Notre Dame president says universities must listen to all arguments

Published: 2006-02-03

ROME (CNS) -- In its dialogue with culture, the Catholic university must listen seriously to opposing arguments and use the light of faith to respond reasonably and persuasively, said Father John I. Jenkins, president of the University of Notre Dame. Father Jenkins, the Holy Cross priest who took over last year at the helm of the Indiana university, told a Rome conference Feb. 1 that the church's universities should take their cue from St. Thomas Aquinas, whose writings examined a "disputed question" from all sides. Aquinas would present opposing views in a way acceptable to those who held them, and in fact as persuasively as possible, before delivering his own response, Father Jenkins said. This is extremely important today, he said, as the church seeks to influence critical cultural debates on social justice, technological change, biomedical advances and human dignity. "We will not engage the great issues of the day unless we are able to listen to and understand the contrary voices," he said.

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