On 17 January this year, Pope Benedict XVI originally was to visit the University of Rome La Sapienza to give a speech. However, 67 teaching staff signed a petition against his visit, claiming that he was “hostile to science” for bringing up the topic that the church reprimanded Galileo in the 17th century, during a speech at La Sapienza in 1990 when he was still a cardinal. As a result, the Press Office of the Holy See announced on 14 January that the Pope’s visit is to be postponed.

On Sunday, 20 January, 200,000 university students, professors, Catholics and politicians, answered the call of Cardinal Camillo Ruini, Vicar of Rome, to go to St Peter’s Square to recite the Angelus and to hear the Pope speak.

There, the Pope said, “University life has been my world for many years. Its passion for truth, its honest discussions, and its respect for the other side have connected me to the university environment. The Church has a mandate for these things too, since the Church strives to follow Jesus, who is the Life, the Truth, and a teacher of Love. As a professor emeritus, I have encountered countless students throughout my life, and so I encourage you, every student in university, to hold fast to the respect for others’ opinions, and to search for truth and holiness with a spirit of freedom and in a responsible manner.”

A lot of people are of the opinion that the Pope need not cancel his visit to La Sapienza upon the objection of only a few, and indeed I was in Rome at the time and felt the same way. On the other hand, from his speech on 20 January, one can see in him how a true scholar would act: beneath the outward appearance of weakness hides the fact of his desire to leave space for his opponents for reflection. He is a true teacher indeed.