![United World Week 2011: weighing up visible change]()
9 May 2011 | Non categorizzato
And yet it was much more than a simple series of events around the globe: the thousands of young people from the most varied of cultures and traditions who took part in the week’s activities and projects were a visible demonstration of that united world that YPUW World (Young People for a United) live for. Even though taking an overview of each of the week’s events would be like going on a fascinating trip around the world, it would be too long to fit into one article! For now we’ll just take a quick glace at some of the activities. We’ll start from the Middle-East, a zone that’s experiencing a historical moment of change initiated by young people. The video that the YPUW from Egypt prepared (using the same title as the Meeting in Rome that kick started United World Week) was full of meaning: “Make visible change”. (link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYr664g4b6g&feature=player_embedded#at=63) 
The YPUW from Lebanon held an ‘interreligious movie night’, a sports day, an ecological project and a social development day. The social arena was also a focus point in Latin America. In Cuba, for example, the YPUW visited children who live in a shantytown in Havana that sprouted up under one of the city’s bridges. 
In Guatemala, a series of events coloured each day of World Unity Week in a different shade: Giving, Being the first to love, Dying for your People, Forgiveness, Ecology, Weaving Relationships were the various titles of the 6 days of events. Our last stop in Latin America brings us to Rosario, Argentina where two groups of 25 young people did a variety of mimes- on the footpaths at traffic lights- about building a united world! In various countries events were held for Japan in the light of the country’s natural disaster last month. In Los Angels a “Hike a thon” was held to raise funds for the population of Fukushima. In Florence there was a dance marathon and the main square of Frascati (Rome) was livened up by an open workshop on Japanese culture. 
In Goa, India, a day was dedicated to Chiara Luce Badano. The local YPUW presented the life of this young member of the Focolare- who was beatified on 25th September last- through songs, choreographies, traditional Indian dance, experiences and videos. In Chiara Luce’s home town of Sassello, with 1200 young people present and others following via internet, United World Week had its official closure. A musical called ‘Living the dream’ was preformed by a group of young people from Genoa: fruit of an exciting workshop with Gen Rosso. The musical was inspired by the life of two boys from Genoa who are also on the road to beatification: Alberto Michelotti and Carlo Grisolia. Then there was a special tour of the Badano house with Chiara Luce’s parents Ruggero and Maria Teresa. The replay of the event is available on: http://media.focolare.org/ClSMU2011.wmv. To top the day off there was an exciting announcement: Genfest 2012 will take place on 1st and 2nd of September in Budapest. Watch this space for further news on this! Detailed articles on World Unity Week can be found in Italian and Spanish on the blog: www.mondounito.net.
![United World Week 2011: weighing up visible change]()
5 May 2011 | Focolare Worldwide
(from left) Anna Fratta and Barbara Schejbal with Pope John Paul II
Before his election to Pontificate, Karol Wojtyla only knew Chiara through her writings. As soon as he became Pope he wanted to meet her. I was visiting Rome in that period and I received a phone call from the Pope’s secretary Stanislaw Dziwisc who I knew very well. He told me that the Holy Father wanted to invite Chiara and I to his mass the next day at 7. Chiara, Eli Folonari and I left very early in the morning. As you can imagine we were very excited. When we arrived we saw that the platforms for the Conclave were still in place and so we had to take a longer path to get to the Pope’s apartment. That mass in the Pope’s private chapel is still vivid in my soul. There was such a special atmosphere of recollection, a presence of God. Along with the Pope, don Stanislaw and the three of us there were only 2 or 3 Polish sisters. 
After Mass the Holy Father greeted Chiara. I still remember with what high regard and great love he addressed her. He asked if he could have a map showing the different places where the Movement was present: “So that I can know where to lean on!” he said. It was the beginning of a special friendship, of an ever stronger unity between two people called on by God to do great works, two people to whom God gave two gifts for the Church and for all of humanity”. By Anna Fratta
4 May 2011 | Non categorizzato
On the eve of Pentecost 1998 John Paul II gathered ecclesial movements and new communities to St. Peter’s Square. The Focolare Movement, represented by its founder Chiara Lubich, was amongst the participants. On that occasion Pope Wojtyla publicly recognised the role of these new realities within the Church; it was the first acknowledgment of its kind. That day Chiara committed herself before the Pope to help foster relationships of communion between movements.
Audio http://212.77.9.15/audio/ra/00259382.RM
He was truly the guardian of ecclesial movements because he recognised that the Spirit generated them for the whole Church. On that occasion, however, he also asked movements to progress from their initial stage of childhood in order to produce mature fruits of communion and commitment.
Pope Wojtyla closely accompanied the Focolare Movement throughout his pontificate…
We very often felt a particular love from him: in his glances, his greetings and also in his concrete gestures. It was his idea, for example, to give us use of the former building for General Audiences in Castel Gandolfo. It is now our Mariapolis Centre, used continuously for meetings all year round. He also visited the Movement’s International Centre where he underlined radical love as a characteristic of the Focolare Movement.
John Paul II had a personal and very deep relationship with Chiara Lubich: what was the basis for this spiritual harmony?
I believe that it was the spirituality of communion that he perceived in Chiara’s charism and witnessed in the life of the Movement. He longed for such communion to be present in the whole Church. I believe that this relationship was also due to the openness towards all men that he found in Chiara and in the whole Focolare Movement; an openness that didn’t know differences between social classes, religions, nationalities and that corresponded to his view of humanity, to his faith in the value of each man above all else.
Maria Voce, from your personal point of view, who was John Paul II and what do you think he wants to remind the Church and the whole of humanity of today?
He was a great figure in every sense and in all aspects. That which seems particularly important to me was this recognition that every man or woman is a Son or Daughter of God. This upmost dignity at a universal level lead him to favour relationships with everyone giving an impetus to all form of dialogue that the Church engages in. I was in Istanbul when he visited Patriarch Demetrius in 1979 and I remember the joy he felt in meeting this ecumenical patriarch.
I think his figure can give the Church and the world hope and trust in the action of the Holy Spirit who, in the darkest moments, takes the Church’s destiny under His wing. This was something he said and witnessed above all to the numerous young people who gathered around him because, with him, they experienced a young Church. He demonstrated this young Church, capable of giving answers to modern day man, to the whole world.
For the full interview in Italian- including the interviews with Kiko Argüello, Marco Impagliazzo, Maria Voce e Andrea Olivero- see the article : “Papa Wojtyla: le testimonianze di Kiko Argüello, Marco Impagliazzo, Maria Voce e Andrea Olivero” at:
http://www.oecumene.radiovaticana.org/it1/Articolo.asp?c=483009
And yet it was much more than a simple series of events around the globe: the thousands of young people from the most varied of cultures and traditions who took part in the week’s activities and projects were a visible demonstration of that united world that YPUW World (Young People for a United) live for. Even though taking an overview of each of the week’s events would be like going on a fascinating trip around the world, it would be too long to fit into one article! For now we’ll just take a quick glace at some of the activities. We’ll start from the Middle-East, a zone that’s experiencing a historical moment of change initiated by young people. The video that the YPUW from Egypt prepared (using the same title as the Meeting in Rome that kick started United World Week) was full of meaning: “Make visible change”. (link http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYr664g4b6g&feature=player_embedded#at=63) 
The YPUW from Lebanon held an ‘interreligious movie night’, a sports day, an ecological project and a social development day. The social arena was also a focus point in Latin America. In Cuba, for example, the YPUW visited children who live in a shantytown in Havana that sprouted up under one of the city’s bridges. 
In Guatemala, a series of events coloured each day of World Unity Week in a different shade: Giving, Being the first to love, Dying for your People, Forgiveness, Ecology, Weaving Relationships were the various titles of the 6 days of events. Our last stop in Latin America brings us to Rosario, Argentina where two groups of 25 young people did a variety of mimes- on the footpaths at traffic lights- about building a united world! In various countries events were held for Japan in the light of the country’s natural disaster last month. In Los Angels a “Hike a thon” was held to raise funds for the population of Fukushima. In Florence there was a dance marathon and the main square of Frascati (Rome) was livened up by an open workshop on Japanese culture. 
In Goa, India, a day was dedicated to Chiara Luce Badano. The local YPUW presented the life of this young member of the Focolare- who was beatified on 25th September last- through songs, choreographies, traditional Indian dance, experiences and videos. In Chiara Luce’s home town of Sassello, with 1200 young people present and others following via internet, United World Week had its official closure. A musical called ‘Living the dream’ was preformed by a group of young people from Genoa: fruit of an exciting workshop with Gen Rosso. The musical was inspired by the life of two boys from Genoa who are also on the road to beatification: Alberto Michelotti and Carlo Grisolia. Then there was a special tour of the Badano house with Chiara Luce’s parents Ruggero and Maria Teresa. The replay of the event is available on: http://media.focolare.org/ClSMU2011.wmv. To top the day off there was an exciting announcement: Genfest 2012 will take place on 1st and 2nd of September in Budapest. Watch this space for further news on this! Detailed articles on World Unity Week can be found in Italian and Spanish on the blog: www.mondounito.net.
