TEJO congress in central Italy
The 53rd International
Youth Congress took place at the end of July in the
beautiful town of Assisi in central Italy, birthplace of
Saint Francis. The theme of the congress was related to the
famous saint: "Man: above or part of nature?" Several
speakers analysed the theme. Father Gustavo Zanoli of the
Benedictine order explained the Christian viewpoint.
Daithí Ó hÉalaithe of Ireland, an
environmental activist and member of the Green Party in
Dublin, spoke about the roots of the ecological crisis.
Other speakers dealt with the present situation in Europe,
Umberto Broccatelli under the title "Between money and
peoples" and Harro von Blottnitz under the title "Models of
sustainable development".
But the congress did not consist only of lectures. There was a very pleasant guided walk around Assisi with explanations of the town's history from Roman times through the Middle Ages up to the recent past. The people of Assisi also presented a concert by the local Renaissance choir, for which the Esperantists expressed their thanks with a concert by Kajto, a Netherlands folk group which also has a strong following for its songs in Esperanto. It was an especially rich evening programme with an impressive musical about the life of Saint Francis and several concerts, all in Esperanto.
The participants enjoyed a beautiful and interesting week and all of them felt in their hearts for the town of Assisi and its people, struck recently by earthquakes.
