Charity (Caritas) is the highest theological virtue, placing love of God and neighbor at the center of all moral action.
According to St. Thomas Aquinas (Summa Theologica, II-II, Q23–26), charity perfects the will by ordering it toward God as the ultimate good, and extends outward in acts of love for others.
💬 Very simply put, Love means to will the good — for God, for others, and for ourselves in accordance with God’s will.
Charity is not affection or philanthropy. It is supernatural, informed by reason, and enlightened by grace.
It is the bond that unites all other virtues:
* Prudence guides love’s action
* Justice ensures fairness in love
* Fortitude sustains love in trials
* Temperance regulates desires in love
* Faith informs love’s vision
* Hope strengthens love’s perseverance
🧩 The 10 Sub-Virtues of LoveHere’s a recap of the sub-virtues of Charity we’ve covered this season:
* Compassion – Feeling the suffering of others. Love stirred into empathy that moves us to suffer with the one we love.
* Benignity – Gentle goodwill. The sweetness of charity in tone, temperament, and daily interactions.
* Mercy – Love’s action. The response to suffering that brings healing and restoration.
* Meekness – Strength under control. Moderates anger and enables patient endurance.
* Forgiveness – Releasing the debt of resentment to offer reconciliation.
* Indulgence – Gentle leniency that invites change with love rather than condemnation.
* Peace – Interior tranquility from right order, spreading outward to relationships and society.
* Liberality – The joyful and rational giving of goods for God’s glory and others’ good.
* Concord – Unity of will in diversity. Harmony without demanding uniformity.
* Piety – Reverent devotion to God, family, and community. Honors our origins and sacred obligations.
⚖️ Vice of Deficiency: Apathy
Definition:Apathy is the refusal to care — the spiritual laziness or indifference that withdraws the will from love.
Why it fits:This is the true lack of love — not hatred, but emptiness. Apathy dulls the soul to God, others, and our calling.
Description:Apathy manifests as coldness, disengagement, and spiritual numbness. It hides behind comfort or cynicism but stems from fear of love’s cost.
“Because you are lukewarm, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth.” (Revelation 3:16)Apathy is not harmless neutrality — it is love’s death by neglect.
🔥 Vice of Excess: Vainglory
Definition:Vainglory is the pursuit of recognition and praise for acts of love, virtue, or holiness — not to glorify God, but to glorify self.
Why it fits:Vainglory turns charity into performance. The act may be good, but the motivation is corrupted by pride and self-promotion.
Description:The vainglorious serve to be seen. They sacrifice for applause, virtue signal for attention, and seek admiration more than true self-gift.
“Beware of practicing your righteousness before others to be seen by them… they have received their reward.” (Matthew 6:1)Vainglory is not just pride — it is pride dressed in the costume of love.
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🙋♂️ My Life
I used to think love was my strongest virtue. Studying it deeply, I now see how much I still need to grow.
God used the loss of my son to open my heart to receive mercy and compassion from others — something far harder than giving.
I’ve learned that receiving love is itself an act of humility and trust.
And I’ve seen how my desire to be “orthodox” can slip into zealotry if I lose sight of love. Winning the argument should never matter more than winning the soul.
🌍 The Secular Perspective
Today’s culture idolizes romantic love (eros) while ignoring sacrificial love (agape). We say “#loveislove” but don’t know what love is.
We fear truth-telling in love and reject correction, hiding behind false tolerance and apathy:
“Live and let live”“If it’s not hurting anyone…”“Am I my brother’s keeper?”
Yes. You are.
🌟 Example Saint: Mary, Mother of God
Mary expresses every sub-virtue of Love:
* Compassion: At the Annunciation, with Elizabeth, and for all humanity through her Fiat.
* Benignity: Seen in every apparition and her tender interactions in Scripture.
* Mercy: In her intercession at Cana and service to Elizabeth.
* Meekness: Standing silently at the Cross.
* Forgiveness: Echoing Jesus’ words of pardon at Calvary.
* Indulgence: When she found Jesus in the Temple, she corrected him gently.
* Peace: Accepting her role in salvation history with serene trust.
* Liberality: Offering her whole self and the gifts of her Son.
* Concord: Aligning her will perfectly with the Father’s.
* Piety: A life devoted to worship, prayer, and duty to family and faith.
🗣️ Tell Me What You Think
Share your reflections in the comments. Your thoughts help shape future episodes and guest discussions.
🙏 Act of Love
O my God,I love you above all things with my whole heart and soul,because you are all good and worthy of all my love.I love my neighbor as myself for the love of you.I forgive all who have injured me, and ask pardon for all whom I have injured.Amen.
🛐 Prayer
Lord, bless us with faith, hope, love, prudence, temperance, fortitude, and justicethat we may live as you intended man to live, in all virtue and righteousness.Help us to flee from sin, and avoid all temptations of the world, the flesh, and the devil.Protect us with a spiritual hedge in front of us, behind us, above us, below us,to our right, and to our left, within us and all around us,and seal it with the blood of your precious Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.Help us to keep you in everything that we think, say, and do.Amen.
Go out and fill the world with virtue. Deus vult!
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