Don Rafael Alvira Domínguez, philosopher, beloved teacher and trainer of dozens of philosophers, died in Madrid, at the age of 82, on February 4, 2024 at 7:30 a.m., after three years of fighting tenaciously and hopefully against severe sequelae of covid. 

He was born on October 24, 1942 in Madrid. Son of Aragonese parents, who founded a fruitful family of nine children, of whom Rafa was the third oldest. Rafael Alvira was Full Professor emeritus at the University of Navarra, where he carried out most of his work professor and research until his retirement in 2013. He began studying Philosophy, one of the great passions of his life, in 1966 at the Complutense University of Madrid, where he also received his doctorate -being award extraordinary- under the direction of the prestigious Spanish philosopher Don Antonio Millán-Puelles, whom he always referred to as his teacher. He was professor of "Fundamentals of Philosophy" and "Metaphysics" at the Complutense and secretary of the section of Philosophy. In 1979, he obtained the Chair in History from the Philosophy at the University of La Laguna (Santa Cruz de Tenerife) and a year later, he joined the University of Navarra. He was also graduate in history from the University of Navarra, and studied theology at the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome. He completed his academic training in Germany, Italy, Austria, France and the United States. At the University of Navarra he was first Associate Dean and then Dean of the School of Philosophy and Letters, and director of the department of Philosophy. 

Don Rafael was a promoter of great enterprises and ideas, in accordance with his magnanimous heart and broad vision. He was ahead of his time and together with Alejandro Llano and Leonardo Polo created the first interdisciplinary center of the University of Navarra: the Institute of business and Humanism, of which he was vice-president and director until his retirement. The Institute, in partnership with prestigious Spanish companies, grew more and more with the Master's Degree of Governance and Organizational Culture, a doctoral program, conference , academic for businessmen and researchers, and a substantial set of publications. Today there are more than four hundred graduates who remember with gratitude the teaching and proximity of D. Rafael's friendly attention . Together with his former President and friend Alejandro Llano, he was also one of the main organizers and promoters of the Reuniones Filosóficas, an international congress of Philosophy that has been held annually at the University of Navarra for more than 50 years. He was also the first main researcher of the line of research of the ICS (Institute for Culture and Society) at the University of Navarra: "Religion and Civil Society". 

honorary doctor from the Universidad Panamericana (Mexico) and the Universidad de Montevideo (Uruguay). He was Extraordinary Professor at the Universidad de Mendoza (Argentina), Universidad de Montevideo (Uruguay), Universidad Austral (Argentina), Universidad Panamericana (Colombia) and Strathmore University (Kenya), and Visiting Professor at the University of Notre Dame (United States), and Universidad de los Andes (Chile). He also taught teaching at the Diplomatic School of Madrid and the Menéndez Pelayo International University of Santander.

Author of more than 18 works, his most recent book was published a few days before his death: business y Humanismo. Small strokes of a big project . He wrote more than three hundred articles for his specialization program, directed more than thirty-five doctoral thesis and more than thirty scientific memoirs. Professor Alvira was part of the committee publishing house of several national and international journals of Philosophy and was a member of several national and international societies among which the International Society for Metaphysics; the Societé internationale pour l'étude de la Philosophie Médiévale; the Sociedad Española de programs of study Clásicos; or the Sociedad Española de Philosophy. He was also a founding member of the association for the Study of the Social Doctrine of the Church (AEDOS) and of the AISC (Association Internationale pour l'Enseignement Social Chrétien).

A great scholar and polyglot - 6 languages - he reaped a huge number of disciples, friends, colleagues and students scattered throughout the world, who always found in Rafael a humble wisdom, a deep and dense philosophical intuition, a luminous clarity of concepts, a welcoming smile and a cultured and wide-ranging conversation, always tinged with his passion for the Philosophy. Those of us who knew him and mourn his loss today also trust that the friendship and hope that, as a Christian, he cultivated throughout his life will also have had its reward. 

Those of us who have been at his side for years, have learned from his lucid philosophical reflections, among which stand out as his own contributions the theory of categorical and transcendental subsystems of society, the approach to the Logos from Neoplatonism, his deepening of the concept of limit from his broad knowledge of the ancient Philosophy of Plato and Socrates and, extensive reflections of deep philosophical depth on love, family, the business, culture and political regimes. He liked to say that Philosophy dealt with the easy, the everyday, and that to think was to attend affectionately to these realities. 

He knew very well the mystical tradition and, in particular, the Castilian tradition of St. Teresa of Jesus and St. John of Avila. He dedicated many hours of attentive reading, reflection and thought. Last November 22 we attended online his last seminar for the department of Philosophy of the University of Navarra. The seminar was degree scroll "That not knowing while knowing all science transcending. Socrates and mysticism". Delivered with the elegance, sympathy and sense of humor that characterized him, it was a synthesis of many years of research, and now we also see that it was one of his last gifts and a bequest from which to continue. 

Don Rafael was a lover of life, he put passion in what he did and was a loyal friend of his friends, with whom he shared not only his love for the Philosophy, but also his fondness for soccer, the mountain and the art of conversation. His daily life was interwoven with a deep look at others, to whom he dispensed a great deal of small services and care, without one being hardly aware of it. His broad and welcoming smile was striking, revealing not only a peaceful man, but also deeply respectful of each individual person. Elegant and attentive to the small. I saw him many times leave the chairs tidy -not only his own-, when finishing a meeting; I saw him cry at the death of very dear philosopher friends; I saw him countless times listen with attentive silence and respectful measure of time to whoever spoke to him, regardless of his age, position, whether he knew more or less than he did. Proud, as well as humble, of his family heritage, he became more and more like his father -even physically-, from whom he inherited a deep love for teaching and an extraordinary pedagogical finesse, interwoven with a certain paternalism. All those who knocked on his door found it open, that is why among his close friends there are important politicians, businessmen, diplomats, prominent philosophers, students, simple farmers, fathers and mothers of families, everyday neighbors. Each person was important to him. His simplicity and naturalness stood out; his strong will and broad vision of things. You would talk to him and, while you knew he was an outstanding and wise man Full Professor, he never flaunted titles, knowledge or positions. He learned from everything and everyone. Thank you very much, dear teacher and friend.