EUROPE/ITALY - The "boat" of the shipwreck becomes a monument to the memory of the tragedies in the Mediterranean

Saturday, 12 June 2021 migrants   human dignity   human rights   solidarity  

Rome (Agenzia Fides) - "Thousands of people flee from wars, violence, persecutions, poverty, because they are looking for a better future and chase a dream that often turns into a nightmare, during those journeys that end in tragedy in our Mediterranean sea. Our response can only be that of responsibility and solidarity", says Father Bruno Ciceri, Scalabrinian priest and international director of the organization "Stella Maris" (former Apostolate of the Sea) to Agenzia Fides on the eve of tomorrow's ceremony June 13, in Augusta, Sicily, which will see the wreck of the shipwreck of April 18, 2015, become a "Garden of Memory". Father Ciceri recalls that the "Boat" which sank, caused the death of over a thousand migrants, in 2016 and the Italian government had the task to carry out the possible recognition of the corpses trapped inside it.
After being exhibited at the Venice Biennale of Art in 2019, for an artistic function, the wreck becomes a monument and assumes the main role of "goad of conscience, a symbol of all the tragedies, known and unknown, that have involved men, women and children forced to abandon their lands to seek a better life". The ceremony on June 13 will have an inter-religious character, retracing the history of the wreck and also the meaning of reception. It will then be included in the celebrations of the Madonna della Stella Maris with the celebration of the Eucharist, and at the end a large cross will be unveiled near the Boat. On the phenomenon of migration, Father Ciceri notes: "It is a complex phenomenon that characterizes our times, for which there are no easy recipes. The world is globalized and the poorest populations see and dream of the lifestyle of the well-to-do West. Today, phenomena such as a drought or a dictatorship in distant nations have repercussions on Europe and have an impact on migratory flows". "European governments and all of us citizens are responsible for what happens in the Mediterranean Sea and we are called to do everything possible to avoid tragedies and to save lives, according to the four verbs that Pope Francis suggested: welcome, protect, promote and integrate", remarks the Director. Finally, he concludes, "the Church, in the countries of departure, in those of transit and in those of destination, has an important role: educating consciences to respect human dignity, fighting the fear of foreigners, promoting the acceptance of others, according to the Gospel" (PA) (Agenzia Fides, 12/6/2021)


Share: