Sloth

+ Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney
15 Mar 2009

Like many Australians I have led a fortunate life.  Not the least of my blessings were good parents, who worked hard for many years.

At school too I was surrounded by hard working school teachers, the Christian Brothers.  Those were the days before government money for Church schools and the brothers had extraordinary work loads, large classes, after hours duties.

By example and decree they taught the importance of hard work.  Sloth was not a word they used often, but they were against it!

Sloth is the last of the deadly sins and involves more than an inability to break out of a trot.  Sloth implies a level of malice so that duties are neglected or rejected.  A sluggishness of mind takes over, often exhibiting sourness and hostility.

Slothful people are uneasy with themselves, discomforted by their inactivity and bored too as they strive to kill time.  Addiction to internet pornography is one of the most extreme examples of genuine sloth.

We now know much more about physical illness than the ancients.  Clinical depression even in milder forms can result in low levels of activity, an inability to get started or to persevere, which would have been condemned as a moral fault in the past.  Deep clinical depression is awful to behold.  The victims are often beyond reach and the suffering is terrible.  Modern medicines regularly help, but treatment often has to proceed by trial and error.

We have every right to be sad and depressed in some situations e.g. the tragic loss of a spouse, or child, or a parent.  Then we have to battle against being submerged in our misery, by continuing with our normal routine.  We need to eat even when we have no appetite, take daily exercise, especially by walking and go to bed as usual even if we don? feel like sleeping.  A normal routine helps even in abnormal times.

Sloth is also a temptation at every level of religious life, from the person who is too lazy to worship every Sunday through to the priest, nun or cardinal who start to neglect their daily prayers or always have an excuse not to answer the particular needs of their people.  Night calls to the hospital to take the sacraments to the dying need an act of the will, while even the unexpected arrival of someone who wants to talk, just as we were starting to relax, can be a small test.

The Old Testament story of Adam and Eve strives to explain in poetic terms God? creation of the world and the origin of evil.  But even before the Fall, the first sin, Adam and Eve had to maintain the Garden of Eden.

Now we all have to work, and most enjoy working, even if they don? like their job.  But the slothful are never happy.