Humility & Pride

By Metropolitan Hilarion Dorostolski

One of the most used words used to describe Christianity and a Christian lifestyle is humility. Our livesin all their aspectsare to represent humility. Some of us lack clarity about what that truly means. And if we do not understand the true meaning of humility, can we truly lead such lives? What happens if we do not live lives of humility?

Metropolitan Hilarion Dorostolskis Humility &Pride is a comprehensive treatise on Christian humility, from its true meaning and significance in a Christian life to an everyday guide to cultivating humility in our own hearts. Our Lord Jesus Christ often referred to humility as a necessary condition for acquiring His heavenly kingdom and eternal life. Jesus left us the most profound and perfect example of humility that humankind has ever seen. The fundamental role of humility is also explained in the writings of the early church fathers and further illustrated by their own lives. Humility & Pride offers a diligent summary of these sermons, writings, and personal examples. The author offers a detailed, down-to-earth guide for doing our parts in the Lords salvation work on earth, helping us to live lives of humility through grace.

Humility can only be acquired through grace, but we first need to understand what humility means and why it is important, have an actual desire to acquire it, and be willing to practice it in our everyday lives. Humility & Pride helps you find your path.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Apr 21, 2010
• ISBN: 9781450220767

Metropolitan Hilarion Dorostolski

His Eminence Metropolitan Hilarion Dorostolski (Dimitar Draganov Tzonev) became vicar of the Patriarch of Bulgaria in 1994. In 2003 he was elected as Metropolitan of the Dorostolski region. In 2009 he was awarded the Cyril and Methodius medal for his contributions to the theological education in Bulgaria. He died October 28, 2009.

Book preview

Humility

&

Pride

by

Metropolitan Hilarion Dorostolski

Translated into English by Stefan Mihaylov

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Humility and Pride

Copyright © 1944 by Ivona Karachorova

2010, 2014 by Stefan Mihaylov

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

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ISBN: 978-1-4502-2075-0 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4502-2076-7 (e)

iUniverse rev. date: 11/24/2014

Contents

The Place of Humility among Christian Virtues

Definition and Levels of Christian Humility

Humility – A New Testament Virtue

Jesus Christ – The Perfect Example of Humility

Examples of Humility in the Scriptures

Examples of Humility in the Lives of the Church Fathers

Humility - A Sign of Spiritual Life

Humility and Nature

Arguments against Humility

The Importance of Humility

How Can We Learn Humility?

Pride – The Beginning of Sin

Recognizing Pride

Comparison of Humility and Pride

The Image of the Proud and the Humble

The Vanity of Pride

The Destructiveness of Pride

Cures against Pride

Final Remarks

Bibliography

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There are those, who under some influence or other underestimate humility as a virtue. They consider it a softness or weakness in a person’s character. They find pride something praiseworthy in the modern person. Our times are such, they say, that there is no room for humility in our lives. As if the ‘times’ are some absolute rulers whose caprice we are bound to follow. The times are the same today as they were yesterday. The times do not change - people do - and it is people that give a different direction to the opinions and attitudes in their society. A virtue is always a virtue and never loses its value. A diamond thrown into the mud remains a diamond. Humility is a virtue and should not be underestimated just because pride may temporarily help people succeed in life by concealing their imperfections.

This small work is intended for those who seek Lord’s way, so that they may learn to appreciate the beauty of humility. This book is indeed simply crumbs from the bountiful table spreads of wise and spiritually enlightened people.

The Author

The Place of Humility among Christian Virtues

Jesus Christ began his Sermon on the Mount, which summarizes His moral teachings, with:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.¹

‘Poor in spirit’ are those who are humble and conscious of their spiritual poverty. Our Lord began His sermon with a call to humility because it is the first step on the ladder to perfection. Humility is rewarded with nothing less but the heavenly kingdom.

On another occasion, when His disciples asked Him who amongst them is the greatest in heaven, He called a little child and said:

Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.²

Jesus preaches humility as the first and necessary condition to serve God. Humility is the foundation on which we can re-build our spiritual image. Humility is the mother of all virtues. Without it, our love is superficial; our hope is impatient; our faith is incomplete. Humility is the salt of a righteous life. Just as food goes bad without preservatives, the same way righteousness loses its value without humility.

Saint Cyprian of Carthage considered humility the foundation of sainthood. Saint Jerome referred to it as the first Christian virtue. Saint Gregory the Great calls it a mentor and a mother and the root and the source of all virtues.³ Just as every flower supports its freshness and beauty through its roots, every virtue when torn from its source - humility - fades away and loses its value.

Humility is the foundation of our spiritual edifice and of our spiritual life. Some may object, however, claiming that faith is the foundation of spiritual growth – faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, which is also confirmed by St. Paul who says: "For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ."⁴ When building a house, we first need to remove the soft and sandy earth and only after reaching solid soil that can withstand the weight of the building, can we lay the foundation and start the construction. The solid soil is humility. First, we need to renounce our weaknesses and imperfections and acknowledge that with our own efforts we cannot accomplish anything. Only then, can we place the founding stone – faith. We need to first admit our spiritual poverty, humble ourselves, before we can begin our spiritual construction through faith. Another critical construction rule is that the taller and more magnificent the building will be, the deeper its foundations must be laid. The height of the edifice needs to be comparable to its depth.

Love is called the queen of all virtues, but even love without heart-felt humility loses itself and turns into hypocrisy. Love is the cement, the building material that keeps the spiritual building together. Without it, the building runs the risk of falling apart,