Fighting envy

As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mute was brought to him. And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds marvelled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.” But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.” And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.  When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the labourers are few;  therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out labourers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9: 32-38)

Jesus's enemies interpret all His gestures negatively, even when he frees those who are possessed by demons. Instead of recognizing that Jesus is God, they insinuate the opposite by claiming He is a servant of Satan. Those who experience envy know they are not as good as the other person they criticise and therefore, instead of trying to improve themselves, they try to demean the person they envy with lies. Envious people want the other person to lose what he has more than they have. This is why envy is a capital sin and, thus, is the origin of other sins. Let us strive to fight envy with the opposite virtue: humility.