We spoke with the organizer of the Vitae Summit 2022 event, the Argentine Luis Quinelli
Pope Francis will receive a group of 25 actors and artists from around the world in a private meeting tomorrow, to talk about the beauty and culture of the meeting. This event could be the first of a series of meetings, according to what its organizer, the Argentine Luis Quinelli, explained to Aleteia.
The guests are: the actors Denzel Washington (Malcom X) and his wife Pauletta; Eduardo Verastegui (Beautiful), Jonathan Roumie (The Chosen); Jessica and David Oweloyo (selma), Edwina Findley (Get Hard), Patricia Heaton (beethoven); Hayley Atwell (Avengers).
Also film directors Darius Marder (sound of metal), Pete Docter (Inside Out) and Isaac Chung (munyurangabo), film producer Dan Lin (The Lego Movies). Lastly, the singers Marcus Mumford, Alexander Acha, Andrea Bocelli, J Balvin, Alessia Cara, the composer Bull Nene, the pianist Julio Reyes Copello and the writer Alejandro Roemmers participate.
The meeting begins on Wednesday, August 31, at the Vatican Museums, with a private visit and a moment of reflection in the Sistine Chapel, followed by dinner. And on Thursday, September 1, the Pope will sit at the table at the Academy of Sciences, in a private dialogue with the invited artists, from which the conclusions will be made public.
Positive messages that transform culture
“This is not an exclusively Catholic event, we have invited artists of various origins,” explains Luis Quinelli to Aleteia. Quinelli chairs the Vitae Global Foundation, which is supported by, among other personalities, Pope Francis himself and Queen Sofía of Spain.
It is about, he explains to Aleteia, “to start a conversation about how to get out of the current polarization, of the avalanche of negative messages; of the conflicts that we are experiencing as humanity. The media, the entertainment industry, the arts have a lot to do with it. They have a great influence on the mind, heart and spirit of the people. Art is totally connected to spirituality as well.”
“So we thought it was a very good idea. What if we put 25 famous artists, world celebrities together with the Pope, to think about how to be able to develop high-impact projects that can transform culture in this sense?», He adds.
«In recent years we have gradually lost that ability to sit at a table, totally different people; to give us the opportunity to get to know each other and in that getting to know each other, to understand the reality of each one and in that understanding the root of each one. Also find common ground, where there is at least one world in common for sure. And from that common point, begin to develop things that allow us to make a better world.
«We come from difficult years, we had a pandemic with the consequences it had and those it still continues to have. We have been experiencing some things that have hit us hard, but perhaps changing things is within the distance of starting a conversation. And that’s what this event is about.”
The Pope will sit down to talk with Denzel Washington and other artists