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The third Lectio Petri dedicated to Qohelet (Ecclesiastes), often referred to as the book of crisis, took place yesterday evening in St. Peter’s Basilica, at the Altare della Cattedra, under Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s Gloria.

Now in their fourth edition, the Lectio Petri are promoted by the Cortile dei Gentili Foundation and the Fratelli tutti Foundation.
Yesterday’s Lectio focused on the theme of death, introduced by the subtitle “In dust all returns,” in an intense comparison between Scripture, human experience, and radical questions of our time.

Starting from the religious relationship between life and death, between flesh and spirit, uniting the thread that holds together earthly life and eternal life, it was also an opportunity to discuss topics of great relevance today.

As always, the meeting, attended by about a thousand people, featured several moments of reflection: Father Francesco Occhetta, S.I., Secretary General of the Fratelli tutti Foundation, opened the evening with a spiritual reflection. Read it here (in Italian). This was followed by a reading by actress Nancy Brilli and commentary by H.E. Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, President Emeritus of the Pontifical Council for Culture and founder of the Cortile dei Gentili, with several musical interludes.

The final analysis was entrusted to writer Gianrico Carofiglio, who drew inspiration from the words of Father Occhetta and H.E. Cardinal Ravasi and from the biblical text to bring the delicate subject of death into today’s world.

Watch the entire meeting here (in Italian).

Reports, speeches, updates, and upcoming events are available on the websites of the Fratelli tutti Foundation and the Cortile dei Gentili. You can find the dedicated podcast on Spotify: click here to listen to it.

On February 17, the Lectio returns for the last event in this cycle. The topic will be Youth and Old Age, and the title will be: “Before the sun, the light, the moon, and the stars are darkened.” (in Italian)