Cardinal Virtues

Information about Cardinal Virtues

In some Christian traditions, there are four cardinal virtues: prudence, temperance, fortitude, and justice. These were derived initially from Plato's scheme (see Protagoras 330b, which also includes piety (hosiotes)) and adapted by Saint Ambrose, Augustine of Hippo, and Thomas Aquinas (see Summa Theologica II(I).61).

The term "cardinal" comes from the Latin cardo or hinge; the cardinal virtues are so called because they are hinges upon which the door of the moral life swings.

**The Cardinal virtues as depicted on the tomb of Pope Clemens II in Bamberg Cathedral**
	Iustitia (Justice)	Fortitudo (Fortitude)	Sapientia (Prudence)	Temperantia (Temperance)

Plato identified them with the classes of the city described in the Republic, and with the faculties of man. Temperance was associated with the producing classes, the farmers and craftsmen, and with the animal appetites; fortitude with the warrior class and with the spirited element in man; prudence with the rulers and with reason. Justice stands outside the class system and divisions of man, and rules the proper relationship among the three of them.

It may have been taken up from there into Jewish philosophy; Wisdom 8:7 reads, "She [Wisdom] teacheth temperance, and prudence, and justice, and fortitude, which are such things as men can have nothing more profitable in life."

It was certainly taken up in Christianity, as St. Augustine, discussing the morals of the church, described them:

For these four virtues (would that all felt their influence in their minds as they have their names in their mouths!), I should have no hesitation in defining them: that temperance is love giving itself entirely to that which is loved; fortitude is love readily bearing all things for the sake of the loved object; justice is love serving only the loved object, and therefore ruling rightly; prudence is love distinguishing with sagacity between what hinders it and what helps it.

These "cardinal" virtues are not the same as the three theological virtues: faith, hope, and charity (see 1 Corinthians 13). Together, they comprise what is known as the seven cardinal virtues, also known as the heavenly virtues.

History of the Virtues

While history suggests that the first four date back to Greek philosophers and were applicable to all people seeking to live moral lives, the theological virtues appear to be specific to Christians as written by Paul in The New Testament.

In Genesis, Chapter 28 Jacob describes his vision of a ladder or stairway leading to heaven. In oral tradition, the three principal rungs on the ladder were denominated Faith, Hope and Love. (The King James Version of the Bible uses "charity," but "charity" was derived from caritas, or "love.") These three are mentioned in Chapter 13 of First Corinthians: And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. Because of this reference, the seven attributes are sometimes grouped as four cardinal virtues (prudence, temperance, fortitude, justice) and three heavenly graces (faith, hope, charity).

The cardinal virtues are distinguished from the capital virtues. The capital virtues are often paired with the much more widely known capital (or "deadly") sins. The capital virtues are: humility, liberality, brotherly love, meekness, chastity, temperance, and diligence. The capital sins, sometimes called the "seven deadly sins," are pride, avarice (greed), envy, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth.

Depictions of the Virtues

The Tomb of Sir John Hotham, supported by figures of the cardinal virtues.

The Cardinal Virtues are often depicted as female allegorical figures and were a popular subject for funerary sculpture. The attributes and names of these figures may vary according to local tradition.

On the tomb of Sir John Hotham, in St Mary's Church, South Dalton the four figures are:

Justice - holding a sword.
Temperance - mixing wine and water in two jugs.
Fortitude - with a broken column.
Truth - holding a mirror and being attacked by a serpent.

References

Prudence (lat.:prudentia) is classically considered to be a virtue, and indeed, one of the Cardinal Virtues. The word comes from Old French prudence (13th century), from Latin prudentia "foresight, sagacity," contraction of providentia "foresight".
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Temperance (Sophrosyne in Greek) is the practice of moderation. It was one of the four "cardinal" virtues held to be vital to society in Hellenic culture. It is one of the Four Cardinal Virtues considered central to Christian behaviour by the Catholic Church and is
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Courage, also known as bravery and fortitude, is the ability to confront fear, pain, danger, uncertainty or intimidation. It can be divided into "physical courage" — in the face of physical pain, hardship, and threat of death — and "moral courage" —
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Justice is one of the four cardinal virtues in classical European philosophy and Roman Catholicism. It is the moderation between selfishness and selflessness.
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PLATO was one of the first generalized Computer assisted instruction systems, originally built by the University of Illinois and later taken over by Control Data Corporation (CDC), who provided the machines it ran on.
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In spiritual terminology, piety is a virtue. While different people may understand its meaning differently, it is generally used to refer either to religious devotion or to spirituality, or often, a combination of both. A common element in most conceptions of piety is humility.
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Ambrose^[2] (c. 338 – 4 April 397), was a Frankish bishop of Milan who became one of the most influential ecclesiastical figures of the fourth century. He is counted as one of the four original doctors of the Church.
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Aurelius Augustinus, Augustine of Hippo, or Saint Augustine (November 13, 354 – August 28, 430) was a philosopher and theologian, and was bishop of the North African city of Hippo Regius for the last third of his life.
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Saint Thomas Aquinas, O.P.(also Thomas of Aquin, or Aquino; c. 1225 – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Roman Catholic priest in the Order of Preachers, a philosopher and theologian in the scholastic tradition, known as Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Universalis
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Bamberg Cathedral (German: Bamberger Dom, official name Bamberger Dom St. Peter und St. Georg) is one of the best-known architectural monuments in Germany and has been Bamberg’s most famous landmark since its completion in
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The Republic (Greek: Πολιτεία) is a Socratic dialogue by Plato, written approximately 360 BC. It is an influential work of philosophy and political theory, and perhaps Plato's best known work.
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Book of Wisdom or Wisdom of Solomon or simply Wisdom is one of the deuterocanonical books of the Bible. It is one of the seven Sapiential (wisdom) books of the Old Testament, which includes Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon (Song of Songs), and
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three Theological Virtues listed in the Bible are:

Faith (πίστις)
Hope (ἐλπίς)
Love or Charity (

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The Seven Virtues were derived from the Psychomachia ('Contest of the Soul'), an epic poem written by Aurelius Clemens Prudentius (c. 410 CE) entailing the battle of good virtues and evil vices.
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The term ancient Greece refers to the periods of Greek history in Classical Antiquity, lasting ca. 750 BC^[1] (the archaic period) to 146 BC (the Roman conquest). It is generally considered to be the seminal culture which provided the foundation of Western Civilization.
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New Testament (Greek: Καινή Διαθήκη, Kainē Diathēkē) is the name given to the final portion of the Christian Bible, written after the Old Testament.
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King James Version

Full name: King James Version
Authorized Version

Abbreviation: KJV or AV

Complete Bible published: 1611

Textual Basis: Textus Receptus, 57% deviation from Nestle-Aland 27th edition (NT)
Translation type: 2% paraphrase rate
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The Bible is

Part of

(see The Hebrew Bible below)

Part of a series on Christianity

(see The New Testament below)

Bible
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seven deadly sins, also known as the capital vices or cardinal sins, are a classification of vices that were originally used in early Christian teachings to educate and instruct followers concerning (immoral) fallen man's tendency to sin.
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Allegorical sculpture refers to sculptures that symbolize and particularly personify abstract ideas.

Common in the Western world, for example, are statues of 'Justice', a female figure traditionally holding scales in one hand, as a symbol of her weighing issues and
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Sir John Hotham, 1st Baronet, of Scorborough (d. January 3, 1645), English parliamentarian, belonged to a Yorkshire family, and fought on the continent of Europe during the early part of the Thirty Years' War.
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South Dalton

South Dalton ()

|240px|South Dalton (

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