The School of Philosophy and Letters celebrates the opening ceremony of the XXIII edition of the Senior Program

The School of Philosophy and Letters of the University of Navarra has celebrated the opening ceremony of the XXIII edition of the Senior Program, which this year is being attended by 82 people over 50 years of age. The ceremony, presided over by the Dean, Julia Pavón; the Vice President of Students, Dolores López; and the academic coordinator of the program, Rafael Escobedo, took place in the Magna classroom of the Central Building.

In her speech, the dean thanked the participants for their confidence in a project that, in her words, "sets a special milestone in the University's educational offerings, demonstrating that the desire to learn knows no age". She also stressed that the Senior Program "is a conquest of knowledge and an invitation to share knowledge with passion and freedom", and recalled that "learning should never have a selfish aim, but be a generous service to others".

On the other hand, he encouraged students to "allow themselves to be challenged by the great questions of thought and culture. In this sense, he evoked an anecdote by the English philosopher G. K. Chesterton to emphasize the value of apparently "useless" knowledge, but fundamental for human and moral training : "To know, reflect and share is a profoundly university task, and this program offers them precisely that space for meeting between generations and disciplines.

For his part, Professor Rafael Escobedo welcomed the attendees and expressed his gratitude for joining as coordinator a program "consolidated by the experience of more than two decades of work", highlighting the trajectory of his predecessor, Viviana Alegre. "From the School of Philosophy and Letters, in which the program is now embedded, we intend to continue to cultivate a rigorous, humanistic and open to dialogue learning space, where each student can continue to grow intellectually and humanly".

A historical review of Hispanic bequest in America

This was followed by the inaugural lecture given by Professor Marcelo Gullo, PhD in Political Science and professor at the National University of Lanús (Argentina). Author of books such as "Madre Patria", "Nada por lo que pedir perdón", or "Lo que América le debe a España", in his speech he dealt with the history of the Spanish presence in the American continent and its cultural, political and religious influence.

Under the degree scroll "What America owes to Spain", Professor Gullo proposed a revision of the so-called black legend and defended that Spain's action in America "was not a process of conquest and exploitation, but of miscegenation, evangelization and creation of institutions". In his speech, he affirmed that "Spain brought to America the Greco-Latin and Christian culture, which united faith and reason, spirit and thought", and maintained that "the Hispanic civilization was the only one that considered the indigenous peoples as part of the same human community".

In this regard, he highlighted the founding of hospitals, universities and schools, many of them with trilingual teaching . "Education was in Spanish, but also in the local languages - Quechua, Nahuatl, Guarani. The Spanish missionaries did not want to erase these languages, but to give them a grammar and a written form. Thanks to them, these peoples preserved their report," he explained, recalling that the Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, son of a Spaniard and a Quechua mother, was one of the first great trilingual writers in history.

In contrast to the critical views on the Spanish bequest in the American continent, he defended that "Spain carried out the most important process of cultural and human integration in history. No other European power fused its blood with that of the peoples it encountered". He also recalled that the Laws of the Indies, promulgated by Philip II, were "the first body of law that recognized the rights of native peoples and established working conditions such as the eight-hour workshop . Spain was the only empire that legislated to protect the indigenous people, and the only one that considered them as subjects of law". On the other hand, the Argentine professor vindicated the role of Spain as "the bearer of a culture that united the classical heritage with the Christian faith": "We owe to Spain not only the evangelization of a continent, but also the preservation of the very idea of human dignity that sustains our civilization".

Before concluding his speech, Gullo appealed to universities to keep alive their commitment "to the search for truth, goodness and beauty. Quoting St. Josemaría Escrivá, founder of the University of Navarra, he reminded the audience that Christians "love the world in order to transform it. Only those who speak the truth can truly love. To conclude, he invited those present to defend the history of Spain with serenity and prudence, "without complexes or silences," and to continue to cultivate a critical and free way of thinking.

Senior Program, continuing to grow

The Senior Program of the University of Navarra was born in 2003 in response to the growing interest in lifelong learning.

Aimed at people over 50 years of age interested in continuing their education and actively participating in university life, its goal is to offer a university space for intergenerational meeting , where students can continue to grow intellectually and humanly, sharing knowledge with a critical spirit and enthusiasm.

The 2025-2026 course will run from October 14, 2025 to June 2, 2026, with a dedication of four hours per week, inclassroom and online modality . Its program combines multidisciplinary thematic blocks taught by university professors and experts, with Cultural Activities Office as lectures, guided tours or excursions.