HÖPFL, HILDEBRAND. — Benedictine exegete, born at Ledau in Bohemia on 25 November 1872, died in Rome on 14 February 1934. After completing his humanities studies with the Benedictines of Prague and Seckau, and his theological studies at the Pontifical Athenaeum of St. Anselm in Rome (1896–1900), he taught biblical sciences at Beuron (1901–1903) and Jerusalem (1916–20), but especially in Rome at the Anselmianum, where for a full 30 years (1903–1915 and 1920–34) he was an esteemed teacher and scholar in the biblical field.
He succeeded in instilling in his disciples his love for the word of God. His activity, however, was not limited to teaching. He was also a consultor of the Biblical Commission (1905) and of various Roman Congregations: of the Index (1913) and of the Oriental Church (1918), as well as a qualificator of the Holy Office (1917). He was also a regular contributor to several periodicals and dictionaries, particularly the Jahrbuch für Liturgiewissenschaft and the DBs.
Among his works, his Introductionis in Sacros utriquae Testamentibus compositum achieved worldwide fame (2 vols., Subiaco 1921–22, reprinted several times in Rome, ex integro retractatum by his disciples A. Miller, B. Gut, A. Metzinger). The following should also be noted: Die höhere Bibelkritik. Studie über die moderne rationalistische Behandlung der Hl. Schrift (Paderborn 1901; 2nd ed. there 1905); Das Buch der Bücher. Gedanken über Lektüre und Studium der Hl. Schrift (Freiburg 1904); Kard. Wilhelm Striets Annotationen zum Neuen Testament. Eine Verteidigung der Vulgata gegen Valla und Erasmus (Biblische Studien, 13, II, there 1908); Beiträge zur Geschichte der Sixto-Klemmensischen Vulgata (ibid., 18, 1–111), there 1913); Tractatus de inspiratione S. Scripturae et compendium hermeneuticae Biblicae catholicae (Rome 1925; 2nd ed. there 1929; new edition in 1940 and 1950, edited by B. Gut).