D7: The Theological Virtues and Their Opposites

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Everything is willed or permitted by God. Your suffering has meaning and redemptive power.

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Faith, hope, love — and their opposites: doubt, despair, narcissism. Stephanie's renunciation drill names these by name. "The opposite of love is not hate but narcissism — complete self-absorption" (SWADOS 5).

The theological virtues are faith, hope, and love. Each has a specific opposite that the enemy seeks to instill:

Faith → doubt. "I cannot trust him; I cannot trust his promises; perhaps it isn't even true."
Hope → despair. "It will not change; I am beyond help; he has abandoned me."
Love → narcissism. "It is all about me; my feelings are the measure; others exist to serve my needs."

Stephanie Burke's observation (SWADOS 5): "The opposite of love is not hate but narcissism — complete self-absorption." Hate at least acknowledges another; narcissism erases the other entirely. This is why the renunciation prayer in this course renounces narcissism explicitly.

Other opposites named in the drill: pride (against humility), vanity (against detachment), fear (against confidence), unforgiveness (against mercy). Each is renounced by name.

The theological virtues are faith, hope, and love. Each has a specific opposite that the enemy seeks to instill:

Faith → doubt. "I cannot trust him; I cannot trust his promises; perhaps it isn't even true."
Hope → despair. "It will not change; I am beyond help; he has abandoned me."
Love → narcissism. "It is all about me; my feelings are the measure; others exist to serve my needs."

Other opposites named in the drill: pride (against humility), vanity (against detachment), fear (against confidence), unforgiveness (against mercy). Each is renounced by name.

The theological logic is that what is named can be refused. A vague sense of "I'm not feeling great spiritually" is harder to oppose than a precise identification: "I am being tempted to despair." Naming the spirit puts the will in a position to refuse it.