cUNdp
The Notre-Dame de la Paix University Center (CuNDP) is a research center at the ESPHIN Institute of Philosophy at the University of Namur.
The Notre-Dame de la Paix Chair is a project that studies the relationships between faith and reason, science and religion, and the common good in dialogue with scientists and practitioners from different disciplines and faiths.
Objectives of the CuNDP
The CuNDP is part of a long history, dating back to the founding of the University of Namur, marked by reflection and teaching in philosophy and religious studies, which are largely open to questions raised by society.
Rooted in Catholic and Jesuit tradition, the CuNDP aims to initiate and support in-depth research on the relationships between religions, particularly Christianity and reason, theology and philosophy, faith and cultures, faith and science, politics, and the arts, as well as on the relationships between sacred texts, notably the Bible, and hermeneutical questioning.
It also aims to promote research on how faith and religious identity can be lived out in concrete terms in institutions such as universities, schools, hospitals, businesses, the political and diplomatic spheres, etc.
The Chair of Our Lady of Peace
Inaugurated in 2018, the Notre-Dame de la Paix Chair aims to study the relationship between faith and reason in dialogue with researchers from multiple disciplines and members of society from different backgrounds and faiths.
Theme for 2025-2026 | "University and society. What can knowledge do for the common good?"
Philosophy of the CuNDP project
The work of the CuNDP is based on broad-mindedness combined with a clear position on identity, enabling rational, frank, and direct dialogue with the pluralistic components of our society.
The idea behind the CuNDP is that a necessary condition for genuine academic dialogue on issues related to theology or religion is clarity of position, together with a critical and rational approach that avoids any form of fideism.
Through this dialogue, the CuNDP intends to contribute actively to peace in our pluralistic and multi-faith societies, convinced that this peace can only come about through dialogue aimed at a deep understanding of the various searches for meaning among our contemporaries.
"We must not lose our passion for ultimate truth and our zeal for research, combined with the courage to discover new paths. It is faith that prompts reason to come out of its isolation and willingly take risks for all that is beautiful, good, and true. Faith thus becomes the convinced and convincing advocate of reason. (John Paul II, Fides et Ratio, No. 56)
Strength of the CuNDP
The originality of CuNDP lies in offering the general public, and young people in particular, a forum for high-level debate and teaching, rooted in the Catholic and Jesuit tradition, offering tools for reflection to address religious issues in a manner that respects individuals and the demands of rationality, with the deep conviction that faith seeks understanding and that it can ultimately be articulated with reason without reductive confusion or radical dissent.
This originality also stems from the highly interdisciplinary nature of its members. It includes philosophers, scientists, philologists, and theologians.
This fruitful interdisciplinarity owes much to the tradition of the University of Namur, which has always sought to integrate courses in philosophical, ethical, and religious reflection, taught by individuals who very often have dual training, into the heart of its most technical teachings.
Networks
The CuNDP, which works in collaboration with an international network of institutions and research centers, particularly Jesuit ones, brings together professors of religious studies from the University of Namur, the Grand Séminaire de Namur (Studium Notre-Dame), and associated researchers.