The Seven Social Sins

Last week I observed Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.

The Reform prayer book my congregation uses, Mishkan HaNefesh, adds contemporary readings to ancient texts. Poems by May Sarton, Mary Oliver and Denise Levertov and lyrics by Leonard Cohen are among the sources for study and reflection offered alongside the traditional liturgy. This year I discovered another reading, “Seven Social Sins,” by Mohandas Gandhi. It was first published in his weekly newspaper, Young India, in October,1925. He shared it with his grandson shortly before his assassination in 1948.

Gandhi’s list of sins appears in the confessional section of the Yom Kippur service. I offer it here with my interpretation of how it applies today.

Seven Social Sins

Wealth without work

               We claim the economy is doing well because the stock market is high. The small percentage of Americans who have investments in the market reap rewards without labor, while millions are without work or the means to feed themselves and their families.

Pleasure without conscience

               We enjoy our pleasures without remembering how many of them are available to us because of the privileges of race or gender and without working toward a just and equitable society.

               We ignore the damage to the earth caused the conveniences to which we have become accustomed.  

Knowledge without character

               We separate the “soft skills” of listening, empathy, interpersonal communication, teamwork, and leadership as though they are extra, rather than essential to education.

Commerce without morality

               We allow social media to invade our privacy and manipulate the news.

               We allow Big Pharma to reap huge profits at the expense of vulnerable populations.

               We allow big firms to stifle the creativity and growth of small businesses .

Worship without sacrifice

               We proclaim religious faith without acting with compassion.  

               We endanger the lives of others by not wearing a mask because” Our lives are in God’s hands.”

Politics without principle

               We seek power over justice.

               We use the law to enrich ourselves while denouncing the same benefits for the poor.