The Encyclical Humanae Vitae: A Sign of Contradiction
Dietrich von Hildebrand’s The Encyclical Humanae Vitae: A Sign of Contradiction was published mere months after Pope Paul VI promulgated the eponymous encyclical. The much-anticipated encyclical quickly proved to be among the most contentious papal documents ever published; the uproar against it was immediate, intense, and widespread—even, perhaps especially, among Catholic intellectuals and clergy in Western countries.
It was in this milieu that Dietrich von Hildebrand published his The Encyclical Humanae Vitae: A Sign of Contradiction, and in doing so, became one of the first Catholic intellectuals of public stature to defend the encyclical.
To read The Encyclical Humanae Vitae: A Sign of Contradiction by Dietrich von Hildebrand some five decades later is a very consoling experience. It bears testimony to the fact that at least one Catholic married man had the necessary spiritual and intellectual capital to make the right judgment call and explain it within the broader context of the Church’s understanding of the sacrament of marriage and the work of the human conscience.
Tracey Rowland | From the Foreword
Reviews & Commentary
From scholars, students, and readers
I would recommend that catechists and others utilize Hildebrand’s book as a teaching aid in the attempt to help the faithful understand the goodness of Church teaching in a way that inspires in them the desire to strive to live according to it out of an awareness of the happiness it promises, which is also a superabundant gift of living
As one of the first advocates for appreciating the unitive dimension of sex, his wisdom in this book offers readers a relevant insight to the contemporary discussion of Catholicism’s view of sexuality.
Catherine Yanko
Amazon ReviewLike many of Hildebrand’s other short works, this book is small enough to let you get through it in no time, and deep enough to keep you thinking about it long afterwards.
Even Schmittgen
Amazon ReviewUpcoming Online Reading Groups
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