The Cross and the Crescent

Wirt Ghawdex has the pleasure to announce it will be holding the first activity at the recently restored St. Cecilia Medieval Chapel. It will be a lecture entitled ‘The Cross and the Crescent,’ by Dr Paul George Pisani.

The title of the lecture takes its inspiration from Samuel P. Huntington’s famous book, ‘The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order.’ The Battle of Lepanto has been termed as the last crusade, but as shall be illustrated in the lecture, this much celebrated event did ‘clip the wings’ of the Turks but finally offered no enduring legacy.

The lecture, which will be presented in English, will focus on the ‘clash of civilizations’ bewteen Christianity and Islam. The role of the Order of Malta, still recovering from the 1565 siege, shall be discussed in detail. This will be done through an analysis of a yet unpublished account of the event conserved in manuscript form at the National Library of Malta.

The lecture will be accompanied by pertinent illustrations and aims to emphasise the historical roots of today’s uneasiness.

The lecture, which is open to the general public, will be held at St. Cecilia Medieval Chapel, Mgarr Road, Ghajnsielem on Friday, February the 3rd 2012, starting at 6.30pm.

Download the poster from the link above.