There is no universally authoritative Catholic ranking of the seven capital sins from worst to least severe in the official sources cited here. The Vatican’s Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church and a Catechism excerpt hosted by the USCCB list the same seven in different sequences; neither passage says its sequence measures severity. Vatican Compendium · USCCB Catechism excerpt
What are the seven capital sins?
The familiar set is pride, avarice or greed, envy, wrath or anger, lust, gluttony, and sloth or acedia. Catholic catechetical sources call them “capital sins” or “capital vices.” The alternate terms in the table are common names for the same entries, not additional sins.
| Common name | Also called |
|---|---|
| Pride | — |
| Avarice | Covetousness or greed |
| Envy | — |
| Wrath | Anger |
| Lust | — |
| Gluttony | — |
| Sloth | Acedia |
Both sources name this set, though they display it in different orders: the Vatican Compendium and the USCCB-hosted Catechism excerpt.
Do the listed orders rank them by severity?
No. The Vatican Compendium numbers its list pride, covetousness, lust, anger, gluttony, envy, and sloth. The USCCB excerpt gives pride, avarice, envy, wrath, lust, gluttony, and sloth. Neither cited passage presents its sequence as a worst-to-least scale. A numbered list is not, by itself, a severity ranking.
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Which of the seven is the worst?
The answer depends on the criterion. The official passages cited above do not compare all seven on a shared scale, so they do not establish one universally worst sin. A ranking based on harm to other people, social consequences, or a particular theological framework could produce different results. Any such ordering should be identified as an interpretation and explain its chosen criterion, rather than being attributed to an official Catholic ranking.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Are the seven listed in the Bible in this order?
The two cited Catholic catechetical passages identify the traditional set, but their different sequences show why neither should be presented as a biblical worst-to-least ranking. The evidence here does not establish that all Christian traditions use the same terminology or ordering.
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