It is no wonder, then, that Augustine named pride as the greatest of all sins, pointing out that when man is proud he exalts himself and displaces God. Defoe spoke of pride as the first pier and president of hell. Alexander Pope said that pride was the never-failing vice of fools. C.S. Lewis calls pride the complete anti-God state of mind.
Pride is such an insidious thing.
It invades every facet of a person's life. One can be proud of himself, proud of his accomplishments, proud of his possessions, proud of his people, proud of his race, proud of his nation in such a way as to take the glory away from God. In this sense, pride is synonymous with self-respect and personal dignity. Such is admirable and necessary. We must avoid self-contempt.