Grant Wood, New Road, 1939
National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
| In the Nation's Capital |
| HUMAN AFFAIRS Dialogues on events that shape our world |
| OUR LOGO The inspiration for the Crossroads logo (created by Studio Norfini, Florence, Italy) is "Broadway Boogie Woogie" by Piet Mondrian, 1942-43, oil on canvas MoMA New York |
Crossroads Cultural Center was born in New York in
Fall 2004 as the initiative of four friends who are
members of Communion and Liberation, the
international movement in the Roman Catholic
Church that was founded 50 years ago by
Monsignor Luigi Giussani and was defined by Pope
John Paul II, as "one of the beautiful fruits of the
Holy Sprit for the Entire Church".
At the roots of Crossroads there is a shared interest
for culture and the desire to communicate in New
York and Washington, DC, the remarkable
vastness, openness, richness, and profundity of the
cultural life and passion for what is human that
springs from the education to the Catholic faith
taking place in Communion and Liberation.
This life in fact has given birth, among many other
initiatives, to the Meeting for friendship among
peoples, which has been held every year since
1980 in Rimini, Italy, for one week in the second half
of August and that is the most well attended summer
festival of culture, seminars, music and
entertainment in all the world. This gathering has
been a great inspiration for Crossroads.
What characterizes Crossroads Cultural Center as
Catholic cultural center is that particular ability, that
can come from the event of Christ present here and
now in His Church, to encounter people and to look
for, and give value to, everything that is true, good
and worthy of praise in all the expressions of human
life. Therefore, the suggestion of Saint Paul - "Test
everything, retain what is good" (1 Thess. 5:21) -
sums up the ideal of Crossroads much more than
any pre-determined subset of issues or people who
fall under the ‘Catholic’ label .
With this passion and with this cultural horizon , we
have begun our adventure.
Fall 2004 as the initiative of four friends who are
members of Communion and Liberation, the
international movement in the Roman Catholic
Church that was founded 50 years ago by
Monsignor Luigi Giussani and was defined by Pope
John Paul II, as "one of the beautiful fruits of the
Holy Sprit for the Entire Church".
At the roots of Crossroads there is a shared interest
for culture and the desire to communicate in New
York and Washington, DC, the remarkable
vastness, openness, richness, and profundity of the
cultural life and passion for what is human that
springs from the education to the Catholic faith
taking place in Communion and Liberation.
This life in fact has given birth, among many other
initiatives, to the Meeting for friendship among
peoples, which has been held every year since
1980 in Rimini, Italy, for one week in the second half
of August and that is the most well attended summer
festival of culture, seminars, music and
entertainment in all the world. This gathering has
been a great inspiration for Crossroads.
What characterizes Crossroads Cultural Center as
Catholic cultural center is that particular ability, that
can come from the event of Christ present here and
now in His Church, to encounter people and to look
for, and give value to, everything that is true, good
and worthy of praise in all the expressions of human
life. Therefore, the suggestion of Saint Paul - "Test
everything, retain what is good" (1 Thess. 5:21) -
sums up the ideal of Crossroads much more than
any pre-determined subset of issues or people who
fall under the ‘Catholic’ label .
With this passion and with this cultural horizon , we
have begun our adventure.
| MEMORY AND IDENTITY Exploring our heritage Testing our tradition |
| BEAUTY WILL SAVE THE WORLD Discovering the world of arts: performances and presentations |
MEETINGS AT
THE CROSSROADS
Face to face with...
THE CROSSROADS
Face to face with...
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A place where roads meet. A time of change.
| Crossroads Cultural Center is a meeting place for people who share a passion for knowing. This passion is aroused by wonder and attraction because "out there" things are, because life is given, always as a new and unexpected event that nourishes our experience. This focus on reality as event (and not on ideas) determines the "style" of our cultural work: We prize encountering people because every human being is an irreducible novelty. We want to meet them at the "crossroads" of life, regardless of any cultural, religious or social boundary. We value beauty because it sparks the wonder and attraction at the origin of human experience. We are interested in the events that shape our world because what happens always contains a suggestion, a hint that affects and may change our lives. We cherish appreciating and testing our heritage because the fabric of our life is woven from all the events that happened before us. Thus, Crossroads aims to be, above all, a place where education takes place, that is, where we may learn to look with openness, curiosity and critical judgment at every aspect of reality. |