The Francisco de Vitoria University Will invest on Monday, October 25th as doctors for the sake of honor To Don Francisco José Gómez de Argüello, more commonly known as Kiko Argüello, and Rabbi David Shlomo Rosen, with the intention of highlighting the encounter between two personalities, one Jewish and one Christian, who have believed in this dialogue and have put their friendship at the service of goodness and beauty.
Both have been contemporary protagonists in the important advances of recent times in Jewish-Christian dialogue, as is well shown by the symphony “The Suffering of the Innocent,” composed by Argüello himself to pay a moving tribute to the innocent victims of the Shoah, and performed in 2012 at Avery Fisher Hall in New York before prominent representatives of the international Jewish community.
Biographical profile of Kiko Argüello
Kiko Argüello is the initiator, along with Carmen Hernández (deceased in July 2016), of the Neocatechumenal Way, one of the most important realities of the Catholic Church to emerge in the last century. He is also a painter, writer, architect, sculptor, and musician. Currently, the Way has over 21,000 communities and more than one million members in 135 nations on five continents and is gaining a special presence and relevance in the university world, to which it has contributed hundreds of professors.
In 1993, John Paul II appointed him a consultant to the Pontifical Council for the Laity, and confirmed him for the remainder of his pontificate. The same decision was made by Popes Benedict XVI and Francis, the latter in 2014. In addition, he was appointed a consultant to the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization in 2011 and an auditor for the XIII Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops («The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith») in 2012.
Biographical Profile of Rabbi Rosen
Rabbi David Rosen, currently the International Director of Interreligious Affairs for the American Jewish Committee, is one of the most prominent Jewish leaders in this field. He served as Chief Rabbi of Ireland and Chief Rabbi of the largest Orthodox Jewish congregation in South Africa. In November 2005, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him a Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great for his contribution to promoting dialogue and reconciliation between Catholics and Jews. Among other awards, in 2016, the Archbishop of Canterbury presented him with the Hubert Walter Award for Reconciliation and Interfaith Cooperation “for his commitment and contribution to the work of interreligious relations, in particular, Jewish and Catholic religions.”.
The academic event will take place on Monday, October 25th, at 7 p.m. in the Francisco de Vitoria University Sports Center Pavilion, which is part of the Regnum Christi educational work, and it will also be broadcast on streaming Access to the Sports Center Pavilion will be by invitation only, via this link: https://vimeo.com/event/1336721.
