dustbury.com: Virtue is its own punishment

9 December 2005

Virtue is its own punishment

Man nurtures the suspicion that God, at the end of the day, takes something away from his life, that God is a competitor who limits our freedom and that we will be fully human only when we will have set him aside.

There emerges in us the suspicion that the person who doesn't sin at all is basically a boring person, that something is lacking in his life, the dramatic dimension of being autonomous, that the freedom to say 'no' belongs to real human beings.

I must point out here that occasional sin hasn't made me any less boring.

Besides, as E. M. Zanotti notes, "There is only so much debauchery you can take."

And, well, most of the time I wouldn't even recognize a bauch.

Posted at 9:29 AM to Immaterial Witness

LOL! You don't seem boring to me, but then I wouldn't recognize a bauch either.

Posted by: Diane at 1:58 PM on 9 December 2005

The Pope meister has it right I'd say ... It's more fun to be a sinner ... I can attest to that (well, more so in my youth but still an occasional "bauch")...... I must send him a card to thank him for reinforcing my disbelief ... :)

Posted by: ron at 2:50 PM on 9 December 2005

Ah, but I bet your "sins" were Baptist sins, not Catholic "sins"...
There is a difference between a puritan's narrow rigid morality and the cheerfulness of Catholicism...if you don't believe me, go to a Filippino fiesta or even a Polish wedding...
REAL sins are terrible...and the consequences are terrible...
Sex with one's spouse? Yup, it's good...
A fun one night stand? ah, HIV, Chlamydia and a million unwanted pregnancies ended a year suggests that maybe it isn't as "fun" as it's meant to be...
A beer? Having fun with friends at a tavern telling funny stories?
Not a sin in Catholicism...
But getting drunk out of your head, and driving home and beating up your girlfriend is...and again, such "fun" causes untold misery...
Cheating on income tax? Shoplifting? Again, it increases money spent for security, and "punishes" the innocent with higher prices...
Betting on horses? Rock and roll? Dancing? Again, no sin in Catholicism...
Going broke betting is-- which is why the attack on Bill Bennett for being a "high roller" was a low blow: if you are rich, being a high roller is NOT a sin in Catholicism...
OF course, before Vatican II the Catholics had lots of trivial sins...now the only hangup is the pill..but thank God things are now back to normal for the rest of the sins...

Posted by: boinkie at 8:50 PM on 9 December 2005

Three cheers for venial sin. ;)

Posted by: MikeH at 8:30 AM on 10 December 2005

Heh. Boinkie. Heh.

Posted by: Mr. Snitch! at 4:37 PM on 10 December 2005