One of the seven deadly sins of Western Christianity is the sin of sloth. It often is characterized as “laziness,” which some aim at certain racial or economic groups using terms like “lazy” or “shiftless” to characterize their character. In other words, the “undeserving” poor. Now that’s a sin!
But the original meaning of the sin was called by the name acedia, literally “no-caring.”
Before Gregory the Great enumerated the Seven Deadly Sins, the fourth-century monk Evagrius enumerated what he called the “Eight Bad Thoughts.” We might call them today invasive or compulsive thoughts. In order, they were Gluttony, Lust, Avarice, Pride, Sadness (akin to self-pity or despair), Anger, Vainglory, Acedia.
Stephen Shoemaker
Acedia has taken a deadly turn in our nation today. It may be hidden from our eyes, but it has taken root in most destructive ways. Poet and spiritual writer Kathleen Norris has written an important and eye-opening book on the sin of sloth titled, Acedia and Me, where she excavates and explores ancient and modern expressions of sloth. Later, in an interview she said: “I liken it to spiritual morphine: You know the pain is there, but you can’t rouse yourself to give a damn.”
Dorothy Sayers, the Oxford don who wrote both spiritual pieces and murder mysteries, says of this deadly sin: “It is the sin that believes in nothing, cares for nothing, seeks to know nothing, interferes with nothing, enjoys nothing, loves nothing, hates nothing, finds purpose in nothing, lives for nothing and only remains alive because there is nothing it would die for.”
Such despair or soul sickness is rampant among us. The French call it ennui. In the spiritual classic Diary of a Country Priest by George Bernanos, the priest speaks of boredom as a form of sloth: “The world is eaten up by boredom. You can’t see it all at once. It is like dust. You go about and never notice, you breath it in, you eat and drink it. It is sifted so fine, it doesn’t even grind on your teeth. But stand still for an instant, and there it is, coating your face and hands.”
Norris reflects later on her book: “One reason I wrote the book was to explore my suspicion that much of the restless boredom, frantic escapism, commitment phobia and enervating despair that plagues us today are the ancient demon of acedia in modern dress.”
She quotes the poet Czeslaw Milosz, who fought fascism in his home country, Poland: “No one can call this failing laziness anymore; whatever it may have once been, it has now returned to its original meaning: terror in the face of emptiness, apathy, depression. … It is not isolated hearts, however, who are experiencing its sting, but masses in the millions.”
“We must not succumb to its grip in a time that calls for hope and courageous action.”
The people I quote above were writing about such a spiritual malaise in 20th-century Europe, but it has crossed the Atlantic and infected our souls today. We must not succumb to its grip in a time that calls for hope and courageous action. The author Thomas Pynchon writing on sloth sends a warning: “Whenever totalitarianism arises, it is due to the failure of ordinary citizens to take responsibility.”
In our nation, sloth is seen in the apathy of citizens to help our nation and its peoples. Note the scandalously low percentage of citizens who vote in elections and the crisis in volunteerism. This is sometimes born of a feeling of helplessness or despair. We cannot afford despair.
Playwright Wendy Wasserstein in her spoof on sloth writes: “When you have achieved true slothdom, you have no desire to change the world … but are the lazy guardians of the status quo.”
But there is another form of sloth which is, as Evelyn Waugh put it, “a neglect of duty.”
We can see it in our current president, who has no desire to learn anything, who does not read his daily national security briefings and who spends more time golfing (on the nation’s tab) and keeping up with social media than working to address the important tasks of his office and fulfill his constitutional duty. We have a slovenly president. We see many members of Congress more interested in being on TV and cynically holding onto power than occupying themselves with the arduous tasks of governing.
The military has a legal category of misbehavior that can get military leaders and soldiers dismissed: “dereliction of duty.” It can cost soldier’s lives and undermine morale. The president and his recklessly incompetent cabinet are plainly guilty of dereliction of duty.
The words in Ecclesiastes can pertain to our current political leadership and the growing condition of our nation: “Through sloth the roof sinks in, and through indolence the house leaks.”
So perhaps then we should pay more attention to this deadly malaise afflicting our lives and the life of our nation. And let it be talked about it in church! Maybe we might even revive a 17th-century hymn that took sloth seriously:
Awake my soul, and with the sun
Thy daily stage of duty run;
Shake off dull sloth, and joyful rise,
To pay thy morning sacrifice!
What we may be missing most is joy. To quote Evelyn Waugh more fully: “The malice of sloth lies not merely in the neglect of duty … but in the refusal of joy.” We may be mired in sloth, but as Ezra told those returning from Babylonian captivity, “The joy of the Lord is your strength!”
Joy gives us energy to take on the tasks calling to us to help our nation and our communities.
So take joy, rise and shake off dull sloth!
Stephen Shoemaker most recently served as pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Statesville, N.C. He previously served as pastor of Myers Park Baptist in Charlotte, N.C.; Broadway Baptist in Fort Worth, Texas; and Crescent Hill Baptist in Louisville, Ky.