Religious leaders and scholars representing 14 faith traditions from 23 countries will assemble at the Vatican later this month in a historic gathering hosted by the Catholic Church to discuss how men and women complement each other in marriage. The announcement came in a press release issued today by the Vatican.
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Pope Francis will open the gathering, designated by the Vatican as a “colloquium.” The academic assembly will feature presentations and “witness testimonies” from leading religious figures and scholars. President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency will represent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and address the assembly on November 18. He will be accompanied by Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and Bishop Gérald Caussé of the Presiding Bishopric.
The gathering will also premiere six short films exemplifying the roles of men and women and marriage the world over. Each film features a variety of illuminating interviews with young and old, single and married, women and men, lay and religious, from many cultures, continents and religions. Topics range from the beauty of the union between the man and the woman to the loss of confidence in marital permanence to the cultural and economic woes that follow upon the disappearance of marriage.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints issued the following statement today regarding its participation in the colloquium in Vatican City:
"At this time of rapidly declining moral values and the challenges to traditional family structures and relationships throughout the world, we are pleased to unite with the Catholic Church, other fellow Christian denominations and other world religions in standing firm and speaking clearly about the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman."
More information is available on the colloquium at http://www.humanum.it/en/index.html.
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will provide additional information about its participation in the colloquium on MormonNewsroom.org.