Great Britain: launch of new Focolare website

Aug 1, 2013 | Focolare Worldwide

This year the Mariapolis for Great Britain will be held in the beautiful setting of Cefn Lea in mid Wales during the period 29th July -2nd August. What is a Mariapolis? It is an event organized by the Focolare Movement and is characteristic of its spirit: it is a gathering of people of all ages and backgrounds, spending a few days together putting into practice the universal values of the Christian Gospel. The main guideline for these gatherings, which take place in many countries throughout the world, is the ‘Golden Rule’, which invites us to do to others what we would like to be done to us. It is an opportunity to experience what happens in day-to-day life when we have listening, gift of self and sharing as the basis for our relationships. During the Mariapolis in Wales, the new official website for Great Britain will be launched. Visit the new site at: www.focolare.org/gb

Pope Francis to the young people in Rio: “Go, do not be afraid, and serve”

Jul 29, 2013 | Focolare Worldwide

“Christ has confidence in young people and entrusts them with the very future of his mission, ‘Go and make disciples.’” These were the first words spoken by Pope Francis upon his arrival in Brazil, speaking before civil and religious leaders where there to welcome him. In his homily at the mass celebrated with three million people on Copacabana beach, at the conclusion of WYD, the Pope appealed to young people: “Jesus is calling you to be a disciple with a mission! Today, what is the Lord saying to us? Three simple ideas: Go, do not be afraid, and serve. Simple but engaging words, like so many other words spoken during the week in Rio de Janeiro. Now the young people return to their own cities and countries, families, groups, associations and congregations, invited by the Pope to “make some noise,” to stir up the waters, to take into account both their peers and elders, to live out the faith in its entirety. Donna from Lebanon: “The Pope’s language is simple and direct, language that is more adapted to today’s times.” Joaquin from Argentina, who followed WYD from afar: “’Making noise means’ being a force that pushes society. I really felt part of Francis’ equation: youths – elderly – adults. Today it’s the young people and so it’s up to me. I like this more general vision, which is the correct one.” Daniela (Italy): “This ‘reciprocity among generations’ to which we have been so insistently invited by Pope Francis, will be an explosive force, a mutual help. What I go away with from the WYD is the desire to live my life in a more radical way, and to go out every day, day in and day out, trying to be this window that allows the future of the world to come in!” Iggy, (New Zealand): “This WYD is push to make a revolution, to ‘win over’ other young people to a life like this. Especially because, in my country of New Zealand, there aren’t many people believing in God.” From young people of Rio de Janeiro who too part in the ecumenical and interreligious dialogue group: Fuminori (Catholic): “The WYD is the proof of what is happening in Rio among Catholics, Methodists, Baptists and others. Non-Catholics helped out foro this World Youth Day, welcoming young people into their own homes with fraternal hospitality.” Carlos (Presbyterian): “The WYD has brought a new spirit to the city. There’s music, celebrating and a tone of voice that is above institutions. These are young people of Christ. They bring a new form of religious identification that passes through institutional walls.” Fernando (Muslim): “I see the WYD as something very positive, because it allows young people from different places to talk about principles and values that are very important for everyone. It was also an encounter with God, and that always brings marvelous results for the renewal of faith in everyone.” Among the young people who have fulfilled their journey responding to the call of God, was Blessed Chiara Luce Badano. When asked if she had ever seen young people change their lives through contact with her daughter, Maria Teresa responded: “Even of those who only heard talk of her or seen her photo, they weren’t just touched by the lovely photo, but by what she was saying to them through that gaze, which expressed what was in her soul, by that fire she had within. Yesterday I was thinking to myself: ‘God certainly wishes to fulfill the plan he has in mind for each one of these young people.’ And so, let’s entrust them to her.” Maria Voce recently wrote a letter to the members of the Focolare in which she invited everyone to go to “the existential peripheries, to any place where people no longer find the centre of their being because they cannot find God. All of us, through God’s grace alone, have met Him. We are called to remain there, immersing ourselves in this disoriented humanity to bring it back to its centre,” and she went on to say: “I think that Chiara herself wanted nothing less, because since always she saw the ‘great attraction’ of ‘being lost in the crowd, in order to influence it with the divine life” [1]. Following the days in Rio, there is a new road for us to follow together. See you in Krakow! [1] Lubich, Chiara. Essential Writings (New York: New City Press, 2007), p. 213.

Learning Fraternity: the Schools in Northern Ireland

Jul 28, 2013 | Focolare Worldwide

It is March 20th 1993: in Warrington, in the English Cheshire County, the IRA launches one of its bloodiest attacks: two bombs explode within minutes from each other downtown, wounding 56 persons and killing two kids, Jonathan Ball, three years old, and Tim Perry, 12 years old, who will die, after a five-day life-and-death struggle. Already before the bomb attack, two schools, one Catholic and one Protestant, on the two principals’ initiative, tried to overcome the rigid division between Catholic and Protestant students, that usually attend separate schools. What took place inWarrington left a deep mark, creating an outrage wave, but also the will to change things. As years went by, indeed the involvement widened, and it was the turn of Belfast, capital city of Ulster, where two schools of the same suburb, one Protestant and one Catholic, started to build a mutual collaboration and brotherhood relationship. These two institutes were quickly joined by a third one from EIRE. In this way a “circle of schools” was born, where the so-called art of loving is proposed by means of the cube of love. Kevin Mc Keague is the principal at St James Catholic School (Belfast): “I heard once from Chiara Lubich that of the three ideals of the French Revolution, brotherhood was the least developed … This is true here in Belfast as well, segregated as we are in two communities … Therefore I saw in my meeting with David (the principal at the Protestant School) the opportunity to build bridges and to bring in our communities an injection of love and brotherhood.” David McConkey is the principal at the Whitehouse Protestant School (Belfast): “I was deeply convinced that education plays a fundamental role in promoting peace, through a number of initiatives where students of different religious traditions can meet face to face”. Declan O’Brien, principal at St Conleth School in the Republic of Ireland: “At first sight, I was so struck by the unity between the two schools of Northern Ireland , and by the true testimony of unity and brothe rhood between Kevin and David, that I decided I wanted to share with them their project, introducing the cube of love in my school: in this way different schools could live together the art of loving.  In 2009 the Protestant school in Belfast was completely destroyed by an arson, a tragedy shared by the other two schools, which organized together a solidarity concert, whose title was “everybody for everybody”. A lot of students with their parents from the three schools took part, together with the unionist mayor and the parish priest, both representatives of communities clearly divided, and who would normally not be invited on the same stage together. Thanking all the participants for their presence, the mayor said: “You all are giving a strong testimony in your community and in the country”. A local newspaper wrote of kids that “show us a road map”. At a certain point the concrete possibility came out, that the school could no longer be rebuilt, also due to the lack of funds. This difficulty was immediately shared among students and staff of the three schools and it was decided to organize a decent but strong protest in front of theParliamentBuilding inBelfast. The Parliament Committee for Education, composed by members of different parties, was deeply struck by this proof of solidarity. On the same day the reconstruction of the Protestant school was officially announced. In these three friendly school it was introduced the art of loving, originally proposed by Chiara Lubich as an antidote to egocentrism, discrimination, bullying. The art of loving is the original collection of a number of genuinely christian ideas, that constitute an harmonic synthesis of the different requirements of love. At the same time it reminds the idea of exercise, continuous effort, in order to make it a living and active reality. O’Brien explains us that the students put this art into practice both at school and at home, showing how this art helps them in being more tolerant, broadminded and open to others: “One of the students was sistematically made fun of by two others. This all took place, without the teachers even noticing it. There was the risk of revenge, and also of broadening the circle of hate. The proposal of putting the art of loving into practice broke this mechanism up, giving the students the courage to positively change things. The situation quickly improved”. As time went by, the communities linked to the three schools found themselves more and more united, also thanks to events like “Drums for peace”, during which students read poems, sing and display art works, whose main theme is peace … besides drumming, of course! Originally these drums were used to announce opposing groups during political rallies, now they announce peace! During “Drums for peace” a winning poem is regularly chosen. In 2010 the choice fell on the one written by Aiden Doyle (eight years old) from Belfast. It was written after some clashes risked to plung Northern Ireland back into the dark years of civil war. In those days a policeman and two soldiers were killed. With the typical kids’ naturalness Aiden writes: “That policeman who died was somebody’s father…” and asked not to turn back in the peace process. These simple and convincing words by Aiden made news and reached the news programme of the national channel giving a strong contribution to promotion and education for peace. “This is not only an educational experience”- an observer tells- “but also a social one, that teaches how to overcome boundaries, not only between different communities, between North and South, but also barriers of religion, language and culture”. Source: Northern Ireland: An agreement among three Schools, in order to rebuild fraternal relations LEARNING FRATERNITY: international conference-workshop on Education Programme, information and registration ‘Good practices’ preparing the event Castel Gandolfo (Roma) , 6 – 8 September 2013

Alejandro: A Trail of Light

Jul 26, 2013 | Focolare Worldwide

His friend Chava tells us that “Alejandro never waited to receive when he had an opportunity to give. He showed great patience with us, and waited for us as we tried to learn and live the spirituality of unity. Alejandro was killed while he was doing something worthwhile – visiting a cousin in hospital. He died while loving, as we would all like to die. I ask myself if I am really very radical in the way I live the Gospel, as radical as he was. His death is life, not darkness. It’s a strong push to live our ideal more radically, following Jesus all the way.”

On Saturday, 20 July 2013, Alejandro received the daily “password” via WhatsApp. The “password” is a brief slogan that Focolare members try to put in practice throughout the day. That day the slogan was: ‘Our final exam will be on whether we have loved our neighbour.’ He immediately responded to his friend Andrea who had sent him the password: “These are powerful words and, yes, you’re right, we have to live it.” Just a few minutes later he was at the hospital bedside of an ill cousin. Suddenly two assassins entered to murder someone, and the unfortunate witnesses of the crime were also killed.

For the Young For Unity Group in Torreon, Mexico – an area immersed in violence – it was a shocking blow, and yet they responded courageously “so that the spiritual richness would not be lost” of their friend’s life with whom they shared a commitment to give witness to universal brotherhood and to spread a culture of non-violence.

Alejandro met the young people of the Focolare in 2011. Right away he wanted to know more about the ideal that animated their lives, and he began living Jesus’ message with them. His life became a testimony of God’s love for others, in everything he did: in the family, with his friends, at work and with many other people as well.

“I knew him from when we first began this adventure,” Willie recounts, “I was very struck by his willingness and his ability to immediately put into practice every new point of the spirituality of unity that he discovered.”

“What struck me most about him,” says David, “was seeing the strong mark that he’s left in so many people. . . and also his great desire and thirst for God.”

The Gen from Torreon write: “We consider our friend, Alexander, as a martyr for the united world, and for this reason his blood is not a tragedy, but a blessing for anyone who wants to unite in the battle for peace in our region, in our country and in the world.

During these days when the World Youth Day is taking place in Brazil, Pope Francis has urged more than a million young people to be radical in the faith. Alejandro is certainly someone who did not step back, but took this invitation to heart. And he put into practice Chiara Lubich’s constant appeal to the young: “Aim high!” This is why he leaves behind such a trail of light!

WYD Rio. Holiness dressed in jeans

Jul 25, 2013 | Focolare Worldwide

Amidst a constant rainfall, wind, cold, and chaotic traffic jams the Carlos Gomes theatre of Rio de Janiero was filled with a large crowd of young people. They came from faraway places, speaking in French, Spanish, English and Brasiliera. They had come to know the beloved Chiara Luce Badano, who is described among the intercessors of the WYD as “someone who lived totally abandoned to Jesus.”

Blessed Chiara Luce Badano was born in Sassello, Italy, in 1971. The WYD website states: “At 10 years of age she had a powerful experience of meeting God, which changed her life and that of her parents. From that moment on she decided to live the Gospel in a more radical way, striving to love all the people around her. At 18 years of age she was diagnosed with bone cancer. She lived every stage of the painful illness with great courage. The prayer proposed to her by WYD: “Help me to conquer the challenges of my youth, so that I can give my life over to Jesus Christ without reserve.”

To make her better known 80 youths and young people – dancers, musicians, singers and the entire production staff – devoted themselves to the arduous task for a good six months previous to the show that was presented on July 24, 2013 at WYD Rio. They believed beyond hope that they would find the money to cover all the expenses, but the communion of goods among the Focolare community in Brazil covered the entire cost before the show was even ready.

The show is called “Holiness Dressed in Jeans,” (www.chiaraluce.org) and it presents the brief life of Blessed Chiara Luce with color, rhythm and explosions of the joy that are typical of the Brazilian land. During a few moments of such profound and unique depth, the hall fell silent as it admired this young girl who transformed suffering into love, thanks to the love of her “Spouse” – Jesus crucified and forsaken. This intense passage was represented in an engaging mime with images of personal and social suffering projected on the stage’s large backdrop.

Each of the evening shows lasted no more than an hour, leaving the young people with an incredible thirst to know more about Chiara Luce and about her life, which they could begin to do by reading the book “25 minutos” by Franz Coriasco, which they received, and by visiting the website www.chiaraluce.org.

Many in the audience left their impressions about the show: “I was converted,” “I’ve rediscovered my ideal in life,” “it was like reawakening to a more radical life,” “we are enchanted by the beauty of Chiara Luce’s life,” and there were many others.

Three shows were foreseen at the Carlo Gomes theathre, but the endless line of young people that reached around and encircled the entire block, prompted them to ask the WYD Local Organizing Committee to allow a fourth show! In a short time, in spite of logistic difficulties, and the tiredness of the actors, permission was granted. To everyone’s great joy the parents of Chiara Luce showed up at this final show – Maria Teresa and Ruggero Badano. They had been at St. Francis Hospital for the Pope’s visit, accompanied by Chicca who was a personal friend of Chiara Luce.

Each show ended with a standing ovation. But it didn’t end there. The Youth for a United World in San Paulo have asked for the show to be performed in their city as well.