A sailing journey across the Mediterranean to foster dialogue on peace and migration, inspired by Pope Francis, will set off in March and return in October. The initiative, Med 25 Odyssey - Bel Espoir, was unveiled at the Vatican on February 20. "We refuse to let the Mediterranean become either a battlefield or a cemetery," organizers declared.
In response to an appeal by Pope Francis during his closing speech at the Mediterranean Meetings in Marseille in 2023, 200 young people from diverse nationalities, cultures, and religions will embark on a transformative journey aboard the three-masted schooner Le Bel Espoir. From March to October, they will travel across the five shores of the Mediterranean -- North Africa, the Middle East, the Black Sea and the Aegean, the Balkans, and Europe -- stopping at around 30 ports.
Divided into eight groups of 25, the participants will engage in training sessions focused on dialogue for peace while experiencing life at sea and forming deep human connections. Upon their return, they are expected to commit to fostering peace in their communities, aligning with the initiative’s mission.
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'Conflicts, inequality and climate turning Med into a desert'
The Med 25 Odyssey - Bel Espoir initiative was officially presented at the Vatican on February 20, with cardinals Jean-Marc Aveline and Juan José Omella Omella, archbishops of Marseille and Barcelona, alongside Giuseppe Satriano, archbishop of Bari-Bitonto, in attendance.
"Today, political-religious conflicts, economic disparities, and climate instability threaten to turn the Mediterranean into an unbearable desert, scorched by greed and human folly," warned Alexis Leproux, episcopal vicar of Marseille for the Mediterranean.
"Thousands of men, women, and children are forced onto migration routes, often driven by despair as they flee war and oppression in search of a better life," he added. "Many fall victim to human trafficking, while others perish attempting to cross from one shore to another."
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'Mediterranean is also heir to happy memories'
"We are convinced that the Mediterranean," he added, "is also heir to happy memories. Its history of living together and exchange, rich in many philosophical and spiritual traditions, contains within in the key to reconciliation between populations, cultures, and religions." The vicar of Marseilles noted that, "across the entire Mediterranean, men and women of goodwill are already moving forward with many initiatives at the service of dignity for everyone and the unity of the human family."
"We are committed to taking care of our five shores so that people living here can look forward to a future of peace," he added.
"We choose a culture of face-to-face meetings for defend ourselves against the two deadly dangers of indifference and radicalism," he added.
"Through these moments spent together, through our shared stories, fears can be overcome, ties can be restored, and the will to live in peace can be reinvigorated."
According to the organizers of Med 25 Odyssey - Bel Espoir, "this peace will not come only from institutions; it will be sown in every inhabitant of our shores when the sense of belonging to the same human family grows, the awareness of a unity that transcends differences."
"Our dream is both of peace and justice," Leproux said. "But it is not only a dream. It is a concrete process in which ever more young people invest effort with their energy and talent."
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