![Maria Voce]()
15 Sep 2014 | Non categorizzato
Brief biography
Maria Voce was elected president of the Movement on 7 July 2008 by the General Assembly of the Focolare and was re-elected for a second consecutive term on 12 September 2014. She was the first focolarina to succeed the founder, Chiara Lubich, who died on the 14th of March of the same year. She was born in Ajello Calabro, Cosenza, Italy, on 16 July 1937, the first of seven children. Her father was a doctor; her mother a housewife. During her last year of law school in Rome (1959) she met a group of focolarini at the university and was fascinated by their Gospel witness. Upon completion of her studies, she became the first woman lawyer in her city’s court system. Later she studied Theology and Canon Law. (more…)
![Maria Voce]()
15 Sep 2014 | Non categorizzato
“Some asked me if I managed to sleep at all last night. I answered “yes” but this will probably not be so after the match of “my” Real Madrid team against the Atletico team!” On 13 September 2014, Jesús Morán Cepedano, newly elected Co-President of the Focolare for the next six years remarked on his election with this joke. The joy of the entire Assembly was evident, while Maria Voce thanked him for having accepted to share with her the responsibility for the Movement. Also the Holy See, as required by the Focolare Statutes, confirmed the new Co-President in a letter signed by Bishop Rylko in which he encouraged the Co-President to «carry out faithfully and generously his mandate, in deep unity with the President, for the benefit of the entire Work of Mary.» And of course Maria Voce did not fail to thank also Giancarlo Faletti, outgoing Co-President, «for having so generously shared this responsibility for six years,» words that were followed by a standing ovation by the whole assembly. In the Focolari Movement, the figure of the Co-President upholds the aspect of unity, as based on the words of Jesus «Wherever two or three are reunited in my name, I am there in their midst» (Mt 18,20). According to the Focolari Statutes, the first task of the Co-President is «to be always in deep unity with the President, » symbol of the unity of the Movement, «which, together with her or her delegate, he will also have to serve.»
Jesús Morán Cepedano
![Maria Voce]()
15 Sep 2014 | Non categorizzato
“While Christ and His teaching broke into history, tearing it in two, pushing humanity towards repentance and change and putting the new self into action in a new city, that tear was also at work in the heart of Mary who stood between those two ages and two mentalities, which sometimes made it a bitter effort to understand, follow and be one with Jesus. The lesson and the suffering didn’t end there. It reached to the point during her Son’s preaching that she wasn’t able to draw near to Him, to be admitted into His presence. Mary was becoming what Simeon’s prophecy had foretold, the Mother Desolate. The term “desolate” is meant to intensify for us the solitude in which she suffered when Jesus went away to begin His public ministry, leaving her in Nazareth, a widow amongst hostile relatives; and when he later left her as His Mother, substituting Himself with the beloved disciple as her child. She was alone among all, blessed among women, mother of the human family: the New Eve. Through her suffering the sorrowful Mary participated in generating the Church; that is, the People of God that was entrusted to her in the person of John, by Christ Himself. John, the beloved disciple, was given to her as a son, the son in place of Jesus, or better, an other Jesus. And so, the prophecy of Simeon that had initiated the martyrdom of the Virgin reached its culmination on Calvary as an iron lance pierced the breast of Jesus and that same lance pierced Mary’s soul. Beneath the cross, Mary is clearly the woman of the people who stands with God. One can truthfully say that Jesus was somehow in need of her not only to be born, but also to die. Then came that moment on the cross when He felt abandoned by the people of the earth and by His Father in Heaven. He turned to His Mother who was standing at the foot of the cross, to that Mother who had not deserted Him, overcoming Her human nature so as not to cave in beneath such a trial. And when the Son was dead, the Mother continued to suffer. He was placed on her lap, more powerless now than when He was but a child. A dead God resting on the lap of a widowed mother! Now she was truly the Queen because Jesus had recapitulated humanity, past present and future, and now it could rest as it lay guarded on Mary’s lap. In that sorrowful desolation Mary is presented as the Mother and Queen of the human family as it walks its own paths of sorrow. Her greatness was equal to her anguish, the suffering of a Mother who found herself watching over humanity as it swooned beneath its exile and guilt. When the Mother of Fair Love became also the Mother of Sorrows, and the seven gifts of the Spirit turned into seven swords, the wound that was opened in her heart, along with the wound of the Son, would convey the whole of humanity to the Father and return humanity to its source. Thus she was the collaborator of the Redeemer, but it was also precisely that work which made her more truly the Mother of Fair Love. There she united with us, there she identified herself with our fate. In this way humanity was reborn, and in this way the Church was born.” From: Igino Giordani, Maria modello perfetto, (Rome: Città Nuova, 2001), pp 118-127, Our translation.
![Maria Voce]()
14 Sep 2014 | Non categorizzato
It is not possible to construct peace without the contribution of the religions. In recent there have been many appeals from high level religious and civil leaders like Shimon Peres, with his idea for a “UN of Religions” as an antidote to global terrorism and violence, or the interreligious meetings like the one recently promoted by the Community of Sant’Egidio. Another important push was offered by the 8th Conference of Religions for Peace (ACRP) that was held in Incheon, South Korea on August 25-29, 2014. There could not have been a better place for sending a message about unity and reconciliation among lands and peoples. In spite of its being the cradle of the main monotheistic religions, the container of a vast cultural diversity, Asia has been above all a theatre of war for many major conflicts. The Focolare has also offered a contribution: Christina Lee who is in charge of the Movement’s interreligious dialogue, presented a talk at a pre-assembly meeting on women. In that talk which was titled “Interreligious Prayer and Meditation,” she highlighted the role of women as builders of peace in the world and in Asia: “that we might dream as a community in dialogue, comprised of people from different cultures and relgions, who are experience suffering and poverty but desire a united Asia.” As a first step, she proposed a training itinerary for the different religious communities, to uncover the spiritual patrimony of Asia and to provide visible signs of unity and harmony. In her message, the Focolare president also expressed her wish that effort based on love, compassion, forgiveness and devotion might help in contributing to the realisation of unity and harmony in Asia and beyond. In his message, Pope Francis reiterated that dialogue and cooperation among religions remains the most secure path towards peace and “without fraternity the construction of a just society and solid peace will be impossible.” His words were both a warning and a desire for the 450 people who attended the ACRP, travelling from seventeen Asian countries, with representatives from Iraq and Kyrgystan. The title “Unity and Harmony in Asia” says a lot about the premise and expectations of the conference that has been operating for 40 years and representing the religious creed of more that two thirds of the world’s population. 
A fourth group was added to the three work commissions: educating towards peace and reconciliation; human dignity and welfare; environmental and ecological development, the unification of the Korean penninsula and peace in Northeast Asia. The fourth group, under the guidance of the Korean Conference of Religions for Peace (KCRP), formulated its own declaration in support of the process of national reunification. One member remarked: “The real work begins now in our religious communities and in civil society.” The final document, the “Incheon Declaration,” describes the tracks: the common commitment to peace; the call to work for the social cohesion of the continent; working for the unification of the Korean peninsula.
![Maria Voce]()
12 Sep 2014 | Non categorizzato
“I accept.” These were the words the Assembly was waiting to hear from Maria Voce after she had been elected president of the Focolare Movement for the next six years. The Holy See immediately confirmed her election, as prescribed by the Statutes of the Work of Mary. Cardinal Rylko, President of the Pontifical Council for the Laity, wrote: “At the beginning of this second term we invoke the special assistance of the Holy Spirit for Maria Voce, and we entrust her service to the maternal intercession of Mary Most Holy whose Holy Name we celebrate today. “In declaring her acceptance, Maria Voce noted the happy coincidence of today being the feast day of the Holy Name of Mary: “Mary had to put her seal on this. I trust she’ll continue to do it.” She went on to say: “The Work of Mary around the world is growing in prayer and in love, and this is already a great fruit of the work we are doing together. Thank you, everyone!”
![Maria Voce]()
12 Sep 2014 | Non categorizzato
Capodrise (Italy) – Angelo Crescente and Emilio Donnarumma are, respectively, the mayor and city clerk of a city of the South of Italy, an area that is not easy to manage and has an image in the collective national and even international mind associated with corruption and organised crime. Emilio – who has decades of experience in public administration and is a convinced promoter of the values of brotherhood and participation in politics – since 2011 is at Angelo’s side, who was elected mayor that year. They share with other friends of the Focolare values of fraternity also in the political sphere and want to give themselves for their own people, guaranteeing the possibility of respect for the principles of legality in the interpretation of the law. Among the most urgent tasks that await them, is the revision of the municipal budgets that are in serious deficit. Refusing shortcuts, as well as the temptation to blame the failures of previous administrations, they choose to build the future of their city along with all the political forces and with all the citizens. “These efforts were rewarded with a good result for the town council and good relations with our counterparts,” says Angelo. Then there was the case of a group of families that saw their houses taken from them because they had not been built with proper planning permission. This time Emilio tells the story: “Although they had built illegally, we could not refuse the request for help of these people who would have been abandoned in the middle of the road. We looked for a way within the law for them to have their houses back. The solution was found by the regional administration that, at that particular time, passed a law allowing the return of possession (though not ownership) of the houses themselves. ” Nothing out of the ordinary for those involved in local government, it could be thought; but it is true that there are many different ways of doing things. Emilio and Angelo have chosen the “method” of fraternity: “First of all we try to live this among ourselves – Emilio concludes – it is a daily effort that requires commitment but if lived with consistency is far-reaching, even beyond our city limits.” 
Salto (State of Sao Paulo – Brazil) – Milta Alves Ribeiro Maron is the town councillor for education of her city, and still remembers vividly the eve of the Ninth Congress on Education organized last year in her town. Outside the windows of her office winds of war blew, or more precisely of protest by teachers, students and school employees, against the anti-waste and privileges campaign that the town council was carrying out. “The congress consisted of three days of conferences, workshops and mini-courses and we were wondering if we’d ever be able to do it, because of the threat of protests. Some of my colleagues advised me to cancel everything in order to avoid any danger to the mayor or to myself.” Milta continues, “The presence of Maria Luisa, my co-worker who shares with me the vision of a policy based on fraternity, gave me the strength to act in respect for all: that of the public administration who had organized the conference, but also the right of the protesters to protest for their own ideas. ” Milta confesses that in those days she also strengthened her relationship with God and with those collaborators who share her political values, working together on the opening speech of the conference that she was due to give. “I wanted it to be tuned in to the values of universal brotherhood, for the common good.” On the morning of the conference Milta arrived on foot, practically “escorted” by many who wanted to show her their support. And despite the presence of the protesters there was no violence. The speech was greeted with some booing, but ended with the applause of all. “A speech – explains Milta – which marked the beginning of a change. I was able to talk with the teachers, listen to their problems and this triggered a relationship of trust between us. At the end of the conference we all felt like winners, or rather, fraternity had won.” Source: www.umanitanuova.org
