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These Maltese Youths Shared A Meal With Migrant Strangers And Their Experiences Are So Uplifting

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A simple conversation, ideally over a hearty meal, can go a long way towards bridging people of totally different cultures.

With this in mind, Archbishop Charles Scicluna recently organised a dinner at the Curia for around 100 youths hailing from Malta, Africa and Asia as a means of promoting inter-cultural inclusion in the wake of the racist murder of Lasssna Cisse Souleymane.

And the accounts of some of the Maltese activists of the youth branch of Azzjoni Kattolika Maltija, show that the Good Neighbourhood dinner served its purpose.

Rosanne Buhagiar

“For the first time in my life, I was sitting around a dining table with essentially nine strangers. It felt daunting. However, after just a few minutes I realised that yes, we can communicate! In the moment we CHOOSE to open our mind and heart to getting to know each other and to share experiences together, all perceived barriers; ethnicity, culture, language, start fading away. What remains is the warmth of a human connection! I hope that both as individuals and as an organisation we choose to continue to remain open and to organise and participate in such experiences.”

Marija Cachia

“I hope that this dinner will be the first step of many that the Church will take to send out a message of solidarity and hope to out society”

Carlo del Buono

“When people of different cultures gather and share a meal, they don’t only feast on food, but on the richness of experiences and cultures that they transmit to each other.”

Karl Grech

“It was an interesting experience that served as an eye-opener of the diversity around us, of how everyone has a story to tell and of how stupid we are if we think we know everything. I want to foster this message of humility among our groups.”

Maria Zammit

“I had so much fun speaking to and getting to know new people. A person’s race, nationality, culture, language, work and education shouldn’t be obstacles that prevent you building friendships with them. People weren’t created to live by themselves but in communities of love, respect and unity.”

Rachel Vella

“The meal was very symbolic and arose in me a profound desire to see God in every human being and for us all to realise that theres more that unites us than what divides us.”

Franziska Grech

“In this beautiful moment, I felt that we were building bridges of peace. We forgot all about labels, prejudices and skin colours, things which so often block relationships from forming, and instead we appreciated the beauty of diversity, talent and courage. With a word or a smile, we started a dialogue that reminded me that everyone is a human being with their own story.”

Mikela Zerafa

“The opportunity for nine people to gather around a table for dinner may sounds simple. However, it gave us a brief moment to get to know each other, leave our prejudices behind us and share our opinions and thoughts.”

Brandon Cauchi

“An excellent initiative to sit down as different communities that have one common goal – the betterment of our country. An opportunity to shatter damaging stereotypes and misconceptions that fuel unwanted and undeserved actions towards certain communities and further increase the border of the ‘us’ and ‘them’. Opportunities like this help me realise that in reality, our common ground is broader than most people make it to be and the actual differences contribute to a healthier, more diverse society.”

Simon Borg

“I enjoyed the fact that I had the opportunity to meet people from other nations and cultures, which is important to further broaden one’s borders and acceptance towards other people.”

READ NEXT: Fight Erupts On Maltese Bus As Man Tells Woman To ‘Go Back To Her Country’

Tim is interested in the rapid evolution of human society and is passionate about justice, human rights and cutting-edge political debates. You can follow him on Instagram or Twitter/X at @timdiacono or reach out to him at [email protected]

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