Pope Francis has encouraged those engaged in the arts to work with love, joy, and charity. He welcomed the Arena of Verona Foundation on Thursday, as it celebrates centenary celebrations for the “rebirth” of the Arena di Verona, which began in 1913 with the performance of Giuseppe Verdi’s Aida.
The Holy Father acknowledged the Arena’s 100 seasons of artistic activity at the highest level, which have collected and kept alive a legacy from the past, to hand it down to future generations.
“This is very beautiful,” he observed. “It is an intelligent, creative and concrete form of gratitude and charity.”
The Pope discussed the Arena’s multifaceted history, noting that the Arena building itself “has a history of twenty centuries, and has been preserved over time precisely because it has always been a living place.”
“How much work in all this, how much dedication and how much effort,” the Pope marveled, calling it a tribute to “those who built and rebuilt the structures, to that of the authors and artists, to that of the organisers of the various events and to that of all those, many, perhaps most, who worked, as they say, ‘behind the scenes.'”
Deborah Castellano Lubov
courtesy:Â https://www.vaticannews.va/