Abu Dhabi Gathering Highlights St. Francis’ Legacy of Interfaith Dialogue

A gathering in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, explored how St. Francis of Assisi’s writings can inform interreligious dialogue, peacebuilding and care for creation, as the Church marks 800 years since the saint’s death, Vatican News reported.

About 50 people attended the October 19 event at the Italian Cultural Institute, held during the Week of the Italian Language in the World. The Apostolic Vicariate of Southern Arabia organized the gathering in collaboration with the Italian Embassy in the UAE and the institute.

Bishop Paolo Martinelli, apostolic vicar of Southern Arabia, said St. Francis’ writings offer an enduring witness to fraternity, peace and dialogue, with particular relevance to a region where people of different cultures and religions live alongside one another.

Opening his address with the saint’s greeting, “May the Lord give you peace,” Bishop Martinelli described St. Francis’ writings as “few and brief, but extraordinarily intense, profound, and in many ways groundbreaking.”

The texts, including rules, letters, exhortations and prayers, provide insights into the saint’s spiritual journey and the religious order he founded. Bishop Martinelli highlighted the Canticle of Brother Sun, a landmark of Italian vernacular literature that expresses St. Francis’ relationship with creation.

He said fraternity, peace and dialogue were not merely abstract ideals for the saint but values that emerged from his personal conversion and relationship with God.

St. Francis had initially aspired to a life of chivalry and military glory. His experiences of failure, war and an encounter with Christ transformed him into a man committed to peace. His decision to draw close to lepers also changed his understanding of people he had previously avoided.

“What was bitter to me became sweetness of soul and body,” Bishop Martinelli recalled from the saint’s testament.

The bishop said St. Francis’ understanding of fraternity extended to all creation. In the Canticle, the sun is addressed as brother and the moon as sister, while the saint’s praise encompasses forgiveness, patient suffering and “sister death.”

Bishop Martinelli also recalled St. Francis’ encounter with Sultan Malik Al Kamil and his instructions to fellow friars living among Muslims to avoid quarrels and disputes and approach others with humility.

Fr. Stefano Luca, director of the vicariate’s Interfaith and Ecumenical Dialogue Office, said the saint’s social witness stemmed from his relationship with God.

Although St. Francis is often associated with philanthropy, environmental protection and peacemaking, he was, above all, “a man in love with God,” Luca said.

Professor Roberto Catalano of Sophia University Institute examined connections between St. Francis and Pope Francis, particularly their emphasis on fraternity and building positive relations with the Muslim world.

Emirati artist and engineer Sheikh Ali bin Abdullah Al Mualla discussed sustainability and the Franciscan appreciation of creation, drawing on his work transforming discarded materials into functional art.

Italy’s ambassador to the UAE, Lorenzo Fanara, highlighted dialogue, mutual understanding, cultural and religious encounters, and environmental sustainability as values that continue to inform Italian foreign policy. He also recalled St. Francis’ contribution to Italian literature as one of its earliest major poets.

The gathering brought together religious, diplomatic, academic and artistic perspectives on how the saint’s legacy can contribute to dialogue and peaceful coexistence in the Gulf region.