Back

Podcast PAUSEPodcast26 June 2026

Faith, grief, humanity: the great lessons of Delphine Horvilleur

Alexandre Mars · 1h 35min

An in-depth conversation with Alexandre Mars on the PAUSE podcast, on doubt and complexity: family history, grief, faith, antisemitism, the place of women, and what makes us human. Conducted in French.

Highlights

People often think that in life you must lean on something solid to keep going. […] I believe exactly the opposite: we move forward when we recognize the quicksands of existence, when we see the fractures in our lives and build ourselves by composing with those faults.

Translated from the French

I don’t believe in destiny, but I believe in signs. I don’t believe the last word has ever been said about who we could be.

Translated from the French

The first thing that gets torn down in times of war or crisis (it has always been true in history) is the bridges. Everything that joins must be broken, so that we may feel, we think, a little safer inside our own group. And so whoever tries to build bridges is seen either as a fool, a naïf, or a traitor.

Translated from the French

When I speak, it is because I cannot keep silent. I would not even know how to begin.

Translated from the French