Vatican newspaper publishes interview with Alice von Hildebrand
February 25, 2014
L’Osservatore Romano has published an interview with retired professor Alice von Hildebrand. During the course of the interview, she recounted her philosophical association with, and subsequent marriage to, the prominent Catholic philosopher Dietrich von Hildebrand.
“I had [previously] learned about substance and accident, essence and existence, potency and act,” she said. “I knew that the Aristotelian god is the First Cause, the Unmoved Mover, pure act. Valuable as this information was, it had done nothing to inspire me to devote my life to philosophy.”
“But listening to Dietrich von Hildebrand that night, the true nature of philosophy suddenly became luminous to me,” she continued. “It addressed the most burning questions of human existence … While he was lecturing, Dietrich von Hildebrand reminded one of a conductor directing a magnificent symphony.”
“When close to death, Dietrich von Hildebrand solemnly confided his literary bequest to me, saying, ‘If when going over my works, you find a single word which is not in full agreement with the teaching of the Church, burn it,’” she added. “To the very end, he remained faithful to the Bride of Christ.”
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