On February 3, 2026, the Subcommission for Interreligious Dialogue (SCDIR) of the Episcopal Commission for Mission and New Evangelization of the Episcopal Conference of Portugal (CEP) hosted an afternoon of reflection on the importance of the Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together. The event took place at the Santo Antonio dos Olivais Friary in Coimbra, Portugal.
During the meeting, it was mentioned that this historic text was signed in Abu Dhabi on February 4, 2019, by His Holiness Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmad al-TAYYIB. The document marked a significant step in interreligious dialogue and promoting peace.
The meeting featured three main lectures, followed by a closing commentary. The event was attended by distinguished speakers as well as a broad representation of bishops, delegates from various religious denominations, and lay participants from different regions of the country. His Eminence Cardinal Pierbattista PIZZABALLA, Patriarch of Jerusalem, Palestine, opened the proceedings via video link, emphasizing how the Holy Land is a “laboratory” where brotherhood is tested daily. Forcefully reiterating that “God cannot be invoked against man,” he warned against the instrumental use of God’s name to justify division, exclusion, or violence, and described this warning as being prophetic, given the current situation. He then portrayed the Middle East as a crossroads of “faiths and wounds,” where ongoing conflicts continue to challenge the vision of peace proposed by the 2019 Document.
Professor Adnane MOKRANI, a professor of Islamic Theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, pointed out how nonviolence, peace, and integral ecology are essential themes that no religion can ignore, especially in an era marked by genocide, “domicide” (the destruction of homes or living spaces), and “ecocide.” Professor Isabel CAPELOA GIL, Rector of the Catholic University of Portugal, offered further reflections on the significance of interreligious dialogue today, while Dr. Pedro VAZ PATTO, President of the National Commission for Justice and Peace, stressed the urgency of translating the principles of the Document into concrete actions within society.
Cardinal PIZZABALLA and Professor MOKRANI conducted their lectures in Italian. The entire event was broadcast live by Agência Ecclesia, a news agency of the Catholic Church in Portugal. It can be rewatched by going to: https://youtu.be/jPJMupWYakE. Despite the adverse weather conditions that affected Portugal at the time, a large number of people attended and listened attentively, reflecting the enduring importance of human fraternity for coexistence and peace in today’s world.
Friar Fabrizio BORDIN, OFM Conv.
Commission for Interreligious Dialogue in Coimbra
