Lectio magistralis by H.E. Archbishop Fisichella at Fol in Fest 2026 in Piacenza

On 10 September, at the Piacenza campus of the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, the Pro-Prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization, H.E. Archbishop Rino Fisichella, delivered a lectio magistralis entitled “Man’s Ascent to Paradise.”

The event, held in the University’s Conference Hall, marked the conclusion of Fol in Fest 2026, dedicated to the theme “Training for the Ascent. The Mountain between Paradise and Hell.”

In his lecture, H.E. Archbishop Fisichella offered a reflection on the present time, marked by profound transformations and growing disorientation, highlighting the need for vigilance and humility.

Through the metaphor of Dante’s Purgatory, the Pro-Prefect presented our time as a journey of transformation and hope: “Purgatory reminds us that change is possible and that hope never abandons us.” The mountain thus becomes an image of the homo viator, called to recognize his own limitations and, precisely through them, to rise again and continue towards a higher goal.

Recalling the words with which Dante concludes the second Cantica — “pure and ready to rise to the stars” — Archbishop Fisichella emphasized the need, for contemporary humanity, to rediscover the strength to look upwards, beyond oneself, towards a hope capable of giving direction to the present and opening the way to fulfilment.