On July 7, Pope Francis will travel to Bari, in southern Italy.
In this coastal city, the pope wants to pray for the dramatic reality faced by millions of people in the Middle East who have been wounded by wars, fundamentalism and religious persecution.
The Holy Father has called an ecumenical prayer encounter with the region's Christian leaders, whether Catholics or not.
The city of Bari is especially symbolic because it houses the relics of St. Nicholas, the saint who represents a bridge between East and West and who is also venerated in Russia.
Perhaps the common interest for peace in the Middle East and St. Nicholas serve as the framework for a new encounter between Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, this time in Bari.
