"I know what it means to feel alone. I know the emptiness created by the absence of a greeting or a hand to hold on to. This is why celebrating the end of Ramadan here, in a place made available by the Catholic Church, becomes a moment of wonderful coexistence. For meera a dream and today it has been realized." Thus, Soumia Jabrane, 41 years old of Moroccan origins, explains the rich breakfast prepared for the end of the fasting period for Muslims, at Casa Francesco, the solidarity canteen born from the collaboration between the parishes of Canosa di Puglia, in the north of Bari.
Among the first to want it was Don Felice Bacco, parish priest of the cathedral dedicated to San Sabino. That he didn't hesitate when it came to giving help to those who don't have a home or a family but who had to respect the rules of the Koranic religion. "It was natural to allow them to respect what their religion prescribes", says Don Felice. Every evening, after sunset, the dinner offered to the Muslims was always different from the meal given to those who frequented the canteen.
"No one here must feel like a stranger, we are all equal. As Pope Francis' encyclical Fratelli tutti says, we find ourselves in the same God. Faith is different but we recognize ourselves as brothers and this is a reason for acceptance", underlines the parish priest. The festive air is felt as soon as you enter Casa Francesco: typical sweets of the Arab world, rghaif or bread fried with honey and sesame and the inevitable tea.
Sofia wears a djellaba, the typical Moroccan dress like her six-year-old son. "Those who have been to this table many times during Ramadan have told me that they have felt at home and today they can also savor the delights of our traditions", continues Soumia shortly before the prayers recited together with those celebrating the end of the Muslim holy month. "Here we felt like brothers, welcomed and for us who come from far away it's really important", she concludes.