Commandment; because by thinking too much of ourselves we neglect God,
and give to ourselves the honor due to Him. Of what have we to be proud?
Of our personal appearance? Disease may efface in one night every trace
of beauty. Of our clothing? It is not ours; we have not produced it;
most of it is taken from the lower animals--wool from the sheep, leather
from the ox, feathers from the bird, etc. Are we proud of our wealth,
money or property? These may be stolen or destroyed by fire. The learned
may become insane, and so we have nothing to be proud of but our good
works. All that we have is from God, and we can have it only as long as
He wishes. We had nothing coming into the world, and we leave it with
nothing but the shroud in which we are buried; and even this does not go
with the soul, but remains with the body to rot in the earth. Soon after
death our bodies become so offensive that even our dearest friends
hasten to place them under ground, where they become the food of worms,
a mass of corruption loathsome to sight and smell. Why, then, should we
be so proud of this body, and commit so much sin for it, pamper it with
every delicacy, only to be the food of worms? This does not mean,
however, that we are not to keep our bodies clean, and take good care of
them. We are bound to do so, and could not neglect it without committing
sin. The one thing to be avoided is taking too much care of them, and
neglecting our soul and God on their account. The followers of pride
are: conceit, hypocrisy, foolish display in dress or conduct, harshness
to others, waste of time on ourselves, etc.

"Covetousness," the same as avarice, greed, etc., is an inordinate
desire for worldly goods. "Inordinate," because it is not avarice to
prudently provide for the future either for ourselves or others.
Covetousness comes under the Tenth Commandment, and is forbidden by it.
We must be content with what we have or can get honestly. The followers
of covetousness are: Want of charity, dishonest dealing, theft, etc.