The Spirit Is Willing, but the Flesh is Weak

In the Garden of Gethsemane, Jesus bids His apostles to stay awake but warns them, “the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”  (Matthew 26:41, Mark 14:38)  One of the things we must contend with in our life as followers of Christ is the fact that we are susceptible to temptation.  We call this susceptibility ‘concupiscence.’  The Catechism tells us, “The new life received in Christian Initiation has not abolished the frailty and weakness of human nature, nor the inclination to sin that tradition calls concupiscence, which remains in the baptized such that with the help of the grace of Christ they may prove themselves in the struggle of the Christian life.” (CCC 1426)  When are baptized, we are given sanctifying grace, a sacramental grace by which we are united to God in an eternal bond.  In previous columns, I have written how that grace can be ejected from the life of the baptized though their decision to mortally sin.  I have also written that through the Sacrament of Reconciliation, God restores the sanctifying grace lost through mortal sin.

               This begs the questions:  Why do I keep sinning then?  Why am I still tempted? The world and the Church answer this question in wildly different ways.  The answer is based on how the human person is defined.

               For the world, the human person is a mere animal.  Humanity is a beast like any other, albeit with advanced communication skills and opposable thumbs.  It is bound by instinct like any other species that walks the planet.  Humanity is a slave to this instinct.  This is why the ‘born this way’ argument is so important to the world.  If I am born a certain way, then instincts dictate the rightness of my actions.  Hence, right and wrong are dictated by the individual based on whatever instincts he or she has.  That one should rein in their instincts is increasingly seen as unnecessary.  In this world, personal sin, as such, does not exist and the only sins that do exists are corporate sins that are intolerant of a person’s instincts.  This is why the ‘science’ of eugenics (a belief that a species can be purified or improved through elimination of lesser strains of the species) is at the heart of beliefs about human reproduction.  We cannot expect the human person to will against his or her instinct, so we need to breed it out of the human species.

               The Catholic world view is different.  We believe that humanity was given a singular gift of free will.  It is free will that makes us “made in the image and likeness of God.” (Gen 1:26-27)  Free will gives us the ability to rein in instincts and rise above them.  Free will gives us the capability to go beyond emotion and into virtue.  Concupiscence might well be with us through our instincts, but we possess the ability to rein them in; we have the ability to be their master and not their slave.

               Because God calls us into a relationship with Him, we must be able to freely will to love Him as He loves us.  What stands in the way is the selfishness of concupiscence.  To rein this in requires the development of virtue.  Virtue is a good habit which breathes life into us, which sets us free from the tyranny of instinct.  Virtue is built choice by choice.  It requires reason and self-reflection.  If we are to break free from sin, it will not come in denying the existence of personal sin nor in the excusing instinct as the reason we are just powerless to do anything but sin; it will come in exercising the growth of virtue.  Virtue conquers concupiscence.

               In Catholicism, we have 7 specific named virtues that we believe are absolutely essential to our freedom from sin.  Four are called Cardinal virtues.  They are considered hinges by which we conquer mere instinct: prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude.  Three are called theological virtues, denoting that divine intervention will be needed in our growth of these virtues: faith, hope, and love.

Let’s take a brief look at them.

Prudence: Called the charioteer of the virtues, prudence is “the virtue that disposes practical reason to discern our true good in every circumstance and to choose the right means of achieving it.” (CCC 1806)  Prudence “guides the judgement of the conscience” (CCC1806).  The virtue of prudence gives us the ability to judge right and wrong and to act in such a way so as pursue the right, even when our instincts would tell us different.  Prudence helps us to see the truth and to act accordingly. 

Justice: “Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor.” (CCC 1807)  Justice helps us to see what is due from us as members of a society and as children of God.  It helps us to seek equity and harmony.  Justice concerns itself with not what I am owed, but what is owed by me.  Justice seeks the good of the other.

Temperance: “Temperance is the moral virtue that moderates the attraction of pleasures and provides balance in the use of created goods.  It ensures the will’s mastery over instincts and desires within the limits of what is honorable.”  (CCC1809)  This is the virtue we exercise in reining in our appetites.  Temperance looks to the correct use of worldly goods.  It is temperance that is on full display when we use the tools of fasting, abstinence, alms-giving, and mortification.  We know that healthy self-denial or limiting our use of worldly goods is a positive for us.  Temperance helps us to be owned by no addiction.  It raises us above whatever instincts might reside in us and order them in a way where we are their master and not their slave.

Fortitude: “Fortitude is the moral virtue that ensures firmness is difficulty and constancy in the pursuit of the good.  It strengthens the resolve to resist temptations and overcome obstacles in the moral life.” (CCC1808)  Knowing the right thing to do and doing it are necessary.  Fortitude gives us the ability to make the leap we need to make so as to rein in sin.  Fortitude gives us the will to rise above weakness and sin; to hold off the naysayers who say we cannot or should not have to overcome our instincts and sins.

Each of these virtues are God-given abilities that each of us can use to rise to the promise of our creation.  The weakness of our nature shown in concupiscence is strengthened by our acts of will in developing and maintaining these four virtues.  That we can do these means we have the ability to rise above mere instinct.  It also means that when we cave to concupiscence, as do we do when we sin, that the medical quality of sacramental grace is necessary to rebuild our resolve.  We are not slaves of instinct as the world would have us believe. 

I did mention the three theological virtues of faith, hope, and love.  I will deal with these three in the next columns.