Posted on 04/19/2016 6:53:18 AM PDT by Salvation
A short while back, we read from First Samuel at daily Mass and encountered an envious Saul. Upon David’s return from slaying Goliath, the women sing a song praising him. Saul should rejoice with all Israel but instead he is resentful and envies David: Saul was very angry and resentful of the song, for he thought, “They give David ten thousands, but only thousands to me. All that remains for him is the kingship.” And from that day on, Saul looked upon David with a glaring eye. Saul discussed his intention of killing David with his son Jonathan and with all his servants (1 Sam 18:6-9). Saul’s reaction is way over the top; this is what envy does.
What is envy? Most people use the word today as a synonym for jealousy, but traditionally speaking, they are not the same.
When I am jealous of you, I want to possess something that you have, inordinately so. The key point is that there is something good about you or there is something good that you have, which I want to have for myself. Jealousy is sinful when one desires something inordinately or unreasonably.
In traditional theology, envy is quite different (cf Summa II IIae 36.1) from jealousy. Envy is sorrow, sadness, or anger at the goodness or excellence of someone else because I take it as lessening my own. The key difference is that with envy (unlike with jealousy) I do not merely want to possess the good or excellence you have, I want to destroy it.
Notice in the reading above that Saul wants to kill David. He wants to do this because he thinks that David’s excellence makes him look less excellent, less great. Saul should rejoice in David’s gifts, for they are gifts to all Israel. David is a fine soldier and this is a blessing for everyone. The proper response to David’s excellence should be to rejoice, to be thankful to God, and where possible, imitate David’s courage and excellence. Instead, Saul sulks. He sees David as stealing the limelight, and possibly even the kingdom, from him. Envy rears its ugly head when Saul concludes that David must die. The good that is in David must be destroyed.
Envy is diabolical. St. Augustine called envy the diabolical sin (De catechizandis rudibus 4,8:PL 40,315-316) because it seeks to minimize, end, or destroy what is good. Scripture says, By the envy of the Devil death entered the world (Wis 2:24). Seeing the excellence that Adam and Eve (made in the image of God) had, and possibly knowing of plans for the incarnation, the Devil envied Adam and Eve. Their glory lessened his—or so he thought—and so he set out to destroy the goodness in them. Envy is very ugly and it is diabolical.
Examples of Envy – I remember experiencing envy in my early years. In every classroom there were always a few students who got A’s on every test. They always behaved and the teacher would sometimes praise them saying, “Why can’t the rest of you be like Johnny and Susie?” Some hated students like this because they made them look bad. So what did some of them do? They sought to pressure the “teacher’s pets” to conform to their mediocrity. In effect, they sought to destroy the goodness or excellence in the A students. They would taunt them with names and pelt them with spitballs. If ridicule and isolation didn’t work, sometimes they’d just plain beat them up. This is envy.
The virtues that cancel envy – The proper response to observing goodness or excellence in another is joy and zeal. We should rejoice that they are blessed, because when they are blessed, we are blessed. Further, we should respond with a zeal that seeks to imitate (where possible) their goodness or excellence. Perhaps we can learn from them or from their good example. Instead, envy rejects joy and zeal, and with sorrow and anger sets out to destroy what is good.
Envy can be subtle. Envy isn’t always obvious; sometimes it’s something we do almost without thinking. When there’s someone at work who is a rising star, we may engage in gossip and defamation that undermines their reputation or tarnishes their image. We may do this at times in an unreflective manner. Almost without thinking, we diminish and belittle others and their accomplishments through careless and insensitive remarks. We often do this because we need to knock others down in order to feel better about ourselves. This is envy. Sometimes we show envy passively by omitting to praise or encourage others or by failing to call attention to their accomplishments.
Envy concealed with a smile – Finally, there is an odd form of envy that is particularly annoying because it masquerades as sensitivity and kindness. Consider a typical youth soccer or baseball game. The children are on the field playing their hearts out. On the sidelines, a decision has been made by the coaches not to keep score. Why? Because the children’s egos might be damaged by losing. Frankly, it probably isn’t the egos of the children being protected, it’s those of the parents. The fact is that the kids know the score in most cases. God forbid that on the sports field there should be winners or losers! The losers might “feel bad.” The solution is to destroy or to refuse to acknowledge the goodness and excellence in some children because it is taken to lessen that of the “losers.” This is envy and it teaches terrible things (by omission). First, it fails to teach that there are winners and losers in life; this is a fact of life. Sometimes you win; sometimes you lose. Either way you should be gracious. Second, it fails to reward excellence, which is unjust. Excellence should be rewarded and that reward should motivate others to strive for excellence. Much is lost when we fail to praise what is good.
Another example of this envious practice is at school award ceremonies where scads of awards are given out. There are the traditional Honor Roll awards but then a plethora of made-up awards, created so that everyone “gets something.” I even witnessed an award given for the nicest smile! But the problem is that when everyone is rewarded, no one is rewarded. Once again envy rears its ugly head, but this time it’s wearing a smiley face. God forbid that some child’s ego be bruised because he doesn’t get something; someone else’s excellence might make him look less excellent by comparison.
The bottom line is that it is envy: sorrow at someone else’s excellence because I take it to lessen my own. And frankly this usually isn’t an issue for the kids; it’s usually the parents and teachers who are projecting their own struggle with envy on the kids. The fact is, there are simply some people who are better than others at certain things—and that’s OK. None of us individually has all the gifts, but together we have all the gifts.
Envy is ugly, even when it masquerades as misguided kindness and fairness. It diminishes and often seeks to destroy goodness and excellence. The proper response to excellence and goodness is and should always be joy and zeal.
In Snow White, the wicked queen envied Snow White, the fairest of them all. Considering Snow White’s beauty as a threat, the evil queen cast a spell on Snow White to remove her beauty from the scene. Envy consumed the evil queen.
Monsignor Pope Ping!
Really good teaching. All the more because the difference between jealousy and envy never occurred to me! I learned something new and useful!
Thank you Salvation, and thank you Msgr. Pope.
Without envy, the Left has no platform. I expect it will continue to be a signature “virtue” of progressivism.
spot on
Envy is the reason we turn definitions of good things as evil and evil things as good.
Thank you, Monsignor Pope, for your insightful words.
I’ve always learned from your posts of Monsignor Pope but this one is an exception.
I’ve always thought of jealousy as the negative attribute and envy as a more healthy one. Because envy may connote admiration and inspiration, or wanting similar but not a negative wanting.
For example, a woman has trouble conceiving. She becomes envious but happy for her sister who has baby after baby.
Another example, two athletes compete and one wins the prize. The other one is envious but vows to work harder to finish first next time. A jealous one might plot against the winner and attempt to cause a calamity.
Saul was envious? I always thought he was jealous.
I’ll ponder on Monsignor’s message and meaning further.
You captured my thoughts quite well,Tick.
Thanks for the ping, Sal.
Don't care about the religious or philosophical nuances, but it's really irritating to see that most native (American) English speakers don't seem to know the difference...
Envy is one of the capital sins. Like the Monsignor said — people are willing to kill to get what they want.
> “... people are willing to kill to get what they want.’
Or they are willing to work for it. I don’t know about who deems what words go on a list of ‘capital sins’ but I am sure if I am in prayer to Our Lord and I express how envious I am that my neighbor is doing so well and to please bless me with the strength and wisdom to earn what I need so that I can be as prosperous as my neighbor, I do not expect to be condemned.
The Lord may instruct me to be happy for my neighbor’s blessing and that such blessings or other blessings await me. But to be condemned for wanting, seeking and working for something better is no sin in my mind.
To me, ‘jealousy’ means to want to take from my neighbor to have as my own.
Whereas, ‘envy’ means to want to earn that which is similar to what my neighbor has gained.
“I am so envious of your success, I want to be like you”.
“I am jealous of your success and will seek to take it from you for my own.”
But you aren’t willing to kill me so that you can be more successful -— that is envy.
Note in the original article: “Saul was willing to kill David.”
I think Saul was jealous, not envious.
“David has done well, I am envious but will celebrate his victory.”
“David grows in power and is praised without my approval, I am jealous and will seek ways to have him killed.”
Words and meanings do change over long periods of time. Maybe that is the problem here.
We’ll have to agree to disagree.
Does this fellow realize that this article is rather counter to what we’ve been hearing from the Vatican?
Envy, the driver of leftism, is a side effect of vanity. Humility is the cure. The self esteem movement is leftist evil.
bump
That's not envy, though. Envy is being willing to kill so that someone else doesn't have what you want, even if you can't get it.
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