The Seven Deadly Sins
Trevor introduces our new sermon series for the autumn
Back in 2002, a summer advertising campaign for Magnum ice cream consisted of the launch of seven limited edition flavours, each inspired by one of the seven deadly sins. In case you’re wondering, the range included Greed (with tiramisu ice cream covered in milk chocolate), Jealousy (a green pistachio centre also surrounded by milk chocolate) and Revenge (containing vanilla ice cream with swirls of red fruit of the forest in dark chocolate covering). Revenge isn’t included in the list of sins that’s been part of church tradition since it was revised by Pope Gregory I in AD590. Presumably, marketing executives thought it would make for a more exciting treat than anger…
’ve been pondering this marketing ploy while thinking ahead to the new sermon series that begins this month in SBC. For regular church-goers, the idea of sin-themed sweet treats seems almost surreal. I wonder what this tells us about our contemporary culture and how it regards the idea of sin: as something we can afford to take seriously than previous generations, with the suggestion that naughty can also be nice.
Another recent take on the seven deadly sins comes from the philosopher Julian Baggini, who has suggested an alternative, updated set of vices. He retains one of the original list, covetousness (i.e. envy), alongside exploitation, dogmatism, righteousness, vanity, complacency and thoughtlessness. He has an understandable concern about actions which negatively impact others, but it’s interesting to find righteousness included in the list. These days, it seems that the biggest of sins is to be down on sin.
From September to November, we’ll be reflecting on the seven deadly sins in SBC. Our purpose in doing so is not because we wish to indulge in an extended guilt trip. Instead, we want to think as a church about how these sins can be so destructive in our lives and how, with the help of God and one another, we can overcome them.
In his recent book on the Seven Deadly Sins, the Anglican bishop Graham Tomlin reflects on how profound the impact of these sins is:
Goodness enables us to live together: to let our differences from each other blend into something creative, beautiful and enjoyable. Sin, on the other hand, destroys this harmony and ensures that our differences lead to misery and pain. The very things that destroy a good evening together – things like envy, pride, lust or anger – are what is described as sin… anger, jealousy and pride break friendships, destroy communities and leave people in solitary, lonely isolation.1
At any time in our lives, all of us will be struggling with at least one of these sins and often we struggle all the more because we do so alone. Our shame and guilt is intensified if we can’t find others to talk it over with, and we lose hope if we try to overcome in our own strength, without the support of God and those he has put alongside us.
Our prayer for this series is that being more honest about the sins we struggle with, the way they impact our lives and those of the people around us, will help us to grow together, fully becoming the people God has made us to be, those who have clothed ourselves ‘with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience’, as Paul suggests in Colossians 3:12.
Please join us on what we hope will be a journey from guilt to freedom and from shame to wholeness.
1 Graham Tomlin, The Seven Deady Sins, 2014, pp 16–17.