Let’s Do the Work
Anti-Sloth
Sloth (the mortal sin, not the animal) is rarely the subject of much moral discussion. We rarely shine a light on laziness anymore. That’s unfortunate, and I’ll explain why.
I think the reason we don’t often condemn sloth is related to equivocations between happiness and relaxation & leisure. No one wants to feel guilty about their much-needed downtime — nor should they! Happiness, however, is not necessarily found only in relaxation or leisure pursuits.
Happiness, in the sense of contentment or fulfillment we often associate with that word, certainly can be found in meaningful work. In fact, I believe meaningful work is a greater source of fulfillment than rest or leisure.
Rest and leisure serve the purpose of recharging our capacity to do meaningful work. They are actually means to the end of meaningful work, not the end goal of having done meaningful work. Leisure and rest are not rewards for having done good work; rather, they are necessary facets of life that enable meaningful work.
By putting meaningful work back in its proper place in our hierarchy of needs (higher than rest and leisure), we prioritize that which contributes most to our well-being (i.e. the virtue of industriousness or “anti-sloth”).
The Roots of Sloth: Entitlement & Pride
The two roots of sloth are entitlement and pride (arrogance). Pride says to us that we deserve something. We deserve, for example, to enjoy good things not because of anything we have done to earn them but because of who we are. This is the essence of entitlement. Entitlement tells us that we deserve a specific thing because of who we are, some quality that we have, or something we have done.
When we arrogantly assert an entitlement, One is saying that they deserve to get the object of their desire without having to do anything further to earn it. Typically, this is not how life works. In general, one must earn everything they get, or receive it as a free gift. Generally, the only entitlements we have are our human rights — what philosopher John Locke would have called “natural rights.”
Entitlement and pride / arrogance are natural enemies of industriousness, because they lead to sloth. Therefore, if one desires to do meaningful work, they must embrace humility, patience, and grace. These virtues strengthen one’s resilience and support the spirit in its effort to pursue meaningful work and endure hardship or inequities.
The Work of Personal Growth
No one owes you acceptance. This is a hard truth, but stay with me, because I will make this bitter pill a little easier to swallow.
Often, when one neglects the work of personal growth, they do so because they feel entitled to be accepted just as they are. They adopt and accept the lie that they are perfect, just as they are, and they don’t need to change. They blame other people for their problems. They point to others as the source of their unhappiness. This is sloth manifest in one’s approach to developing their own character, and at the root of such sloth are the vices of pride and entitlement.
Now, let me sweeten this bitter medicine with a spoonful of sugar.
We all have received from God infinite grace, love, and mercy. We ought, therefore, to love others as God loves us, and we ought to reflect His grace, love, and mercy towards others.
So, we each have adequate incentives to respect the dignity of each other person and treat them with kindness and compassion. This does not entail accepting everything about a person, for there may be traits or qualities a person exhibits that are unhealthy for them.
Unnatural or unhealthy features of a person’s behavior (or even identity) may move us to speak the truth in love to them, in the hope that they will make healthier choices and improve both their character and their life.
Acceptance is not a natural human right, but compassion and kindness are virtues that lead to more genuine love and goodness than acceptance, alone, can produce.
So, make a decent effort to release your attachment to feeling entitled to acceptance, if you have such an attachment. Instead, surround yourself with people who will love you enough to speak the truth to you in love, and who will show you compassion, grace, and kindness (especially when they don’t accept certain aspects of your behavior or identity).
Most of all, acknowledge that you are not perfect as you are. Rather we are all pursuing a lifelong quest for perfection, which ultimately is fulfilled in the grace, love, and mercy of our Creator. We must cooperate in this grace to sustain our access to it, and this is the most meaningful work there is. So, let’s do the work.
© 2021 Noel Bagwell. All rights reserved.
