Christian theology Christian theology is the theology – the systematic study of the divine and religion – of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. It concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Ch ...

, the world, the flesh, and the devil (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

: ''mundus, caro, et diabolus'';

Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...

: ''ό κοσμος, ή σαρξ, και ό διαβολος'') have been singled out "by sources from St

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

" to the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent (), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation at the time, it has been described as the "most ...

, as "implacable enemies of the soul". The three sources of

temptation Temptation is a desire to engage in short-term urges for enjoyment that threatens long-term goals.Webb, J.R. (Sep 2014). Incorporating Spirituality into Psychology of temptation: Conceptualization, measurement, and clinical implications. Sp ...

have been described as: *world -- "indifference and opposition to God’s design", "empty, passing values"; *flesh -- "gluttony and sexual immorality, ... our corrupt inclinations, disordered passions"; *the Devil -- "a real, personal enemy, a fallen angel, Father of Lies".

Sources

Scripture

Scripture that refers to the three sources of temptation is thought to include: *

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

parable of the Sower The Parable of the Sower (sometimes called the Parable of the Soils) is a Parables of Jesus, parable of Jesus found in , , and the apocrypha, extra-canonical Gospel of Thomas. Jesus tells of a farmer who sows seed indiscriminately. Some seed ...

(Mathew 13): the first two scenes of unproductive soil represent the devil and the flesh (not so much the world) **birds eating the seed -- (Matthew 13:19) "When anyone hears the message about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what was sown in their heart"; **The seed falling among the thorns -- (Matthew 13:22) "refers to someone who hears the word, but the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth choke the word, making it unfruitful." *They are reflected in the

Temptation of Christ The temptation of Christ is a biblical narrative detailed in the gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. After being baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus was tempted by the devil after 40 days and nights of fasting in the Judaean Desert. At the ...

in the desert: **the world: to tempt God by casting himself off the pinnacle; **the flesh: to turn stones into bread; and **the devil: to worship Satan. *Ephesians 2:2–3a. ''You once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience — among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh''; in addition to "this world" and "passions of our flesh", "the term air often referred to the spiritual realm of angels and demons".

Christian literature

Many Christian sources refer to the world, the flesh, and the

devil A devil is the mythical personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conce ...

Peter Abelard Peter Abelard (12 February 1079 – 21 April 1142) was a medieval French scholastic philosopher, leading logician, theologian, teacher, musician, composer, and poet. This source has a detailed description of his philosophical work. In philos ...

states in his ''Expositiones'' that: ''Tria autem sunt quae nos tentant, caro, mundus, diabolus'' ("There are three things which tempt us, the flesh, the world, and the devil"). In his third objection to "prudence of the flesh" being a sin'' in

Summa Theologica The ''Summa Theologiae'' or ''Summa Theologica'' (), often referred to simply as the ''Summa'', is the best-known work of Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274), a scholastic theologian and Doctor of the Church. It is a compendium of all of the main t ...

'',

states: "just as man is tempted by the flesh, so too is he tempted by the world and the devil". The

sixth session, decree on justification:

Nevertheless, let those who think themselves to stand, take heed lest they fall, and, with fear and trembling work out their salvation, in labours, in watchings, in almsdeeds, in prayers and oblations, in fastings and chastity: for, knowing that they are born again unto a hope of glory, but not as yet unto glory, they ought to fear for ''the combat which yet remains with the flesh, with the world, with the devil'', wherein they cannot be victorious, unless they be with God's grace, obedient to the Apostle, who says; We are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh; for if you live according to the flesh, you shall die; but if by the spirit you mortify the deeds of the flesh, you shall live.

The phrase may have entered popular use in English through the

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the title given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christianity, Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The Book of Common Prayer (1549), fi ...

, which includes in its

Litany Litany, in Christian worship and some forms of Jewish worship, is a form of prayer used in services and processions, and consisting of a number of petitions. The word comes through Latin ''wikt:litania, litania'' from Ancient Greek wikt:λιτα ...

: " om al the deceytes of the worlde, the fleshe, and the deuill: Good lorde deliuer us." Similarly, the rite of baptism requires renunciations of the devil, the world, and the flesh.

John of the Cross St. John of the Cross (; ; né Juan de Yepes y Álvarez; 24 June 1542 – 14 December 1591) was a Spanish Roman Catholic priest, mystic, and Carmelite friar of ''Converso'' ancestry. He is a major figure of the Counter-Reformation in Spain, ...

cites the world, the flesh, and the devil as threats to the perfection of the soul, and offers different "precautions" to be taken against each of these. Some have responded to the idea of

by teaching or practicing

asceticism Asceticism is a lifestyle characterized by abstinence from worldly pleasures through self-discipline, self-imposed poverty, and simple living, often for the purpose of pursuing Spirituality, spiritual goals. Ascetics may withdraw from the world ...

; (see also

ascetical theology Ascetical theology is the organized study or presentation of spiritual teachings found in Christian Scripture and the Church Fathers that help the faithful to more perfectly follow Christ and attain to Christian perfection. Christian asceticism ...

and

mortification of the flesh Mortification may refer to: *Mortification (theology), theological doctrine *Mortification of the flesh, religious practice of corporal mortification *Mortification in Roman Catholic teaching, Roman Catholic doctrine of mortification *Extreme emb ...

). The question of whether the world and the flesh are inherently bad and what the individual's proper relationship to them ought to be has long been debated in many philosophical and spiritual traditions.

Sources

* eprinted in

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:World, the flesh, and the devil, The Christian hamartiology Demons in Christianity Satan Philosophical phrases Trinitarianism

Sources

Scripture

Christian literature

See also

Sources

Citations