What is Collegamento CH?
www.focolare.org/collegamentoch
https://vimeo.com/96706325
The Courage of Peace
Margaret is an Arab Christian born in Israel. She received the Mount Zion 2013 prize, together with Yisca Harani, a Jew, for “the important contribution to the development of dialogue amongst religions and cultures in the Holy Land and to understanding between Jews, Christians and Muslims”. Margaret Karram, former member of the Episcopal Commission for Interreligious Dialogue of the Assembly of Catholic Bishops of the Holy Land and collaborator with the directorate of the Interreligious Coordinating Council in Israel (ICCI), is now at the International Centre of the Focolare Movement and it was she who read the prayer of St Francis in the Christian section of the invocation for peace instigated by the Bishop of Rome with Shimon Peres and Abu Mazen, with the Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew 1 also present. We report parts of the interview she gave to Victoria Gomez of Citta Nuova. What are your impressions of this meeting? “The first was that of finding myself in an oasis of peace. I am very aware of the differences which prevent it, and yet in those two hours spent together praying, it seemed to me that while we were asking God for the gift of peace, he was given the way to see ‘from above’, so to speak, the result of human efforts. The design is obviously not yet complete, but it seemed to me like the embroidery of a rug: on the back the knots that we must untie, but the one looking at the embroidery was God and he could see the pattern. While one prayer followed the other in Hebrew and in Arabic I thought to myself: ‘God knows these prayers and understands them. He knows how to act in history.’ I could see the power of prayer and I understood that only God is capable of changing man’s heart. Our part is to have the patience of the skilled artisan. Your story is like a passport that prepared you to participate in this event … Since I was young I have always dreamed of peace. As children we asked ourselves: ‘Which is my country, where is my place, who am I?’ Now, at 50, I can’t see that dream of a fatherland any closer, but we have sown the seed and lots of them! We must continue doing so. It’s our duty to the future generations. We must pass on the certainty of a possible future, without losing hope or giving up because of the fatigue. Then yesterday was also the feast of Pentecost and the action of the Holy Spirit ‘waters that which is dry, heals that which is wounded and bends that which is inflexible …’. You were representing the Focolare Movement with a personal invitation from Pope Francis … 
Many people, from the President Maria Voce to my friends in Bethlehem and Jerusalem assured me of their support. I heard many joyful words from several Christian, Jewish and Muslim dignitaries whom I met in the Vatican Gardens. I had the impression that the Pope gave us a new encouragement to commit ourselves to peace with greater courage. I felt it also directed to us as members of the Focolare Movement: to be more present, more active, more courageous actors in undoing the ‘knots’ that we find everywhere. The Pope’s personal greeting confirmed this for me, as did other authorities I met. You were the only woman to read a prayer. How did that feel? I tried to read that prayer as a representative of humanity that believes, suffers and hopes. As women we have an important role to play for peace. One of the participants said to me: ‘It is so important that you are here. I know the rich contribution a woman can make!’ As we listened to those beautiful prayers and music I recalled the words of the Pope at the Angelus, just a few hours before: the Mother Church and the Mother Mary are ‘both mothers, both women’. And in the certainly not always harmonious emotions that vibrated in those present, you could feel the need of a mother. How do you feel the people you know in the Holy Land saw all of this? There were great expectations and now there is great hope. Obviously there will always be sceptics. Both Palestinians and Israelis say that this meeting marked a turning point that we can look to from now on and continue to do so in the future. As well as that, it was a strong sign that the Church takes on board the sufferings and hopes of all peoples. And it was a demonstration that the Holy Land has not been forgotten and that the Pope does not leave these two peoples by themselves and will walk alongside them. The event must be seen in the long term. In the meantime we must continue to weave, untying the knots committing ourselves at all levels possible, with courage and tactfulness. Many think of a long road, but we really don’t know how God acts in history. There is always hope.” Source: Città Nuova online
Bolivia: ‘Rincon de Luz’ (Corner of Light) Centre
In synthesis this is the aim of Centro Rincon de Luz, now into its third year, managed by the local Association of Unisol, in collaboration with AMU (Azione Mondo Unito) and AFN (Azione per Famiglie Nuove). To see how the project is going and to plan new developments, Anna Marenchino, from AMU’s Project section, visited Cochabamba in Bolivia. The new Principal of the centre, Mari Cruz, is one of the many people she met during the trip. Mari Cruz attended the centre herself when she was young, though it wasn’t as developed or as welcoming as it is today. She managed to finish her studies thanks to the support of ‘Help at a Distance’, a project organised by the New Families Movement. Seeing her in charge of all the studies today is a real encouragement to all the children and their families to believe that a better life is possible. “I’ve had to suffer a lot in my life,” Mari Cruz explains, “When I was small my father drank a lot and seeing him like that upset me very much. He wasn’t violent with us but he was very severe. I remember one of his punishments was to walk around the outside of the house from four in the morning until seven when it was time to go to school. The Centre was a reference point for me. They helped me with the subjects I was struggling with at school, and it happened once, would you believe it, that I was one of the best in the class! They also helped me financially to stay on at school and finish my studies. A few years later we moved house and were far from the Centre. My father was a bit better, and every weekend we would all work together with him to fix up the house. It was hard at first because we had nothing: except for light, water and a bathroom. But we didn’t complain. We would look at our father and in a reassuring tone say: ‘Don’t worry, just go to work so that tomorrow we can eat chicken!’ 
When times were hard I found the courage to start again, thanks to some people of the Focolare Movement who, besides having helped me at the Centre, gave me great support and helped me to trust again in myself and in others. I have been teaching at the Rincon de Luz Centre for a number of years now, but I just couldn’t believe it last December when they asked me to be the Principal. Did they really mean me? I said yes immediately, because I really want to help to give these children a chance, just like I was given. And now I am very happy because everything I’ve experienced, whether beautiful or sad, has made me stronger and has helped me understand other people more deeply, because I have felt their sufferings in my heart. Now I can say to the children and their families: ‘Be brave – we can all change!’ “ Source: Amu Newsletter No.2/2014 – www.amu-it.eu
Love conquers poverty
“Deep in her heart, Chiara Lubich had a dream,” said Mark Tecilla, known to history as the “first” focolarino, to an audience of several hundred people from 50 countries, representing the local communities of the Focolare Movement around the world. It was spontaneous look at the life of the city of Trent, where the charism of unity took its first steps, so as to have a light for such a gathering. “Looking from her window that overlooked the city of Trent, Chiara would have liked to solve the social problems of the city. But we weren’t strong enough for that yet. Then, in December 1947 she called everyone to the Cardinal Massaia hall to tell us something. She had noticed that within our community there were people forced to live in dire financial straits. And this was inconceivable for her. In the early Christian communities which arose in Jerusalem in the early days of the Church, – as we are told in the Acts of the Apostles – “everything was shared and there were no needy among them” because the Gospel was lived to the letter. Chiara had decided to talk about the community of goods and present all of us who formed that first community of Trent with that challenge which was both the same and different to that of the early Christians.” Did everyone have to sell all their possessions? “No. While reaching the same aim of the Christian community, each person was not asked to sell what they had and give it to the community, but to give that ‘everything’ they had and which they could do without, without harm to themselves or to their family”. 
How did this form of ‘organized’ charity work? “Each one brought any extra they had, especially in money, and pledged to donate a fixed amount established by themselves, month by month. The donor and the pledge remained secret. With the money received, Chiara asked a focolarina to help needy families in the community, monthly and secretly, guiding this delicate task with extreme charity and discretion. The aim was: to reach the point that among us there was no longer anyone in need, but everyone had enough to live on. The result of the amount donated and of the monthly pledge was totally unexpected and already in the first month was enough to help thirty families.” What did Chiara think about this? “Looking at this world of ours”, she said, “It seems impossible that nowadays it is so greedy and selfish … and yet it is so. Faced with these facts, touched and grateful, we shout out: Charity is God! And God is the Almighty. In the spirit of charity and unity (which is not mere almsgiving, but the total gift of self to the will of God) everyone could find something to give. But it is necessary, before asking people to give, to form hearts, because – unlike the early Christians – there is too much spirit of worldliness among us and disunity and indifference reign. Only a strong and deep evangelical formation can keep alive an ideal society living fraternal charity. This will certainly exist among us, because as long as we are united, Christ is in our midst, and what he builds, remains. “In fact, what was very prominent in the early days of the Focolare Movement was the importance of living the gospel.” This experience of the communion of goods did not stop at the first community of Trent, but continued over the years, both in the lifestyle choices of the members of the Focolare Movement, and in concrete actions including some in which things are circulated in a way that resembles the ancient idea of barter, with a strong dose of solidarity and social justice.
Gen Verde. Music and Faith
Put together 21 young women from 13 countries around the world and add some sound talent, cultural richness and desire to to spread a positive Gospel message. It was an extraordinary experience for our city, a grand occasion for the young people who are passionate about music and the Christian message. It was a double appointment: Friday, May 30th a workshop with young people; and Sunday, June 1st an evening concert on the square in front of the Madonna delle Grazie Shrine, at the Nazareth Oasis. The 21 women animated by the charism of the Focolare Movement sang about this passionate love, and they did it through music, modern-day music, rich in sound, echo, expressed by many nationalities and with the words of the Gospel. In these times of “ho un dono, ve lo dono” (suor Cristina at The Voice), these young women did not hesitate to live out the Gospel command to love others in the Lord and to share the invitation to follow the Master with the sounds of their guitar, drums, bass and violins. “The music is a vehicle. We can’t claim to have great talent, but we can place our talents together and see them multiply,” the young women said. 
During the workshop, they shared about some moments from their lives – some, moments of difficulty; others, uncomplicated moments of great simplicity – in which words like unity, fraternity and sharing went from being abstract theories to pleasant ongoing realities. “Every morning before beginning the day,” they explained, “we renew the pact of reciprocal love. This also means loving the other person’s idea, which might be different from mine, welcoming the creative spark in the other as we share our ideas freely. It means beginning again, giving priority to our relationships and then to our art. Whenever I’m able to put aside my idea to open myself to someone else’s idea, a whole new world of opportunities opens.” The “Start Now” project that was performed on stage in Corato, Italy, was conceived during a trip in the Holy Land where Jews, Muslims and Christians live with each other, but often without any dialogue. “It occured to us that the Arts could be a vehicle of dialogue. Mutual acceptance of one another’s talents is a way of communicating. We hold theatre workshops in the international town of Loppiano, Italy, where we live. At these workshops, which also involve song and dance, young people from all over the world are invited to share their talents through diaolgue, and experience the values of unity and brotherhood.” 
One priest remarked: “Having dealings with these women,” one priest commented, “doesn’t leave you indifferent. Many of us realised this, both Friday and Saturday. Gen Verde wished to talk in front of many young people, telling them about ordinary moments in their lives that were rendered extraordinary by an encounter with the love of the Risen Lord who came to dwell in many episodes of their lives, not always rosey episodes. He transfigured them and made them beautiful and extraordinary, to the point that they could no longer keep it to themselves.” One song refrain says: “There’s a light in me that never goes away .” Antonella D’Introno, communications director of the event on behalf of the Youth Ministry of the city, commented: “And these women revealed to us the secret for discovering again and again the enthusiasm for what we do. You always need to fix on one person in life: Jesus on the Cross who loves us immensely.” Source: Coratolive https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0qy-pyzk5bY
Stories of the Romani people
Everything began twenty years ago from one of the members of the parish, who was visited by a group of Romani children who insistently asked him to go and see the image of the Madonna in their neighbourhood that, according to them, cried. This was the first contact with the Rom community, and which led to some of the parishioners gathering together everyday to pray in this square together with the children. Despite a series of initiatives started together successfully, after two years the prayer group was dissolved; and it took ten years so that they could start the journey together once again. It was the Prayer and Mission Group “Ceferino Jiménez Malla” that gave the go signal, to meet every Monday to pray at the Grotto of Our Lady of the Valley, at the center of the square of the Rom neighborhood. «We had to overcome fear, prejudices, indifference, a refusal that was born from a wrong relationship with them,” Maria Teresa Sosa, volunteer of the Focolare Movement, shared, “but then the barriers fell, and we discovered that the Rom love to listen to the Word of God since, most of them are illiterate.” Then other members of the Focolare joined our group. “The experience would like to create a relationship through simple gestures of reciprocity, continued Maria Teresa, “to get to know each other by name, look at each other in the eyes, listen to one another, making ourselves one with the other. For example, to celebrate the birth of a child, or to visit patients in hospital. One of them was administered with the Sacrament of the Sick”. We also look for ways of inculturation, translating into prayers such as the Our Father, Hail Mary, or the Glory be into the Roma language. “When they listen to us pray the children say: ‘You are like the Rom’.” Another important step was that of celebrating together the International Romani Day, which they didn’t know about, so as to give visibility to the community. A journey continues, on the 8th of April every year also thanks to the media: the Rom community will participate regularly in a transmission on Radio Maria wherein they will share about their customs, a newspaper published a page on the experiences of the Rom Mission. The visibility that they gained allowed them to start a project to provide literacy in collaboration with an Teaching Institute of formation. 
But the bridge must also be created also on the side of the Argentinian community: in a secondary school that is found near the gypsies and with whom they have no relationship at all, a teacher tackled the topic of prejudice towards ethnic minorities, while some journalism students made a report entitled “Creoles and Rom, the start of a dialogue” (in this context the term “creoles” refers to the Argentinians). In March, at the start of the school year, a project began to save seats in the classroom for Romani children, who are often discriminated, and group participated in the day of their welcome into the school. There are many initiatives, from sewing lessons for the girls to catechism for the children, and it would be impossible to name all of them that are being done in this place. “Our desire,” she concluded, “is to create a national network of bridge.” On June 5 and 6, Maria Teresa is in Rome for the worldwide Meeting of the episcopal promoters and the national directors of Pastoral work among the gypsies, upon th einvitation of Cardinal Vegliò, president of the Pontifical Council of Itinerants and Migrants.