http://vimeo.com/95726085 Jerusalem, May 24th: the encounter with Pope Francis and Patriarch Bartholomew recalls the historic embrace of 50 years ago between Paul VI and the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, Athenagoras I, which was the start of a new page in history following centuries of separation. We retrace this unedited page in the history of ecumenical dialogue.
Friederike and George from the Focolare community in Nigeria write: “We are finally able to write, firstly to thank everyone for the prayers that are supporting us at this critical moment for our land.”
“The double bombings in Abuja – in a very populated spot that many of us wallk through every day – and the kidnappings of the students in Borno have caused a wave of suffering and desperation among the Nigerian people. Reactions vary: fear, resignation, anger, revenge. . .”
But the witness we want to give speaks of peace: “We share the sufferings of the families of the many victims, trying to stay rooted in the present moment remembering that universal brotherhood is the only path to peace.”
“It was a providential coincidence that in the midst of this confusion, United World Week was just about to begin.” At this time every year the Young People for a United World go public with visible activities that make as many people as possible think about peace and solidarity. This year they presented the World Atlas of Fraternity.
Friederike and George tell us that in Nigeria: “Young people and other members of the local Focolare community programmed several activities both in Onitsha, Abuja and Jos. But on the day after the second bombing, we met with the community of Abuja and discussed whether or not to continue with preparations for United World Week. We unanimously agreed that now more than ever was the time to live for peace and offer hope!”
On March 14, 2014, 80 Muslims and Christians gathered in Millenium Park, Abuja, for a day focusing on “Welcoming and Brotherhood”. At noontime we paused for Time Out: a moment of prayer for peace.
That same week in Onitsha young people held a work day in an orphanage, and another day cleaning the areas around the public market. They also invited everyone to attend the final day’s events.
They write: “All of us members of the Focolare are committed with renewed faith to the Time Out For Peace ; we have a plan to send an SMS to each other at 11:55 every day. Every week we send an SMS to thousands of people from several areas of the country, with a slogan that invites us to live for peace. This is one small way to help turn public opinion towards a culture of respect for others.”
The South East of Europe is made up of a mosaic of different peoples. In Serbia, a country where the majority of the population is Christian Orthodox, there are some Catholic villages particularly near the border with Hungary, where Serbs and people of Magyar origin live together, and also gypsy and Ruthenian minorities.
Fr Jozsef Nagy got to know the spirituality of unity in 1978. When he was entrusted with the parishes of Szenta and Gornji Breg (on the border with Hungary) he began his ministry trying to put the Gospel into practice and helping others to do the same.
This is his witness: “After the fall of communism and during the Balkan wars, all the factories in the area closed and there was widespread unemployment and an economic crisis. More and more people found themselves living in poverty. Many children began fainting at school due to malnutrition – some hadn’t eaten in two or three days! Initially the teachers would bring some food from home, but then they didn’t have anything to eat as well, so the town council turned to me. In this way the Caritas group took off. It started with providing hot meals for 50 children but soon the number doubled. Then, adults were added as well.
For the past twenty years a communal kitchen has been providing a hot meal for 520 people from Monday to Friday. We take the meals to three schools for the needy children there, to an old people’s day care centre and to whoever is sick and alone. This kitchen maintains itself solely on ‘providence’: God intervenes by way of the generosity of many. Of course there are many difficulties. A number of times we were on the brink of closing, but the face of Jesus forsaken who cries out in these people, always gives us new courage to continue, believing in the love of God.”
The people who are involved in this evangelical experience develop spiritually more and more. They communicate their experiences, sharing joys and difficulties. Jozsef Varga, a married permanent deacon, who has four children, tells us: “Our group, we realize, is involved in many activities in both of the parishes, taking with us the spirit of unity. We experience this particularly when we manage to reach a unanimous decision. Some of us are on the Pastoral Council, others are catechists or working in the Parish office. Others look after the church building, the cemetery and do other charitable works. One of us is a driver; another looks after the provisions for the communal kitchen. Still others help distribute the meals.”
Eva is a nurse and is responsible for the home care of about 100 old and sick people: “I try to organize the work”, she tells us, “keeping alive the relationships both with my colleagues and the sick people, and the Word of Life is a great help in this. There are many people to visit and there is never enough time. Often I am tempted to rush things. But I discover that for these people it is important to be listened to. The knowledge that I have a community behind me keeps me going and gives me courage.”
Fr Nagy concludes: “These experiences help us experience the power that the parish community can have when we try continuously to renew ourselves and the parish by living mutual love. We see that when Jesus is present it is he who shines his light into our peripheries.”
For the opening of United World Week, teenagers from all over Portugal were welcomed to Mariapolis Arco Iris by the local band and over twenty groups that animated the afternoon with a variety of activities: judo, music (many songs written for the occasion), dance, Indonesian gamelans and 90 dancers from Cape Verde. Along with the media, several civil authorities also attended the event. Both the president and vice-president of the region attended, and numerous clergy brought youth groups from their parishes. Among them wes the head of youth ministry from the diocese of Lisbon. 
It was not only the Focolare that contributed: over 20 groups and associations gave their contribution to the Expo on Fraternity: a small living exhibit of the United World Project in which particpants were called on to share their experiences of Fraternity. A parliamentarian, a musician, an actor, a scientist and a mayor were on hand to share their expertise. The programme had five sections exploring the theme of fraternity, through music, testimonials and dance. They showed that the culture of brotherhood can be extended to all sectors of life, from the arts to the economy. An open discussion with economist Luigino Bruni turned out to be very meaningful. The workshops that followed invited the young people to become more actively involved in society, for the building of a more united world, and this was expressed in the impressions that were left by some: “Changing the world depends on us: this is the strongest impression I take with me from this day. Thank you for having given us your experience, because if we have the key for facing the difficulties, then a united world is truly possible.” “This was my first experience with the Youth for a United World. I’m amazed by this spirit of sharing, reciprocal assistance and true love that I have had the opportunity of knowing and living here. I leave here with a new life!” “In times marked by individualism and indifference, it is nice to see so many people fighting for a better world, and they don’t stop in the face of adversity. Today I realized that fraternity is truly within everyone’s reach, and takes place in daily life. It depends on me as well, to “take on the world” and try to make it better.”
Each year, the university institute which is based in Loppiano, has an open day to communicate its educational project to anyone interested in learning more about Sophia. This event took place on 2nd May and offered an opportunity to live a typical day at the university, including lessons of economics, politics, Trinitarian ontology, moments of sharing, and dialogue with teachers and students.
At the heart of it all lies the choice of a new interdisciplinary academic approach, combining study and experience, helping students from different continents to acquire a “global vision”, as explained during the presentation.
The testimonies included that of Fabio Frisian, age 23, from Messina: “After three years study of Psychological Sciences and Methods, I enrolled in Sophia. The main reason for my choice was rooted in the substantial difference that I found between the traditional academic world and a world which was not just a course of study in order to feel satisfied, but something more. It was already the end of the summer and, after my degree in psychology and an experience of volunteering in Africa, I was still undecided. The last few years had given me so many doubts: should I continue to study following a pathway in which a strong “technologizing” of knowledge and unbridled competition among students prevailed?
Fabio Frisone
I felt quite sad. Despite my desire to return to Africa, I felt that I would have to give myself time to acquire a more complete education, also in order to be able to understand, in a less superficial way, the reality of Africa. I had heard of the Sophia project and I sensed that it could be the best solution for my needs. Now, after six months of this experience, I can say it was the right decision”.
And with regard to the itinerary of Sophia, Fabio continues: “From the professors, to the students, to the staff, the IUS is a new academic pathway. At the heart of the curriculum is the opportunity to gain knowledge and develop interdisciplinary skills. The constant search for this complementarity is an essential feature of the dialogue that takes place in the classroom between the different disciplines, and also in our personal relationships. The challenge of the Institute is to experience a new way of studying and doing research, to develop culture and to share it.
This produces a specific teaching methodology: the exercise of thinking requires you not to be in a hurry and to allow time for questions, so as not to end up confused by approximate conclusions. The invitation is to ask one more question each day, to get to the roots of the problems and to rework them, abandoning ideological solutions.
Each person becomes the protagonist of social and political change, confronting the problems and endeavouring to untie the most complex knots at the service of our cities and our peoples. I feel my way of thinking is becoming more and more open. It is a commitment that is renewed every day. If what drives us is the aspiration to build universal brotherhood, we know that to fly so high we need to start from the testing ground of everyday life.”
Source: Istituto Universitario Sophia