This year’s Festival of Religions–an annual event launched with the intention of helping to alleviate the spread of conflict, violence and hate in today’s world–was held in Florence on 12, 15-17 May 2015.
“To become aware of our differences and examine the causes of conflict means to build peace in a concrete way.” With this lead-in, philosopher Francesca Campana Comparini, the founder of the Festival, introduced the theme of this year’s encounter, in which representatives of many different religions and also the secular world participated.
The program opened with a video message by Jerusalem’s head rabbi, Aryeh Stern, followed by a debate between the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Fouad Twal, and Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, one of the greatest living experts on the Talmud. The Patriarch of Jerusalem highlighted how the climate of chaos and violence in the Middle East and also recent events in Europe and across the globe illustrate how important it is for the world’s major religions to dialogue with one another.
The Festival was enriched by the presence of the Pope of the Coptic Church, Tawadros II (Theodore II), Patriarch of Alexandria, Egypt. Pope Theodore II, an Egyptian, is the voice of the oppressed Christians of Africa and the Mideast, where the Coptic Church is particularly strong. He was given an award that underscored the Festival’s solidarity with the many Christians who are being persecuted and martyred in our century.