Aug 12, 2020 | Non categorizzato
Grateful for the solidarity received and committed together with other various religious communities to help the country rise again and be a messenger of peace. We all know that Lebanon is still under a great shock. And Beirut is an unrecognizable city with apocalyptic scenes: destruction, high tensions, distress, anger and even violent episodes. A few days ago, a letter arrived from this country that has been hit with such widespread destruction. It comes from the Lebanon Focolare community and it is addressed to Focolare members worldwide. The letter reads: “With these words, each one of us would like to express a personal thank you to each one of you. We are deeply and immensely moved by the immediate closeness shown to us from all parts of the world, from old and young, far and near, through phone calls and messages”. Members of the Focolare Comunity continue to say: “Every morning, when we wake up and continue to discover the massiveness of the catastrophe, the material damage, the number of hospitals badly damaged and rendered unfunctionable, the polluted air we breathe, we feel like ‘survivors’. Each one of us could have been right there at the scene of the drama. And maybe some of us were, but a providential hand made them change place. However, we all feel that a new life has been given to us, as a young woman, just out of an elevator gutted with the explosion, said”. They continue to relate that in the streets, where everything seems to cry out despair, “many people from north to south, members of various religious communities, are working hard to clear the rubble. Each one, in his own way, is a living witness that the ‘resurrection’ will win over the death of the city, the country, the dreams of many”. They conclude: “Together with you, we want to move ahead so that a Lebanon that passes on a message of peace, unity and universal brotherhood and be a model of a united world, will be reborn”.
edited by Anna Lisa Innocenti
________________________________________ The Emergency Coordination of the Focolare Movement, which will intervene through the AMU and AFN organizations, has been activated. For those who want to collaborate, the following current accounts have been activated:
Azione per un Mondo Unito ONLUS (AMU) IBAN: IT58 S050 1803 2000 0001 1204 344 Codice SWIFT/BIC: CCRTIT2T Banca Popolare Etica
Azione per Famiglie Nuove ONLUS (AFN) IBAN: IT11G0306909606100000001060 Codice SWIFT/BIC: BCITITMM Banca Intesa San Paolo
PURPOSE: Emergency Lebanon ————————————————————– The contributions paid on the two current accounts with this purpose will be managed jointly by AMU and AFN. There are tax benefits for these donations in many countries of the European Union and in other countries of the world, according to the various local regulations. Italian taxpayers will be provided deductions from taxable income, up to 10% of the income and with the limit of € 70,000.00 per year, with the exception of donations made in cash.
Aug 11, 2020 | Non categorizzato
The 100 years of Danilo Zanzucchi. A married Focolarino – one of the first in the wake of Igino Giordani – Danilo along with his wife Anna Maria, would soon become the couple leading New Families at a world level Chiara always had a predilection for that young engineer who, after having erected his first important buildings in the north of Italy (“all still standing” Danilo assures with pride), left a promising career to move to the capital, and as a family collaborate full-time for the purpose of the Movement. But Chiara’s esteem for Danilo is above all for having been able to grasp, in its entirety, the charism that the Spirit had given her. Among his first assignments was the collaboration on the construction of the Mariapolis Center in Rocca di Papa that would become the International Headquarters of the Focolare Movement. A married Focolarino – one of the first in the wake of Igino Giordani – Danilo along with his wife Anna Maria, would soon become the couple leading New Families at a world level; developing in the following decades an innovative and effective Family Pastoral Care appreciated at all latitudes for the rich spirituality from which it draws and for its openness to the demands of the contemporary world. The profound interior life of Danilo did not go unnoticed by ecclesiastical leaders who were struck by his brilliant presence, his skills. Diocesan President of Catholic men in Parma (Italy), when transferred to Rome he became consultant and, later, member of the Vatican department for the Family. These latter responsibilities, accompanied by Anna Maria, made him a guest several times in the home of Pope Wojtyla and also a testimonial of service to the Family in television broadcasts, also shown in world wide vision. When welcomed by Danilo during a visit (1984) to the International Centre of the Movement, the Polish Pontiff did not hesitate to promote him sympathetically as “Foreign Minister of the Focolare Movement “. A collaboration that also continued with Benedict XVI, and his request to the Zanzucchi couple to write the text for one of the Stations of the Cross (2012) at the Colosseum in Rome presided over by him was significant of this. Danilo is celebrating his 100th birthday with Anna Maria (90), his 5 children (two Focolarini and two married Focolarini), his 12 grandchildren and the whole Focolarino world. In particular with the countless families of the various continents for which with Anna Maria, he has been an example, a confidant, a guide, remaining a lovable and safe point of reference for each one. His psycho-physical condition remains excellent, despite the fact that many years ago Chiara herself, with all of us, feared for his health which has obviously been well recovered. He is able to go to Mass almost every day and it is not uncommon to see him participate in the periodic meetings of his Focolare and those of the Focolare-Families. Perhaps because he was invested with a special mission, the Lord preserved him in two particular episodes in the Second World War. He himself tells us that if it had not been for the providential shove of a comrade who pushed him elsewhere, he would have died under a bomb that was crashing right where he was standing. Another time, it was his knowledge of German that saved him from an already deployed firing squad . It can happen that Danilo, in order to dilute somewhat complicated moments, still decides to let everyone enjoy one of his mythical and resonant speeches in that language , putting everyone in a good mood for the various lexical licenses he grants himself. The gratitude of the entire New Families Movement for this century of Danilo’s life given to God and his brothers, goes to this great figure of a man of Faith and Works. Thank you Danilo for being a giant of righteousness and tenderness, an example of simplicity and wisdom, a temperament of leader and artist: a Saint who lives next door. Thank you also, Danilo, for having never stopped, not even now that you are a hundred years old, to impersonate the Evangelical Child that has always shone through your being, your speech, your good humour, your water colours, your countless cartoons often improvised on paper napkins, which masterfully capture and express the best that is in each of the protagonists to whom they are dedicated. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, DANILO! From the New Families website
Aug 10, 2020 | Non categorizzato
The coronavirus pandemic is a trial by fire not only for healthcare systems but also for those engaged in politics, both locally and internationally. The following excerpt from a speech by Chiara Lubich can justifiably be called a “hymn to politics”. It is a challenge for politicians and can fill the hearts of ordinary citizens with gratitude towards all those who have to make courageous decisions on a daily basis. While most of the new movements take an active interest in all that is happening in the world, one of them, the Focolare Movement, has actually given rise to a political section known as the Politics for Unity Movement. Its specific aim is precisely that of promoting fraternity in politics. … First of all, we realized that a true vocation to politics exists. Believers discern the voice of God entrusting them with this task. People without formal faith also feel called to politics when, for example, they see social needs or groups of vulnerable people asking for help. Responding to the call to enter politics is, above all, an act of fraternity. In fact, people become politically active in order to work for issues that concern the general public, to help other people, wanting their good as if it were their own. In reality, the task of love in politics is to create and safeguard the conditions that enable all other types of love to blossom: the love of young people who want to get married and who need a house and jobs; the love of those who want to study and who need schools and books; the love of those who have their own business and who need roads and railways, and clear and reliable rules…. Hence politics is the love of all loves, fostering collaboration among people, bringing together needs and resources, and enabling people to trust one another. Politics can be compared to the stem of a flower that supports and nourishes the renewed blossoming of petals in the community. In the Politics for Unity Movement, we notice that, by living out our political choices as a vocation to love, we understand that other people, who have made political choices different from our own, can be motivated by a similar vocation to love. They, too, in their own way, are part of the same design, even when they become our political opponents. Fraternity enables us to recognize their task, to respect it and help them to be faithful to it – also through constructive criticism – while we remain faithful to our own. In the Politics for Unity Movement, we believe that we should live fraternity so well as to reach the point of loving the other person’s party as we love our own. We know that neither party was born by chance, but that each was the response to an historical need within the national community. Fraternity brings out the authentic values of each side and reconnects the whole tapestry of the political design of a nation. The initiatives of the members of the Politics for Unity Movement bear witness to this. They seek to create a fraternal relationship between the majority and the opposition, both on the level of the national Parliament and in municipal authorities. Their initiatives have been formulated into laws on a national level, or into local policies that have brought greater unity to the towns and cities where they were applied. Thus, those who respond to their political vocation by beginning to live fraternity, enter into a universal dimension that opens them up to the whole of humanity. They ask themselves whether the decisions they are about to make, while serving the interests of their own nation, might be detrimental to others. Politicians of unity love other people’s countries as their own.
Chiara Lubich
From Chiara Lubich, “A United Europe for a united world”. Speech given to the European Movement, Madrid (Spain), 3rd December 2002
Aug 8, 2020 | Non categorizzato
A glimpse into the experience and everyday life of Somjit Suwanmaneegul, a Buddhist, from Chiang Rai in Thailand. From his meeting with John Paul II to today. By Stefania Tanesini and Lorenzo Giovanetti. https://vimeo.com/430658900
Aug 7, 2020 | Non categorizzato
Anything can happen in life: easy or difficult situations, mourning, victories or defeats, but there is a common denominator for all, a common way to deal with each situation: the relationship with God. Circumstances will always be different, but He is always present; always with us. In isolation “Tomorrow,” said the doctor, “we’ll put you in an isolation ward”. I felt like someone with a bad smell. I knew someone had died from that illness. Death! I was not afraid of the pain that comes with the last battle for life. Rather I felt the detachment from my own as sharp as a sword in my heart. I had not said goodbye to them. And now… I might never see them again. I wept. And yet, to die meant meeting Jesus whom I loved. But it seemed to me that the love given and received here on earth by so many tied me down here and the flight upwards was exhausting. I knew these people on earth, the others up there I didn’t yet know well. On the other hand I had always tried to love Jesus in every neighbour: relatives, friends, acquaintances, strangers! “It was you, Jesus, whom I loved and found in everyone, the same one that – if I die now – I will meet”. This last thought slowly gave me peace. I remained for a long time in isolation, with the ups and downs associated with the illness, but enveloped more or less by a mysterious presence with the possibility of speaking to the One who listened to me and to whom I could listen. M. – Italy Rudeness at school I don’t know if I’ve aged or the generation has definitely changed. I was talking about it with my fellow teachers and we all came to the conclusion that unfortunately there is a lack of basic education. It is not only a lack of respect towards teachers, evident also in a shameless judgmental attitude towards teachers by parents, but a complete lack of a sense of attention towards each other. In one of the most difficult classes, after a regrettable incident, I pointed out that in every culture and tradition there is a basic rule of coexistence: “Do to others what you would like to be done to you”. I asked everyone if such a rule seemed acceptable to them. After a great silence one pupil started to speak, then another one… and in the end a real dialogue was created. Since that day something has changed: almost invisibly, but something has changed. Once more I had to believe again. Young people need real, firm points of reference. C. – Spain I was tempted to emigrate… I am a specialist in infectious diseases and, due to poor health facilities, poor hygiene and very low salaries, I was tempted to emigrate like many colleagues. However, after reflecting with my wife, I decided to continue my service to my brothers and sisters in our country. With the support of Christian friends abroad, it was possible to build a health facility complete with a laboratory and guarantee specific medicines even for the poorest people. In addition to the development of productive activities to improve basic nutrition, an attempt was also made to ensure psychosocial support for the sick and their families. M.- Democratic Republic of Congo
Edited by Stefania Tanesini
Aug 6, 2020 | Non categorizzato
Maria Voce’s new book “Luce che avvolge il mondo” [Light that envelops the world], is published today by Città Nuova, for now only in Italian. It is a profound and courageous re-reading of the cornerstones of the spirituality of unity in the light of the questions posed by people today concerning our present times and the near future. This is probably Maria Voce’s last book as President of the Focolare Movement. In it we find her thought regarding the Movement set out clearly and powerfully more than in any previous publication during her 12 years’ leadership of the Movement. The book reveals the cornerstones of her action and her legacy, but also her experience in the very delicate time following the death of a charismatic founder like Chiara Lubich. This volume certainly deserves to be read “slowly” and meditatively, allowing time for reflection, because in it we find all Maria Voce’s spiritual, cultural and lived adherence to the charism of unity. It contains a series of talks given at various times on the twelve main points of the Focolare spirituality – God Love, the Will of God, the Word, our neighbour, mutual love, the Eucharist, Unity, Jesus Forsaken, Mary, the Church, the Holy Spirit, Jesus in the midst. These talks were given year by year during her two mandates. In the preface, Maria Voce’s friend Andrea Riccardi [founder of the Sant’Egidio community] writes: “Maria did not want to repeat but to reread Chiara’s message and charism in a Church and a world that have changed. Spiritual movements grow in a deep tension between, on the one hand, faithfulness to their origins and their charism, and, on the other, an exploration of the life and developments of the future. […] It is an outstanding and remarkable example of the creative faithfulness that is required of a founder’s followers – especially if they are leaders”. In the introduction, Jesús Morán, Co-President, asks himself with what spirit Maria Voce has written these texts and affirms it is one of actualization for our times. “She has not repeated the talks written by Chiara in the past, but has actualized them (…). She gives us her own renewed understanding of the points of the spirituality of unity that draws directly from the source of Chiara Lubich’s inspiration but also emphasizes further connotations and brings hitherto unexpressed shades of meaning to the fore. She has done this while being prompted also by the issues and concerns increasingly faced by the members of the Movement in the context of current events in the Church and in the world.” Leafing through its pages we find a variety of questions posed more or less explicitly to Maria Voce by people in the Focolare Movement. In response to the question,: “What is God asking of the people in the Movement?”, she answered: “He asks each of us to reach out to our own environment, engaging with our neighbours in a spirit of unity, but being open to everyone. At the time, Chiara herself said that that would be answer enough. Chiara emphasized very strongly that above all God asks us to make ourselves one with the person who is near us, with those who share our life’s journey and with the people we meet day by day, even – as far as possible – the ones we hear about through the media. We are called, therefore, to live unity every moment of our life, day after day, as happened from the very start.” Maria Voce also offers her reading of the lights and shadows on the progress of the Focolare Movement. She does so at a time in which the Covid pandemic has changed many things both at a personal and community level, and does so also in view of the upcoming General Assembly in 2021 during which the Movement will elect a new president and leadership: “At this time, we feel that God is urging us to sow seeds of this message of unity in new and larger fields and not worry about diminishing strength or lost ground. We should joyfully witness to the opening up of ever new horizons and the flourishing of countless living cells of the Church spread throughout the world. This happens wherever two or more are ready to love one another with mutual love and to go out towards others so that, as Pope Francis wishes, many people may meet God.” This attitude towards the current situation enables us to be enriched by an understanding of the present and look to the near future with the optimism characteristic of Maria Voce. She is certainly not naive, because she is well-grounded in the Gospel words that speak of unity and on the life that has sprung from it throughout the world.
Stefania Tanesini
