NEWS
2024 Spring Matriculation Ceremony
Update: April 3, 2024
On Tuesday, Aprilr 2, as the cherry blossoms begin to bloom, ICU welcomed a total of 692 new undergraduate, graduate students from within and outside Japan and exchange students from universities which have exchange student agreements with ICU at the Matriculation ceremony held in the University Chapel.
As per the tradition that has been followed for over 70 years since the founding of the University in 1953, the students' names were announced individually and all new students signed the written pledge to uphold the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in their student lives.
President Shoichiro Iwakiri gave words of encouragement to the newly gathered new students.
2024 Spring Matriculation Address by Shoichiro Iwakiri, President
A warm welcome to all of you who are entering our College of Liberal Arts and our MA and PhD programs. At the same time, I extend my warmest regards to all your family members and friends who are joining us on screen.
In the courses you will be taking at ICU, you will write many academic essays. The essay is a literary genre initiated by the French humanist, Montaigne, in the 16th century. The word "essay" originally comes from the French word meaning to "try" or to "experiment."
In his "Essays," Montaigne presents his own thoughts on a series of topics. Here he asserts that, in his writing, he does not show a polished appearance adorned with borrowed ornaments, but rather something "simple, natural, and ordinary, devoid of effort or artifice."
It is very important to have opportunities where one can show such a facet of oneself to others. The university is one such place. Of course, moderation is required:. its aim is not to reveal everything without restraint. Indeed, Montaigne himself placed conditions on this by saying, "as far as respect of the public good permits." And, as he himself noted, "My faults and natural being are described without embellishment in my works."
I hope that while maintaining appropriate moderation, each of you will freely express your opinions as individuals with your own personalities within the framework of the free, respectful, and equitable human relationships that ICU has always valued. To this end, I encourage each of you to develop your own point of view, not borrowed from others, and to express your agreements, doubts, or feelings of disagreement using simple and sincere words. I hope that, in so doing, you can discover the full extent of human and global diversity, as well as the unexpected riches this can offer, knowledge that cannot be acquired if you remain cocooned in your own shell.
It is very important to experience the various trials and tribulations of life during one's youth. In his novel, the author Proust has his character, the painter Elstir, remark as follows:
"There is no man, however wise, who has not, at some time in his youth, spoken words, or even led a life, the memory of which is unpleasant to him and which he wishes could be abolished."
Hearing this, it is likely that you too may think of things you did in your youth and regret them. People grow by experiencing things that, upon later reflection, make them feel embarrassed. Proust also says that wisdom and insight are not qualities learned from others, but rather something discovered by oneself. If one simply tries to conform to a pre-existing form of wisdom, one risks becoming a person without originality, locked into a predefined mold.
I urge each of you, during your student life, to dare to face up to various challenges, to put yourselves to the test, and, above all, to discover new facets of yourself that emerge within you. And, by dialoguing with others, please learn about different perspectives, ways of existing, and ways of feeling. This will allow you to deepen your understanding of life, of human nature, and of the world around you.
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Modern society is constantly evolving due to advances in innovation and technology. You will be required to acquire the knowledge and skills necessary to create new things and values in this changing society.
ICU has the undergraduate College of Arts and Sciences and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The word "Science" originally meant knowledge. François Rabelais, a French Renaissance humanist born about 50 years before Montaigne, wrote a novel "Pantagruel" in which King Gargantua addresses a letter to his son Pantagruel. The letter contains the famous line:
"Knowledge without conscience is solely a ruin of the soul."
The French term corresponding to "knowledge" is "science." The knowledge you will acquire at ICU is knowledge that goes hand in hand with this conscience. It is knowledge that enriches the soul, rather than ruining it.
Within the sphere of knowledge, there are some elements that become obsolete and need to be constantly updated to remain useful. This is practical knowledge. Artificial intelligence (AI) uses this type of knowledge to create images and texts, to analyze data, and to find answers in response to human commands. And of course, this knowledge is also necessary for humans in fields such as product development, marketing, and data-driven research.
On the other hand, there are elements of knowledge that mature over time. As human beings with a soul, we need knowledge that connects to our senses and acquires its own meaning and flavor through our life experience, knowledge that becomes a source of life. This type of knowledge, which is tinged with individual color and personal timbre, cannot be taught by artificial intelligence.
Through the study of liberal arts, individuals develop an intelligence that engenders logical and universal thinking, while continuing to live within their soul and serving as an inspiration, a vital breath, something that deepens over time. It is also knowledge that is linked to the environment in which one lives.
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ICU benefits from a rich natural environment. When I think about learning in this environment, I come back to a phrase that I often quote. These are also the words of Proust.
"Some name, read long ago in a book, contains among its syllables the strong wind and bright sunlight of the day when we were reading it." ("Finding Time Again", translated by Ian Patterson.)
This "name read in a book" can be replaced by the term "knowledge", or "concept." The notions of knowledge or of concept engender a universal concept that is not influenced by the individual context of each act of learning. Whether studying complex numbers on a Zoom screen or on a blackboard in the classroom, the definition of the complex number remains the same. However, when a concept or new piece of knowledge enters our mind, accompanied by the impression of the wind and light of the moment of its acquisition, it begins to take on a particular meaning in our individual memories.
I think it would be wonderful if such precious moments were scattered throughout the days you spend at ICU.
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The idea of the foundation of ICU dates back about 80 years when Pastor McLean from the state of Virginia in the United States issued a call entitled "A Suggestion - As foolish as the teaching of Jesus of Nazareth," in which he expressed the opinion that, as citizens of a country that had inflicted devastating damage on Japan during World War II, they should seek to repair that damage through the Christian spirit. This initiated a fundraising campaign in North America, which in turn led on to donations from Japanese citizens. ICU was born from this rallying passion.
According to the initial call for action, it appears that in Pastor McLean's church, it was forbidden to make a public appeal for special donations. However, without being bound by this obligation, he concluded that it would be truly exciting if, in this new age, the church could break away from conservative tradition and undertake actions to make the world more Christian. He also wrote that this would be an action taken "to destroy the seeds of future wars."
Our ICU was born out of the will and generosity of well-intentioned individuals, a will that might seem "foolish" by conventional standards. Today, you become students of this ICU. We hope that you will firmly hold in your hearts the spirit of peace and reconciliation that underlies ICU's foundation.
I hope that, through your studies of Liberal Arts at ICU, each of you will become someone who deeply understands humanity and who contributes to the construction of peace as a global citizen.