The Assisi meeting marks forty years of prayer and dialogue for peace

The Community of Sant'Egidio is organizing the international meeting "Disarmed and Disarming Peace" in Assisi from October 25 to 27, 2026. This gathering occurs forty years after the Day of Prayer for Peace called on October 27, 1986.

Cardinal Matteo Maria Timpi, President of the Italian Hierarchy, stated that religions should move beyond theoretical declarations to become agents of peace through specific actions. He noted that religions can show paths to peace by disarming hearts and preparing people for encounter, which requires internal conversion and overcoming hostility.

Andrea Riccardi, founder of the Community of Sant'Egidio, warned that war often tends to present itself as natural and inevitable.