STEUBENVILLE, OH—Pope St. John Paul II left a rich philosophical legacy when he died in 2005. He also bore incredible witness against the evils of his time, as did another eminent Christian personalist and philosopher, Dietrich von Hildebrand.

At the Hildebrand Project‘s Fifth Annual Summer Seminar to be held June 7 – 11 at Franciscan University of Steubenville, three friends and colleagues of John Paul II will give presentations and lead discussions on the two great thinkers’ teachings on the human person in society. The seminar is centered on the theme, “The Struggle for the Person: The Teaching and Witness of Pope St. John Paul II and Dietrich von Hildebrand.”

John Henry Crosby, founder and president of the Hildebrand Project, said, “John Paul and Dietrich von Hildebrand both lived out their deepest moral and spiritual convictions. Studying their witness is therefore a unique gateway into their thought as a whole.”

The seminar faculty will include Professor Michael Novak, a prolific author on human rights and political thought; Professor Rocco Buttiglione, eminent philosopher, statesman, and one of Europe’s foremost Christian public intellectuals; and Dr. John F. Crosby, a Franciscan University philosophy professor invited to participate in informal scholarly discussions with John Paul II at the summer papal palace and a leading authority on the philosophical thought of Dietrich von Hildebrand and John Paul II.

John Henry Crosby called the seminar a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to gather with not just one, but three friends and former collaborators of Pope St. John Paul II.”

Space is limited to 30 participants. College seniors, graduate students, academics, and clergy are invited to apply. The project also welcomes applications from students and professionals in policy and law, business and technology, journalism and the arts, and philanthropy and international aid. Deadline to apply is May 8, and the deadline for those seeking financial aid is April 25.

The summer seminar is hosted by the Hildebrand Project in collaboration with Franciscan University of Steubenville. For more information and to apply, visit www.hildebrandproject.org.