Soon after Mass begins, we confess to God and all brothers and sisters present: "I have sinned through my own fault, in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done, and in what I have failed to do..." ~ we see that sin is committed at the thought, word, and deed levels. (I met once someone who believed erroneously that thoughts are not sinful as long as you do not follow through with bad deeds.) Thoughts and speech are perhaps more difficult to control than deeds. If someone criticizes you, evenly mildly and for good reason, resentment can easily arise like a conditioned response. When a group of people gossip about others, it's easy to join in. Both reactions show the presence of ego, the cause of so many sins. (As I said before, to progress spiritually, the ego's gotta go.)
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