author
Freiherr von Friedrich Hügel
1852–1925
An influential Catholic thinker and spiritual writer, he spent much of his life in England while engaging deeply with the religious questions of his age. His work is especially remembered for its thoughtful approach to mysticism, faith, and the life of the Church.
2 Audiobooks
The Mystical Element of Religion, as studied in Saint Catherine of Genoa and her friends, Volume 1 (of 2)
by Freiherr von Friedrich Hügel
The Mystical Element of Religion, as studied in Saint Catherine of Genoa and her friends, Volume 2 (of 2)
by Freiherr von Friedrich Hügel
About the author
Born in Florence on May 5, 1852, Friedrich von Hügel was an Austrian-born Catholic layman, writer, and Christian apologist who later made England his home. The son of an Austrian diplomat, he became widely known in English-speaking religious life as Baron von Hügel and took part in many of the major theological conversations of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
He was closely connected with debates around Catholic Modernism, though he is generally described as more of a mediator than a partisan. Rather than simply choosing sides, he tried to hold together historical criticism, personal religious experience, and loyalty to the Church. That balancing spirit helped make him an important guide for readers wrestling with faith in a changing intellectual world.
Von Hügel is best known for The Mystical Element of Religion, his major study of St. Catherine of Genoa and the nature of mystical life. His writing brought together careful scholarship, psychological insight, and a strong interest in lived religion, which is one reason he continues to attract readers interested in spirituality as well as theology. He died on January 27, 1925.