With a $5 million pledge by philanthropist Michael Huffington, Loyola Marymount University has established the Huffington Ecumenical Institute to promote Catholic-Orthodox dialogue and understanding.

"I feel very passionate about this project," said Huffington, a member of the Greek Orthodox Church, "because my dream is that someday I'll get to see members of the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church be able to take Communion in each other's churches."

Loyola Marymount, a Jesuit institution with about 5,000 undergraduates and 3,000 graduate students, said it plans to identify another $5 million in matching funds for the institute.

The institute will sponsor ecumenical dialogues and other constructive encounters among Catholic and Orthodox theologians, religious leaders and church members. It also will develop a collection of library and Internet resources to be housed in the university's theology department under the leadership of the department chairman, Jeffrey Siker, and Jesuit Father Michael E. Engh, dean of the liberal arts college.

An institute director will be hired to work with Father Engh and Siker and develop an interdisciplinary curriculum that will explore Orthodox theology, history and culture through courses and lectures.

"In our fragmented world, Roman Catholic universities have a particular obligation to educate students to work toward greater understanding of the religious heritage we share with other Christians, particularly our Orthodox brothers and sisters," Father Engh said.

Huffington is an adult convert to the Orthodox Church. Among recipients of his philanthropical gifts have been the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, the (Episcopal) Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York and Jesuit-run Georgetown University in Washington.

---CNS