Conversations

John Paul II Foundation / Magazine / Conversations

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Conversations, Magazine
March 6, 2024

Chains on wrists, chains on feet, the chain as a leash. Chains have always represented the denial of the freedom we all cherish. Nelson Mandela wrote, "the chains imposed on one of us weigh on the shoulders of all." So in these days we have felt as a community, watching the images of Ilaria Salis being led and held in chains at the first hearing of the trial in which she is a defendant in Budapest, the weight of those chains, as an injustice, not because she is innocent of the crimes charged against her, but because it is not human to humiliate and treat a person that way. To us Italians those chains weigh even heavier because our feeling about human dignity is perhaps different today from that of the Hungarian people, because of our conception of the rule of law, because of our history, because of the achievements we have made, because of a Constitution that is based on the recognition and...

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Conversations, Magazine
October 26, 2023

The difficult and complicated times we are experiencing in these weeks after the inhumane attack carried out by Hamas toward Israeli civilians and the Israeli army's disproportionate and unjustifiable response toward the people of Gaza will certainly not be resolved by siding with the Israeli people or the Palestinian people. Yet all those who care about the future and the coexistence of peoples are aware that without paving the way toward the construction of two states, that small territory in our world will become the place of greatest destabilization and a human powder keg capable of breaking the already unstable balance in the Middle East, the antechamber to a war of incalculable proportions and consequences for the entire planet. The history that has passed through a land so cherished and loved by Christians, Jews and Muslims over the past 70 years is, in each of its events and occurrences, the true witness to the inability so far...

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Conversations, Magazine
October 24, 2023

My name is Christine, I am Palestinian, born and raised in Bethlehem. A few years ago I came to Italy to continue my studies and participate in a project related to conflict management and peace building. I participated in this project because I believed and still believe that peace can be built in Palestine, but to make peace first justice must be done. I have experienced wars since I was a child, I have seen the suffering, sadness, anger, resistance and strength of my people. I vividly remember the second intifada and the beginning of the construction of the apartheid wall. I lived through the Israeli occupation and the absence of freedom it caused. In Palestine to say there is no freedom is not rhetoric, it is reality. We cannot move independently from one city to another without Israel's permission. We cannot travel all the roads because some are reserved for Israelis and...

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Conversations, Magazine
October 23, 2023

Stefano Zecchi: Florentine, politician, writer and journalist has always lived in Florence. His efforts in recent years have been aimed at publicizing writers and books, through presentations that are never trivial and always well attended and in interviews, here we publish an interview of his with Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, who are holding prominent positions in the political, cultural, and ecclesial scene in Italy. Cardinal Matteo Zuppi talks about the search for peace "We look for what unites to solve what divides. Preparing the dialogue is almost more important than the dialogue itself, a bit like creating the system that can then allow the solution to be found." In his Bologna we met with Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, President of the Italian Bishops' Conference, who despite his countless commitments welcomed us with his fraternal, helpful style, a style that conveys credibility and hope. With him we addressed some issues of close relevance. Bishop Matteo, this year has been...

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Conversations, Magazine
October 19, 2023

As the catastrophic death toll and destruction caused by the Hamas attack mounts, it becomes clear how right the Israeli authorities were to speak immediately of "war." There will be a way to understand how the preparations for this war could have escaped the spies and intelligence of the Jewish state and Egypt, as well as U.S. satellites. Knowing the Israelis, inquiries will come and they will look no one in the face. Perhaps not even in that of Itamar Ben Gvir, the ultra-nationalist (understatement) Minister of National Security, who is obsessed with protecting Jewish settlements in the West Bank, his electoral base, perhaps even to the point of gutting the border with Gaza. But what matters to us now is to understand who declared it and why. Hamas, certainly. But Mohammed Deif, the military leader of Hamas, is no new Von Clausewitz. The director who provided the means, suggested the tactics, inspired the...

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Conversations, Magazine
October 3, 2023

The public has been bewildered by the rapid changes in national and European policy on the reception of migrants. From the supervised arrivals following the agreements for the European operation Sophia, to the stricter and more rational regime of the Gentiloni government, inspired by Interior Minister Marco Minniti, to the almost total closure of ports by the yellow-green government, by initiatives of Matteo Salvini, to the current situation of uncontrolled arrivals. The trouble is that there is no homogeneous European legislation to regulate the issue of immigration, although, in the past two years, at the urging of Mediterranean countries, Europe has been struggling to create a system of reception and integration that responds to the principles of international law and those of the Treaties. But, so far, with little success, given the opposition of many member states, particularly Germany and its satellites and some Eastern countries. The issue is now on the agenda because of the incessant arrivals of migrants...

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