By Michael Cook, published 28/3/2008
There were raised eyebrows around the world when newspapers reported that the Vatican had updated the seven deadly sins.
The pancasila (five factor moral code) is seen by many eastern religions as a necessary basis for a good and happy life. It covers abstention from killing, stealing, lying, sexual misconduct and taking intoxicants. The Buddha taught this not as an end in itself, but as a necessary step in quieting the mind so that it might practise samadhi, concentration of mind. This in itself is a necessary step for practising vipassana, observing with detachment the reality of the present moment within one's own mind and body, in order to free oneself from impurities and become enlightened. In this context, the "modern" sins mentioned in the media are irrelevant, although anyone practising sila, samadhi and panna (wisdom developed through experience with vipassana) will be disinclined to actions which harm others.
The test for the Roman Catholic Church should be whether its moral guidelines help those who follow them to develop spiritually, which involves developing one's own wisdom based on one's own experience rather than blind adherence to scripture or externally-imposed rules.