There's an epidemic spreading like wildfire. We all know what it is, and some of us might even have it. Of course, I speak of Pride and Vanity, two of the seven deadly sins.

In the age of materialism and social media, the first thing out the window was the virtue of Humility. As a matter of fact, humility is oftentimes conflated with apathy and "low self-esteem", whereas pride and vanity are considered the pinnacle of confidence. Those that believe confidence and pride are interchangeable also believe that anyone who challenges their confidence is more than likely insecure and intimidated by them...what?

In what world is calling someone on their blind self-centeredness a sign of "insecurity?" If anything it's telling people they should be nicer to one another. In addition to that, Pride and Vanity give way to a multitude of other vices, for example: hypocrisy, self-indulgence, "holier-than-thou" syndrome, greed, ignorance of others and overall selfishness. Many if not all of these, things become clearly visible and by result, they just look...unappealing. You know the kind of person I'm speaking about. The guy at the bar who believes he's God's gift to women; the girl at the beach who knows she's attractive and flaunts it to no end; the internet fedora-clad atheist who believes himself to be better than any person with a belief in God; the Scribes and Pharisees of the modern world. The whole idea of pride and vanity are not only what condemned Lucifer to the fires of hell, but it was also the mentality that led Jesus himself to be crucified.

Don't misinterpret my words as condemning confidence. It's natural for human beings to want to feel good about themselves, it's perfectly fine to feel comfortable in your own skin (for me to say the opposite would be in-of-itself hypocritical) I mean, I wouldn't be here had it not been for my own self-confidence and self-comfort. But a little humility won't kill you...No, you're not God's gift to humanity. No, you're not the only person in the world with attractive features. No, your own beliefs don't make you better than anyone else with different beliefs. Nobody, in this life or the next, is better than anyone else. True there is a hierarchy of preferences, professions, looks, abilities, etc. yet this does not stray from the fact that we are all equal in the eyes of God.

I'm going to make this as blunt as possible: You are deserving of nothing. You are entitled, to nothing except death, taxes and human rights. You are better than no one. Everything you say, or do in the name of immediate self-gratification will reap no reward, and just because you may have something of value, does not make you better than anyone else. We are all sinners, unworthy of heaven, and just because you may classify yourself as a "good person" does not make you worthy of Heaven, or any less deserving of eternal hellfire.

In my own experience, the most kind, generous, successful and most interesting people are the ones who take the above paragraphs to heart. They know them as a fact. One would not call them vain, but rather temperate in their confidence. They do not let their assets blind them, and by extension, they are a stone wall, immovable by the insults of others who are lacking in virtue and are selfish in desire. It is the humble among us, those that can see the plights of others, that know for a fact that there are things in the world that are greater than themselves, and do not lose sight of that fact, that are more worthy of respect and recognition, than those that are incapable of seeing past their own reflections. And with that, I find myself very happy to call many of those humble people, my friends.