A Bologna il Festival Francescano affronta ‘sorella morte’

The Franciscan Festival will take place in Bologna from September 24 to 27 to discuss the theme of death as a transformative passage. The event marks the 800th anniversary of the death of Saint Francis, who referred to death as a sister in his Canticle of the Creatures.

The festival brings together religious and secular speakers to address a perceived cultural lack of language regarding the end of life. Father Giampaolo Cavalli, president of the festival, said the event aims to provide a space for reflection rather than easy answers. He noted that calling death a sister recognizes human fragility as an essential part of life rather than something to be discarded.

The program includes Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, and the Apostolic Vicar of Beirut Monsignor César Essayan. Other participants include Father Guidalberto Bormolini, musician Giovanni Allevi, artist Michelangelo Pistoletto, and various cultural and scientific figures such as Javier Cercas and Stefano Nazzi.