Humility: Wellspring of Virtue [Paperback]

Dietrich von Hildebrand (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 1997

Conquer your pride and experience the joys of humility! Of all sins, pride is the most dangerous . . . and the most sorrowful: it cuts you off from God, estranges you from others, and leaves you lost and unhappy. These pages show you how to drive pride from your soul. You ll learn to recognize its many forms (including some that masquerade as virtue), and you ll come to see just why they re such barriers to happiness and to holiness. You ll also discover the incredible strength of humility, the only virtue that has the power to expel every vestige of pride from your soul. These pages will help you to begin experiencing the joys of humility today.

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About the Author

Dietrich von Hildebrand (1889-1977) wrote dozens of books on philosophy and spirituality. Truth, goodness, and holy beauty are the hallmarks of all of his works.

Product Details

• Paperback: 109 pages
• Publisher: Sophia Institute Press (September 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 091847759X
• ISBN-13: 978-0918477590
• Product Dimensions: 5.9 x 4.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #767,212 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Difficult, yet filled with some good gems, April 26, 2010

By 

Brandon Vogt - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Humility: Wellspring of Virtue (Paperback)

Always on the quest to sink deeper into humility, I picked up a slender book by Dietrich Von Hildebrand titled, "Humility-Wellspring of Virtue". This short book is actually a collection of passages from Von Hildebrand's most famous work, "Transformation In Christ", believed by many to be a modern spiritual classic.

According to Pope John Paul II, Dietrich Von Hildebrand was one of the great ethicists of our time and a "20th century Doctor of the Church" ("Doctor" is Church-speak for "great teacher"). Pope Benedict XVI also has particular admiration for this German Catholic philosopher. These two endorsements alone should perk up the ears of anyone unfamiliar with Von Hildebrand.

Von Hildebrand philosophical expertise is on full-display in this book, as he approaches humility more from a theoretical point of view than a practical one. His incredible intellect is quite evident throughout the book. Many passages caused me to humbly think, "I don't understand this section, yet I'm still somehow aware of its brilliance." In a way, I was humbled as much by the complexity of Von Hildebrand's thought as the message itself. I feel that his words would only be fully comprehensible to a seasoned theologian or philosopher--this book would definitely not be my first suggestion for light reading on the topic of "humility."

Despite the difficulty of the book, there were still many gems I was able to pull out. Von Hildebrand dismisses some myths about humility, such as the belief that authentic humility necessitates the devaluing of one's own gifts. He corrects that belief by saying its not prideful to be honest about the gifts you have, but it is wrong to ascribe their origin to you instead of God. This was especially helpful to me, a person who is tempted to dismiss any compliment I ever receive.

I also liked his advice on the path to humiliation. According to Von Hildebrand, this path involves the welcoming of humiliation. "Humiliation" is a word with bad connotation in our society, but when viewed from the spiritual realm it is a great grace. Being "passed over" or being humiliated among others may seem uncomfortable, but it also a powerful way to grow more humble.

"Humility" is a full work on the subject of humility from a brilliant Catholic philosopher and theologian, and I think almost anyone could use something from the book in their quest for humility. However, if you're looking for a simpler text on this topic, I would probably point you elsewhere.

(In fact, a simpler text I've read on humility is Andrew Murray's small book, also titled "Humility" . Murray's book shares many of Von Hildebrand's themes.)

7 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Can't really recommend., July 30, 2007

By 

dEw (New Hampshire) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Humility: Wellspring of Virtue (Paperback)

This is a small, short book which is actually an excerpt from Hildebrand's larger work, "Transformation in Christ." Although this is a Catholic book, I felt it worked well enough for all Christians.

I had difficulty reading and comprehending this text, as it is not common in its speech. Here is an example from page 46: "By virtue of the anthropomorphic conception if the gods, the pattern of earthly existence is projected upon the level of eternity; it is not human life which, in the conspectus of the absolute, acquires a universal and indelible meaning, but inversely, the world of the gods which becomes tinged with the flighty irrelevance of terrestrial life -- hence, the trait of playfulness which, in Homeric antiquity, seems invariably to cling to the image of man, as though he were irrevocably confined in his finiteness." While I'm sure this means something, my head is too busy spinning to figure it out. This is how the entirety of the book reads.

Two words which the author uses frequently are "virtues" and "metaphysical" and I am not well-acquainted with either. I am not a Catholic. Maybe the emphasis on "virtues" is more of a Catholic thing.

While I did find a few things in this book personally helpful, for the most part I found it too dense while also lacking in sufficient elaboration. If you are looking for a book on humility, I would highly recommend "Humility: The Forgotten Virtue" by Wayne A. Mack.