Paris: “The Court of the Gentiles” is launched

23 Mar 2011 | Focolare Worldwide

Franz Kronreif and Claretta Dal Rì are in Paris representing the Focolare Movement a week before another much awaited event: “Humanism, dialogue, fraternity– Chiara Lubich’s legacy”.

Sorbonne University, the Academie Française and UNESCO are hosts of the international convention that officially inaugurates “The Court of the Gentiles”. The idea for this permanent centre for exchange between members of the world’s religions and those with no religious affiliation came directly from Benedict XVI.

Dialogue between believers and non-believers was launched by the Vatican within the Pontifical Council for Culture.

The centre’s name took it’s inspiration from the space in the ancient Temple of Jerusalem where non-Jews, members of other religions and agnostics gathered.

The new centre is already up and running and has had its first meeting organised by the University of Bologna for dialogue among lay people. The “Court of Gentiles” is not a place for institutional debates, nor is it an attempt to create a common doctrine: it’s a space for dialogue.

Paris, emblem of secularisation, hosts the event. This new Vatican initiative aims at fostering an open exchange between believers and non-believers on issues relating to faith. “Dialogue implies exchange on rigorous issues; it must respect identity and avoid syncretism and vague corcordisms”, Mons. Gianfranco Ravasi, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, explains.

Many well-known intellectuals and public figures have already shown support for this project characterised by respect, openness to everyone and a spirit of full freedom.  Representing the Focolare for the inauguration in Paris are Claretta Dal Rì and Franz Kronreif, directors at the Movement’s international centre for dialogue with people of no religious affiliation.

This Parisian event takes place in the midst of preparations for another important meeting for believers and non-believers united by the ideal of universal brotherhood: “Humanism, dialogue, fraternity– Chiara Lubich’s legacy” will take place in Castel Gandolfo from 1^st– 3^rd April with international participation.

For further information: www.incamminodialogando.blogspot.com

http://incamminodialogando.blogspot.com/2011/03/evitare-il-fondamentalismo-e-il.html

An unforgettable day for the whole of Canada

22 Mar 2011 | Focolare Worldwide

In Canada, one of the biggest countries in the world, distances are measured in flying hours. Vancouver and Toronto are five hours apart, the same as from Rome to Mecca. That’s one reason why the meeting on Sunday March 20 will be remembered for a long time. It was a gathering of representatives of Focolare communities from all over Canada, coming from the great metropolises as well as cities like Whitehorse, in the sparsely populated territories close to the glaciers of Alaska.

That explains the air of excitement at Michael Power High School, where people from the community in West Coast Vancouver were meeting those from Toronto and Montreal in the East for the first time. This was a first for everyone, ever since the movement first came to Canada, and the reason was the presence of Maria Voce the president.

An inspiring parade of what each city had to offer was evidence of the mature fruits of the movement here over several decades, and helped to demonstrate just how rooted it is in this country. It brings people together – something very clear from the afternoon’s musical interludes – from very diverse backgrounds and from many fields of activity.

Many immigrants courageously starting again from scratch have discovered a wider family, the spiritual family of Focolare. At the same time a remarkable solidarity has developed (also through French as a common language) with the distant Caribbean island of Haiti, one of the poorest countries in the world. Many social projects on the island are supported by the movement’s communities in Canada.

The central part of the day was the meeting with Maria Voce and Giancarlo Faletti. Eighty minutes of questions and answers, touching many themes: interfaith dialogue, our relationship with young people, the life of the movement after the founder, the communion of goods. And all of this against a background of a society profoundly influenced by a secular culture.

“Even though the movement was born in a context with a strong religious tradition, it was sent by the Holy Spirit as a response for our times”, copresident Giancarlo Faletti reminded us. “Secularism has made us feel less secure, but that is an invitation to respond to it, to become active heralds of the Gospel, as bearers of something new and revolutionary.”

The mass, celebrated for the third anniversary of Chiara Lubich’s death, and presided by Bishop William McGrattan, was the grand finale for the day. “In this commemoration of Chiara,” Maria Voce reminded everyone, “we are celebrating the steps towards a united world taken here today in Canada.”

from our correspondent Paolo Lòriga

[nggallery id=21]