The seven deadly who-knows-what: Has DSM trumped sin?



(Pope Gregory I)

When it comes to sin - or whatever it is that’s deadly these days -  

seven has not been a lucky number. 

For one thing, Pope Gregory I’s SALIGIA - Latin mneumonics for

superbia (pride), avaritia (greed), luxuria (lust), invidia (envy), gula (gluttony), ira (wrath), and acedia (sloth) - has been ingrained into the collective Catholic psyche since 590 CE.  Preceding that were King Solomon’s “six things the Lord hateth, and the seventh His soul detesteth.”   According to Wikipedia, Solomon’s deadly seven were these: “a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plots, feet that are swift to run into mischief, a deceitful witness that uttereth lies, and Him that soweth discord among brethren.”

However, all that was back when people still turned to the Bible to sort through emotions and behaviors.  These days, it’s all about the DSM.

The DSM-IV (aka Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders IV, so-numbered because it’s the 1994 fourth edition, not because it’s some ancient-Roman codex) has its own spin on sin.  Gone are the days when unrighteous souls repented their evils (with help from their clergy).  Present are the days when ill clients process their disorders (with help from their therapists).  The only thing that seems to remain the same (outside of the all-too-human frailties) is the number seven.

Myhealthnewsdaily.com recently reported upon 7 New Psychological Disorders.  These seven new (?) “deadlies” include the following:  Hypersexual Disorder (think luxuria), Premenstrual Dysphoic Disorder (think ira), Binge Eating Disorder (think gula), Hoarding Disorder (think avaritia), and Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome (think acedia). 

The DSM-V is scheduled for publication in May 2012.  Preliminary information, as reported by Minerva Place, only seems to accentuate the gap between what the American Psychological Association is calling “Old Dogma and New Understandings.”  Pride, the deadliest sin of all, is now being termed “Positive Self Esteem Abundance Disease.”  An official Vatican spokesperson, Father Tony Caprezio, attributed this radical conceptual shift to “the present reality of living in a culture where no one is responsible for anything anymore.”

Resources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_deadly_sins

http://www.myhealthnewsdaily.com/new-psychological-disorders-dsm5-1643/4

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diagnostic_and_Statistical_Manual_of_Mental_Disorders

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Gregory_I

Copyright September 20, 2011 by Linda Van Slyke   All Rights Reserved