– To the surprise of opponents, the Copernicus Academy is developing excellently, which is reflected in its cooperation with recognised universities such as ChAT, but also with a number of other centres in Poland and abroad, which want to conduct research together with the Academy, exchange scientific experience and carry out joint projects,’ stressed Tomasz Rzymkowski, Deputy Minister and Government Plenipotentiary for the Development and Internationalisation of Education and Science.

On 25 October, the Deputy Minister took part in the ceremony of signing a Cooperation agreement between the Christian Academy of Theology and the Copernicus Academy.
The ceremony was also attended by Archbishop Prof. Jerzy Pańkowski, Rector of the Christian Academy of Theology in Warsaw, Archbishop Abel, Orthodox Archbishop of Lublin and Chełm, and those representing the Copernican Academy, Prof. Krzysztof Górski, General Secretary of the Academy, and Dr Witold Mazurek, Director of the Copernican Academy Office.
Cooperation between ChAT and the Copernicus Academy
During the ceremony, Deputy Minister Rzymkowski pointed out that the signing of the cooperation agreement shows that Polish science does not exclude anyone.

– The dominant religion in Poland is Roman Catholic, while ChAT is a university that takes a very ecumenical approach to faith and the study of theology,” stressed the deputy head of the Ministry of Education.

– Looking from the point of view of the legacy of Nicolaus Copernicus, the Copernican Academy is also a theological university in one fifth and refers to the ecumenical approach of ChAT, which on the one hand studies the Orthodox Church, the Orthodox Church, and on the other hand the Protestant confessions, and is a recognised university, very highly rated by the MEiN,’ said Deputy Minister Rzymkowski. – It is good that Polish universities, want to cooperate with the Copernicus Academy. It is a benefit for both sides of such an agreement,’ he added.

Attacks on theological studies

When asked about the idea of removing theological studies from universities, the deputy minister described such an initiative as ‘a recidivism of the communist period’. – It was then that the communists abolished theological faculties at Polish universities, which had functioned before the war and which began again after World War II. Theology was from the very beginning of the university and it was from the womb of the Catholic Church that universities evolved as a Christian heritage of Europe,” Rzymkowski further emphasised.

– Trying to cut yourself off from these roots, from where the universities themselves come from, leads, as in gardening, to the trees withering away, so this kind of temptation can only harm the world of science in the future, because it is then detached from the truth, the politician explained.

The deputy head of the Ministry of Education also pointed out that expanding the areas of cooperation with other universities is one of the achievements of the Copernicus Academy, which, to the surprise of its opponents, is thriving.

– This is manifested in cooperation with recognised universities such as ChAT, but also with a number of other centres at home and abroad, which want to conduct research with AK, exchange scientific experience and carry out projects together, as well as in the beautiful enlistment of doctoral schools at the Nicolaus Copernicus University,” mentioned Rzymkowski.