Article — Prümmer, Manuale Theologiae Moralis
Article IV. On envy
421. Notion. Envy, which sometimes is also called livor, zeal, jealousy, is sadness concerning another's good, which is judged to be one's own evil, because it diminishes our excellence or glory.64
Sadness concerning another's good can arise in several ways: 1. If someone grieves concerning the good of another, whom he judges unworthy of a good of this kind, it is not envy, but indignation or nemesis. 2. If someone is saddened concerning another's good insofar as from this there threatens him danger of some harm, as when a man is saddened concerning the exaltation of his enemy, fearing lest he be attacked by him, it is not envy, but rather an effect of fear.65 3. To grieve concerning the good of one's neighbor, not because he has this, but because we lack this and wish to obtain this by honorable means, is not envy, but emulation.66 4. To be saddened concerning the good of one's neighbor, insofar as his good is without relation to us, is not envy, but hatred of neighbor. 5. To be saddened concerning the good of another, insofar as it diminishes our excellence, is properly envy. - From these things said it appears:
a) that the envious man considers the good of his neighbor only insofar as it diminishes his own excellence and glory;
b) that envy arises from pride, which is the disordered appetite of one's own excellence. Concerning this matter the Angelic Doctor notes very well with St. Gregory:67 "The first offspring of pride is vain glory, which, when it has corrupted the oppressed mind, soon begets envy: because while it seeks the power of an empty name, it pines away lest someone else be able to obtain this. Therefore it is not against the notion of a capital vice that it itself arises from another.... Yet perhaps on account of this, that envy is manifestly born from vain glory, it is not posited as a capital vice either by Isidore..., or by Cassian..."
c) that envy for the most part is not found except among equals. For the envious man strives to be preferred in glory to another or at least to equal him. But no one except a madman strives to equal or to be preferred in glory to those who are much greater than himself. And therefore man is not wont to envy those who are distant much either in place or in time or in state.68 Wherefore Aristotle69 beautifully says: "No one envies those who lived or will live ten thousand years from now; nor those who dwell at the pillars of Hercules."
64 Cf. ib. q. 36, a. 1.
65 Cf. Aristot., Rhet. l. 2, c. 9, n. 3.
66 Cf. ib. c. 11.
67 S. theol. 2, 2, q. 36, a. 4 ad 1.
68 Cf. ib. a. 1 ad 2.
69 L. c. c. 10.
422. Malice. Envy from its genus is a mortal sin. The reason is that envy is directly opposed to charity, which of itself obliges under grave sin. For charity requires that we rejoice concerning the good of another. Envy, on the contrary, is saddened concerning the same good.70
But in order that envy should truly be a mortal sin, it is required a) that there be grave matter. Hence the good of the neighbor concerning which the envious man is saddened must be of grave moment, and the greater this good is, the graver is the sin of envy. Wherefore "a certain envy is counted among the gravest sins, namely envy of fraternal grace, according as someone grieves concerning the very increase of God's grace, not only concerning the good of the neighbor. Hence it is posited as a sin against the Holy Spirit, because through this envy man in a certain way envies the Holy Spirit, who is glorified in his works."71
b) That the act be perfectly deliberate. It is clear of itself from what was said above in n. 364 concerning the requisites necessary for mortal sin that a perfectly deliberate act is necessary for this, that envy should truly be a mortal sin. - In practice envy by itself alone is rarely a mortal sin, because those two required conditions are rarely present. But I say by itself alone; for envy more often becomes a grave sin on account of the effects which are called its daughters.
70 Cf. S. theol. 2, 2, q. 36, a. 3.
71 S. theol. 2, 2, q. 36, a. 4 ad 2.
423. Daughters of envy. By St. Gregory72 and after him by St. Thomas73 five daughters of envy are enumerated, namely hatred, whispering, detraction, affliction at the prosperous things of one's neighbor, exultation at his adversities.
Hatred. The worst daughter, and as it were the first-born of envy, is hatred, which can become truly diabolical and infernal. From envy the devil tempted the first parents and brought death into all the sons of Adam;74 from envy Cain killed his brother Abel;75 from envy the sons of Jacob sold their brother Joseph;76 from envy the Pharisees accused Christ.77 Hence it is skillfully said: "Love is strong as death, jealousy hard as hell,"78 and St. Cyprian79 says concerning this vice: "It is the root of all evils, the fountain of calamities, the seedbed of offenses, the matter of faults. From it hatred arises, from it animosity proceeds."
Whispering, which here is taken as the hidden denigration of another's reputation, also arises from envy. For the envious man strives by all means, and especially by sinister speech, to diminish the glory of his neighbor.
Detraction, which here is taken as the manifest denigration of another's reputation, likewise arises from envy for the same reason.
and 5. "Affliction at the prosperous things of one's neighbor in one way is envy itself, insofar, namely, as someone is saddened concerning the prosperous things of someone, according as they have a certain glory; but in another way it is a daughter of envy, according as the prosperous things of the neighbor happen against the effort of the envious man, who strives to impede them. - But exultation at adversities is not directly the same as envy, but follows from it; for from sadness concerning the good of the neighbor, which is envy, there follows exultation concerning the evil of the same."80
72 Moral. l. 31, c. 45 (al. 17).
73 S. theol. l. c. a. 4 ad 3.
74 Cf. Sap. 2, 24.
75 Cf. Gen. 4, 8.
76 Cf. Gen. 37, 8.
77 Cf. Matth. 27, 18.
78 Cant. 8, 6.
79 De zelo et livore (Migne, Patr. lat. 4, 642).
80 S. theol. l. c. a. 4 ad 3.
424. Remedies against envy are: 1. The exercise of humility. As was said above, envy arises from pride as from a root. Therefore if the root of pride is torn out by humility, the branch of envy must wither. 2. The exercise of fraternal charity. For envy is directly opposed to charity, as was said above. But opposites expel one another. Wherefore just as envy expels charity, so charity vigorously exercised expels envy. 3. Consideration of the evils which are wont to arise from envy. We have already enumerated above certain evil effects of envy. Besides those, worthy of mention is the great harm which the envious man causes to himself in the goods of body and soul. For envy is wont to harm bodily health; hence concerning envious Cain it is said: "His countenance fell."81 Envy is called "wasting away,"82 "rottenness of the bones."83 Envy causes reproach and contumely.84 Wherefore it has rightly been said:85
Nothing is more just than envy, because immediately it gnaws the author himself, and tortures his own heart.
81 Gen. 4, 5.
82 Nagender Neid; Sap. 6, 25.
83 Prov. 14, 30.
84 Cf. Eccli. 6, 1.
85 Cf. Tract. de interiore domo seu de conscientia aedificanda, c. 23, among the spurious works of St. Bernard (Migne, Patr. lat. 184, 542).