The Evangelical Counsels
And the Threefold Concupiscence.
In my meditation, I wondered if the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity, and obedience couldn’t be considered the perfect antidote to the threefold concupiscence mentioned in the First Letter of St. John, from which arise the seven deadly sins.
For instance, the spirit of poverty is essentially the acknowledgement that everything we have belongs to God alone - that anything we have is pure gift. Perhaps more radically, the renunciation of ownership and possessions may be considered a confession of faith that “nothing the world affords comes from the Father.”(1 John 2:16) Whatever the case, the vow of poverty might be considered a remedy to the concupiscence of the eyes, which is characterized by the sin of avarice or the inordinate love of riches.
While the vow, or practice of chastity, gives to God the first fruits of our charity and love, placing the love of God before every carnal desire, affection, and gratification. With this understanding, the vow of chastity might be considered the antidote against the concupiscence of the flesh, which gives birth to the capital sins of sloth, gluttony, and most assuredly, lust.
The essential counsel of obedience, exemplified by the life of Christ, acknowledges God as Father; our first principle and last end. Thus, by the vow of obedience we surrender our own will to the Father’s will, subjecting ourselves to those He has placed in authority over us. Thus, the vow of obedience might be understood as the perfect weapon against the sin of pride, from which the capital sins of vain-glory, envy, and anger arise.
I wonder?
[Art: From "The Painted Life of Mary Ward"]
