offense for every time a commandment or precept is violated, for sin is
a transgression of the law. But this would be insufficient inasmuch as
the law may command or forbid more than one thing.

Let the first commandment serve as an example. It is broken by sins
against faith, or unbelief, against hope, or despair, against charity,
against religion, etc. All these offenses are specifically different,
that is, are different kinds of sin; yet but one precept is
transgressed. Since therefore each commandment prescribes the practice
of certain virtues, the first rule is that there is a sin for every
virtue violated.

But this is far from exhausting our capacity for evil. Our virtue may
impose different obligations, so that against it alone we may offend in
many different ways. Among the virtues prescribed by the first
commandment is that of religion, which concerns the exterior homage due
to God. I may worship false gods, thus offending against the virtue of
religion, and commit a sin of idolatry. If I offer false homage to the
true God, I also violate the virtue of religion, but commit a sin
specifically different, a sin of superstition. Thus these different
offenses are against but one of several virtues enjoined by one
commandment. The virtue of charity is also prolific of obligations; the
virtue of chastity even more so. One act against the latter may contain
a four-fold malice.

It would be out of place here to adduce more examples: a detailed
treatment of the virtues and commandments will make things clearer. For
the moment it is necessary and sufficient to know that a commandment
may prescribe many virtues, a virtue may impose many obligations, and
there is a specifically different sin for each obligation violated.