Transformation in Christ_ On the Christian Attitude - Dietrich Von Hildebrand [2]
One of the striking characteristics of this book is that the author never uses a word which is not in perfect harmony with the sublimity of his topic. With an unfailing holy instinct, he always pulls us upward toward a higher sphere clouded over today by our secularized anti-culture which constantly pulls us downward. From this point of view Transformation in Christ is a much needed spiritual medicine. It will inevitably sharpen our sense for the supernatural and reawaken the deep longing which exists in every human heart for what is above. Indeed, this was the call that St. Paul addressed to us: “Seek the things that are above.”
Transformation in Christ illuminates in a unique way the nature of the supernatural virtues which can blossom only in and through Christ. Much as my husband had loved moral values prior to his conversion, it was through the lives of the saints that he discovered a new, higher morality—the supernatural morality—the one embodied in those whose very souls mirror the infinite beauty of the God-Man.
What a chasm lies between the natural virtue of modesty—an objective awareness of one’s own limitations—and the supernal ural virtue of humility which (as exemplified in St. Catherine of Siena) makes one rejoice over the fact that God is everything and man is nothing. What an abyss separates the natural warmth and friendliness which a good pagan possesses, from the ardent, burning supernatural charity which characterizes the saints.
It was the beauty of supernatural values which first touched my husband’s soul, stirred within it love and longing, and brought him into the Church; it is just this beauty that he eloquently celebrates in Transformation in Christ.
Transformation in Christ reveals the splendor of God through the majesty of created things
Much as Transformation in Christ deserves to be compared to The Imitation of Christ, there is, however, an important difference between these two works which share the very same aim: to help the soul on her path to holiness. For whereas The Imitation of Christ (particularly in its first three books) stresses the dangers that natural goods constitute for man on his way to God, Transformation in Christ—while fully acknowledging these dangers—shows how these goods, if properly understood as being reflections of God’s infinite goodness and beauty, can actually lead us closer to Him by being used as stepping stones leading to Him.
From this point of view, Transformation in Christ is strongly marked by the spirit of St. Francis who understood nature and creation to be singers of the glory of the Great King. Created by God’s bounty, natural goods are to be loved—but God is to be loved more. That is to say, all created goods should be loved not above God, not outside of God, not apart from God, but in God, and should kindle our loving gratitude toward Him as the Giver of all gifts. Indeed, heaven and earth are filled with the glory of the Lord, and are footprints of His greatness.
Transformation in Christ is deep but not complicated
At first sight, Transformation in Christ may strike the reader as a long and complicated book, written for a small minority of scholarly people. But this difficulty is only apparent. True, Transformation is written by a German, but a German born and raised in Italy, whose mind has been formed and benefited by the clarity of the Latin spirit. In fact, Transformation in Christ is luminous throughout, but like all great things, it calls for close and constant attention.
Too many are those who believe that a deep book must be complicated and therefore above the head of the average reader. But deep does not mean “complicated” and complication does not guarantee depth. It is true, there are books which hide the penury of their contents by using highly esoteric language which is not only confused but confusing as well. There are thinkers who major in this: their language is so tortuous, so ambiguous, that they cheat people