Power of Jealousy

Social Media is a Mirror to See if You are a Jealous Person

If I say you are practicing some of the seven deadly sins; how would you react?

Gregory the Great in 6th century came up with the list of seven deadly sins and later in 13th century Thomas Aquinas expounded them by saying that these sins are the source of all other human evil.

What are these sins? They are Pride, Greed, Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Anger, Laziness. To counter these seven cardinal vices, starting from Bishop Ambrose and Augustine, theologians also proposed seven cardinal virtues. By the time of Aquinas, they were put in this form; Humility, Love, Purity, Gratitude, Temperance, Patience, and Diligence.

For Aquinas, pride is not only the number one vice, it is the source of all other vices. He went on to say that God loves you so much that in order to deliver you from the sin of pride, he will make you fall in the most shameful sin in your given culture.

Pride is very subtle. Most of us think that we are not proud. This thought itself is the evidence of our pride.

However, there is another subtle sin we harbor in our hearts without even knowing we are doing it. It is the sin of envy or jealousy.

Jealousy makes us resentful, critical and bitter towards those who have done us no harm. Jealousy makes us evil to the core of our being because we cannot tolerate the good in others. It destroys friendships and meaningful interpersonal relationships. A person with the attitude of jealousy can never enjoy loving relationship with other people.

When jealousy enters in a marriage, it destroys every possibility of joy and happiness that marriage was supposed to bring. Psychiatrists tell us that there is no cure for marital jealousy. Divorce is the only solution in most cases; unless the victim decides to live in the hell created by jealousy.

Are you a jealous person? The way you use social media might give you the answer to this question.

Do you enjoy the colorful life of your friends as you scroll down your newsfeed? How do you react when you see your friends posting their happy moments?

They graduated from a good school. They got awards. They got good jobs. They moved to a better country. They got married. They bought a car. They bought a house. They were promoted. Their children are becoming successful. They are becoming famous. They are a success story. The list goes on.

When you see these things in your newsfeed, how do you feel?

When someone writes something you don’t like, how do you react?

If you are a jealousy person, you will find ways to criticize and hate the things they are posting. You will justify your hate and criticism as being truthful and honest. You will think they are showing off, and it is your job to let them know. That you will do either by actually writing negative comments or pretending as if you are totally ignoring them. But when these same friends post something bad happening to them, you will be very happy and start showing a false sympathy.

So, when your friends never comment on your happy posts but quickly come around when you post something bad, know that these are jealous friends who cannot see your happiness. They take pleasure in your unhappiness.

Therefore, just as pride is the source of all other sins, jealousy is the source of all unhappiness. A jealous person can never be happy.

Jealousy makes you feel resentful, angry and bitter against anyone who seems to be better than you. Other’s happiness becomes your misery. No matter how hard you try to live a happy life, someone comes along and takes away your happiness.

The only cure for jealousy is the crucifixion of the self. Unless a person is willing to die to self, there is no hope of happiness for a jealous person. But if you can manage to die on the cross with Christ and make him the center of your life; if you can have the mind of Christ, then only you will know the beauty of happiness. Galatians 2:20 is the key in curing Jealousy.

It says;

“I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.”

Once you are crucified with Christ, then, Paul also gives us the secret of happiness in Philippians 2:3–5. He says;

“3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, 4 not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others. 5 In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:”

Having the mind of Christ is the cure for all sins; particularly the sin that makes your life so miserable. Mind of Christ is the source of all happiness.