Guided by the commandment of Love, Catholics are invited to ―dialogue‖ with all as part of the same ―Human Family. This mission was reaffirmed by the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) as an ―integral part of the mission of the Church and a ―new way of the mission of today. Fr. Sebastiano D’Ambra, PIME, challenged by this ‖new spirit‖ of the Vatican II since 1977 started in Mindanao his mission of dialogue, giving a special attention to the dialogue with the Muslims. After few years of immersion, study, reflection, and prayer, he started the Silsilah Dialogue Movement in Zamboanga City on May 9, 1984. This new movement promotes the Culture of Dialogue as a foundation of a sustainable dialogue with God, the self, others and with creation. Guided by this spirit, Aminda E. Saño, started on February 8, 1987 the Emmaus Dialogue Community living with two other Catholic teachers, members of Silsilah, as Lay consecrated women in a poor area of the city of Zamboanga among Muslims and Christians taking the Beatitudes of Jesus as rule of life.
This new beginning was recognized by the Church in Zamboanga as a Lay private association. The spirit and mission was spread in many ways giving special attention to Catholics starting the Emmaus Lay Formation Center. Other Catholics willing to follow the same spirit and mission of Emmaus—youth, married individuals, seminarians, priests, sisters, and in general, all baptized Catholics—can share the same vocation.
In 2017, during the 30th anniversary of the Emmaus Dialogue Community it was renamed as ―Emmaus Dialogue Movement