At the Catholic University of Lyon, an unprecedented approach to fostering dialogue between Christianity and Islam

At 77 years old, Anne (first name has been changed) was eagerly awaiting it: on Wednesday, September 25, she will attend the first course of the new chair at the Catholic University of Lyon (UCLy), “Theologies in Dialogue.” Its ambition? To bring Christianity and Islam into dialogue through the prism of theology.

“It’s a vital step, especially at this time”believes this retired Christian, who lived for a long time in the Middle East. Anne chose to register to better discover, recognize and respect the difference between the two religious traditions, from the inside. An opportunity to enrich her faith “a bit like a pushed ecumenism”, she confides.

During its three years of experimentation, the chair will offer a dozen courses, open to all, and a series of seminars, for the more advanced, aimed at “to get out of a constant opposition between the two thoughts”, summarizes Michel Younès, co-founder and co-holder of the chair with the Islamologist Mohammad Ali Amir-Moezzi.

An approach “at a distance from any form of controversy”

Conceived as an extension of the work carried out with the Center for the Study of Cultures and Religions, within UCLy, and with the University Platform for Research on Islam in Europe and Lebanon (Pluriel), the initiative is a first in France in a Catholic theology faculty. It relies on the academic approach to take a step back, “at a distance from any form of controversy”.

Among the 12 courses open to everyone is the “being with God” course, which draws on classical sources and contemporary voices to mirror religions: one of the first sessions will focus, for example, on the place of certain prominent figures in Islam and Christianity, another will explore the mystical approach within these two universes.

As for the seminar program, which is more in-depth and focuses on interactions between traditions, it will explore, for example, the impact of the Koran on Christian authors or the way in which the sacred book of Islam addresses the figure of Christ. The approach is guided by a question, recalls Michel Younès: “What can we learn from each other today?”

Appeasement approach

The new chair already has around forty registered members, including some Catholics and a few Muslims, but also other profiles, as UCLy does not seek to reach only people from both faiths, but also people from other traditions or even agnostics.

In addition to the courses and seminars, the course will also be punctuated by a series of conferences, open to the general public, but also and above all by a series of morning sessions, organized in partnership with the Entrepreneurs and Christian Leaders (EDC), intended for potential players in the political, entrepreneurial and associative world “ambassadors” of this approach of appeasement.

Because this chair is part of the university’s social responsibility, believes Michel Younès. “We are not in an ivory tower, from which we act only out of intellectual curiosity: we must take hold of the issues of society, however inflammatory or controversial they may be, which concern us all.