Towards the Future Re-Thinking Nostra Aetate Today

Sixty years after its promulgation at the Second Vatican Council, the declaration Nostra Aetate is still a pivotal tool not only for interreligious dialogue and the Theology of Religions, but also for civil coexistence. Today the need arises not only to celebrate its importance and relevance but also to reconsider it in light of theological developments, new interreligious encounters, and a changing political, social, religious environment since 1965. Thus the Declaration deserves to be ‘rethought’, taking into account the needs and rapidly evolving dynamics of today’s world. Rethinking Nostra Aetate involves reimagining how it might be ‘rewritten today’, in a different historical context and in the face of new complexities and religious pluralities. Religious traditions previously considered of minor impact have now gained greater significance, while entirely new challenges have appeared on the horizon of contemporary societies. This international conference, goes beyond a historical study of the Declaration to understand how it can serve as a hermeneutical tool for the present. The conference will highlight what Nostra Aetate can offer to the faithful of other religious traditions, how it can interpret new contexts that have emerged, and how it may be updated and redefined for our world today.