To Representatives of the University World in Spain (3 November 1982)

On Wednesday, 3 November 1982, in Madrid, the Holy Father addressed representatives of the Royal Academies, of the university world, of research, science and culture in Spain. The Pope spoke of the recent founding of the Pontifical Council for Culture, reflecting on the responsibilities he shared with them in the hope that they might discover means of enriching the dialogue between the Church and the “new cultures.”

Most Excellent and Illustrious Gentlemen, Ladies and Gentlemen.

1. I was very pleased to meet today with such a qualified group of men and women, who represent the Royal Academies, the university world and that of research, science and culture in Spain. Receive, first of all, the most cordial thanks for having come in such large numbers to meet the Pope.

With my visit I intend to express to you the profound respect and esteem I have for your work. I do so today with particular interest, aware of the fact that your work - due to the existing bonds and the common language - can also provide valid collaboration to other peoples, especially to the sister nations of Latin America.

2. The Church, which has received the mission of teaching all peoples , has never neglected the spread of faith in Jesus Christ and has always acted as one of the most active ferments of civilization in history. She thus contributed to the birth of very rich and original cultures in many nations. Because, as I said to UNESCO two years ago, the bond of the Gospel with man is by its very foundation a culture-stimulator, given that it teaches us to love man in his humanity and in his exceptional dignity.

Having recently founded the Pontifical Council for Culture, I insisted on the fact that "the synthesis between culture and faith is not only a requirement of culture, but also of faith. . . A faith that does not become culture is a faith that is not fully accepted, not totally thought through, not faithfully lived" (John Paul II, Epistula qua Pontificium Consilium pro hominum Cultura institutur, die 20 maii 1982 : Teachings of John Paul II, V, 2 [1982] 1777).

3. I would like to reflect with you on some responsibilities that we share in the cultural field, and possibly try to discover the means to enrich the dialogue between the Church and new cultures. This dialogue is particularly fruitful if the indispensable conditions for mutual collaboration and respect are provided , as demonstrated by the cultural history of your nation.

Your intellectuals, writers, humanists, theologians and jurists have left traces in universal culture and have served the Church in an eminent way. How can we fail to remember in this regard the exceptional influence of university centers such as Alcalà and Salamanca? I am thinking above all of those groups of researchers who have admirably contributed to the renewal of theology and biblical studies; who have established the principles of international law on a lasting basis; who with great splendor were able to cultivate humanism, letters, ancient languages; who were able to produce summations, treatises, literary monuments, among which one of the most prestigious emblems is the Complutensian Polyglot.

In light of this noble tradition we must think about the permanent conditions of intellectual creativity . I will refer briefly to the freedom of research done in common , to openness to the universal and to knowledge understood as a service to the integral man .

4. In Spain, as in other European countries, entire generations of researchers, professors and authors have had great fruitfulness thanks to the freedom of research , which their autonomous university communities ensured, of which the King or the Church often took control they were guarantors.

These university centers, bringing together masters specialized in various disciplines, constituted a favorable means for creativity, emulation and constant dialogue with theology. The university appeared first of all as a fact of the university students themselves and, in the collaboration between masters and disciples, favorable conditions were created for the discovery, teaching and diffusion of knowledge.

The masters knew that, in the theological field, investigation implies fidelity to the Word revealed by Jesus Christ and entrusted to the Church. The dialogue between theology and the Magisterium also proved to be very fruitful. Bishops and theologians knew how to meet, for the mutual benefit of pastors and professors.

If in times like those of the Inquisition tensions, errors and excesses were produced - facts which the Church of today judges in the objective light of history - it is necessary to recognize that the complex of intellectual means of Spain had been able to admirably reconcile the demands of full freedom of investigation with a profound sense of the Church. This is attested by the countless works of classical writings that the masters, scholars and authors of Spain were able to contribute to the cultural treasure of the Church.

5. In the cultural tradition of your nation we can also see the openness to the universal , which has given prestige and fame to your masters.

Your scholars and researchers have kept their eyes open to classical and biblical history, to other European countries, to the ancient and new world. Your authors were brilliant pioneers in the science of international relations and law between nations.

The rapid consolidation of highly prestigious universalities modeled on that of Salamanca, of which up to thirty will merge in the nascent Americas, is another proof of that universalism which for a long period of time has characterized your culture, enriched by many discoveries and by many discoverers, and by the profound influence of many missionaries throughout the world.

The role that your country has recognized for the Church has given your culture a special dimension. The Church was present in all stages of the gestation and progress of Spanish civilization.

Your nation has been the melting pot in which very rich traditions have fused into a single cultural synthesis. The characteristic traits of the Hispanic communities have been enriched with the historical contributions of the Arab world - your harmonious language, art and toponymy itself prove this - merging into a Christian civilization widely open to the universal. Both within and outside its borders, Spain has been itself, welcoming the universality of the Gospel and the great cultural currents of Europe and the world.

6. Your teachers and thinkers also had a sense of service to the integral man , of responding to his psychic, intellectual, moral and spiritual needs. Thus was born a science of man, in which doctors and philosophers, theologians, moralists and jurists collaborated.

Your spiritual masters require a separate discussion. Their work experienced a diffusion that quickly crossed your borders to extend to the entire Church. We think of Saint Teresa of Jesus and Saint John of the Cross, doctors of the Church, Saint Dominic, Brother Louis of Granada, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, gigantic figures in the field of spirituality.

They have also provided great services to the culture of man, continuing a great tradition in which eminent precursors stand out such as Saint Isidore of Seville, one of the first Catholic encyclopedists, and Saint Raymond of Peñafort, author of one of the first syntheses of law in your Village. All these men and women are teachers in the full sense of the term, who have been able, with exceptional and prophetic intelligence, to serve man in his highest aspirations. Who can measure their influence and the lasting effect of their teachings, writings and creations? They are wonderful witnesses of a culture that conceived man as created in the image of God, capable of dominating the world, but called above all to spiritual progress whose perfect model is Jesus Christ.

7. This lesson from the history of Spain deserves to be remembered. First of all, to pay homage to the outstanding contribution that your teachers, scholars, researchers and saints made to all of humanity, which would not be what it is without the Hispanic heritage.

Another reason invites us today, in very different historical contexts, to reflect on the conditions which, in our times, can favor the promotion of culture and science, and encourage the investigations into man which our era has great need of.

It is of great benefit to men and women of culture to meditate on the presuppositions of intellectual and spiritual creativity . And which, today as yesterday, demand a climate of freedom and cooperation among researchers, with an attitude of openness to the universal and with an integral vision of man .

8. The first condition is that freedom of the spirit is ensured . In research, in fact, it is necessary to have freedom to research and announce the results.

The Church supports the freedom of research, one of man's noblest attributes. Through research, man arrives at the Truth: one of the most beautiful names that God has given to himself. Because the Church is convinced that there can be no real contradiction between science and faith, since all reality ultimately proceeds from God the creator. This was stated by the Second Vatican Council (cf. Gaudium et Spes , 36). I myself have reminded men and women of science of this on various occasions. It is certain that science and faith constitute two different orders of knowledge, autonomous in their processes, but ultimately converging in the discovery of the integral reality that originates from God (cf. John Paul II, Allocutio in Cathedrali templo Coloniensi habita, 15 Nov. 1980 : Teachings of John Paul II, III, 2 [1980] 1200ff).

For its part, the Church, as do the wisest modern scholars, tends to establish broad agreement on this point. Relations between the world of science and the Holy See have become increasingly frequent, characterized by mutual understanding. Especially since the time of my predecessor Pius XII and therefore of Paul VI, the Popes have entered into increasingly frequent dialogue with groups of intellectuals, specialists, researchers, who have found in the Church an interlocutor eager to understand them, to encourage them in their research , often expressing deep gratitude to them for the indispensable service that science provides to humanity.

If in the past there were serious disagreements or misunderstandings between the representatives of science and the Church, these difficulties are now practically overcome, thanks to the recognition of the errors of interpretation that could alter the relationship between faith and science, and above all thanks to a better understanding of the respective fields of knowledge.

Nowadays, science poses problems on another level. Science, and the technology derived from it, have caused profound changes in society, institutions and even in the behavior of men. Traditional cultures have been transformed by new forms of social communication, production, experimentation, exploration of nature and planning of societies.

Faced with this, science must first of all feel a much greater responsibility. The future of humanity depends on it. Men and women who represent science and culture: your moral power is enormous! You can ensure that the scientific sector serves first of all the culture of man and that it can never be perverted and used for its destruction! It is a scandal of our time that many researchers have dedicated themselves to perfecting new weapons for warfare, which may one day prove fatal.

We need to wake up our consciences. Your responsibility and your possibilities of influencing public opinion are immense. Place them at the service of the cause of peace and true human progress! How many wonders our world could achieve if the best talents and researchers united to explore the paths of development of all men and all regions of the earth!

For this reason, our era needs a science of man , original reflections and research. Alongside the physical or biological sciences, specialists in the human sciences need to make their contribution. What is at stake is the service of man, which must be defended in his identity, in his dignity and moral greatness, because it is a " res sacra ", as Seneca rightly said.

9. The breadth of the themes stated could discourage isolated researchers or thinkers. For this reason, today more than ever, research must be carried out jointly . Today the specialization of disciplines is such that for the effectiveness of research, and even more so to serve man, researchers must work together. Not only for a methodological need, but to avoid dispersion and give an adequate response to the complex problems that must be faced.

Starting from the needs of individual and social man, research centers and universities will have to overcome the splitting of disciplines, if it is methodologically necessary, so that the great problems of modern man, which are called development, world hunger, justice, peace , dignity for all, are addressed with competence and effectiveness. Public authorities and the international community need everyone's talents and must be able to count on your common help.

The Church and Catholics wish to actively participate in common dialogue with men of culture and researchers. Numerous Catholics already perform an eminent role in the various sectors of the university and research world. Their faith and culture provide strong motivations to continue the scientific, humanistic, or literary task. They are an eloquent testimony to the validity of the Catholic faith and the Church's interest in everything that pertains to culture and science.

The Church follows the life of the university world with particular interest, because it is aware of the fact that in it the generations are formed who will then occupy key positions in tomorrow's society. It also wishes to be able to carry out its specific task in the university field, and for this reason it encourages the establishment and development of Catholic universities.

In a dialogue between leaders of the Church and public authorities, it is desirable that practical agreements are reached that allow Catholic universities to provide their original service to national communities. By recognizing this contribution, public authorities ultimately serve the cause of cultural identities, multiple and diverse in today's pluralist society.

10. A particularly important need for cultural renewal today is openness to the universal . In fact, it is frequently felt that pedagogy is reduced to preparing students for a profession, but not for life, because, more or less consciously, education has sometimes been dissociated from instruction.

And without a doubt, the university must fulfill its indispensable function of education. This presupposes that educators know how to transmit to students, in addition to science, the knowledge of man himself; that is, of its own dignity, of its history, of its moral and civil responsibilities, of its spiritual destiny, of its bonds with all humanity.

This requires that the pedagogy of teaching is based on a coherent image of man, in a conception of the universe that does not move from a priori conceptions and that also knows how to welcome the transcendent. For Catholics, man was created in the image of God and is called to transcend the universe.

The cultures that found their roots and vitality in Christianity also recognized the importance of universal brotherhood among men. The new humanism, which our time needs so much, must strengthen solidarity between all men. Without this, the great problems cannot be resolved, such as the establishment of peace, the peaceful exchange of natural resources, ecology, the search for work for all, the construction of social justice.

In the family, in school, and in the university, new generations will learn the demands of international understanding, mutual respect and effective cooperation in the tasks of world development. International peace, which is humanity's deepest aspiration today, will be the fruit of this universal understanding, capable of silencing prejudices, resentments and conflicts. Yes, the roots of peace are cultural and moral. Yes, peace is a spiritual achievement of man.

11. Finally, the progress of culture is ultimately linked to the moral and spiritual growth of man. Because it is through the spirit that man is realized as such. Therefore it is necessary to have an integral vision of man .

For this reason the Church feels the responsibility to defend man against theoretical or practical ideologies that reduce him to an object of production or consumption; against the fatalistic currents that paralyze souls; against the moral permissiveness that abandons man to the emptiness of hedonism; against agnostic ideologies that tend to exclude God from culture.

Allow me to make an appeal to men and women who desire the real progress of culture, to meditate on the luminous pages of the Second Vatican Council, which offer our time an anthropology capable of orienting towards the reconstruction of a society worthy of the greatness of 'man. Our Creator and Master told us: “I know what is inside man”. The Church, after him, teaches that man, God's sublime creature, is capable of holiness but also of any wickedness. The Church, "expert in humanity", according to the expression of my predecessor Paul VI, also knows what is in man.

Despite all his errors, he is called to moral greatness and salvation which is realized in Jesus Christ, Son of God, who loved man to the point of assuming his own human condition and offering him his help. This is the reason for our confidence in man's ability to surpass himself, to love his brothers, to build a new world, a "civilization of love".

I urge Catholic theologians and intellectuals to delve deeper into these fundamental data of Christian anthropology and manifest its practical significance for modern society.

Ladies and gentlemen. As I said at UNESCO, your personal contribution is important, it is vital. Always continue (cf. John Paul II, Allocutio ad eos qui conventui Consilii ab exsecutione internationalis organisms compendiariis litteris UNESCO nuncupati affuere, die 2 June 1980 : Teachings of John Paul II, III, 1 [1980] 1636ff). The Church encourages your effort.

May God grant that in your duty well accomplished, in your service to humanity, you encounter the total Truth, which gives full meaning to man and creation. This Truth which is the ultimate horizon of your search. I said!

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