kpl2014 wrote:
So please explain what it does mean
Thank you for asking. I wasn't going to just go off a rant on the topic, I wanted you to ask before I explained. Call it the Socratic method.
The seven capital sins are seven categories of behavior which can lead to mortal sin if indulged in or allowed to fester. The seven categories are vices which are 'deadly' (bad word) or 'capital' (better word) because they are things which lead to other sins.
Let's look at one you didn't ask about: lust. Does this mean that if a person feels lust, it is a mortal sin? No. Feeling an emotion is not a sin in and of itself. We are not 'in charge' of our emotions. Our emotions are in charge of us. If we feel a certain way, we aren't necessarily responsible for that. But we are responsible for what we do as a result of that emotion. So, lust is a capital sin, but it leads to other sins, like adultery.
The principle here is what Jesus outlined in the Sermon on the Mount in the series of 'you have heard it said....but I say to you that' sayings. In these sayings, Jesus did not mean that the things he outlined really were the exact moral equivalent of the sins he condemns, he is saying that if we are serious about wanting to avoid sin, then we should make an effort to avoid the things that lead to sin. So, since lust leads to adultery, avoid any situation that causes you to feel lust.
Another example is anger. Why is anger listed among the capital sins? Is it because anger is itself a sin? No. It is because anger leads to other sins, such as hatred, malice, spite, revenge, and murder. So if you're serious about wanting to avoid those sins, you will try to avoid anger because anger leads to all the other sins.
You remember what Yoda said? 'Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering.' This is a good Catholic principle, if you want to avoid hate, then avoid anger which leads to hate, and avoid fear which leads to anger.
Among the pre-Christian rabbis, this was called 'putting a fence around the Torah', i.e. to avoid violating the divine law, avoid behaviors that lead you to violate the law.
Or, as the Church puts it, to avoid sin, 'avoid the near occasion of sin.' So, what specific occasions of sin should you seek to avoid? Well, you can't go wrong if you try to avoid the 7 categories of vice known as 'the capital sins.'