First symposium of Jewish and Islamic Allianz visiting professors

In his welcoming speech, Wolfgang Ischinger, responsible for Governmental Relations at Allianz SE, stressed: "For Allianz, the basic idea behind introducing the visiting professorship was not so much a dynamic discussion in academic circles, but rather the link back to the wider community." As a result of Allianz's long-term involvement, an international network has been established among the 13 visiting professors. The endowed professorship has a broad social effect through the continued communication and exchange of ideas with the students and in their environment. 

This aspect was emphasized by Henning Schulte-Noelle, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Allianz SE, in his speech: "Through their research and teaching as well as their interaction with the public at large, the various guest lecturers of the Chair have built bridges towards an understanding and mutual knowledge of Islamic and Jewish culture."

Panel discussion in the Literaturhaus: David B. Ruderman, Avi Primor, Jeanne Rubner, Julian Nida-Rümelin and Sussan Babaie (f.l.t.r.)

The two-day symposium involved eleven lectures pertaining to a wide variety of branches of study: art, literature, philosophy, politics, economics and history. Each of the short lectures summarized the research of the visiting professors and their colleagues in Munich and added to the latest insights. The animated discussions following the lectures established links between different disciplines and interpretations. At the final round on Friday, the participants emphasized the positive aspects of the brief exchange of ideas and suggested that lectures by professors from the Jewish and Islamic areas should also be held together.

A public panel discussion took place in the Literaturhaus on the evening of the first day of the symposium. In front of an audience of around 200 interested residents of Munich, Avi Primor, Julian Nida-Rümelin and the two Allianz visiting professors Sussan Babaie _self and David B. Ruderman _self discussed "Utopias for living together in peace". The philosophical background to the topic, the roots in art and architecture, and very personal experiences spanned a wide range of areas.

Following the attacks on September 11, 2001, Allianz SE has sponsored a visiting professorship for Islamic and Jewish studies at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich as part of its social involvement. With this initiative, the company intends to promote knowledge of the Islamic and Jewish cultural groups and encourage dialog. One of the motives for this involvement is the conviction that many of today's international conflicts are exacerbated by a lack of understanding of cultural differences.

 
As with all content published on this site, these statements are subject to our Forward Looking Statement disclaimer.
Link to the disclaimer