Sloth is a complicated sin. In the 7 Deadly Sin List it originally came under the word acedia.That’s a word we don’t even use any more
Acedia is related to tedium, melancholy, joylessness, discontent, and apathy. Particularly apathy towards the spiritual life.
Theologian Thomas Aquinas called acedia a “sluggishness of the mind which neglects to begin good…,it so oppresses man as to draw him away entirely from good deeds.”
The poet Dante described Sloth/ Acedia as being the “failure to love God with all one’s heart, all one’s mind and all one’s soul.” Too lazy to love.
On his way to heaven Dante climbed Mount Purgatory and encountered a group of slothful sinners. Their act of penance was to continuously run “in haste.”
Today when we think of sloth we pretty much reduce it to lazy.
Too lazy for love and good deeds. Not the full, complicated definition of the deadly sin of sloth, but good enough.
So how do we counteract a life of too lazy?
For some of us, getting a little more sleep might be one remedy to begin with. You probably know if you are someone in this category.
For our Soul Sculpting Project today we’re going to use Dante’s remedy. Energetic movement.
Lent 2022 Week 7
- Deadly sin of the week: Sloth
- Life-giving virtue: Energetic movement
Is energetic movement really a virtue? I don’t know about that, but it’s definitely profoundly good for us, body, mind, and soul.
Energetic Movement
Energetic movement, also sometimes called exercise, physical work, or play, is a topic that is heavily researched and is so good for us that it’s hard to know where to begin listing the benefits.
Here is a very small sampling of the benefits list.
For our Body – movement will:
- Strengthen bones and muscles
- Slow the loss of bone density
- Improve sleep
- Help us manage our weight
- Temper ADHD
- Lower addictive behaviors
Movement reduces the risk of:
- Heart disease and stroke
- Developing type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome.
- The following cancers: Bladder, Breast, Colon (proximal and distal), Endometrium, Esophagus,(adenocarcinoma), Kidney, Lung, Stomach (cardia and non-cardia adenocarcinoma).
For our Brain – movement will:
- Improve cognitive function
- Build new stem cells
- Lowers risk of dementia
- Repair damages in our reward system (such as damage caused by substance abuse)
- Improves memory
But our body isn’t all that benefits.
For our Mind and mental health – movement will:
- Reduce depression and anxiety
- Help us manage stress well
- Increase positive emotions
And then there’s our Soul.
A healthy body and mind are the first perk for my soul’s well-being. But it goes beyond that. I don’t know any research to back this up, but my personal experience is that my soul is healthier when my body is more active.
God has clearly designed us to thrive when we move.
The Launch
The US Department of Health recommends that adults aim for 150–300 minutes of moderate exercise or 75–150 minutes of vigorous aerobic exercise a week.
For this Soul Sculpting Project we will dial that way back to a 1 minute launching pad.
A Tiny Launch Out of Lazy: Soul Sculpting Project
Determine a time you will do this project every day. For example: “I will do my 1 Minute of Movement just before I look at my social media.” Of course if you are someone who looks at your social media many, many, many times a day, this would probably be a bit too ambitious – so pick something different.
- Get on your feet. If you are stuck sitting, then use whatever part of your body you can.
- Move your body with energy for 1 minute.
You can: play, dance, jog, jump, twirl ,work . . . whatever is fun to do energetically.
One minute feel too extreme? Then go for 30 seconds. 15 Seconds. 5 seconds
Tiny changes can launch significant improvements.
The data on the vast benefits of physical movement has been a life changer for me. I now move my body a lot more than I used to. Walking is my favorite way to feed my mind, body, and soul. I am a classic slow walker. I do value slow, mindful walking, but there is also a time to move out fast. So my cutting edge right now is to speed my pace occasionally.
What do you like to do that gets you on the move?
soulsculpting 