it is good for him to commit fornication; yet he is not an unbeliever, as he would be, were he to say that universally fornication is good. It is thus in the question in point: for it pertains to unbelief to a.s.sert universally that there is a good which is not from G.o.d, or that grace is given to men for their merits, whereas, properly speaking, it belongs to pride and not to unbelief, through inordinate desire of one's own excellence, to boast of one's goods as though one had them of oneself, or of one's own merits.
Reply Obj. 2: Boasting is reckoned a species of lying, as regards the outward act whereby a man falsely ascribes to himself what he has not: but as regards the inward arrogance of the heart it is reckoned by Gregory to be a species of pride.
Reply Obj. 3: The ungrateful man ascribes to himself what he has from another: wherefore the first two species of pride pertain to ingrat.i.tude. To excuse oneself of a sin one has committed, belongs to the third species, since by so doing a man ascribes to himself the good of innocence which he has not. To aim presumptuously at what is above one, would seem to belong chiefly to the fourth species, which consists in wis.h.i.+ng to be preferred to others.
Reply Obj. 4: The three mentioned by Anselm correspond to the progress of any particular sin: for it begins by being conceived in thought, then is uttered in word, and thirdly is accomplished in deed.
The twelve degrees mentioned by Bernard are reckoned by way of opposition to the twelve degrees of humility, of which we have spoken above (Q. 161, A. 6). For the first degree of humility is to ”be humble in heart, and to show it in one's very person, one's eyes fixed on the ground”: and to this is opposed ”curiosity,” which consists in looking around in all directions curiously and inordinately. The second degree of humility is ”to speak few and sensible words, and not to be loud of voice”: to this is opposed ”frivolity of mind,” by which a man is proud of speech. The third degree of humility is ”not to be easily moved and disposed to laughter,” to which is opposed ”senseless mirth.” The fourth degree of humility is ”to maintain silence until one is asked,” to which is opposed ”boasting”. The fifth degree of humility is ”to do nothing but to what one is exhorted by the common rule of the monastery,” to which is opposed ”singularity,” whereby a man wishes to seem more holy than others. The sixth degree of humility is ”to believe and acknowledge oneself viler than all,” to which is opposed ”arrogance,”
whereby a man sets himself above others. The seventh degree of humility is ”to think oneself worthless and unprofitable for all purposes,” to which is opposed ”presumption,” whereby a man thinks himself capable of things that are above him. The eighth degree of humility is ”to confess one's sins,” to which is opposed ”defense of one's sins.” The ninth degree is ”to embrace patience by obeying under difficult and contrary circ.u.mstances,” to which is opposed ”deceitful confession,” whereby a man being unwilling to be punished for his sins confesses them deceitfully. The tenth degree of humility is ”obedience,” to which is opposed ”rebelliousness.” The eleventh degree of humility is ”not to delight in fulfilling one's own desires”; to this is opposed ”license,” whereby a man delights in doing freely whatever he will. The last degree of humility is ”fear of G.o.d”: to this is opposed ”the habit of sinning,” which implies contempt of G.o.d.
In these twelve degrees not only are the species of pride indicated, but also certain things that precede and follow them, as we have stated above with regard to humility (Q. 161, A. 6).
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FIFTH ARTICLE [II-II, Q. 162, Art. 5]
Whether Pride Is a Mortal Sin?
Objection 1: It would seem that pride is not a mortal sin. For a gloss on Ps. 7:4, ”O Lord my G.o.d, if I have done this thing,” says: ”Namely, the universal sin which is pride.” Therefore if pride were a mortal sin, so would every sin be.
Obj. 2: Further, every mortal sin is contrary to charity. But pride is apparently not contrary to charity, neither as to the love of G.o.d, nor as to the love of one's neighbor, because the excellence which, by pride, one desires inordinately, is not always opposed to G.o.d's honor, or our neighbor's good. Therefore pride is not a mortal sin.
Obj. 3: Further, every mortal sin is opposed to virtue. But pride is not opposed to virtue; on the contrary, it arises therefrom, for as Gregory says (Moral. x.x.xiv, 23), ”sometimes a man is elated by sublime and heavenly virtues.” Therefore pride is not a mortal sin.
_On the contrary,_ Gregory says (Moral. x.x.xiv, 23) that ”pride is a most evident sign of the reprobate, and contrariwise, humility of the elect.” But men do not become reprobate on account of venial sins.
Therefore pride is not a venial but a mortal sin.
_I answer that,_ Pride is opposed to humility. Now humility properly regards the subjection of man to G.o.d, as stated above (Q. 161, A. 1, ad 5). Hence pride properly regards lack of this subjection, in so far as a man raises himself above that which is appointed to him according to the Divine rule or measure, against the saying of the Apostle (2 Cor. 10:13), ”But we will not glory beyond our measure; but according to the measure of the rule which G.o.d hath measured to us.” Wherefore it is written (Ecclus. 10:14): ”The beginning of the pride of man is to fall off from G.o.d” because, to wit, the root of pride is found to consist in man not being, in some way, subject to G.o.d and His rule. Now it is evident that not to be subject to G.o.d is of its very nature a mortal sin, for this consists in turning away from G.o.d: and consequently pride is, of its genus, a mortal sin.
Nevertheless just as in other sins which are mortal by their genus (for instance fornication and adultery) there are certain motions that are venial by reason of their imperfection (through forestalling the judgment of reason, and being without its consent), so too in the matter of pride it happens that certain motions of pride are venial sins, when reason does not consent to them.
Reply Obj. 1: As stated above (A. 2) pride is a general sin, not by its essence but by a kind of influence, in so far as all sins may have their origin in pride. Hence it does not follow that all sins are mortal, but only such as arise from perfect pride, which we have stated to be a mortal sin.
Reply Obj. 2: Pride is always contrary to the love of G.o.d, inasmuch as the proud man does not subject himself to the Divine rule as he ought. Sometimes it is also contrary to the love of our neighbor; when, namely, a man sets himself inordinately above his neighbor: and this again is a transgression of the Divine rule, which has established order among men, so that one ought to be subject to another.
Reply Obj. 3: Pride arises from virtue, not as from its direct cause, but as from an accidental cause, in so far as a man makes a virtue an occasion for pride. And nothing prevents one contrary from being the accidental cause of another, as stated in _Phys._ viii, 1.
Hence some are even proud of their humility.
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SIXTH ARTICLE [II-II, Q. 162, Art. 6]
Whether Pride Is the Most Grievous of Sins?
Objection 1: It would seem that pride is not the most grievous of sins. For the more difficult a sin is to avoid, the less grievous it would seem to be. Now pride is most difficult to avoid; for Augustine says in his Rule (Ep. ccxi), ”Other sins find their vent in the accomplishment of evil deeds, whereas pride lies in wait for good deeds to destroy them.” Therefore pride is not the most grievous of sins.
Obj. 2: Further, ”The greater evil is opposed to the greater good,”
as the Philosopher a.s.serts (Ethic. viii, 10). Now humility to which pride is opposed is not the greatest of virtues, as stated above (Q.
61, A. 5). Therefore the vices that are opposed to greater virtues, such as unbelief, despair, hatred of G.o.d, murder, and so forth, are more grievous sins than pride.
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