Navigating the New Year

Lay people often overlook a source of deep spirituality and safety. One of the spiritual secrets of those in the religious life is a kind of spiritual guardrail system that helps them to know the path of peace on a moment to moment basis. This wisdom-born approach has aided thousands of ordinary people to become saints and to experience the heights of union with the Lord in this life. One part... Read More

The rule of three in the battle against sin

Q: Dear Dan, I am struggling with a recurring problem with anger that I can’t seem to overcome. I have read books, tried to understand how it surfaces in me, prayed fervently (I am living in a state of grace outside of this problem). But I seem to be making no progress. I am very very very very very very very very frustrated. A: Yours is a challenging question. Because of the complex issues... Read More

I discovered my root sin is vanity and I am struggling with this…

Q: Dear Father Edward, I just came to realize through spiritual direction, prayer and many graces that my root sin in Vanity!!! And I am having a very hard time knowing this fact. I feel like God is now leaving me alone (not feeling His presence) to test me and I am struggling with this fact. How do I continue to keep my faith strong and deal with the everyday insecurities in myself that I face?... Read More

How can I overcome the root sin of vanity?

Q: Dear Father Edward, would you be willing to post the virtues to overcome the root sin of vanity and pride also? A: “Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!” That line from the Book of Ecclesiastes rings as true today as on the day it was written. Vanity is one of the three root sins that plague humanity. Much of our economy is built on vanity,... Read More

How can I overcome the root sin of pride?

Q: Dear Father Edward, would you be willing to post the virtues to overcome the root sins of vanity and pride also? A: Whole libraries could be written on how to overcome pride. Pride is the mother of all root sins. Take any sin and you can ultimately trace its roots back to pride. This vice arises because of a deep-seated desire to do things our way. Whereas vanity puts too much emphasis on... Read More

A new diagnosis of my root sin…

I was back in my home state and surprised to get the call. I couldn’t imagine what it would be about. I was in the Texas emergency room one week earlier after air travel triggered debilitating imbalance so severe that I couldn’t even walk on my own. The doctor discovered something in the x-ray of my brain when I was in the emergency room. “You need a more in-depth review of... Read More

Can a root sin change?

Q: Dear Father John, Can a root sin change over your life? It seems to me that increasingly sensuality is being replaced as a root sin by pride. have you seen this, as one sin goes, another becomes more prominent? A: The general opinion on this question is, as far as I can tell, that root sins don’t change. Remember, because of our fallen nature, we all carry within us tendencies towards vanity,... Read More

Root sin classifications… Which one is right?

Q: Dear Father John, This is really interesting guidance. In the catechism, we learn that root sins are seven and they are, 1) pride, 2) covetousness, 3) lust, 4) anger, 5) gluttony, 6) envy and 7) slothfulness. In your classification there are three. Can you please make it more clear? A: This question illustrates how rich our Catholic faith really is; it transcends our ability to comprehend... Read More

What virtues can I practice to overcome the root sin of sensuality?

Q: Dear Father John, Thank you for the post on root sin. It has definitely helped me. My question is, charity and humility seem to be the virtues to practice if the root sin is pride or vanity. But what would be the virtue to practice to overcome sensuality? It seems that it is more of an emotional response, hence the sensuality. Thanks to your article have identified this as my root sin, I am... Read More

How can I identify my root sin?

Q: Dear Father John, I am not in spiritual direction right now, but I am trying to put together a program of life anyway. Can you give me some pointers about identifying my “root sin”? A: You are already on the right track. A program of life is worthless (well, almost worthless, at least) without having identified our root sin. Unless we understand the dynamism underlying our frequent faults... Read More

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