I was wondering how compatible the philosophy of Hannah Arendt is with Catholic doctrine. I recently read her Totalitarianism, which seemed pretty orthodox, at least for a non-Christian. Any thoughts?
Arendt is part of the phenomenological movement. In general, this movement is very compatible with Catholicism, witness the use that the Great JPII made of phenomenology. Also, Edith Stein, St Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, began her work as a student of Husserl, the founder of phenomenology. I’ve just started getting into Arendt myself, so I can’t comment in detail but I would say she’s worth a try. Good luck, God bless!
DISCLAIMER: Catholic Answers has turned over the archive to Catholic-Questions.org and no longer owns, manages, or moderates the forums. For additional apologetics resources please visit www.catholic.com.
