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Humility: Rediscovering the Way of Love and Life in Christ
Amid culture wars and church division, Michael W. Austin calls us back to the authentic Way—following Christ in humility and love.
American Christians have lost the Way. We chase power and comfort and coat our self-righteousness in a Christian veneer. We comfort ourselves that we follow the rules and go to church, so life will work out for us. But we have forgotten what it means to truly follow Christ.
Michael Austin brings us back to basics of the Christian humility and love. Drawing on Philippians and 1 Corinthians, Austin reminds us how Jesus, in love, poured himself out for others. This other-centeredness stands contrary to vainglorious affirmation in our lives, online and off—and it is the key to healing the deep divisions in our communities.
Austin guides the reader through spiritual disciplines to aid in the formation of this virtue, from praying the Psalms to building healthy communities. For Christians seeking transformative union with God, in their souls and society, Humility is the ideal companion.
American Christians have lost the Way. We chase power and comfort and coat our self-righteousness in a Christian veneer. We comfort ourselves that we follow the rules and go to church, so life will work out for us. But we have forgotten what it means to truly follow Christ.
Michael Austin brings us back to basics of the Christian humility and love. Drawing on Philippians and 1 Corinthians, Austin reminds us how Jesus, in love, poured himself out for others. This other-centeredness stands contrary to vainglorious affirmation in our lives, online and off—and it is the key to healing the deep divisions in our communities.
Austin guides the reader through spiritual disciplines to aid in the formation of this virtue, from praying the Psalms to building healthy communities. For Christians seeking transformative union with God, in their souls and society, Humility is the ideal companion.
168 pages, Kindle Edition
Published March 12, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
March 9, 2024
Great book!
June 6, 2024
Summary: A study of the Christian virtue of humility understood as following Jesus, being formed in his character of humility and love through his people and through spiritually transformative practices.
Humility. We often associate this with weakness. The person who is a doormat. We might do better to think of humility as the person who is so taken with serving others that it’s apparent they are not thinking of themselves. They are people who look a bit like Jesus, probably because they have been walking in the way of Jesus. In his book, Humility, Michael W. Austin writes:
“What is the person like who follows Christ in his humility? The humble person fights to descend the social ladder, rather than climb it. The humble person makes the interests of others their priority, rather than their own. Instead of always grasping for what they want, the humble person serves others, for their good, often in sacrificial ways. The humble person focuses on God and others, rather than themselves. The humble person is steeped in the love of God, and that love flows from God through them to others” (p. 35).
Austin writes to explore the question of how humility may be formed in our lives. Keeping company with Jesus and the close association of humility with overflowing yet practical love runs through his book.
He goes on to explore some of the qualities associated with humility and love in the lives of people on the way of Jesus: faith, relinquishing control, wisdom, compassion, justice. One of his most telling challenges, particularly as a remedy to sloth, is to live locally–for our town, church, and those we love–except in abusive situations. Leaving is often the easy way instead of going deeper in a place. He also considers the practices that form humility in us: community, scripture, prayer, solitude, service, just peace-making, and listening to the marginalized. He challenges us to commit ourselves to rhetorical nonviolence. What’s attractive about the humility Austin advocates is that he joins personal piety with seeking the just and peaceable society of the kingdom of Jesus.
Those who walk in the way of Jesus are also called to be preparers of the way, removing obstacles for others to join us in the way. For Austin, this means quitting the culture war, renouncing polarization, and being consistently pro-life.
Finally, humility means persevering in the way. Austin finds that memento mori, remembering we will die, helps us, because it leads us to embrace the daily joys along the way as well as living more deeply into our hope.
This seems fitting in a time where it seems many of us have been distracted from the way of Jesus to fight culture wars and pursue polarizing conversations. Austin helps us see both the path from which we have strayed and the ways we may walk in that path, as well as how good the way of Jesus is, and how central to any of us who identify ourselves with Christ. It’s not so much that Austin says anything strikingly new. It is rather that he reminds us of the ways we may have forgotten. He retrieves a conversation and language that has gone missing in many of our churches. There are times when we need again to hear “the old, old story, of Jesus and his love.”
____________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.
Humility. We often associate this with weakness. The person who is a doormat. We might do better to think of humility as the person who is so taken with serving others that it’s apparent they are not thinking of themselves. They are people who look a bit like Jesus, probably because they have been walking in the way of Jesus. In his book, Humility, Michael W. Austin writes:
“What is the person like who follows Christ in his humility? The humble person fights to descend the social ladder, rather than climb it. The humble person makes the interests of others their priority, rather than their own. Instead of always grasping for what they want, the humble person serves others, for their good, often in sacrificial ways. The humble person focuses on God and others, rather than themselves. The humble person is steeped in the love of God, and that love flows from God through them to others” (p. 35).
Austin writes to explore the question of how humility may be formed in our lives. Keeping company with Jesus and the close association of humility with overflowing yet practical love runs through his book.
He goes on to explore some of the qualities associated with humility and love in the lives of people on the way of Jesus: faith, relinquishing control, wisdom, compassion, justice. One of his most telling challenges, particularly as a remedy to sloth, is to live locally–for our town, church, and those we love–except in abusive situations. Leaving is often the easy way instead of going deeper in a place. He also considers the practices that form humility in us: community, scripture, prayer, solitude, service, just peace-making, and listening to the marginalized. He challenges us to commit ourselves to rhetorical nonviolence. What’s attractive about the humility Austin advocates is that he joins personal piety with seeking the just and peaceable society of the kingdom of Jesus.
Those who walk in the way of Jesus are also called to be preparers of the way, removing obstacles for others to join us in the way. For Austin, this means quitting the culture war, renouncing polarization, and being consistently pro-life.
Finally, humility means persevering in the way. Austin finds that memento mori, remembering we will die, helps us, because it leads us to embrace the daily joys along the way as well as living more deeply into our hope.
This seems fitting in a time where it seems many of us have been distracted from the way of Jesus to fight culture wars and pursue polarizing conversations. Austin helps us see both the path from which we have strayed and the ways we may walk in that path, as well as how good the way of Jesus is, and how central to any of us who identify ourselves with Christ. It’s not so much that Austin says anything strikingly new. It is rather that he reminds us of the ways we may have forgotten. He retrieves a conversation and language that has gone missing in many of our churches. There are times when we need again to hear “the old, old story, of Jesus and his love.”
____________________
Disclosure of Material Connection: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher for review.
June 17, 2024
Humility is lacking in today’s society—Christian and secular. From influencers to celebrity pastors and more, technology has allowed us to showcase ourselves and society has often rewarded the most arrogant. Michael W. Austin’s Humility: Rediscovering the Way of Love and Life in Christ is a timely and reflective exploration of humility as a core Christian virtue. In a world rife with division and conflict, Austin calls believers back to a path of humility and love, emphasizing the importance of following Christ’s example in everyday life. The book challenges contemporary Christians to reassess their priorities and embrace a lifestyle marked by genuine humility and service.
Austin highlights humility as integral to the way of Jesus, a necessity for living in God’s kingdom community. For him, humility goes beyond just a lack of self-aggrandizement but rather a God-centered way of being in the world. Empire emphasizes the love of self. The Kingdom of God emphasizes the love of God and others. In the opening chapters, Austin presents humility—and a litany of character traits that become associated with it—as a trait neglected in modern life. He gently calls readers back to humility conceptually and then closes the book with a series of practical examples.
Humility and love mean engaging in nonviolence—to have the humility to not fight back. It means engaging in just peacemaking—having the humility to stand in the gap with the marginalized and oppressed. It means living simply—having the humility to forego ostentation. It means living locally—thinking about our neighbors and not our audience. Humility concludes with a call to persevere. It’s not always easy to take the sacrificial route of love but Austin reminds readers that it will reap an eternal reward.
One thing to note is that Humility is partially taken directly from (and is certainly a spiritual cousin to) Austin’s larger work Humility and Human Flourishing: A Study in Analytic Moral Theology, published by Oxford Press. This book is basically a layperson level translation of that one—and at a much more accessible price point as well!
A second thing is that, maybe because of this translation from an academic work to a trade paperback, there is an odd mix of dense thinking and pastoral overtones. Austin spends a lot of time summarizing other writers, giving a lot of platitudes, generally exhorting people toward love and humility, but his ideas and thoughts do not always—in my opinion—tie together in a cohesive way. Austin is also, at times, insufficiently radical in calling out his evangelical audience. In a polarizing age, I suppose one must tiptoe on eggshells, but Austin appears to keep some things vague in order to not too explicitly call out his primary readership.
In conclusion, Humility: Rediscovering the Way of Love and Life in Christ is fine. Michael W. Austin offers a compelling call to return to the humble way of Jesus, providing both theological insights and practical guidance—but he ultimately comes up a bit short in actually making his ideas concrete and practicable.
Austin highlights humility as integral to the way of Jesus, a necessity for living in God’s kingdom community. For him, humility goes beyond just a lack of self-aggrandizement but rather a God-centered way of being in the world. Empire emphasizes the love of self. The Kingdom of God emphasizes the love of God and others. In the opening chapters, Austin presents humility—and a litany of character traits that become associated with it—as a trait neglected in modern life. He gently calls readers back to humility conceptually and then closes the book with a series of practical examples.
Humility and love mean engaging in nonviolence—to have the humility to not fight back. It means engaging in just peacemaking—having the humility to stand in the gap with the marginalized and oppressed. It means living simply—having the humility to forego ostentation. It means living locally—thinking about our neighbors and not our audience. Humility concludes with a call to persevere. It’s not always easy to take the sacrificial route of love but Austin reminds readers that it will reap an eternal reward.
One thing to note is that Humility is partially taken directly from (and is certainly a spiritual cousin to) Austin’s larger work Humility and Human Flourishing: A Study in Analytic Moral Theology, published by Oxford Press. This book is basically a layperson level translation of that one—and at a much more accessible price point as well!
A second thing is that, maybe because of this translation from an academic work to a trade paperback, there is an odd mix of dense thinking and pastoral overtones. Austin spends a lot of time summarizing other writers, giving a lot of platitudes, generally exhorting people toward love and humility, but his ideas and thoughts do not always—in my opinion—tie together in a cohesive way. Austin is also, at times, insufficiently radical in calling out his evangelical audience. In a polarizing age, I suppose one must tiptoe on eggshells, but Austin appears to keep some things vague in order to not too explicitly call out his primary readership.
In conclusion, Humility: Rediscovering the Way of Love and Life in Christ is fine. Michael W. Austin offers a compelling call to return to the humble way of Jesus, providing both theological insights and practical guidance—but he ultimately comes up a bit short in actually making his ideas concrete and practicable.
January 15, 2026
Missing Virtues, Moral Revolutions
Michael Austin calls for loving humility in contemporary Christianity. Virtuous character, Christ-like habits conducive to human flourishing achieved by emulating exemplars, is underdeveloped. The answer is rediscovery and revival. Humility moves from understanding humility and love as virtues to applying them to Christian life and cultural engagement.
Austin develops a Christ-centered virtue theory of humble love. Jesus renounces status and serves others. Jesus’ self-lowering is especially humble in contrasting with his status and connection with the Father. Jesus’ love is emphasized by his care for outsiders. Christians model Christ by giving of themselves. This takes the focus off power and prestige and onto a unity creating community. He then applies loving humility to other virtues, arguing humility positively impacts faith, wisdom, compassion, and justice. Negatively, for example, humility addresses our intellectual, moral, and spiritual pride. He also applies love to self-control and courage. For example, self-control is loving, as it is a way of directing love towards oneself. Further, self-control moderates our actions towards others. Love, further, can enhance courage by modelling ourselves on martyrs. Finally, love answers sloth, a failure of sensitivity to love’s call.
After building a theory of humble love, Austin applies it. He connects the classic spiritual disciplines, such as service, solitude, and scripture reading, to developing loving humility in the church. This chapter, consisting mainly of a summary of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together, is the book’s largest. Each avenue of Christian practice provides space to express virtue and challenge vice. In the following chapter, we find an application to issues surrounding evangelism and broader cultural engagement. Most notably, love weakens the vice of antagonism in the culture wars. Likewise, humility addresses the vice of vainglory, reducing polarization by letting go of status. Practically, Christians can emphasize a whole life ethic rather than merely being anti-abortion. The conclusion reflects on perseverance in Christlikeness.
Majestic Virtues, Missing Voices
Austin’s work is pastoral, accessible, and engaging. He passionately connects virtue with practice. To see whether he succeeds, consider Humility’s motivation, theory, and application.
Austin is an applied virtue ethicist. His work addresses sport, gun violence, and parenthood (hopefully not simultaneously!). As a philosopher, he could distinguish, argue, compare, and develop views. Writing to a popular audience, he could then use extended, concrete cases illustrating his research. For example, John Schellenberg’s Religion After Science popularizes Schellenberg’s work on religion and epistemic humility. Amy Olberding does the same for Confucian civility and contemporary polarization in The Wrong of Rudeness. Popular, applied Stoicism is ubiquitous. Such work is good. Humility, though, contains little of Austin’s insight instead closely summarizing his influences, such as Bonhoeffer and Dallas Willard or offering general but lengthy scriptural exegesis. This leaves him popularizing already accessible work, practically applying the practically applied. Austin undoubtedly has a pastoral heart. That is no reason to rewrite Life Together.
Consider, then, Austin’s theory. He discusses humility as a moral virtue. Religious humility, as Schellenberg and Kevin Vallier argue, also functions as an epistemic and civic virtue, respectively. Moral humility has political and epistemic implications and vice versa. Consider faith, a virtue naturally connected with (epistemic) humility. It is unclear Austin knows of debates on the norms, nature, and normativity of faith beyond a crude belief-plus model of faith’s nature or evidentialist objections to faith’s normativity. This is puzzling. Not only might faith not require belief, non-believing faith plausibly is epistemically humbler. Austin’s development of humility as a civic virtue is also concerning. Vallier argues against religious anti-liberalism’s theological source as others do with Christian Nationalism. Politics’ antagonism may be symptomatic of deeper political theologies. Answering their arguments is an antidote, yet Humility’s approach is vague. Austin’s academic work, which Humility popularizes, even argued against applying prominent, core humility-based approaches to pluralism and toleration. When humility commends conciliation, Austin abandons humility for evangelical credibility. Thus, Austin under-describes vices’ sources and addresses their symptoms when humility’s norms are not apologetically useful.
Finally, Austin’s application examples range from racism to the culture wars, problems particularly prevalent in his evangelical community. Despite evident potential for risk-taking, repentance, and relevance, he shies away from addressing them in detail and depth. Had he focused on two streams – a developmental reflection on racism, (non-violent) resistance, and religion and a bridge-building conversation with radical others – Humility would have been revolutionary. Even when self-reflective, Austin often emphasizes the innocuous (e.g., debates over permitting alcohol). Rare moments of deep controversy inside evangelicalism include his criticism of attacks against Critical Race Theory, cautions against COVID conspiracies, and criticizing the merely anti-abortion. I wish the entire book had this admirable, risk-taking approach. Austin is a leader in evangelical philosophy. Self-sacrificially using that status could build bridges by showing connections with those beyond the apparent evangelical spectrum. Like Jesus, he could do this in ways that sacrifice status (e.g., apologist, conservative evangelical) for the sake of a radical other (e.g., deconstructionist, skeptic). I have already mentioned Schellenberg, a great potential partner in discussions on religious humility. In his blog, Austin names Erik Wielenberg as an atheist foil for Austin’s writing on humility. Sadly, Austin’s prior critiques of Wielenberg evince uncharitable interpretation, confusion, and shotgun argumentation. Without loving humility towards these missing voices, like Wielenberg, we get little practicality or prophetic amongst the platitudes. The theory is too thin to challenge. The practical components are too apologetically safe to involve self-sacrifice.
Austin is right. Jesus’ humility involves lowering himself; the Father’s glory is central to his identity, yet Jesus washes feet. Jesus’ love is how much he gives; his life is everything, yet Jesus gives it for his enemies. Austin falters because he offers the cheap grace of calls for loving humility that are characteristically too broad to risk alienating his evangelical audience. Christ abandons himself and gives his life. Evangelical philosophers are regularly criticized for defending their evangelical identity – good news people – while being bad news to those, like Wielenberg, who could be friends rather than foils. We need humility. For that, we need risk and repentance: We need the missing voices.
Suggested Readings
Draper, Paul & Schellenberg, J. L. (eds.) (2017). Renewing Philosophy of Religion: Exploratory Essays. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Hereth, Blake and Kevin Timpe. (eds.) (2019). The Lost Sheep in Philosophy of Religion: New Perspectives on Disability, Gender, Race, and Animals, Routledge.
Michael Austin calls for loving humility in contemporary Christianity. Virtuous character, Christ-like habits conducive to human flourishing achieved by emulating exemplars, is underdeveloped. The answer is rediscovery and revival. Humility moves from understanding humility and love as virtues to applying them to Christian life and cultural engagement.
Austin develops a Christ-centered virtue theory of humble love. Jesus renounces status and serves others. Jesus’ self-lowering is especially humble in contrasting with his status and connection with the Father. Jesus’ love is emphasized by his care for outsiders. Christians model Christ by giving of themselves. This takes the focus off power and prestige and onto a unity creating community. He then applies loving humility to other virtues, arguing humility positively impacts faith, wisdom, compassion, and justice. Negatively, for example, humility addresses our intellectual, moral, and spiritual pride. He also applies love to self-control and courage. For example, self-control is loving, as it is a way of directing love towards oneself. Further, self-control moderates our actions towards others. Love, further, can enhance courage by modelling ourselves on martyrs. Finally, love answers sloth, a failure of sensitivity to love’s call.
After building a theory of humble love, Austin applies it. He connects the classic spiritual disciplines, such as service, solitude, and scripture reading, to developing loving humility in the church. This chapter, consisting mainly of a summary of Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Life Together, is the book’s largest. Each avenue of Christian practice provides space to express virtue and challenge vice. In the following chapter, we find an application to issues surrounding evangelism and broader cultural engagement. Most notably, love weakens the vice of antagonism in the culture wars. Likewise, humility addresses the vice of vainglory, reducing polarization by letting go of status. Practically, Christians can emphasize a whole life ethic rather than merely being anti-abortion. The conclusion reflects on perseverance in Christlikeness.
Majestic Virtues, Missing Voices
Austin’s work is pastoral, accessible, and engaging. He passionately connects virtue with practice. To see whether he succeeds, consider Humility’s motivation, theory, and application.
Austin is an applied virtue ethicist. His work addresses sport, gun violence, and parenthood (hopefully not simultaneously!). As a philosopher, he could distinguish, argue, compare, and develop views. Writing to a popular audience, he could then use extended, concrete cases illustrating his research. For example, John Schellenberg’s Religion After Science popularizes Schellenberg’s work on religion and epistemic humility. Amy Olberding does the same for Confucian civility and contemporary polarization in The Wrong of Rudeness. Popular, applied Stoicism is ubiquitous. Such work is good. Humility, though, contains little of Austin’s insight instead closely summarizing his influences, such as Bonhoeffer and Dallas Willard or offering general but lengthy scriptural exegesis. This leaves him popularizing already accessible work, practically applying the practically applied. Austin undoubtedly has a pastoral heart. That is no reason to rewrite Life Together.
Consider, then, Austin’s theory. He discusses humility as a moral virtue. Religious humility, as Schellenberg and Kevin Vallier argue, also functions as an epistemic and civic virtue, respectively. Moral humility has political and epistemic implications and vice versa. Consider faith, a virtue naturally connected with (epistemic) humility. It is unclear Austin knows of debates on the norms, nature, and normativity of faith beyond a crude belief-plus model of faith’s nature or evidentialist objections to faith’s normativity. This is puzzling. Not only might faith not require belief, non-believing faith plausibly is epistemically humbler. Austin’s development of humility as a civic virtue is also concerning. Vallier argues against religious anti-liberalism’s theological source as others do with Christian Nationalism. Politics’ antagonism may be symptomatic of deeper political theologies. Answering their arguments is an antidote, yet Humility’s approach is vague. Austin’s academic work, which Humility popularizes, even argued against applying prominent, core humility-based approaches to pluralism and toleration. When humility commends conciliation, Austin abandons humility for evangelical credibility. Thus, Austin under-describes vices’ sources and addresses their symptoms when humility’s norms are not apologetically useful.
Finally, Austin’s application examples range from racism to the culture wars, problems particularly prevalent in his evangelical community. Despite evident potential for risk-taking, repentance, and relevance, he shies away from addressing them in detail and depth. Had he focused on two streams – a developmental reflection on racism, (non-violent) resistance, and religion and a bridge-building conversation with radical others – Humility would have been revolutionary. Even when self-reflective, Austin often emphasizes the innocuous (e.g., debates over permitting alcohol). Rare moments of deep controversy inside evangelicalism include his criticism of attacks against Critical Race Theory, cautions against COVID conspiracies, and criticizing the merely anti-abortion. I wish the entire book had this admirable, risk-taking approach. Austin is a leader in evangelical philosophy. Self-sacrificially using that status could build bridges by showing connections with those beyond the apparent evangelical spectrum. Like Jesus, he could do this in ways that sacrifice status (e.g., apologist, conservative evangelical) for the sake of a radical other (e.g., deconstructionist, skeptic). I have already mentioned Schellenberg, a great potential partner in discussions on religious humility. In his blog, Austin names Erik Wielenberg as an atheist foil for Austin’s writing on humility. Sadly, Austin’s prior critiques of Wielenberg evince uncharitable interpretation, confusion, and shotgun argumentation. Without loving humility towards these missing voices, like Wielenberg, we get little practicality or prophetic amongst the platitudes. The theory is too thin to challenge. The practical components are too apologetically safe to involve self-sacrifice.
Austin is right. Jesus’ humility involves lowering himself; the Father’s glory is central to his identity, yet Jesus washes feet. Jesus’ love is how much he gives; his life is everything, yet Jesus gives it for his enemies. Austin falters because he offers the cheap grace of calls for loving humility that are characteristically too broad to risk alienating his evangelical audience. Christ abandons himself and gives his life. Evangelical philosophers are regularly criticized for defending their evangelical identity – good news people – while being bad news to those, like Wielenberg, who could be friends rather than foils. We need humility. For that, we need risk and repentance: We need the missing voices.
Suggested Readings
Draper, Paul & Schellenberg, J. L. (eds.) (2017). Renewing Philosophy of Religion: Exploratory Essays. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press.
Hereth, Blake and Kevin Timpe. (eds.) (2019). The Lost Sheep in Philosophy of Religion: New Perspectives on Disability, Gender, Race, and Animals, Routledge.
March 15, 2025
I'm not sure how to write a critical review about a book whose topic is "Humility." Any criticism would appear to be not-humble. And perhaps that is the place to start. The book is critical. It is critical of how Christians live their lives, what Christians prioritize (which are too-often false prioritizations—such as 'trying to win the culture').
The criticism leaned HEAVILY in one direction. Namely, things that are often associated with "the right." The pro-life movement, for example, got its own subheading and eight pages devoted to all the hypocrisies found within it. Meanwhile Christians critical of the Black Lives Matter were resoundingly chastised for their lack of humility in recognizing the struggles of racism (as if BLM isn't responsible for massive amount of destruction during their riots—often of migrant-owned businesses—and massive financial fraud). "Justice is what love looks like in public." (p. 114). This quote is on the same page the references BLM, but there was not even a syllable about BLM riots and it's violent and destructive public expression.
There are many such examples of this.
The book is called "Humility" but it was really a book on ethics and spiritual disciplines, of which—admittedly—humility has a significant role.
This book never defines the word Humility. Given its title, I thought that would be near page one. There is something CLOSE to a definition on page 144 when humility is contrasted to vainglory. And in spite of my criticisms of the book thus far, this section was very well done.
I don't think the title captured the contents of the book, I thought the book was a bit scatterbrained in structure (fault of the editors), and I have already addressed my criticism of the slanted treatment of social issues.
I harbor no ill-will toward the author. He is a brother of Christ. We simply disagree about many things.
The criticism leaned HEAVILY in one direction. Namely, things that are often associated with "the right." The pro-life movement, for example, got its own subheading and eight pages devoted to all the hypocrisies found within it. Meanwhile Christians critical of the Black Lives Matter were resoundingly chastised for their lack of humility in recognizing the struggles of racism (as if BLM isn't responsible for massive amount of destruction during their riots—often of migrant-owned businesses—and massive financial fraud). "Justice is what love looks like in public." (p. 114). This quote is on the same page the references BLM, but there was not even a syllable about BLM riots and it's violent and destructive public expression.
There are many such examples of this.
The book is called "Humility" but it was really a book on ethics and spiritual disciplines, of which—admittedly—humility has a significant role.
This book never defines the word Humility. Given its title, I thought that would be near page one. There is something CLOSE to a definition on page 144 when humility is contrasted to vainglory. And in spite of my criticisms of the book thus far, this section was very well done.
I don't think the title captured the contents of the book, I thought the book was a bit scatterbrained in structure (fault of the editors), and I have already addressed my criticism of the slanted treatment of social issues.
I harbor no ill-will toward the author. He is a brother of Christ. We simply disagree about many things.
January 21, 2025
There are some good discussion points, particularly chapter 4 which is drawn largely from Bonhoeffer's "Life Together." The writing style is discursive and is filled with first person self-references.
While I appreciate the emphasis on Humility and Love, I don't feel the author explained why those two and not others were elevated.
Finally, this is a book about the outward or social face of the church towards the world. It took until p. 136 to realize that this is the reason for the book. Instead of joining the "culture war", we should embrace humility and love.
While I appreciate the emphasis on Humility and Love, I don't feel the author explained why those two and not others were elevated.
Finally, this is a book about the outward or social face of the church towards the world. It took until p. 136 to realize that this is the reason for the book. Instead of joining the "culture war", we should embrace humility and love.
February 14, 2024
*Thank you to the author and publisher for providing me an advanced copy of this book via NetGalley*
Very solid and dense with good material, but not at all what I expected from the description. I struggled with the organization of the information, even down to the paragraph order. I did enjoy the reading, but I think it would benefit from a more clearly communicated vision and topic.
Very solid and dense with good material, but not at all what I expected from the description. I struggled with the organization of the information, even down to the paragraph order. I did enjoy the reading, but I think it would benefit from a more clearly communicated vision and topic.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews