The Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas in Rome hosted the presentation of initiatives to promote interreligious dialogue. For Olena, a Ukrainian university student, her studies are particularly useful now that she is in Italy and volunteers as an aid worker receiving other Ukrainians fleeing the war.
OLENA KOMISARENKO
Doctoral Student
It helped to me to understand the depths of the differences and the ways in which these differences can be explained and communicated to people who come over here from mostly orthodox setting to catholic.
Father Richard Gokum, a speaker from Nigeria, explained how he improved his relations with Muslim communities in a country with Boko Haram jihadists.
FR. RICHARD GOKUM
Priest, Diocese of Sokoto, Nigeria
Thanks to this conference that we organized in 2021, Shiite Muslim groups came to visit our Church...and that for me is something very important because it proves that we are starting to see fruits...it is something that has never been seen or happened before—that Muslims come to visit the Church at Christmas! And it seems to me that it's just the beginning and that it can continue.
Another speaker, Allyson, presented the project she developed in the U.S. As a student of rabbinics during the pandemic, she organized a virtual conference. It was attended by women of leadership and different faiths from all over North America.
ALLYSON ZACHAROFF
Rabbi of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College of Philadelphia
And we came together for half a day online in order to meet and to really foster these relationships, especially at a time when we couldn't be together. And it's been incredible to see how these relationships have continued to grow. We have a Facebook group with over 250 people. Seeing how these women are able to interact and really build those relationships—it's incredibly meaningful and important.
The projects presented at this event were funded by the John Paul II Center for Interreligious Dialogue and carried out at the local level.
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TR: KG
