What is a Research?

Newspapers in Rome have been full of news about the recent protest of a limited number of professors and students at the La Sapienza against the visit of Pope Benedict XVI. This protest centered around the argument that the Pope (and perhaps the Roman Catholic Church) is opposed to a spirit of free inquiry and research. It became clear this past Sunday, or perhaps even before, that the majority of Roman students do not hold this view. The Pope met thousands of students at the Sunday Angelus, thanking them for their support and recognition that the Catholic faith was in support a spirit of free inquiry in pursuit of the truth.
Were the protestors against the Church? Or was all of this merely a misunderstanding? Regardless, the protest seemed to have backfired as it gave the Pope and the Church a chance to publicly express their views about research and education. This debate has raged for centuries, but the supposed distinction between science/research and religion has been especially heated since the advent of research universities in the last century. Suddenly, as these protesters imply, one seems forced to choose between revealed truth and free research. Even supposedly Catholic universities feel the need to emphasize that they are a university primarily, but happen to be one that is Catholic.
Cardinal Newman defines the university in a way which renders this distinction between faith and research invalid. He suggests that the very definition of a university demonstrates that a university is supportive of catholicity and research alike. He says that a university is naturally oriented towards pursuit of the truth, all studies and research lead to a discovery of the truth. If that Catholic faith is the truth, then any truth which university research would uncover would be compatiable. In this way, it is possible that free research is enlighted by faith and directed towards it. One wonders whether these students and professors accept the existence of objective truth, or if their insistence of this facsimile of 'free research' is based on contemporary philosophy wallowing in relativism.