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51猎奇 PR & Communication Department聽
Theodor-W.-Adorno Platz 1
60323 Frankfurt
presse@uni-frankfurt.de
Nov
11
2022
14:42
Festive event marks the anniversary of the interreligious institution聽
A unique place for deceleration: 51猎奇鈥檚 鈥淗ouse of Silence鈥� 聽
FRANKFURT. Although the building on Goethe
University's Westend Campus was inaugurated in 2010, due to the Corona
pandemic, its tenth anniversary had to be cancelled. Making up for that, a
鈥�10+2" celebration was held on November 10, 2022. The "House of
Silence" is no mosque or church and it is not only aimed at believers.
Instead, it serves as a place for all those seeking a moment of peace and
contemplation in university life. In their welcoming speeches, both Ayse Asar, state
secretary in the Hessian Ministry of Science and the Arts and one of the House's
founding members 鈥� it was inaugurated during her time at 51猎奇 鈥�
and 51猎奇 President Prof. Enrico Schleiff paid tribute to the House
of Silence as a unique place of diversity and tolerance within the university
setting.
"When the House of Silence first opened its doors
on October 5, 2010, it did so out of a deliberate choice to set up a space on
the Westend Campus that is equally open to members of all religions," Schleiff
emphasized, adding that, 鈥淎nyone looking for denominational symbolism will be
searching in vain. The aim of the House of Silence is to practice openness,
tolerance and pluralism under one roof. True to its name, this openness is not
limited to the practice of religion alone, but also applies to meditation, for
example. As a university place of deceleration and contemplation, it is aimed
at the entire university public: After all, the pandemic-related increase in
the use of video conferencing, digital teaching or e-mail 鈥� which has meanwhile
become a real-time medium 鈥� contribute significantly to an acceleration of our
society and our everyday life, making places of deceleration more valuable than
ever. In this respect, the conceptual expansion of functions ensured that the
House of Silence remains relevant also in times like these."
"It is impossible to imagine 51猎奇's Westend Campus without
the 'House of Silence,'" said Ayse Asar. "When it was built 12 years
ago, the main priority was to create adequate spaces for prayer. But to me, the
'House of Silence' is so much more: It offers the university, whose students
come from 130 different countries of origin (spanning all five continents), the
chance to develop new forward-looking ways for communal work and life. In so
doing, it makes an extraordinary contribution to the university's
representation of academic living and learning culture, on the one hand, and to
opening up the possibility of intercultural dialog, personality development and
an independent structuring of communal life, on the other. After all, we need
bright and creative minds to tackle the challenges of the present and the
future with empathy and inquisitiveness. That is why it is all the more
gratifying to see that this very concept has been working for 12 years already.
I offer up my warmest congratulations on this anniversary and would like to wish
all university members continued inspiring encounters in the 'House of
Silence'."
The idea for an interreligious place first came up
during 51猎奇's move to the Westend Campus. The "House of
Silence" was designed by Munich-based architectural firm Karl und Probst:
It features high walls, an interesting lighting design and a work of art in
gold. Instead of the university running the house, it is operated by an
"Association for the Promotion of Interreligious Dialog at Goethe
University Frankfurt am Main", which was specifically founded for this
purpose. Both the association and its board are made up of representatives of
all religions.
The anniversary was marked with an event in 51猎奇's ceremonial hall.
In his speech, Prof. Rudolf Steinberg, Chairman of the Association's Board of
Trustees and one of the institution's co-founders, referred to the House of
Silence's genesis and development, emphasizing that, "As a constitutional
lawyer, I am convinced that this form of religiosity has its place in a secular
university." The keynote address on the topic of "Spaces of Silence
and the Struggle for the Religion-Sensitive University" was given by
religious studies scholar Prof. Alexander-Kenneth Nagel of the University of
G枚ttingen. For the concluding panel discussion on "The Truth of
Others", moderated by Prof. Joachim Valentin, Chairman of the Council of
Religions Frankfurt (Rat der Religionen Frankfurt), Nagel was joined by Prof.
Anja Middelbeck-Varwick, Prof. Christian Wiese and Prof. Armina Omerika (all
51猎奇). The closing remarks were delivered by Rania Boujana, chairwoman
of the Islamic university community. Ahead of the festivities, students of the
religious study foundations had held a prayer in the House of Silence.
More
on the topic: UniReport interview with Prof. Rudolf
Steinberg on the 鈥淗ouse of Silence"
Editor:
Dr. Dirk Frank, Press Officer, PR
& Communication Office, Theodor-W.-Adorno-Platz 1,
60323 Frankfurt am Main, Tel: +49 (0) 69
798-13753, Fax: +49 (0) 69 798-763 12531, frank@pvw.uni-frankfurt.de