Towards the 2026 General Assembly
The first round of collecting suggestions for the election of the President, Co-President, and General Councillors from the various parts of the world was completed on the 7th of November 2025, in preparation for the upcoming Assembly. The phase of gathering ideas and proposals for topics to be addressed during the Assembly was also completed. What are the next steps? How will these proposals be organised?
Various proposals have arrived from all over the world, specifically from the 15 zones that make up the Focolare Movement. These proposals include both the results of community and individual reflection. The Zonal Commissions of certain areas have already summarised their ideas. All the proposals we have received will be read carefully, grouped by topic and summarised to make them easier to read. As the Preparatory Commission of the Assembly (CPA), we are already working on this. Certain subject areas will group together their proposals that have been examined and summarised so that they can then be presented to the Assembly. This is a path of real discernment, in which communion among us will be essential in the process of making operational choices. In receiving the fruit of this work, the Assembly will have the task of examining the ideas, considering new ones if it deems necessary, and voting to outline the guidelines for the next five years of the Movement’s activity. Of course, it is important to emphasise that all the proposals that we, as CPA, have collected will be included in a “book of proposals”, a document that the participants in the Assembly will be able to read personally or during the various meetings. Therefore, none of the contributions that have been given to us during this precious time will be lost but will be part of a handbook to help us continue walking together.
During this time, proposals for amendments to the General Statutes were also collected. Can you explain the criteria used to carry out this work?
Regarding this consultation, we must first of all take into account the need that has arisen to study our General Statutes in greater depth, in order to better understand what is more closely linked to the historical moment in which they were written and what is instead linked to the charism. For this reason, following the indications of Margaret Karram, President of the Focolare Movement, we are currently focusing on certain topics that are guiding us in gathering proposals for amendments to the General Statutes. For example, the application of the provisions of the Decree of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, dated the 3rd of June 2021, which reduces terms of office to a maximum of 5 years. Another element that should not be overlooked are certain needs that have emerged in the life of the Movement, for example, bearing in mind the major local reorganisation that has taken place in recent years in various geographical areas, which leads to a greater sense of responsibility among all those belonging to the Movement, the possibility of further reducing the number of councillors elected during the Assembly, and the consideration of certain proposals that emerged during the previous General Assembly in 2021.
How does one practically move on from the proposal to the actual amendment of the Statutes?
As already mentioned, we are aware that it will not be possible to address a full-scale change in the General Statutes, but we will focus on certain aspects that cannot be postponed. Therefore, through the Preparatory Commission of the Assembly, a participatory process is taking place to gather proposals from around the world and it is being carried out in the various geographical areas where the Focolare Movement is present. Margaret Karram has now entrusted the study of these proposals to a special commission, which will make the appropriate evaluations. This commission, composed of individuals with expertise in various fields, will prepare a draft, which will be added to the study conducted in previous years by another commission appointed after the 2021 Assembly. This will provide the President and the upcoming Assembly with the necessary elements to discern whether these proposals are true to the charism, to Canon Law, to the present situation of the Work of Mary, etc. Next March, the proposals will be presented to the General Assembly, which has the task to deliberate and approve them. Any amendments approved by the Assembly will then be submitted to the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, which we depend on as a Movement. The Dicastery may or may not approve them. Only after this approval will they be implemented.
The method that will be used at some stages of the General Assembly will be inspired by that of the “Conversation of the Spirit”. Can you explain what this consists of?
This method, the conversation in the Spirit, which was used during the Synod, is a way of discerning. It is a tool that we have also suggested to be used in the Zonal Assemblies, but in the light of the charism of unity. It is not merely a technique for peacefully resolving issues between people who think differently. It is something very profound that involves everyone and is implemented through several essential steps, starting specifically with personal preparation. Each person, entrusting themselves to the Father, praying in silence and listening to the Holy Spirit, prepares their own contribution to the topic they are called to discern. Next, it is necessary to make space for other people in an atmosphere of profound sharing: starting from what others have said, each person can share what has resonated most deeply within them and, at the same time, what they find most difficult to accept. Based on what has emerged, dialogue begins in order to discern and gather the fruit of the conversation in the Spirit: to recognise insights and convergences, identify disagreements and obstacles, and allow new questions to emerge. It is very important that in this dynamic, space is given to what are called “prophetic voices”, those insights capable of reading the past in depth, and that everyone, in this community dimension, can feel that their thoughts have contributed to the result of the work. For this reason, everything must be preceded by the Pact of Mutual Love, indicating the steadfast will to really walk together towards God, helping each other, forgiving each other and starting over whenever necessary. In this way, the conversation in the Spirit will make the required discernment easier. It will be useful to “recognise” God’s presence in the complexity of historical events, to “interpret” them in the light of the charism of unity, and to have the courage to believe in the possibility of “implementing” what has been decided.
In addition to the participants with voting rights, a number of guests will also be present at the meeting, but they will not be able to vote. Why is their presence important?
The actual Statutes of the Work of Mary envisage the presence of a certain number of participants at the Assembly who are invited directly by the President because their contribution is considered valuable and greatly enriching. These are people who participate in the Movement in various ways and forms: people belonging to various Churches, followers of various religions, people of no religious affiliation or of different cultures, experts in various fields. With their experience, they can help in discerning different aspects. Their presence allows us to broaden our vision and horizons. In this way, the Assembly can better represent the Movement in its diversity, making it more capable of living for “may they all be one”. These participants will be involved like the others in the plenary discussions and group work. The only difference is that they will not be able to vote, but voting is only one aspect of the Assembly. The Assembly is above all intended to be a profound experience of unity in order to reflect and discern together on the future of the Movement, by listening to the Holy Spirit.
by Maria Grazia Berretta
Cover photo: General Assembly 2014 © GNuzzolo-CSCAudiovisivi
