While studying a course on Nietzsche, presented by The Teaching Company - taught by Robert C Solomon he notes:
When you think about sin in the christian tradition, something very odd should strike you. That the most serious crimes: Murder, Theft, Treachery, Rape - those aren’t the things that are talked about the most. But when you look at the list of the 7 deadly sins, you get a real insight into what’s going on. The list is composed of human foibles - they are features of the human circus. Things that make us amusing, or silly, even the topic of gossip; but nevertheless, it’s what defines many of our characteristics. Let’s run down the list:
Lust: There’s something very strange about the attack on lust. It’s not as if lust is something to be overcome.Nietzsche’s Dionysian temperament says lust is something to be enjoyed - of course in a way that is appropriate and suitable - but enjoyed nonetheless.
Or Gluttony. Gluttony is something that’s essentially human. A certain amount of discipline, self-control and politeness is necessary - but gluttony is hardly a sin, much less a deadly one. Gluttony is just a feature of being human.
Greed: Greed has always been with us, and there’s a sense it’s not necessarily evil. To be sure, sometimes it causes great harm, but again - it’s part of the human circus.
Anger: Can you imagine a world without anger? Aristotle, very insightful on these matters, talks about anger - not as a sin, but quite to the contrary - as something which the good person will naturally feel, in the right set of circumstances. Not to get angry in the appropriate circumstances, to the appropriate degree, to the appropriate person, is to be a fool.
Envy: Envy is a basic human emotion. Its not a deadly sin.
Pride: What’s so bad about pride? Aristotle likens pride to what we now call self-esteem. Thinking well of one’s self. Recognizing one’s accomplishments.
And the off sin of the group - Sloth: Is sloth really a sin? Should you be sent to prison for it? Should you be damned for it? The truth is, it may not be part of the recipe for success, but most of us could use a good dose of sloth in our lives.
And to talk about these things as deadly sins, is to say something really outrageous.
Nietzsche talks about the Transvaluation of values; Wealth has always been thought of - since the discovery of valuable things - as something desirable. People have always wanted wealth. But then comes christianity, which tells you “Its easier for a camel to get through the eye of a needle, than it is for a rich man to get into the kingdom of heaven”. In other words, wealth is evil. And the love of money is the root of all evil. Not only that, but it even goes on to say the meek shall inherit the earth.
And its also good to stone to death those who believe in a different invisible man:
If thy brother, the son of thy mother, or thy son, or thy daughter, or the wife of thy bosom, or thy friend, which is as thine own soul, entice thee secretly, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which thou hast not known, Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor hearken unto him; neither shall thine eye pity him, neither shalt thou spare, neither shalt thou conceal him: But thou shalt surely kill him; thine hand shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterwards the hand of all the people. And thou shalt stone him with stones, that he die.
And I could not leave without a tip of the hat to Carlin, one of the best thinkers of our age - here is his take on the 10 commandments:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5BzQ5Jeya8[/youtube]
The Doorman