Seventh Buddhist-Christian Colloquium kicks off in Bangkok

By Vatican News

The Seventh Buddhist-Christian Colloquium, themed “Karunā and Agape in Dialogue for Healing a Wounded Humanity and the Earth”, begins today in Bangkok, Thailand. The event is scheduled for 13-16 November 2023, at Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University in Bangkok, Thailand, announced the Vatican's Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue in a statement on Monday.

The event is a cooperative effort between the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Thailand, and the Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya Buddhist University.

The Colloquium, the statement noted, "will reaffirm friendship and reciprocal understanding built through dialogue with Buddhist partners throughout the world and, in particular, in Thailand," and "will also identify common actions to heal the wounds of humanity and the planet."

Buddhists and Christians from various countries, including Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Korea, Thailand, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom, will participate.

The inaugural session will feature greetings of good wishes from local authorities and representatives of other religions in Thailand and a tree planting ceremony, symbolizing the participants’ commitment to care and healing.