The award ceremony for the book “Paolo Dall’Oglio e la Comunità di Deir Mar Musa. Un deserto, una storia” (Paolo Dall’Oglio and the Deir Mar Musa Community. A desert, a story) by Francesca Peliti was held on 2 October at Palazzo Borromeo, headquarters of the Italian Embassy to the Holy See.
Published by Effatà Editrice, the book won the fourth edition of the Ambassadors to the Holy See Literary Award. On the occasion, Ambassador Francesco Di Nitto recalled that ten years have passed since the kidnapping of Father dall’Oglio, founder of the Deir Mar Musa al-Habashi Monastery (Monastery of St. Moses the Abyssinian), and pointed out how his community has become over time a solid point of reference for dialogue between Islam and Christianity, and between the East and the West, in a context, the Syrian one, marked by a civil war that still has very serious effects in humanitarian terms.
The ceremony was attended by Alexandra Valkenburg, Head of the Delegation of the European Union to the Holy See and President of the Jury, who in her speech emphasised how the 2023 edition of the Ambassadors’ Award focused on interreligious dialogue and underlined the topicality of the message of Father Dall’Oglio, who firmly believed in equality between all, men and women.
Counsellor Gianluigi Vassallo, Head of the Near East Office at the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, also intervened, highlighting Italy’s commitment to promoting interreligious dialogue as an integral and significant part of foreign policy action. With regard to Syria in particular, Italy makes a significant contribution to humanitarian assistance and follows the principles reaffirmed by UN resolutions, maintaining a constant and constructive dialogue with key international actors.
