Piety is a

virtue A virtue () is a trait of excellence, including traits that may be morality, moral, social, or intellectual. The cultivation and refinement of virtue is held to be the "good of humanity" and thus is Value (ethics), valued as an Telos, end purpos ...

which may include religious devotion or

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape o ...

. A common element in most conceptions of piety is a duty of respect. In a religious context, piety may be expressed through pious activities or devotions, which may vary among countries and cultures.

Etymology

The word piety comes from the

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 ...

word , the noun form of the adjective (which means "devout" or "dutiful"). English literature scholar Alan Jacobs has written about the origins and early meaning of the term:

Classical interpretation

in traditional Latin usage expressed a complex, highly valued

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

virtue; a man with respected his responsibilities to gods, country, parents, and kin. In its strictest sense it was the sort of love a son ought to have for his father.

Aeneas In Greco-Roman mythology, Aeneas ( , ; from ) was a Troy, Trojan hero, the son of the Trojan prince Anchises and the Greek goddess Aphrodite (equivalent to the Roman Venus (mythology), Venus). His father was a first cousin of King Priam of Troy ...

's consistent

epithet An epithet (, ), also a byname, is a descriptive term (word or phrase) commonly accompanying or occurring in place of the name of a real or fictitious person, place, or thing. It is usually literally descriptive, as in Alfred the Great, Suleima ...

Virgil Publius Vergilius Maro (; 15 October 70 BC21 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Rome, ancient Roman poet of the Augustan literature (ancient Rome), Augustan period. He composed three of the most fa ...

and other Latin authors is , a term which connotes reverence toward the gods and familial dutifulness. At the fall of Troy, Aeneas carries to safety his father, the lame

Anchises In Greek and Roman mythology, Anchises (; ) was a member of the royal family of Troy. He was said to have been the son of King Capys of Dardania and Themiste, daughter of Ilus, who was son of Tros. He is most famous as the father of Aeneas a ...

, and the

Lares Lares ( , ; archaic , singular ) were Tutelary deity#Ancient Rome, guardian deities in ancient Roman religion. Their origin is uncertain; they may have been hero-ancestors, guardians of the hearth, fields, boundaries, or fruitfulness, or an ama ...

and

Penates In ancient Roman religion, the Di Penates () or Penates ( ) were among the ''dii familiares'', or household deities, invoked most often in domestic rituals. When the family had a meal, they threw a bit into the fire on the hearth for the Penates ...

, the statues of the household gods. In addressing whether children have an obligation to provide support for their parents,

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 ...

quotes,

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

, "...piety gives both duty and homage": "duty" referring to service, and "homage" to reverence or honor."

Filial piety Filial piety is the virtue of exhibiting love and respect for one's parents, elders, and ancestors, particularly within the context of Confucian ethics, Confucian, Chinese Buddhism, Chinese Buddhist ethics, Buddhist, and Daoism, Daoist ethics. ...

is central to Confucian

ethics Ethics is the philosophy, philosophical study of Morality, moral phenomena. Also called moral philosophy, it investigates Normativity, normative questions about what people ought to do or which behavior is morally right. Its main branches inclu ...

; reverence for parents is considered in Chinese ethics the prime virtue and the basis of all right human relations.

As a virtue

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Eastern Orthodoxy Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

, and

Anglicanism Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

, piety is one of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. "It engenders in the soul a filial respect for God, a generous love toward him, and an affectionate obedience that wants to do what he commands because it loves the one who commands."

Pope Gregory I Pope Gregory I (; ; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great (; ), was the 64th Bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 until his death on 12 March 604. He is known for instituting the first recorded large-scale mission from Ro ...

, in demonstrating the interrelationship among the gifts, said "Through the fear of the Lord, we rise to piety, from piety then to knowledge..."

spoke of piety in the context of one's parents and country, and given the obligation to accord each what is rightfully due them, related it to the cardinal virtue of justice. (By analogy, rendering to God what is due him, Aquinas identified as the virtue of religion, also related to justice.) Professor

Richard McBrien Richard Peter McBrien (August 19, 1936 – January 25, 2015) was a Catholic priest, theologian, and writer who was the Crowley-O'Brien Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame near South Bend, Indiana. He authored twenty-five books, ...

said piety "is a gift of the Holy Spirit by which we are motivated and enabled to be faithful and respectful to those—ultimately, God—who have had a positive, formative influence on our lives and to whom we owe a debt of gratitude," and requires one to acknowledge, to the extent possible, the sources of those many blessings through words and gestures great and small. Piety belongs to the virtue of Religion, which theologians put among the moral virtues, as a part of the

cardinal virtue The cardinal virtues are four virtues of mind and character in classical philosophy. They are prudence, justice, fortitude, and temperance. They form a virtue theory of ethics. The term ''cardinal'' comes from the Latin (hinge); these four v ...

Justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

, since by it one tenders to God what is due to him. The gift of piety perfects the virtue of justice, enabling the individual to fulfill his obligations to God and neighbor, and to do so willingly and joyfully. By inspiring a person with a tender and filial confidence in God, the gift of piety makes them joyfully embrace all that pertains to His service.

John Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French Christian theology, theologian, pastor and Protestant Reformers, reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of C ...

said, "I call ‘piety’ that reverence joined with love of God which the knowledge of his benefits induces. For until eoplerecognize that they owe everything to God, that they are nourished by his fatherly care, that he is the Author of their every good, that they should seek nothing beyond him—they will never yield him willing service." Bishop

Pierre Whalon Pierre Welté Whalon (born November 12, 1952) is a retired American bishop. He was the bishop in charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe until April 2019. He was consecrated as a bishop on November 18, 2001. He was born in Newpor ...

says that "Piety, therefore, is the pursuit of an ever-greater sense of being in the presence of God." The Gift of Piety is synonymous with of filial trust in God. Through piety, a person shows reverence for God as a loving Father, and respect for others as children of God.

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

defined piety as "the gift of reverence for what comes from God," and related it to his earlier lectures on the Theology of the Body. In a General Audience in June 2014,

Pope Francis Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 17 December 1936 – 21 April 2025) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 13 March 2013 until Death and funeral of Pope Francis, his death in 2025. He was the fi ...

said, "When the Holy Spirit helps us sense the presence of the Lord and all of his love for us, it warms our heart and drives us almost naturally to prayer and celebration." "Piety", said

, points up "our friendship with God." It is a gift that enables people to serve their neighbor "with gentleness and with a smile."

Piety and devotion

Expressions of piety vary according to country and local tradition. "Feast days", with their preparations for various religious celebrations and activities, have forged traditions peculiar to communities. Many pious exercises are part of the cultic patrimony of particular Churches or religious families. Devotions help incorporate faith into daily life. While acknowledging that Anglican piety took the forms of more frequent communion and liturgical observances and customs, Bishop Ronald Williams spoke for increased reading of the Bible. In the Methodist Church, works of piety are a means of grace. They can be personal, such as reading, prayer, and meditation; or communal, such as sharing in the sacraments or Bible study. For Presbyterians, piety refers to a whole realm of practices—such as worship, prayer, singing, and service—that help shape and guide the way one's reverence and love for God are expressed; and "the duty of the Christian to live a life of piety in accordance with God’s moral law". The veneration of sacred images belongs to the nature of Catholic piety, with the understanding that "the honour rendered to the image is directed to the person represented".

References

External links