6 Dec 2023 | Non categorizzato
On 7th December 1943 in Trent (Italy) Chiara Lubich pronounced her yes to God. A yes that, over time, has multiplied, generating a large family, the Focolare Movement, made up of people from different continents, ages, cultures and vocations. Chiara’s “yes” was not a vow, it was a “flight”. A flight as daring as that of Charles Lindbergh when, for the first time, he flew non-stop over the Atlantic! “Have you found your vocation?” the priest had asked her as he saw her radiant expression as she came back from the shrine of Loreto that guards the house of Nazareth. “Yes,” she answered simply. “Are you getting married?” “No.” “Are you entering a convent?” “No.” “‘Are you going to remain a virgin in the world? “No.” The bewildered priest had no other alternative to propose. It was a fourth way, the one Chiara Lubich perceived. What was it? She didn’t exactly understand it herself; it was a new way to be followed, both boldly and courageously. A few years passed. Chiara heard a voice inside saying to her: “Give yourself totally to me”. How? Where? It doesn’t matter, you just have to answer that voice. The very thought of giving herself completely to God filled her with joy. “The priest challenged her, ‘If you follow this way, you will not have a family of your own, you will not have children, you will remain alone in life…’. Alone? As long as there is a tabernacle on earth,’ Chiara said to herself, ‘I will never be alone. Didn’t Jesus promise a hundred mothers, a hundred brothers and sisters, a hundred children to those who leave everything to follow him? But in that moment Chiara was not thinking about what she would leave or what she would receive in return. She only knew that she wanted to marry God. Nothing less! Athough this young girl was only 23 years old, the priest considered that she would be able take such a daring “flight”: she was really determined, she knew what she wanted. He gave her an appointment in the chapel. But he recommended that she should spend the night in prayer, almost like ‘keeping watch’, as was the custom at the time. In her little room, Chiara took the family crucifix, kissed it and began to speak to Jesus. Shortly afterwards, her breath condensed on the figure of Jesus and she fell asleep. Early the next morning she put on her best dress. The poor people – Chiara was also poor – always have a dress for a special occasion. Outside a storm was raging, almost as if someone wanted to hold her back from such a challenging step. She went out into the wind and rain, in a decisive way. In the little church she was enveloped by silence. There was Mass, communion, her whole, total, ‘yes’ forever. She shed a tear, because she was aware that a bridge was collapsing behind her, she would never be able to go back. But the whole of her life lay ahead. She had married God and could expect everything from him. This was on the 7th December 1943. 80 years have now passed. Chiara Lubich did not remain alone. Her Spouse had her travel with him, opening up Paradise to her and allowing her to share in its beauty, as she herself would later express: “My most sweet Spouse, Heaven is so very beautiful and You, as a divine Lover, after a mystical wedding …, show me Your possessions that are also mine! (…) My God, but why? Why so much for me? Why so much Light and so much Love? Chiara did not remain alone. A large family was born around her, made up of men and women from all continents, all vocations, many cultures and religions. Her yes was fruitful, because God never lets himself be outdone in generosity. After 80 years, that ‘yes’ has multiplied and still resounds today, in a thousand ways. Storms rage, the future seems uncertain, the ‘flight’ can resemble a leap in the dark, fear paralyses… Yet that voice continues to be heard in so many people, at times faintly, at times loudly: ‘Give yourself to me, give yourself to me…’. How? Each one discovers it slowly, but it calls for an immediate and generous yes. It can be a hesitant and shy yes or a decisive yes, a small tiny yes or a great big yes…. As long as it is a yes that is sincere and authentic. In this way God continues to make himself present in the world and to build its history that will blossom into the Kingdom of heaven.
Fr. Fabio Ciardi, OMI
4 Dec 2023 | Non categorizzato
On 7th December, Pope Francis will receive in audience the President of the Focolare Movement, Margaret Karram, together with those who are responsible for the Movement in the world. At 6pm, there will be a Eucharistic celebration in the Basilica of St, Mary Major in Rome, presided over by H.E. Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life. 7th December 1943 marks the official birth of the Focolare Movement, the day on which Chiara Lubich consecrated herself to God forever. 80 years ago, a small community was born, which amidst the destruction of the Second World War wanted to rebuild peace and unity among all, and which would soon spread throughout the world, becoming part of the reality of New Charisms of the Church. At the heart of the Focolare’s spirituality and action is the Gospel and in particular Jesus’ prayer: “That all may be one” (Jn 17:21). Today the Movement is present in 182 countries, a sign of the universality and urgency of unity and fraternity in these fragmented and tragic times. It also includes Christians of various Churches, believers of numerous Religions and people without a precise religious affiliation. On 7th December next, Pope Francis will receive in audience Margaret Karram, President of the Focolare Movement, Jesús Morán, Co-President and the group of those who are responsible for the Movement. “To be received by the Holy Father on 7th December 2023, exactly eighty years after Chiara Lubich’s first ‘yes’ to God, is an extraordinary and surprising gift for us,” explains the President. “We want to bring to the Pope the love and affection of the thousands of people around the world who live the Charism of unity and renew our service to the Church in this synodal journey, in collaboration with so many others who want to contribute to peace and love to alleviate the wounds of humanity”. At 6 p.m. on the same day, in the Basilica of St. Mary Major, there will be a Mass of thanksgiving for these 80 years of Focolare life presided over by Cardinal Kevin Joseph Farrell, Prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, together with several other cardinals, bishops and priests. Margaret Karram goes on to explain, ” This day will be the conclusion of a pilgrimage that we wanted to make to some sacred and significant places in Assisi, Loreto and Rome so as to give thanks, to ask for forgiveness and to start again with courage and hope. Focolare communities around the world will also live this anniversary with the same spirit and aims, so as to be “witnesses of proximity with fraternal love that overcomes every barrier and reaches every human situation”¹.
Stefania Tanesini
[1] Talk of Pope Francis to the General Assembly of the Focolare Movement – 6 February 2021
8 Oct 2023 | Non categorizzato
The statement by the President of the Focolare Movement following the outbreak of serious violence in the Holy Land on 7 October 2023: “Justice, dialogue and reconciliation, indispensable tools for building peace”.
There are no words that can express the infinite suffering that I have in my heart for the peoples of Israel and Palestine, a suffering, brought about by this recent outburst of violence in my country. I am thinking of those who have died, the people who have been wounded, of those who are being held hostage, of those who are missing and their families. In deep faith and together with all the Focolare Movement, I am united to the appeal of Pope Francis and that of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, and to the words of peace spoken both by those who are responsible for various Christian Churches and by the leaders of the Religions -especially those from the Israeli-Palestinian region – in asking for there to be an end to arms. And as Pope Francis said at the Angelus today -that people can understand that terrorism and war don’t solve anything, but every war is a defeat. In praying to the God of Peace and of Justice, I am also united to all the people throughout the world who are offering prayers, sufferings and actions, so that peace can be victorious over hatred and terror. I want to express a special thanks to those who have written to me from places that are in conflict, like Ukraine, expressing their offerings and closeness, in spite of the tragic situation in which they themselves have been living for over a year. Let us commit ourselves to building a world of fraternity and to do all that is possible so that these peoples and all the others who are in the same conditions of instability and violence, can rediscover the pathway of respect for human rights, where justice, dialogue and reconciliation are the indispensable instruments for building peace.
8 October 2023
Margaret Karram President of the Focolare Movement
6 Oct 2023 | Non categorizzato
The 16th General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops currently taking place in the Vatican opened, on 30 September 2023, with an ecumenical prayer vigil entitled “Together – Gathering of the People of God”. Promoted by the Taizé Community in collaboration with the Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, the Vicariate of Rome, the Dicastery for the Promotion of Christian Unity and the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, the Assembly was conceived and realised by representatives of various Christian Churches. We asked to three of the Bishops present: Charles May – Anglican Church of South Africa; Bertram Meier – Catholic Bishop of Augsburg (Germany); Chrysostomos of Kyrenia, Orthodox Church of Cyprus. Activate English subtitles https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=va9sdPxfovI&list=PLKhiBjTNojHqtFwgi5TYI3T7zRvAuOZiD
29 Sep 2023 | Non categorizzato
The Synod on Synodality will start on October 4th in the Vatican up to the end of the month. Among the special guests is Margaret Karram, President of the Focolare Movement. We are on the threshold of the universal stage of the 2021-2024 Synod on Synodality. On Saturday, September 30th 2023, St. Peter’s Square in Rome (Italy) will gather thousands of people from various Christian Churches for the Ecumenical Vigil, “Together – Gathering of the People of God”, promoted by the Taizé Community in collaboration with the Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, the Vicariate of Rome, the Dicastery for the Promotion of Christian Unity and the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life. The protagonists of this event will be young people. At the end of this moment of prayer and celebration, the 464 participants in the synodal assembly will move to Sacrofano, near Rome, for a spiritual retreat until October 3rd. They will return to the Vatican for the solemn opening of the Synod with the Mass celebrated by Pope Francis on Wednesday, October 4th. Immediately afterwards, the cardinals, bishops, religious and laity who will participate in the Synod will begin their work in the Paul VI Hall. For four weeks, the members will participate in plenary assemblies, minor circles, a pilgrimage and moments of prayer and liturgy until October 29th. The President of the Focolare Movement, Margaret Karram, who is among the 9 invited guests, sent a message to all the members of the Movement in the world, expressing what she was thinking about this historic milestone in the Catholic Church: “I cannot hide my feelings from you; above all, my happiness at being able to participate in person in this moment of grace. I am aware that I am taking with me each and every one of you from the Focolare Movement and this is also a great responsibility”. “I am sure – she continues – that many of you have already participated in a stage of the synodal journey in your local churches and have already experienced some of the fruits of the journey. You will have lived them as new opportunities for a dialogue that leads to deeper and broader communion and participation. (…) In this coming session of the Synod we are called even more to ‘walk together’ as the ‘people of God’, so that this may become a permanent and daily reality in our lives for the good of the Church and of humanity”. “This has put in my heart– she says – a great desire: that we should commit ourselves – as the Focolare Movement – to improve, to go one step further, to strengthen and refine our relationships of unity, and to be builders of fraternity in every environment in which we live or work”. And she concludes by inviting everyone to accompany “this new and promising season of the Church” with prayer: “Finally, I ask you for the most important thing: to pray! ‘Without prayer there will be no Synod, said Pope Francis, as does the Secretary General, Cardinal Grech, encouraging everyone to pray with faith and seriousness. It means listeninng to God with the kind of recollection that gives space to Him and allows our hearts and minds to be illuminated by His light. (…) also as part of all the people around the world who are praying and offering , so that the Synod – whose protagonist is the Holy Spirit – may bear the greatest fruit for humanity today and in the future”.
Carlos Mana
