The Vatican will launch its first conference of Christians and Confucians to expand the Catholic Church’s outreach to the Asian ethical tradition. Source: National Catholic Register.
The Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue will hold the colloquium “Dialogue on the Contribution of Christianity and Confucianism to an Ideal Society: New Heaven, New Earth, and Great Unity” in South Korea from August 4–5.
The colloquium will convene clergy and scholars at Sogang University in Seoul to discuss universal fraternity, virtuous leadership, and ecological responsibility.
Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, is expected to attend along with other dicastery officials.
The event is also organised by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea.
The Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue has participated in similar conferences, including the 2025 workshop “Christians Fostering Dialogue with Confucians: Guidelines and Prospects” in Taiwan and the 2024 study group that developed guidelines for Confucian-Catholic dialogue.
Confucianism developed from the ethical teachings of the Chinese philosopher Kong Qiu (c.551 – c.479 BCE), known in the West as Confucius. He emphasised filial piety, ancestor veneration, moral self-cultivation, and harmonious social relationships rather than devotion to a creator god.
According to 2025 estimates from the World Religion Database, approximately 8.75 million Confucianists live worldwide. The largest populations are in South Korea, with 5,616,520 people; China, with 1,737,191; Myanmar, with 813,322; Thailand, with 261,330; and Japan, with 162,179.
According to Vatican News, at the 2025 workshop, Fr Paulin Batairwa Kubuya, undersecretary of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, explained that certain Confucian teachings are already consistent with Christianity.
“Christianity and Confucianism are wisdom traditions,” Fr Kubuya said. “Confucian ethics is very strong on how people should comport themselves, how to be good citizens, and how to organise their lives. We find that these aspects correspond to Christianity.”
Fr Kubaya also expressed his hope that the future of Confucian-Christian dialogue would help Christians “look at our Confucian neighbours, look at how we can develop a better way of living together, [and] how we can enrich one another.”
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Vatican to Launch First Conference of Christians and Confucians (By Ishmael Adibuah, EWTN News via National Catholic Register)
