Ranulph Higden's Speculum curatorum was composed in England about
1350. Book II treats the types and originating circumstances of all sin,
but mostly focuses on the seven capital sins: pride, avarice, lust,
anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth. Each is discussed with a thoroughness
appropriate to the text's function as a manual of instruction for parish
clergy.




None of the sins is treated lightly, as any one of them could prevent
the soul from achieving its eternal goal. The length of each discussion
is also indicative of the sin's effect on Church life and discipline.
Avarice - together with its worrisome components of usury and simony -
is of special concern and consequently occupies about a quarter of the
total commentary.




Higden's exploration of the capital sins differs in format and purpose
from earlier books on the same topic. The libri poenitentiales of
the sixth through twelfth centuries usually just matched a sin with its
recommended punishment; the summae confessorum of the thirteenth
and fourteenth centuries were mostly oriented to helping a confessor
understand how contrition, confession, and satisfaction were necessary
components of the sacrament of penance. Higden wants both clerics and
lay people to come face to face with all of the destructive aspects of
sin. At times, as in the chapter on drunkenness, he weaves the
psychological and pastoral dimensions of a certain sin into his
painstaking analysis. The manual's fifty-one chapters aim to assist both
priest and people to know the blandishments of sin thoroughly and,
because of this knowledge, to avoid them.