Celebration of the Day of the University Chair of Theology

At the Catholic University of Croatia, 28 January is celebrated as the Day of the University Chair of Theology, and it was observed earlier, on 19 January. The celebration began with a Mass in the chapel, presided over by Assistant Professor Odilon-Gbènoukpo Singbo, PhD, in concelebration with the Rector of the Croatian Catholic University, Professor Željko Tanjić, PhD; the Vice-Rector for Quality, Identity and Mission, Professor Ante Crnčević, PhD; Associate Professor Richard Pavlić, PhD, from the Faculty of Engineering; and the University Chaplain, Rev. Branimir Jagodić.
 

In his homily, Rev. Odilon emphasised the importance of not losing awareness of what is essential, noting that the Word of God continually helps us to recognise what is essential in events, obligations, and in people. The full homily can be read HERE. Following the Mass, an interdisciplinary panel with two lectures was held. Prior to this, the ceremony was opened with a short prayer by the University Chaplain, after which the Rector of the Croatian Catholic University addressed those present.
 

“It is an honour and a joy to welcome you all. There are almost ten days until the feast of St Thomas Aquinas, which falls during the examination period. At that time, there would be almost no students present here, whereas here they can learn something that may not seem important or interesting to them at first, but which will, even if only briefly, enrich their knowledge and studies. We pray that the Lord may guide and strengthen us in all things, that we may thank Him for all that the Chair does for the University, and that the Lord may support its members in their endeavours. I thank all members for their dedicated work and their continued presence in the life of the University and the academic community,” said the Rector of the Croatian Catholic University.

The first lecture was delivered by Professor Marija Pehar, PhD, from the Catholic Faculty of Theology of the University of Zagreb, on the topic “Theology and Art on the Path of Seeking the Holy.”

She spoke about the reflection on Christian theology and visual art as distinct expressions of the one divine mystery and God’s salvific action, as well as of humanity’s longing to know God and to behold His face. From two fundamental Christian postulates - the faith in the Incarnation and the inalienable transcendence of God’s being - arises a reflection on the relationship between the theological word as a word about the Holy and the sacred image as an image of the Holy and of human experience of that mystery.

The second lecture, entitled “Contemporary Liturgical Architecture,” was delivered by Associate Professor Zorana Sokol Gojnik, PhD, from the Faculty of Architecture of the University of Zagreb.

Her lecture addressed the relationship between contemporary architectural paradigms and sacred-liturgical space, with particular emphasis on the capacity of architecture to participate in the liturgical event as a bearer and mediator of symbolic language. Special attention was given to the loss of symbolic language in contemporary liturgical architecture, the emergence of architecture as an autonomous object, and to issues of shock, bizarreness, and formal self-sufficiency, which often obscure the meaning of liturgical space. The lecture also raised the question of the necessity of figural iconography, emphasising that contemporary sacred architecture does not necessarily have to be figurative in order to be sacred, but it must be aware of its own symbolic and theological potential in order to be truly theological.