I guess because the old ones were sooooo passe, the Vatican released a list of new seven deadly sins.

I’ll cut to the chase, and give them to you (they’re not in any order).  But first, let’s review the old seven deadly sins.

• Lust
• Gluttony
• Greed
• Sloth
• Wrath
• Envy
• Pride

And now the new ones:

• Polluting
• Genetic engineering
• Being obscenely rich
• Drug dealing
• Abortion
• Pedophilia
• Causing social injustice

It should be stressed that these are deadly sins, meaning that "immediately after death the souls of those who die in a state of mortal sin descend into Hell."  These are not venial sins — sins which "threaten the soul with eternal damnation unless absolved before death through confession and penitence."

So in other worse, this is pretty serious stuff.

Right off the bat, you gotta give props to the Pope for being more specific this time around.  I mean, with the old list (whichi, as far as I can tell, is still operative), you have all kinds of wiggle room.  I mean, pride is a sin?  What’s wrong with pride?  Now, excessive pride — that I can see being a mortal sin.  But just common pride?

Then again, the new list is harsh in its own way.  What is so bad about genetic engineering, like when you create new strains of wheat that can save millions, even billions, of lives? 

And being obscenely rich?  I guess that begs the question about what is "obscene".  But suppose I inherit a billion dollars.  Why should I go to hell for that?  Suppose I inherit it three days before I die.  Man, that’s kind of harsh.