This morning we left Ripa Roma at 6:50 am to participate in a tour from 9 am-12 noon. The sculptures, tapestries, ceiling frescoes and other works of art were amazing. The highlight was the Sistine Chapel with the frescoes by Michelangelo and Botticelli.
The feature of the sistine chapel ceiling is The Last Judgement by Michelangelo.
During the reign of Sixtus IV, a team of Renaissance painters that included Botticelli, Perugino, Ghirlandaio and Roselli created a series of frescos depicting the Life of Moses and the Life of Christ, offset by papal portraits above and tromp-l-oeil drapery below.
Back at ACU we had lunch and then heard from Diago from the Centre of Arabic and Islamic Studies about inter-religious dialogue. He focused on explaining the need for Human Universal Fraternity with an emphasis on vision, values and action. Following this we heard from Mr Claudio Beti, manager of ACU who spoke to us about his inspiring contributions to establishing the Saint Egidio Community.
In Rome, people know of the community, especially for its many forms of direct service, peacemaking efforts, its gift for friendship, its ecumenical focus and its evening common prayer services each night in two churches. The Roman members of Sant’Egidio organise evening prayer services, a restaurant that unemployed the disabled, soup kitchens, clothing shops and service guides for the homeless, ministries of presence and support to the disabled and the elderly, and work with immigrants. We in vespers before a colleague and I walked to the Trevi fountain.
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