John: "the concupiscence of the flesh, the concupiscence of the eyes, and the pride of life,"[1] which are love of pleasure, love of riches, and love of honors. Three of the deadly sins, lust, gluttony, and sloth, spring from love of pleasure, pride springs from love of honors, and covetousness from love of riches. The remaining two, anger and envy, serve all these unlawful loves. Anger is aroused by any obstacle which prevents us attaining what we desire, and envy is excited when we behold any one possessing what our self-love claims. These are the three roots of the seven deadly sins, and consequently of all the others. Let these chiefs be destroyed and the whole army will soon be routed. Hence we must vigorously attack these mighty giants who dispute our entrance to the promised land.
The first and most formidable of these enemies is pride, that inordinate desire of our own excellence, which spiritual writers universally regard as the father and king of all the other vices. Hence Tobias, among the numerous good counsels which he gave his son, particularly warns him against pride: "Never suffer pride to reign in thy mind or in thy words, for from it all perdition took its beginning."[2] Whenever, therefore, you are attacked by this vice, which may justly be called a pestilence, defend yourself with the following considerations:
First reflect on the terrible punishment which the Angels brought upon themselves by one sin of pride. They were instantly cast from Heaven into the lowest depths of hell. Consider how
