Around 50 people representing three Christian movements / communities, worked together and shared their charisms with each other over a weekend in August in Northern Ireland. The group, made up of young and old, worked at the Corrymeela complex in Ballycastle from Friday 22nd August until Sunday 24th August.
Maria O’Sullivan from Focolare recalls: “When we saw the list of jobs to be done – we we’re a bit daunted!” However, with hard-work, co-operation and the shining sun, the list of jobs to be done was soon complete. The weekend coincided with the Golden Wedding Anniversary of Harold and Clodagh Good (Harold is a former centre director at Corrymeela) and with this in mind the theme for the weekend was: ‘Going for Gold, Digging for Gold’.
“Many elements of the weekend were Golden, whether it be finishing one job, having 5 mins of silence or finishing the dishes – each moment was golden!” remarked Conleth Burns.
On Saturday evening, each community was given the chance to talk about what they had been doing in the last year in a forum called: Communities Update. Corrymeela talked about its re-structuring and return to the purpose for which the community was founded, as they celebrated the community’s upcoming 50th anniversary. It was the moment to “look back in the hope of moving forward”.
L’Arche shared the story of its new community house in Belfast called ‘The Hearth’, a name close to the Focolare, as the Italian word “focolare” means ‘hearth’. As part of the Focolare update, Gerry Burns shared about how the Mariapolis (the annual summer gathering of Focolare) had come to Ballycastle this year – for the first time in the 40 years of the Mariapolis in Ireland. He shared some of the highlights and thanked Corrymeela for their support and help along the way.
Conleth Burns and Maria O’Sullivan shared the experience of their trip to South America. One person remarked afterwards: “You guys and what you say, give me hope, the future is in safe hands.”
They spoke about the World Person – and how to realise the vision of Chiara Lubich: “to hold in your heart the treasures of all the countries, and know how to share your treasures!” In the context of current conflicts – they asked the question: “What can we do?” The answer came to use the model of unity at work amongst their communities as a model to move forward – with meaningful dialogue among all peoples, creeds and cultures.
The weekend ended with a worship session lead by L’Arche, with the theme “You matter, no matter what!” “How many people can we say this to?” asked one participant. The answer – agreed by all – was “everyone, no matter what”.
Focolare representatives felt the weekend was a chance for them to give something back after receiving so much in the organising of our summer gathering. Leaving Corrymeela with the sun splitting the stones, the waves gently lapping below and all the weeds pulled – there was a sense of a work well done by all.
