Pope Francis will participate in a prayer session for peace in Rome’s Colosseum later this month, the Vatican said on Tuesday.
The Community of Sant’Egidio is hosting a three-day interreligious conference dubbed “The Cry for Peace,” which includes a prayer gathering on October 25.
Since St. Pope John Paul II organized the first World Day of Prayer for Peace in Assisi, Italy, in 1986, Sant’Egidio has hosted an international conference on the topic of peace every year.
The annual gathering will take place in Rome from October 23 to 25, according to an announcement made by the Catholic community of Sant’Egidio last month.
The interfaith prayer session, which will take place in the Colosseum from 4:30 to 6:00 pm, will be the conference’s last activity. Some historians think the well-known monument was the scene of an early Christian martyrdom.
The prayer session and conference, which will include debates on “an architecture of discourse that defends and celebrates peace, everywhere and in every setting,” will be attended by representatives of the world’s main faiths.