Catholic Forum Roma presents its first seminar: Dialogo a tutto Campo

Catholic Forum Roma is a network of Catholic institutions in Rome created in 2020 with the aspiration of being a laboratory for reflection and research of forms of collaboration between academic institutions. 

The Forum launched a digital platform of events open to the public. It was organized by the participating institutions and hosted by the University of Notre Dame Rome Global Gateway’s website. Due to the rising success of this initiative, the platform has been recently moved and upgraded to a standalone website with the addition of new participating institutions. Visit the platform at Catforumroma.it.

In April 2022, the Forum organized its first seminar hosted by the Pontificio Ateneo S.Anselmo entitled “Dialogo a tutto campo. All-round Dialogue.” The seminar focused on the fruitful and free dialogue between faith, science and knowledge - which is proper to the mission of Catholic universities - indicated by Pope Francis as potentially productive of benefits for the whole of society. It also wanted to stress the fact that in an epochal context characterized by growing polarization, within the Church and society, creates "all-round" dialogue, communication, and communion. The stiffening in antagonistic positions leads to the impossibility of dialogue, the practice of which presupposes the maturation and exercise of certain virtues: it requires precise conditions, not only external but also internal.

The aim of the seminar was therefore to reflect on some questions that appeared fundamental, and which are crucial to discuss in the light of the indications contained in Veritatis Gaudium: What are the causes and forms of the growing polarization? What are the conditions, interior and exterior, necessary to foster an authentic dialogue? To what extent are the philosophies of dialogue and the ethics of discourse still current and able to answer these questions? What can we learn from the spiritual traditions of Christianity? Finally, how can Catholic universities contribute to the development of a more authentic and fuller social dialogue?

The seminar saw the participation of thirteen researchers and faculty members from several Catholic local universities, among which LUMSA, Università Gregoriana, the John Paul II Center for interreligious dialogue, and Pontificia Università Antonianum.

Learn more about the seminar and the consortium here.