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Dec 12, 2014 | Focolare Worldwide
“It is not a simple tuition class, or a mere opportunity to work. Udisha is much more, a real and true point of reference for children, families and entire communities.” This is what Susanna Svaluto Moreolo wrote, a young Italian Volunteer, the first one from Italy to lend her services to the project of the Focolare Movement in Goregaon, one of the slum areas of Mumbai, 400,000 inhabitants, 40 minutes by train from the city centre.
Udisha, in urdu “the ray of light that brings a new dawn” takes in more than 100 children, teens (from 4 to 22 years old) and many mothers every year: there are 60 of them inserted in the micro-credit project. It is a project born from and based on the spirituality of unity, according to the conviction of Chiara Lubich that the greatest power for social transformation lies in the Gospel lived. Concretely it involves activities after school, counseling, occupational therapy for children and teens; contributions are made to pay for school fees; production and sale of bags for the activities of micro-credit; days of conviviality and meetings organized for the parents, and financial support for the families.
«What impressed me – continued Susanna, a student – is the awareness, above all on the part of the teens, of the opportunity that this project offers them as students and as persons and, consequently, their commitment and active participation in the project itself. The teens find in Udisha a real and true second home, people in whom to confide in and on whom they know that they can rely on for help. Most importantly, in this regard, is the presence of a counselor who provides psycho-educative support for the teens and parents.
The volunteer workers carry out their daily life in Udisha, and the impression one has is that the project takes on the «central role for those who are part of it. One can grasp this from the way the children work in groups among them and on how the older ones are responsible for the younger ones, from the mothers who come to Udisha at least three times a day to accompany the children, bring them their lunch and take them back, and then to return once again to work in the project of bag-making that involves them directly. The fact that among the teachers of the tuition class after school there are also the young girls who in tha past were the beneficiaries of the project and continue to be a part of it as volunteers, is quite significant.”
An experience wherein each one can put at the service of the others that which he or she does the best, in Susanna’s case for example, it was dance: “I had the chance to teach dancing both to the teens and to the mothers, preparing them for a performance on the occasion of the feast of the independence. This involved me in a special way because it allowed me to discuss with these women, who agreed with enthusiasm to the activity, making me understand the importance of creating moments of relaxation, that allows them to pass the time and to escape, even just for awhile, from their daily routine.”
An impression before leaving the Indian subcontinent? “I believe that the experience in Udisha represents a very beautiful opportunity because it allows one to fully life the Indian reality: the hospitality, the dignity, the food, the religious aspect and the reciprocal respect for the different religions and cultures, the rituals, the weekends spent with the Hindu families of Udisha… with regards to the fear of all these aspects that I had before leaving, this experience made me forget then all.”
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Dec 10, 2014 | Focolare Worldwide
«64 years after the institution of the International Human Rights Day [10 December] and of the appeal to “all peoples of the world” launched by the United Nations General Assembly,” we, the members of UNIRedes, wish to make public our constitution on the network, in order to foster authentic partnership relations, and build a more just and fraternal world, in pursuit of total respect for human rights.» These were the opening lines of the “Manifesto” signed on the occasion of the International Day of Human Rights, by over 50 social organisations, initiatives and movements of 12 Latin American and Caribbean countries involved in UNIRedes.
What do they have in common? Commitment to social change through a culture based on brotherhood, as a social expression of Chiara Lubich’s charism of unity. They work on various fronts: the political, social, economic, intergenerational and cultural fields. Their main characteristics are: promotion of cooperation and participation of the various players involved.
The “Manifesto” expressed furthermore, the «Commitment to cultivate and spread in our environments, a culture that respects and protects the dignity, liberty and rights of every human being, and operate continually to stir up in our territory, a firm and convinced awareness of the value of each human being; spreading this vision to as many people as possible, also includes sharing with them experiences, good practices, material for the education and qualification of our members, deficiencies. for reciprocal support without geographic or idiomatic barriers, and grow in the awareness that we are all part of one family.»
In short, UNIRedes wishes to make public its willingness to cooperate and “support all those who want to work together, and therefore make justice and fraternity more visible and concrete, and as the force which can bridge the lack of dignity many people are subjected to.» This is why they are launching «a public appeal to the government institutions and organisations of civil society, and to those individuals who support initiatives and social actions, to merge and share forces, in order to build a world in which the rights of each person are not violated but protected and guaranteed.» Unite therefore, the efforts of people who have been committed for years in the existential outskirts of society in Latin America to construct a more fraternal world.
For further information: www.sumafraternidad.org (http://www.sumafraternidad.org/web/ )
Contacts: info@sumafraternidad.org (AR) / uniredes@focolares.org.br (BR)
Organisations that are members of UNIRedes:
Apadis (Asociación de Padres de Ayuda al Discapacitado) – AR
Asociación Civil Nuevo Sol – AR
Associação de Apoio à Criança e ao Adolescente (AACA) – BR
Associação de Apoio à Família, ao Grupo e à Comunidade do Distrito Federal (Afago-DF) – BR
Associação de Apoio à Família, ao Grupo e à Comunidade de São Paulo (Afago-SP) – BR
Associação Famílias em Solidariedade (Afaso) – BR
Associação Famílias em Solidariedade de Cascavel (Afasovel) – BR
Associação Nacional por uma Economia de Comunhão (Anpecom) – BR
Associação Civitas – BR
Associação Pró-Adoções a Distância (Apadi) – BR
Associação Nossa Senhora Rainha da Paz (Anspaz) – BR
Casa de los Niños – Bolivia
Casa do Menor São Miguel Arcanjo – BR
Centro de Atención Integral Las Águilas – MEX
Centro Social Roger Cunha – BR
Codeso (Comunión para el Desarrollo Social) – UY
Colégio Santa Maria – MEX
Dispensario Medico Igino Giordani – MEX
Editora Cidade Nova – BR
Fazenda da Esperança – BR
Fundación Unisol – BO
Fundación Mundo Mejor – CO
Grupo Pensar – BR
Hacienda de la Esperanza de Guadalajara – MEX
Instituto Mundo Unido – BR
Núcleo de Ação Comunitária (NAC)/Núcleo Educacional Fiore – BR
Núcleo de Ação Voluntária (NAV) – BR
Promoción Integral de la Persona para una Sociedad Fraterna – MEX
Refúgio Urbano – MEX
Saúde, Diálogo e Comunhão – BR
Sociedade Movimento dos Focolari Nordeste/Escola Santa Maria – BR
Sociedade Movimento dos Focolari – BR
Unipar (Unidad y Participación) – PY
UNIRedes operates through social initiatives also in Chile, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala and Venezuela.
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Dec 8, 2014 | Focolare Worldwide
“Vy’aguasu peteĩ ñe’ẽme” (grand feast in a sole language), the event was given this title in Guarani, which besides Spanish is also the country’s official language. Just as the hearts spoke out in joyful unison on that occasion, last 16 November, Maria Voce wrote: «With great joy I join you in celebrating the 50th anniversary of the arrival of the Ideal in your beloved land of the Guarani, and your festivities at the Mariapolis “Madre de la humanidad. We express our deep gratitude to all those who were the first tools in God’s hands … » Some of these, protagonists of the beginnings of the Movement in Paraguay, recounted their fascination in discovering the novelty and adventure in following “a light that brightens every corner of existence.” Unconditioned, concrete and demanding Evangelical love, still continues to fill the lives of these eighty-year-olds brimming with life and wisdom. 
Throughout the years, the spontaneous evangelical life of the first group gave rise to the Movement today, and is now diffused in all the main cities of the country, and like the “parable of the small seed, is now a gigantic tree which opens its branches across the world,” as Chiara Lubich had envisioned. Along the lines of the “three keywords” Pope Francis recently addressed to the members of the Focolari’s General Assembly, the day was dotted with brief reflections on “contemplation, going out and formation,” enriched by concrete and effective experiences and actions in the field of bioethics and politics, and of social inclusion. Also in Paraguay, the light of the Gospel took flesh in its culture, in such a way that it became a lifestyle of its inhabitants. And here, the roots of its inhabitants, the Guarani people, are still strong. They were the most numerous among the 20 aborigines who lived in this land for more than 5,000 years, as recent discoveries have confirmed. This naturally communitarian people lived in harmony with nature and possessed a highly marked sense of the sacredness and dignity of the human person. Diana Durán professor and scholar in History, summarised the wealth of the Guarani people’s ancestral values and made herself a spokesman for the Focolari’s proposal to rediscover these values, after centuries of oppression and contempt, and proposed them as the antidote to the anti-values threatening society today. A huge contribution came from the Synod on the Family that encouraged all to stand by others in a concrete way, to heal their wounds and relaunch the family, the pillar of Paraguayan society, still robust but increasingly undermined. 
The conferment of the “Art of Dialogue” prize, after online polls, was awarded to Mons. Adalberto Martínez Flores, for his promotions of the Multisectarian Coordinating Table of the San Pedro provinces. The multisectarian service was created through his initiative in 2010, amid a situation of great strife that beset society. Thanks to this initiative still underway, and which convoked landowners, entrepreneurs, landless farmers and social parties, important improvements were achieved in the social sector as well as in the weaker brackets. The Focolari communities spread throughout the land recounted their experiences and actions: living a life of solidarity, especially in situations of suffering. The youth and the kids. The music band was able to contaminate all with enthusiasm, while the kids of the Focolari, incredible examples of going against the “have-all here and now” attitude were the protagonists of experience-sharing moments with a hundred of their peers. Lastly, the little ones, the Gen 4, conquered all with the simplicity of their evangelical life. Seeing life spread and grow always takes us by surprise. The first followers of Chiara lubich’s ideal of unity in Paraguay can say that for 50 years they have witnessed the birth and development of dynamic Christian communities, with the typical joys and pains of a growing family. The challenges remain, but when there is unity, nothing seems impossible.
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Dec 6, 2014 | Focolare Worldwide
“I didn’t know Lionello Bonfanti. Today, not only was I impressed by his life, but I was really deeply moved.” This was one of the impressions shared at the end of the conference, “Law in Search of Justice. The Method of Lionello Bonfanti,” an enriching afternoon that was held on November 28, 2014 at the Parma Industrials Union headquarters. The conference was organised by Communion and Law, a section of the Focolare Movement that promotes the centrality of the person in the field of law, the person’s full dignity, relational skills and openness to the transcendent – as someone qualified to give the world a look that reflects the aspirations of individuals and peoples. A debate on law and justice, “led back,” as explained by Professor Adriana Cosseddu, “to a common root where justice, the guardian of relationships, exceeds the practice of law so that it becomes a sharing and ability to identify with any situation of discomfort or pain. It has a universal breadth, because it is an opportunity offered to everyone to rebuild relationships that are not based on self-interest – to use the words of the philosopher, Arendt – the capacity of entering in relationship with others and, above all, to place oneself in their place.” Magistrate Bonfanti demonstrated this right relationship between law and justice in his own life: “What emerges from his life,” states Focolare president, Maria Voce, in a message to the conference, “is how this search for justice always went beyond the mere application of norms. His seeking was focused first on relationships, on recognising the dignity of every person and placing himself in relationship with them, whether they were his own colleague, the lawyer, the chancellor, the offended party, or the one accused even of a serious offence. His commitment in seeking to apply the law in order to come not only to the truth of the case, but justice, guided him both in and outside the courtroom. Dr Mario Ricci dealt with the topic of respect for individuals and their basic rights. With entertaining stories, and constant challenges to the audience, especially those working in the legal professions, the Law Ordinary from the Intercultural Law School of the University of Parma underscored, among other things, how the Universal Declaration of Human Rights is still not taken very much in consideration and seldom applied concretely. 
The conference was formative with an audience of magistrates, lawyers and notaries, accredited by the National Foundation of Notaries and by the Council of the Order of Lawyers. Many testimonies were given to show how the methodology used by Magistrate Bonfanti in his own career is still relevant and applicable today; these were presented by lawyer Maria Giovanna Rigatelli, Prefect Mario Ciclosi and Gino Trombi, friend of Lionello. An artistic performance about Lionello Bonfanti was an unusual touch, presented by filmaker Maffino Maghensani, who used the words of Magistrate Bonfanti and background music draw everyone into Bonfanti’s inner life, profession and decision to build with every person, authentic relationships that would last. “Today,” his sister Maria Grazia Bonfanti remarked, “Lionello has truly returned to Parma. The meeting in this prestigious hall was at the level of his life and his work.”
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Dec 5, 2014 | Focolare Worldwide
During the concert tour of the Gen Rosso in Northern Italy (Monza and Brianza, from November 10 to 15) “it not only poured liters of water due to the never-ending rain, but also many graces that all those who took part in the project continue to share with us,” the 18 artists of the band upon their return wrote us. The students who were involved in the project were 120 coming from 11 different institutes: “For the first time we were able to involve so many schools.”
The project was requested and organized by the local community of the Focolare Movement, in collaboration with the “Fraternità Capitanio” (Capitaniano Fraternity) , a community of people who live the gift of fraternity according to their particular characteristic as desired by Bartolomea Capitanio, a teacher who lived in Lovere (Northern Italy) during the first ten years of the Eighteenth Century.The Capitanio Fraternity has existed in Monza since 1977 as a community that welcomes young women in difficulty who want to go through re-education and recover their personal dignity so as to become builders of life for themselves and for others. «We found ourselves immediately in harmony with them and a friendships was born that will surely remain for a long time», the Gen Rosso continued. «At the end of the project we saw that these young boys and girls understood and totally welcomed the values intrinsic in the musical “Streetlight”. They spoke of family, of inner strength, of a new faith in oneself and to see them crying upon pur departure really touched our hearts … But we left each other with an ‘arrivederci’ (see you again), certain that we would meet again!».
Some of the faces and the experiences of these teens were broadcast on channel TG3 national.
“I never thought that in one week one could really like these people a lot, and instead this is what happened,” wrote Giada. “Each one of them puts their heart into what they do. And so it is a very big grace because everyday with the mottos that they share with us, they always teach us something new and encourage us to believe in our dreams.” Giada was in the group of the hip hop combination: “If you would get the chance,” she continued – I would advice anyone to try because, according to me, it is one of the most beautiful experiences that could happen to you!”.
“In 2 days I was able to learn two choreographies and in 6 I got to know around 130 people who, putting it mildly, are stupendous, my second very much extended family.” another wrote. “You from Gen Rosso have made me grow and experience a part of my dream, you made me understand what these two words FRIENDSHIP and LOVE mean. Your teachings are like gold: unique and precious.”
Nostalgia for the experience lived, but also a great message of growth: this is what the “120 teenagers of Monza” carry in their hearts, recalling that – as the words of a song in the musical says – from now on “we will love one another’s journey”.
Dec 4, 2014 | Focolare Worldwide
«In the waters of the Sun Moon Lake, the green mountains of the central-eastern region of Taiwan are reflected.This big and beautiful island of the South China Sea was rightly named Formosa by the Portuguese sailors. Its fame attracts millions of tourists every year, also from mainland China. The steep slopes are covered with lush vegetation in the midst of which I can recognize clumps of bamboo, maybe 15 meters tall.
James Liao, a man in his forties, of a slim build like many of his countrymen, was waiting for us at the entrance of a small pier where we can sit on the stern of the Holy Love. It is a motorboat that has been recently rebuilt and he is justly proud of it: it is the only one of the whole lake that is accessible by the disabled in wheelchairs.
‘The special access port, the ramp, the special hooks to anchor wheelchairs during navigation have cost a lot, and this was one of the reasons why it wasn’t understood at the beginning. But it had to be done, if it is true that this initiative was created to overcome all forms of discrimination. This way 200 disabled people have been able to reach our camp already.’
Another instant of discrimination that James wanted to overcome was against the minority of the indigenous people inhabiting these places: the five jobs created in the camp are for them.
The camp is located in a small clearing in the flat bottom of a lovely gulf, virtually inaccessible by land. The surrounding forest and the birdsong create a striking contrast to the opposite shore of the lake, occupied by houses, roads, shops and a huge skyscraper, where the best sights are dominated by flashy five-star hotels. In the middle of the clearing there is a simple wooden house, allowing thirty young people to stayin two dormitories, and next to it there is an open-air structure that serves as a kitchen. All around, from the mountain’s side, some white pointed gazebos have been placed offering shelter from the sun or rain, depending on the circumstances; a corner is occupied by rays of black plastic crates black piled up so as to ensure that the higher ones, filled with humus, are level with the hands of a seated person: all designed to allow the disabled to also avail of the “green therapy”. The plants are well aligned and sprouting from the crates in confirmation that the therapy has been recently practiced.
By the lake, near the pier, there are some twenty lightweight metal canoes arranged in good order. ‘It is titanium, recovered 30 years ago from the carcasses of the planes of World War II by the founder of the camp, Father Richard, an American from Wisconsin who has left everything to devotehimself to us Taiwanese, beginning with the most feeble ones. Before me he was the manager of Special Need Centers (centres for disadvantaged people) of the Diocese of Taichung, and he had thought of this place to give them the opportunity to make learning experiences from which they would otherwise have been excluded. Actually I have never met him, but a short time ago I was filled with joy when I discovered one of the old documents that was precisely about a boat accessible for the disabled.’ The figure of Father Richard has played a role also in the choice of faith of James, followed by the decision to leave a well-paid job in a bank and go to study pedagogy of the disadvantaged and then work for them.
Every word of James’ transmits enthusiasm for all that means respect for the environment, care for the spirit, hospitability, and attention to others. It is really fascinating! But this is also an enterprise, so I ask for information on its economic management. ‘It is a source of great pride for us that we are now already in surplus, thanks to the revenue from the excursions and sports activities that we offer to the general public (down in the city we have two people working for us, in contact with tourist agencies). And so, instead of the diocese supporting us, as in the past, it is now us offering our profits, namely 30% of the all we get. Another 30% goes to the Centers for Social Needs, 30% is reinvested in the company and the last 10% goes to the employees, in a pattern that we have adapted from the Economy of Communion, as we want to follow its principles.’ And in order to be clear, all this is written very visibly on the billboard posted at the entrance of the boat introducing passengers to the logic of Holy Love».
Source: EoC online
