Chicago-area Buddhists and Catholics from the Archdiocese of Chicago got a chance to get to know one another and discuss their respective faiths’ approach to social engagement in a June visit to Castel Gandolfo, Italy. The group included Father Thomas Baima, the archdiocese’s vicar for ecumenical and interreligious affairs, along with representatives of both religious communities. They were among the delegates to an international encounter of Catholics and Buddhists with the theme of “Suffering, Liberation and Fraternity” with a keynote address by Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and an audience with Pope Francis. The June 22-27 encounter was part of the observance of the 50th anniversary of “Nostra Aetate,” the Vatican II declaration on the church’s relationship to other religions, and it embodied Pope Francis’ hope that Catholics and members of other faiths can find ways to move beyond understanding and harmony to work together on areas of social engagement. To that end, Baima said, the archdiocesan Office for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs hopes to do something like it does with other Christian churches as well as with mosques and synagogues in its parishto- parish program. That program partners Catholic parishes with congregations from other faith traditions to work on specific projects together. Two of the delegates from Chicago are already talking about ways their congregations can collaborate on projects they are already doing. Susan Pudelek, from the Shrine of Our Lady of Pompeii, 1224 W. Lexington St., and Aarti Tejuja of the Shambhala Meditation Center, 37 N. Carpenter, Chicago, have talked about what their congregations are doing and where they could work together, Baima said. Rev. Ron Miamura of the Midwest Buddhist Temple, 435 W. Menomenee St., said that some Buddhist congregations might be able do some projects with Catholic parishes, although some more monastery-based congregations might not be set up for that kind of social action. “For some of us, with the right project and the right scope, there are things we could do,” he said. Miamura said he was pleased to be invited to the encounter in Italy. “In my mind, Chicago is still a Catholic town, but we don’t really talk very much,” he said. “So an opportunity to talk is good.” While Miamura enjoyed the Catholic- Buddhist dialogue, he also appreciated the opportunity for people from different schools of Buddhism to talk with one another. “Buddhists by nature are independent, and we don’t talk to each other very much,” he said. The Archdiocese of Chicago was chosen to participate, along with the archdioceses of Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Washington, D.C., because it has a significant Buddhist population and a history of Catholic-Buddhist dialogue. In the Archdiocese of Chicago, Baima said, much of that dialogue has been done under the umbrella of the Council of the Parliament of World Religions for the last 20 years or so. Having previous relationships made it easier for participants to jump right in, Baima said. Other delegates from Chicago included Father Andrew Luczak, pastor of St. Isaac Jogues Parish, Niles, and Rev. Asayo Horibe of Heartland Buddhist Sangha, Evanston; Acharya Fleet Maull of the Midwest Buddhist Temple; Rev. Patti Nakai of the Buddhist Temple of Chicago, 1151 W. Leland Ave.; and the Venerable Man Pau, Fo Guang Shan Temple, Naperville.