Representatives of the Pontifical Council for Culture have confirmed
that they will begin the Church's official dialogue with atheists and
agnostics in Paris on March 24 and 25.
The session will conclude with a
broadcast address by Pope Benedict XVI.
The “Courtyard of the Gentiles” will hold its first meeting at the
Paris headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on March 24.
The organization's director
general Irina Bokova will preside, along with diplomatic and cultural
representatives.
On March 25, talks will take place at the Sorbonne University as well
as the Institut de France and the College des Bernardins, before moving
to the forecourt of the Cathedral of Notre Dame for an open-air event
for the public.
Large screens will be set up for a broadcast in which
Pope Benedict XVI will speak to attendees about the importance of the
“Courtyard of the Gentiles.”
The president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, Cardinal
Gianfranco Ravasi, explained the nature and purpose of the initiative to
reporters on March 18.
Also participating in the press conference were France's ambassador
to the Holy See, Stanislas de Laboulaye, and Fr. Jean-Marie Laurent
Mazas – who will serve as executive director of the “Courtyard of the
Gentiles” in its outreach to non-believers.
“At the request of Benedict XVI,” Cardinal Ravasi stated, “the Church
has decided to embark on a new stage of dialogue, exchange, and joint
activity among believers and non-believers.”
The cardinal also explained the biblical reference that gave the
initiative its name. The original “Courtyard of the Gentiles” was “the
vast area near the Temple of Jerusalem, reserved for debates between
Jews and non-Jews.”
Cardinal Ravasi said the initiative was meant to communicate a
central conviction of Pope Benedict – that faith and human reason are
not conflicting opposites, but complimentary parts of individual and
social life.
“The aim,” Cardinal Ravasi said, “is to help to ensure that the great
questions about human existence, especially the spiritual questions,
are borne in mind and discussed in our societies, using our common
reason.”
While “believers and non-believers stand on different ground,” he
said, “they must not close themselves (off) in a sacral or secular
isolationism, ignoring one another or, worse still, launching taunts or
accusations as do fundamentalists on one side and the other.”
“Of course, differences must not be skimmed over, contradictory ideas
must not be dismissed, or discordances ignored,” said the cardinal.
“But thoughts and words, deeds and decisions can be confronted, and even
come together.”
Cardinal Ravasi has expressed interest in holding events that bring
together Catholics and non-believers for discussion in countries around
the world, including Sweden and Albania as well as Asian countries and
the United States.