Pope Leo XIV received today a delegation from Oriel College at the University of Oxford in the Consistory Hall, in the Vatican. The meeting marked the 700th anniversary of the royal charter of the British institution, celebrating a historic link between the college and the Catholic Church through the figure of St. John Henry Newman.
In his address, the Pope called on academic institutions to promote education rooted in service and justice, arguing that education must have human dignity and the capacity to serve the common good as its central axis. Leo XIV considered Newman's thought particularly relevant in facing current challenges.
The Pope recalled that the London cardinal is a brilliant example of how faith and reason are inseparable, with his religious convictions rooted in a personal relationship with God to give shape to eminently practical intellectual activity. Newman was a former student and professor at Oriel College.
Leo XIV urged the academic community to courageously seek truth through Newman's integral anthropological vision, challenging the educational world to foster a "heart-to-heart" encounter with others and with Christ, trusting in God to reflect His glory to the world.
