Focolare Worldwide - Movimento dei Focolari

Education through the network to change the world

Apr 30, 2016 | Focolare Worldwide

EdU (Education in Unity), an international and interdisciplinary pedagogic and educational study group got together in Spain (Luminosa Mariapolis Centre) for a seminar on inclusion, the central theme. The Educators from Brazil, Croatia, Italy, Kenya, Burundi, Slovenia, Korea, Poland, Portugal, and certainly Spain, worked on three great threads: relationships, communities, arts and sports. Thanks to live streaming on the network, the Seminar was followed by people in many parts of the world, like Benin, with talks from Argentina, Mexico and the USA. The interesting and stimulating discourses gave a framework to the experiences in really varied fields: the “love dice” put into practice in Burundi, the relationships established in the Raggio di Sole School (Croatia), and the Sevilla Autism Association (Spain)… or the effects of education in the community, and the education community. In Argentina, for example, we have the school for the aborigine community. The outcome: it is the school that revives the traditions of these century-old cultures that risk oblivion, through laboratories for goldsmiths, and the manufacture of canvases and musical instruments. The variety of experiences presented was one of the strengths of a seminar conceived as a workshop: “here I see many people working together for the same objectives,” said one of the participants who no longer felt alone in her battles. In fact, a broader network was created, which knit the participants closer, in the certainty that “the real job has just begun.” It was also an occasion to get to know more about other international projects like Living Peace, Scholas Occurrentes and Sportmeet. As a contribution from the world of the art of education, the photographer and educator, Concha Casajús, exhibited some of her works in a video denouncing the sexual abuses perpetrated in Congo. At the end, the participants left with a greater conviction that inclusion is a lifestyle, a necessity in this complex and varied world of today, and particularly, that inclusive education is a priority in all sectors. The Seminar was preceded by a Symposium held in the Complutense University of Madrid on 22 April. Also dedicated to inclusion education, the opening speech was given by the Rector of the National University of Distance Education, Alejandro Tiana. Kishore Singh, Special Rapporteur of the United Nations on the Right to Education, contributed with a message of support to the event. The next EdU event is set for 3 and 4 June in Poland, during the International Interdisciplinary Conference on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the h.c. “Jonh Paul II doctorate in Social Sciences” awarded to Chiara Lubich by the University of Lublin.

Congo: the commitment of Youth for Peace

Apr 29, 2016 | Focolare Worldwide

Micheline Mwendike

“In the Democratic Republic of Congo – Micheline said when we met her in Castel Gandolfo (Rome) during the OnCity congress promoted by the Focolare – the differences are very evident. There are more than 400 tribes and ethnic groups, and in the cities that differ greatly from one another not only in dietary customs, there are over 800 idioms. Moreover, only in my city, Goma, there are over 200 churches of different Christian confessions, Muslim Mosques and other forms of worship.” When did the ethnic and religious differences start to become a problem? “During President Mobutu’s dictatorship, the people’s suffering from the economic, cultural and political viewpoints became enormous. And the concept of “who is the other person” with his tongue and culture, was manipulated by ideologies that have led to the belief that other peoples’ cultures have to be eliminated. And so in 1992, tribal wars began in the villages. Today, those who are less than 24 years of age have no idea of what peace means, since they have only seen war and the damages wrought by it. All of us, in fact, have lost members of our families. But the war has not only destroyed our cultures which still exist, with all their beauty. We, the youth, try to live the spirituality of unity. We want to create the bonds that unite us and make us complete one another.” You are involved in a youth movement for peace in Congo, how do you go about it? “It is a movement of action formed by Congolese youth. We aspire a society that respects the dignity of people and social justice. Our country is rich but its inhabitants are poor. We want to concretely help in building Congo. We are convinced that the change should start from us, the Congolese people, without distinctions between tribes, languages, or religions. In this sense we work to make the population aware of its potentials and duties. I myself, concretely work for change, and I feel stronger, and a protagonist of change. Also thanks to access to information and friendships established with people of various tribes, I realized that there are good and bad people in all groups, and that some of the leaders are to blame for having exploited hatred.” What is your specific contribution as a youth movement? “We try to let the people know the truth about the facts and life of the country. For example: we denounced a massacre for which the government did not conduct any investigation to find the culprits, or did not even try to protect the population of the zone that was attacked. We organized discussion groups on important issues like peace, and the role of the international community and the youth, and try to set the basis for building our future together. We want to spread the conviction that the solutions can be found in cooperation amongst all. We, the youth, find it difficult to understand the reason for the chain of violence which has devastated the country for so many years. It is easier for us to understand that tribal belonging is one of the many aspects of peoples’ identities. The message we want to give is that our respective differences must not be regarded as a motive for division but as a positive factor which makes humanity richer. “

Pope Francis’s words at the “Earth Village”

Apr 27, 2016 | Focolare Worldwide

Photo: Lorenzo Russo

“Hearing you speak, two images came to my mind: the desert and the forest. I thought: these people, all of you, take the desert to transform it into a forest. You go to where the desert is, to where there is no hope, and do things that make the desert turn into a forest. The forest is full of trees, it’s full of greenery, but too disordered. . . but that’s how life is! And passing from a desert to a forest is quite a job that you do. You transform deserts into forests! Then, you see what things in the forest can be put in order. . . But there is life there [in the forest], not here: in the desert there is death. There are so many deserts in the cities, so many deserts in the lives of people who have no future, because there’s always – and I underscore a word that you spoke about here – always there is prejudice and fear. And these people must live and die in the desert, in the city. You do the miracle with your work of changing the desert into a forest: carry on with what you are doing! But what is your work plan? I don’t know. You get close and see what you can do. And this is life! You take life as it comes, like the goal keeper in football: he catches the ball from wherever it’s thrown. . . from here, from there. . . You aren’t afraid of life, afraid of conflict. Somebody once told me – I don’t know if it’s true, I haven’t verified it . . . if somebody wants to verify it they can – that the word “conflict” in Chinese is written with two signs: one sign that means ‘risk’, and another sign that means ‘opportunity’. Conflict, it’s true, is a risk but it’s also an opportunity.

Photo: Lorenzo Russo

We can take conflict as something we should stay away from: ‘No, there’s conflict there. I’ll stay away from it.’ We Christians know well what the Levite did, what the priest did, with the poor man who fell on the road. They crossed the street so they wouldn’t see, so they wouldn’t be close to him (see Lk. 10:30-37). Those who don’t risk can never get close to the reality, to know the reality. But even to know with the heart, it’s also necessary to get close. And to get close is a risk, but also an opportunity for me and for the person I get close to; for me and for the community I get close to. I’m referring to the testimonies you have given; for instance, in the prisons and with all your work. Conflict. Never, never turn away in order not to see a conflict. Conflicts have to be assumed, evils have to be assumed to resolve them. The desert is ugly, whether it is the one in the heart of all of us, or whether it is the one in the city, in the peripheries: it’s something ugly. Also the desert that is in gated communities. . . It’s ugly, the desert is also there. We mustn’t be afraid to go into the desert to transform it into a forest: there’s exuberant life there, and you can go and dry many tears so that everyone can smile. That Psalm of the People of Israel when they were in prison in Babylon makes me think so much: ‘We cannot sing our songs, because we are in a foreign land’. They had instruments there with them, but they didn’t have any joy because they were hostages in a foreign land. But when they were liberated, the Psalm says, ‘we couldn’t believe it, our mouths were filled with smiles and laughter’ (see Psalm 137). This is how it is in this passage from the desert to the forest, to life, there’s a smile. I give you a task to do ‘at home’. One day, look at people’s faces when you go along the street: they’re worried, everyone is closed in on himself. The smile isn’t there, the tenderness isn’t there. In other words, social friendships, social friendship isn’t there. Where there’s no social friendship there’s always hatred, war. Look at the geographic map of the world and you’ll see this. Instead, social friendship that most often has to be made with forgiveness – the first word – with forgiveness. Most often it is made by getting close: I’ll get close to that problem, to that conflict, to that difficulty as we have just heard these courageous teenagers do in the places where there is gambling and so many people lose everything there, everything, everything. I’ve seen elderly women in Buenos Aires going to the bank to receive their pensions and immediately to the casino! Get close to the place of conflict. And these youngsters go, they approach, they get close. And there’s another thing that has to do with play, with sport and also with art. It’s gratuitousness. Social friendship is made in gratuitousness, and this wisdom of gratuitousness is learnt: it’s learnt through play, through sport, through art, through the joy of being together, of getting close. And this word, gratuitousness, is a word that must never be forgotten in this world in which it seems that if you don’t pay you can’t live, in which it seems that the man and the woman that God created precisely to be at the centre of the world, to be also at the centre of the economy, has been thrown out and we have at the centre a lovely god, the god of money. Now the god of money is at the centre of the world, and those who can draw near to adore this god, they draw near. . . and those who can’t end in hunger, disease, exploitation. . . Just think of the exploited children and young people. Gratuitousness is the key word, gratuitousness that leads me to give my life as it is, I go with others and make this desert become a forest. Gratuitousness, this is something beautiful! And forgiveness, forgiveness also, because with forgiveness rancour, resentment goes away. And then building up, always building up and never destroying. So these are the things that come into my mind. And how are you doing this? Simply in the awareness that we all have something in common, we’re all human. And within this humanity we get close to one another, to work together. ‘But I belong to this religion, of that religion. . .’ It doesn’t matter! Everyone steps up to work together. Respect one another, respect one another! And so we’ll see this miracle: the miracle of a desert that becomes a forest. Thank you so much for all that you do! Thank you.” Earth Day 2016 Pope Francis’s words at the “Earth Village” Rome, Italy, Villa Borghese Sunday, April 24, 2016 Source: Vatican.va Pope Francis at the Mariapolis https://vimeo.com/164066584 https://vimeo.com/164233694

Europe on the move

Apr 27, 2016 | Focolare Worldwide

Encounter, Reconciliation, and Future, are three words that encompass the significance of the meeting in Munich at the Karlsplatz (Stachus),which was promoted by over 300 movements and communities of different Christian Churches. The objective is: to reflect together on the challenges that Europe faces, in the light of the testimonials of the network which is hidden at times, but very active and representing that part of society which commits itself to hospitality and solidarity for the most disadvantaged and weaker sections of society, so as to bridge the east and west, and overcome open or underlying conflicts. “What message does Europe have to give to the world?” When posed this question, the reply of the Focolare President, Maria Voce, concerned the objectives of the IPE: “The experience of these 2,000 years of Christianity brought about the maturation of ideas, culture, life, and actions that are necessary in the world today, and which unfortunately have not been evidenced. This is also because what is highlighted in Europe nowadays, are the difficulties, dramas, walls, and intolerance. Therefore, the good that exists is not manifested.“In the Evangelii Gaudium, Pope Francis speaks of the ‘invisible cities’ and the “connective network in which people share a common imagination, dreams about life, new human interactions that arise, and new cultures” (EG 74). «But right after this– Jesús Morán, Focolare Co-President explains – the Pope says that these invisible cities and territorial subcultures create a sort of ambivalence, and that subcultures practice segregation, violence and criminal activities. And so through fraternity inspired by love» which is the core of the message of the IPE, “We would like to show that in the good reigns in the invisible cities, and where there are virtuous practices, refugees are welcomed, and communion exists.” What are thus the expectations for this edition of the European meeting which is precisely on the eve of the 500^th-year anniversary of the Reform, in a particular conjunction which sees the continent in a progressive crisis, also because of its incapacity to respond to the crisis of the migrants? We discussed it with Ilona Toth – from Hungary – and Diego Goller – an Italian, who on behalf of the Focolare Movement personally took part in the preparation for the Together for Europe event. «Recently the Orientation Committee of IEP met at the Roman headquarters of the Sant’Egidio Community, where the various movements leading this pathway converge. It was an opportunity to have another confrontation and trace an outline of our ideas. A year before the 500^th anniversary of Luther’s Reform (1517-2017), we would like to show that a network of united Christians already exists, and is working among various movements and Churches», Diego Goller said. «We try to move ahead of the times and to show that in this Togetherness there is unity reached, not institutionally or theologically, but in its essence and substantial reconcilement: “500 years of division ” is, in fact, the title of one of the moments of the meeting. We are also guided by what Pope Francis and Patriarch Kirilli said in their joint declaration that the Christians of Eastern and Western Europe should unite to testify to the Gospel together.» «This is political action in the most noble sense of the term,» Ilona Toth affirmed. «The aim is to show all the good there is. Together for Europe’s prophecy lies in its name. Together is the gift of fraternity among us Christians, and on a broader range, with people of other religions and cultures. Then there comes the political side where Togetherness is achieved: charisms give concrete responses also to the political issues of cities.» And she concluded: «In Munich, we would like to show this stream of goodness which is already being put into action, and is also the fruit of the values of Christianity, developed throughout the centuries and brought to light today by the various charisms.» The event of 2 July will be preceded by a Congress of the Movements (30 June/1 July) at the Circus-Krone-Bau: 17 Forums and 19 Round Tables will involve exponents of the Churches, politics and civil society, who will discuss current issues. As a preparation for the Munich event, last 21 April in Genève at the Ecumenical Council of Churches, a round table was held, entitled “What are the identity and values of Europe?” Consult www.together4europe.org for further information. https://youtu.be/0CyLm0Nrkko Maria Chiara De Lorenzo

Giving hope in Ecuador and Japan

Apr 26, 2016 | Focolare Worldwide, Senza categoria

Isabel shares her state of mind following the earthquake that hit her country, Ecuador, on April 16. The physical structures that fell – bridges, buildings, houses – invite us to feel the earthquake in our own souls as well, and to ask ourselves whether we really are peace builders? I’ve realised that suffering helps to unite us. I’d like to challenge everyone during in these difficult days, to convert and become bearers of hope and optimism, that we help one another to keep faith alive.” There are 587 confirmed dead, and the wounded are more than 8 thousand, with 25 thousand displaced persons. The numbers continue to grow and it is estimated that reconstruction will cost the country billions of dollars. The Focolare Movement has begun a fundraiser for the Ecuador emergency, while they plan intervention on the ground.

Photo: United Nations

“I travelled by car from Fukuoka, Japan to Kumamoto in search of my mother and relatives,” Father Giovanni Kimura reports. He comes from one of the hardest hit regions of Japan. “It’s usually a short hour and a half drive, but it took half the day. The highway was inaccessible and trains were blocked.” His mother was at a refugee centre, and other relatives were at another welcome centre, both school gymnasiums where hundreds of people are sleeping. The most serious problem is the lack of drinking water. Several regions of the city are still without water, but the welcome centres are equipped with basic necessities. The poplulation fears that the Aso Volcano will errupt, which is located between Kumamoto Province and Oita Province. An ash cloud has formed over the volcano and is spreading to the cities.” There have been 41 deaths in Japan, more than 1000 displaced persons and hundreds of aftershocks that still continue. Geophysicists and volcanologists are questioning the connection between these two events, while civil leaders in both countries have mobilised to begin rebuilding and offer support to families and victims. On their Facebook page the Youth for a United World (Y4UW) in Ecuador, who up to a few days ago were preparing for United World Week (UWW) in their country, are echoing the support effort that is currently underway: collecting blood, recruiting volunteers, recording needs and setting up bank accounts where donations can be made. “Sufferings, uncertainties, anguish, fear, ruins and so many questions: Eternal Father, what do you want of us? How are we building the ‘path to peace’? Does our daily life express brotherhood?” This is is experience of the moment for the young people and all the members of the Focolare Movement: “Discovering God as the greatest Love and then living the Gospel sentence: ‘Whatever you did to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to Me’. At this moment, fraternity is more evident than ever, solidarity, love that overcomes all differences: rich, poor, members of the opposition, members of government, white, indigineous, mestizo and black. Even the people who have escaped without damage feel the pain of their neighbours as if it were their own. They write messages on the boxes of food that have been collected: “Be strong, we love you!” and on the boxes containing medicines, “Be strong,” “We’ll get through this.” The young people decided to go ahead with United World Week doubling their efforts to offer some relief from the tragedy their country is going through. Estefania writes: “We have to keep moving, giving solutions to many people who feel helpless in front of this disaster. Now we realise that God had been preparing us through the year not so much for a United World Week as for facing this moment and bearing witness Gospel love, making “light shine over the ashes”, the light of the ideal of brotherhood as Focolare president Maria Voce wrote. Maria Chiara De Lorenzo

Pope Francis: You transform the deserts into living forests

Apr 24, 2016 | Focolare Worldwide, Senza categoria

Photo: P. Gábor

“You transform the deserts into forests”, said Pope Francis putting aside his prepared speech for the occasion, arousing enthusiasm and emotion in the thousands of people who watched the Holy Father’s car driving into the “Earth Village” for a surprise visit on the afternoon of Sunday, April 24th. The event was organised by the Focolare Movement in the heart of Rome at the green centre of the capital: the Villa Borghese Racing Track. The Pope showed up unexpectedly and was warmly greeted by families, young people and people of all ages who have been taking part in the events being held at the “Village” focusing on themes of the Earth, Legality, Interreligious Dialogue and Solidarity. Donato Falmi and Antonia Testa who are responsible for the Focolare Movement in Rome, and Pierluigi Sassi, President of Earth Day Italy, welcomed the Holy Father on stage at the “Village” and described the spirit of the event. Falmi introduced the Pope into the experience of Mariapolis 2016, which is titled “Living together in the city”, with special emphasis on three main words that are often repeated by Francis and were chosen as the inspiration for the event: “mercy”, “tenderness” and “diversity as an enrichment.” Antonia Testa described the collaboration between the Focolare Movement and Earth Day Italy and explained how the Mariapolis wished to turn its gaze on the city of Rome, on its poverty – but especially on the “great good” that is quietly but incisively being carried out every day across the social fabric.

Photo: Thomas Klann

Pierluigi Sassi then explained to Pope Francis how the path to this “Village” began from the proclamation of Laudato Si’ and by “March for the Earth” which Earth Day Italy had organised and engaged 130 organisations in view of the COP21 climate agreement. Pope Francis listened to the intense testimonies of several Mariapolis participants: some of them heart-wrenching experiences of solidarity in the criminal justice system and with immigrants; projects by young people promoting disarmament; legality and the campaign against gambling. Pierluigi concluded by stressing the significance of the football match which will be played on Monday at the “Village” between the Liberi Nantes – the football team entirely comprised by asylum seekers and political refugees – and the university students from the LUISS. “Don’t be afraid of conflict that contains within it both risk and opportunity,” Francis said. “Knowledge is a risk for me and for the person I draw near to. But never, never turn away so that you won’t have to see. Draw near to others, take their hand, go to dry their many tears… this is how a smile can be born in the desert.” “I’ll give you an assignment to do at home,” the Pope concluded. “When you go down the street, you see that tenderness is missing. Each person is enclosed in him and herself. Friendship is lacking. Money is at the centre of today’s world, but ‘gratuity’ is the keyword for this desert to become a forest. How do you do that? Always from within an awareness of our own need to be forgiven… working together, respecting each other – this is how the miracle happens in the desert that becomes a forest. Thank you for all that you do.” Before the final goodbye a young boy gave Francis the “Earth Cube”, an educational toy used for teaching children the principles for safeguarding Creation.

Pope Francis’s words

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https://vimeo.com/164030691 See Flickr photostream by Thomas Klann