Wednesday 12 September 2018 – Lella Costa, opens the festival Molte Fedi 2018 with a speech titled “Touching Life. Pages by Adriana Zarri”, in the splendid location of Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore. The initiative is promoted by ACLI Bergamo, with the support of the Pesenti Foundation.
““What are you doing in this world, if you have no eyes, if you have no hands to touch life? What we lack are the eyes to see, the enchantment, the wonder in front of an ever-changing world, in front of a life that is always new.””
(Adriana Zarri)
Photos by Clara Mammana.
Adriana Zarri Adriana Zarri. Theologian and essayist, first woman in Italy to write a book on the theology and anthropology of prayer, determined to defend the freedom of conscience and the law on abortion as a means of defense against clandestine abortion practices, antifascist, involved in social problems.
Born in 1919 in San Lazzaro, daughter of a miller and of the daughter of a master builder. In her early years adheres to Azione Cattolica. As a journalist she worked with several newspapers including il Manifesto and participated in television programs such as Samarcanda.
In 1975 Adriana Zarri choose to live in a farmhouse in the countryside in total solitude. In a letter to communicate her decision to the friends she wrote: “My new home will in fact be a lonely old farmhouse, where I will spend the remaining years of my life in prayer and silence.”
Hermitage as a laical lifestyle choice, oriented in a monastic vocation. Live as a hermit does not mean become inaccessible or leave any contact with the world, it is not mystical ecstasy but merely an expression of the desire to live in solitude, “because in the solitude you have the time of encounter.” An encounter with God which bear witness to many literary works and essays. But friends and acquaintances are welcome: for lunch, to talk, to pray together. She take care of the earth, looks after her animals, sews her clothes.
Theologian and unconventional woman, she is difficult to label, she puts freedom in the center of her life and her faith. Adriana Zarri has not isolated from the world but she has found her way of being in the world.
Lella Costa is one of the most renowned Italian theater authors and actors. In her career, which has been marked by a strong concern for social issues, she has trod the boards of major Italian theaters. She has long been collaborating with Molte Fedi, renewing, year by year, a friendship that has been built over time on common ideas and values.
