PRIDE

In "The Devil's Advocate" it is said that Vanity was Satan's favorite sin. I beg to differ. Not that I have inside information on what Satan's favorite sin is, but vanity does not quite encompass the scope of which sin truly is. A sin, to be Satan's favorite tool, must be that which is elusive, confusing, and natural to every person in the world. So I daresay that for me, PRIDE is the most dangerous sin and is the cause of almost all the problems of mankind. Think about it: It is elusive yet so painfully obvious, it can easily be mistaken as a virtue, and it causes people to think of themselves before others (also, it is that exact same sin that caused Lucifer to fall from God's grace). In the Philippines alone, one can see how corruption destroys the country. Corruption stems from greed, and in retrospect greed can be said to exist because of a person's pride - we think of ourselves highly and as such we feel that we deserve everything. If Public Officials only had humility - humility to accept mistakes, humility to place the welfare of the people before their own benefit, humility to entrust and empower others with authority and espouse cooperation - then our nation would most likely be in an entirely different state right now.

A Proud Man never accepts his mistakes, he refuses to believe that he has made any errors in judgment and in turn passes the blame on others. An argument between two proud people will almost never end until one gives way to another - until he lets down his pride and looks carefully at the point to which the other person is driving at, rather than focusing only in "winning" the discussion. This arrogance is perhaps what I hate most about Pride - the knowledge of how good you are and the resulting exhibition of that greatness, or the smug way of treating other people simply because, for you, they are inferior. It is one of the biggest problems of our society and every other society in the World. Almost everybody is arrogant in one way or another - I myself am guilty of this, which is in a sense, a paradox for me (there is a saying that the characteristics and attitudes you hate most about others are usually that which can be found in you - others serve as a metaphorical mirror to your failings). The fact that people hate arrogant people is already a sign (albeit very subtle) of their own arrogance. In many ways, a lot of Filipinos exhibit this attribute - women criticizing celebrities when in fact they are simply envious, men being stubborn and hiding behind the age-old excuse: "It's a guy thing" (again, yours truly is guilty of this), parents and professors being pigheaded simply because of their seniority, Public Officials using the famous "Kilala mo ba kung sino ako?" line, even spiritual and religious leaders are not exempt from Pride and Arrogance - being so sure of their own salvation and condemning the sinful instead of reaching out to save them. People want to feel superior, they want the best for themselves - damn everybody else. Rebelliousness is another example of this - imagine a person thinking of him/herself as above the rules - who finds it hard to follow even the simplest guidelines which are actually there for his/her own safety. In our country, one can see the arrogance in Filipinos by the way they drive - beating/disregarding red lights, counterflowing, not following parking rules, challenging and overtaking other motor vehicles for the heck of it (this last one I am actually a little guilty of, as well), the list goes on and on. One of the things required for the Philippines to prosper is if people could learn to follow rules - again thinking of the welfare of the majority and not only the big "I".

Confidence, Self-empowerment, these are all well and good, but sometimes we fail to realize that our Pride is slowly growing and that we see ourselves as invincible and above it all. This is the elusive nature of Pride, how it slowly seeps into your personality and slowly destroys you from within. A person with low self-esteem may develop confidence, but if it is not kept in check, this confidence may grow into arrogance. The result? People who know his past and who are full of him will shame him, reminding him of his pathetic past - and it's not a pretty picture. Humility must always be at the center of a person's nature if he is to improve without impediment. Take note that humility is different from a low self-esteem. It's hard to explain how they are different, except for the fundamental difference - that humility is not self limiting. Also, do not confuse this with FALSE HUMILITY, for this is simply Pride that is hidden and in some cases worse than the real thing (hypocrisy indeed). Perhaps the only sin I can think of that is not obviously connected with Pride is Lust. Others like Sloth, Wrath, and Gluttony can somehow be traced to a fundamental selfishness that results from our own Pride.

Pride is seldom a virtue, but in most cultures, people confuse Pride with Dignity or Honor. The latter two are indeed commendable traits to live by, but to say that they are equal to Pride (especially Dignity) is a wrongful play of words. Having Dignity is living in a way that is respectable, with righteousness regarding oneself, courtesy and respect towards others, and disapproving nature to wrongful behavior. Whilst Honor is a term that usually connotes trustworthiness and reliability. It is quite similar to Dignity especially when you look at the word from a Japanese perspective, but in most cultures honor means that you will do what is right even when there's nobody around to see your actions. So what about being Proud of something besides yourself? To me, everything must be exercised with moderation and sufficient prudence - there's nothing wrong with being proud of a loved one's achievements as long as it does not turn into expectation; there's nothing wrong with being confident of what you can do as long as it does not make you arrogant and selfish; there's nothing wrong with being proud of your country as long as it does not lead to unrest with other nations; there's nothing wrong with being proud of God, as long as it does not lead you to condemn.

Now, is Vanity really Satan's favorite sin? Think about it: where does Vanity come from?

DISCLAIMER: EVERYTHING HERE IS OF MY OWN OPINION, THE DEFINITIONS HERE ARE OF MY OWN UNDERSTANDING AS WELL - NO DICTIONARY DEFINITIONS. THIS IS MY BLOG AND I AM WELL AWARE OF MY RIGHT TO FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION HERE. GOD BLESS YOU ALL.