(ANS - Rome) - A concrete and sincere dialogue, which does not get confused with "feel-good rhetoric," but is a vehicle of knowledge, attention and respect - that's what I intend to promote in collaboration with the University of Religions of Qom, Iran, says Bishop Enrico dal Covolo SDB, Rector of the Pontifical Lateran University, The Salesian Bishop was speaking in an interview with the Italian newspaper "La Repubblica".

"The university cannot be a closed garden, or look at the world from a glass tower, to repeat the phrase Pope Francis used when speaking to Bishop dal Covolo. The university by its very nature is an encounter between different cultural horizons that are not necessarily compatible. The problem is that the dialogue can become mere rhetoric when those taking part have no idea of ​​who they are and the history they come from. It can be like a duet where one of the two starts singing and then realizes he has no voice. Apart from the metaphor, I'm talking about the West 'which does not love itself' as the then Cardinal Ratzinger said at a conference in 2004, and which often confuses dialogue with cultural surrender."

The agreement between the Lateran University and the University of Qom essentially provides for an exchange of teachers and students, a practice that has already begun, and moments of shared reflection like that of last December with a round table on the theme of mercy.

In the academic world of Qom, Bishop dal Covolo found great interest in Christianity and the Catholic Church. "Their desire for us to meet and understand each other seems to me wide-ranging and sincere" he says. He also hopes that this dialogue, "which is vital for peace and harmony" will be recognised and supported by the secular authorities, "by bringing religions and also theology into the public universities."

This meeting between Iran and the Church is taking place at a time that is mutually beneficial. "I think the idea of ​​'a Church that is reaching out’ reflects a desire that exists also in Iran, not only among the political and cultural elites but also among the people. They want to become a modern country, open and available, 'an Iran that is reaching out'. It would be nice if this mutual desire to meet were to take the form of an official invitation for the Pope to visit the Islamic Republic of Iran," the Rector of the Lateran University concluded.

Published 28/1/2016