Jan 27, 2022 | Non categorizzato
A meeting capable of overcoming great obstacles; a leap in love bringing two people together and generating unity. Bella Gal, a Jew living near Tel Aviv, talks about her special friendship with E., a Palestinian Christian. A few years ago I had a really interesting and profound encounter with a Palestinian woman, a Christian, a university lecturer, at a conference in Jerusalem where she was giving a talk. Her name is E. She brought up her children alone while her husband was in an Israeli prison for 10 years. He was released due to health problems and sadly died shortly afterwards. Although she was suffering, E. never gave up on life and educated her children who are now professionals, each in their own area of expertise. Her talk was very interesting but also very sad. At the end of the speech, I left the room without waiting for the question and answer session. I could not bear to hear her story. It reminded me of my own suffering, my early childhood and my parents who died during the Holocaust. Maybe it was very selfish of me but E. gave me a very important example and lesson in “making every encounter worthwhile”. After leaving the hall, I sat down in the cafeteria. Suddenly I felt someone put their hand on my shoulder. It was E. who said to me: “I saw you at my lecture, and I also saw you leave at the end. Did something happen? Did I offend you?” Although E. had every reason to be hostile towards me, we approached each other with great compassion, realising that we had both suffered but had found our inner strength, picked up the pieces and embraced the situation. As we finished sharing and crying, E. and I immediately felt connected, and a great love and appreciation for one another. We were able to unite deeply as women and see beyond our country’s differences. Over the years, E. has also held important political offices which is a major and historic achievement for a Christian woman living in that context. Today, I can truly say that E. is my soulmate beyond the wall.
Bella Gal
Jan 25, 2022 | Non categorizzato
Lately, Città Nuova published the book “L’unità. Uno sguardo dal Paradiso’49 di Chiara Lubich”. It is edited by Stefan Tobler and Judith Povilus, and soon it will be published in other languages. This in-depth study, to which many contributed, will help one understand the meaning of unity, the core of the Focolare spirituality. “Unity is our specific vocation”[1]; “So, our ideal is unity and not any other”[2]. Chiara Lubich had a very clear idea about the mission of the Movement she gave life to. If “unity is the specific characteristic of the Focolare Movement”[3], then it is called to question itself on its patrimony and on how to develop it with creativity and faithfulness. How can the Focolare communities, the nuclei, the “Word of Life” groups live unity today? How can they walk bravely and freely on a road that avoids authoritarianism and individualism, and allows full development of personal gifts and the pursuit of common goals? How can they walk along the difficult path of communion, that needs to safeguard its legitimate autonomy and search for identity and acceptance, integration and openness to diversity? This subject concerns the entire Work of Mary, but Chiara Lubich’s legacy is much broader: unity concerns the ecclesial world and also relationships between people of different religions, cultures, nations… The Work of Mary at the Centre entrusted the Abbà School with a study about all this. The members of the Abbà School, who have worked on this theme for quite some time started from Chiara Lubich’s experience during the years 1949-1951. And this is what gave birth to the book“L’unità. Uno sguardo dal Paradiso’49 di Chiara Lubich” . The book is divided into three parts. “Foundations”, the first section offers a general outlook on unity from a biblical, theological and spiritual point of view. Chiara’s writings are marked by their profoundness and vividness. They show the divine ‘logic’ of a God, whose ‘interior’ ‘is not to be thought of as a whole in which differences disappear, but on the contrary: God is One precisely because he is infinite multiplicity’, a dynamic reflected in creation. As Chiara wrote, the Father “says ‘Love’ in infinite tones”, to show the extraordinary richness through which He manifests his infinite love. The second part of the book presents texts from Paradise ’49 that highlight fundamental intuitions on unity, thus shedding light on writings or practices that the wear of time or inactive repetition may have rendered incomprehensible or unacceptable. Does the life of unity require the annulling of one’s own personality, or does it require the “unreserved gift of self following the logic of God’s life that leads one to ‘run the risk’ of ‘losing’ one’s own life”? What does to live “in the manner of the Trinity” mean? Does unity imply putting everyone on the same level or is it rather the manifestation of plurality? Inexact understanding of expressions such as “losing”, “dying”, “annulling oneself” that can lead to misunderstandings and derivations are addressed with clarity, and the fruitfulness of a demanding, total love that leads to full self-realisation is highlighted. Chiara affirms “that each one of us has a distinct, unmistakable personality”, which is “the word God pronounced when he created us”. So, unity appears dynamic, constantly evolving, creative; it emerges as something that needs everyone’s input, and that respects one and all. Hence, Chiara’s unique and unrepeatable contribution, as a foundress and an instrument of the charism, is apprehended. The third part of the book speaks about different disciplines that get inspirations relevant to their specific fields from the writings of Paradise ’49. This last part is the one that required more methodological attention. Since the language of Paradise ’49 is predominantly religious in nature, the question arose of how to write a transdisciplinary book around a multi-semantic word – unity – without the risk of speaking about different things and confusing languages. If a Movement and a spirituality that define themselves “of unity” gave rise to social realities and academic contributions in the most diverse fields, this means that there is a common denominator, a starting point and a stable foundation that makes it possible for everyone to recognise a common horizon in unity, even though they work in different fields and express themselves in the specific language of their own discipline. One traces only a few intuitive points in certain fields of social life and thought that will require further development. This book is the fruit of a gradual process of work carried out by the Abbà School. It began around 2017, and for more than two years, Paradise ’49 was read in the light of this specific theme. The twelve contributions are signed by the respective authors, who retained their own specific style, expertise and methodology. At the same time, it is the fruit of communion lived by the whole group; a way of working that requires an exercise in “unity” – in keeping with the theme itself! It has not always been easy to welcome and understand the other in his or her diversity, due to the fact that the authors come from different countries, have different scientific backgrounds and specific disciplinary and methodological fields. The book limits itself to only some of the pages of Paradise ’49. Therefore, one cannot claim that it exhausts such a vast and demanding theme, though thanks to the depth of the reference texts, it offers a great wealth of insights and proposals.
Fabio Cardi
[1] Unity and Jesus Forsaken, Città Nuova, Rome 1984, p. 26. [2] Ibid., p. 43. [3] Ibid., p. 26
Jan 24, 2022 | Non categorizzato
GCPS Consulting announced in November that it would postpone the release of the results of its independent investigation until the first quarter of 2022. The investigation into the sexual abuse perpetrated by J.M.M., a former French consecrated member of the Focolare Movement, is taking longer than expected. This was announced in a statement last November by GCPS Consulting, the specialised consultancy firm to which the Movement entrusted the independent investigation. “The information-gathering process is continuing well beyond the planned timetable,” the statement says, “and the Commission is planning interviews with key people within the Focolare (…) also as part of a review of safeguarding arrangements. On a positive note, this shows that the process is thorough and complete (…). We aim to publish it as soon as possible in the first quarter of 2022.” Expressing regret for the delay, the appointed Commission hopes that “all interested parties understand that the scope of the work has been expanded and that the aim is to fully reflect the voices of all those who have provided evidence and other information to the Commission”.
Stefania Tanesini
Jan 24, 2022 | Non categorizzato
The Word of Life for January 2022 says that the Magi arrived in Bethlehem following the star to pay homage to the Child Jesus. Today we too can pay homage to the Lord by our life choices, as Chiara Lubich suggests in this passage. You are in the world. Everyone can see that. But you are not of the world. This implies a big difference. It classifies you among those who do not nourish themselves on the things of the world, but on what you hear from the voice of God who dwells within you. The voice of God is in the heart of each person, and it leads those who listen to it into a kingdom that is not of this world. It is kingdom where true love is lived, together with justice, purity, meekness, poverty and self-control. (…) Christian life is not calm and comfortable. Christ did not, and does not, ask anything less of you if you want to follow him. The world comes at you like a river in flood and you have to go against the flow. For a Christian, the world is like a thick forest where you need to watch where you put your feet. But do you know where to put them? In the footprints that Christ himself marked out for you when he lived on earth, which are his words.
Chiara Lubich
(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] a cura di Fabio Ciardi, Cittá Nuova, 2017, pp 110-112)
Jan 20, 2022 | Non categorizzato
While the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2022 is celebrated in the Northern Hemisphere from 18th-25th January, it also takes place elsewhere in the world at different times. Here is the story of an ecumenical project, “Virtual Visits to Christian Communities”, which started a year ago in Mexico to promote unity between the different Churches. “Mexico is a country with a Catholic majority. Through living the spirituality of unity, we have discovered a yearning for Christian unity and for several years we have been building beautiful ecumenical relations”. These are the words of Dolores Lonngi, wife of Pablo, both volunteers in the Focolare Movement who have been looking after the ecumenical dialogue of the Movement in Mexico for years. Together with their daughter Ursula, a focolarina, last February, they launched the project “Virtual visits to Christian communities” with the aim of extending ecumenism beyond the ‘Week of Prayer for Unity’ and starting a journey of fraternity and communion of experiences. From the beginning, the objectives of this project were getting to know how each tradition lives and expresses its faith in the society in which it is immersed and identifying ways to collaborate for the good of the whole of society. Ursula, how did these virtual visits take place and where did you start from? “To carry out the project, we set up a Central Commission, made up of the Ecumenical Officer for the Anglican Church of Mexico and President of the Country’s Interreligious Council, the Secretary of the Ecumenical and Interreligious Dialogue Commission of the Mexican Episcopal Conference, a teacher of “Ecumenical Theology” at the Pontifical University of Mexico and one of Ecumenism at the Anahuac University of the city of Querétaro, a priest of the Confraternity of Ecumenical Missionaries and ourselves. The first visit was to the Anglican Church and then we moved on to the Eastern Catholic Churches. They all shared real “pearls” with us: history, ministries, the witness of faith and charity of young people and adults. There were various Anglican priests and the Anglican Bishop Emeritus of Uruguay, Mgr. Miguel Tamayo, who spoke of the meetings of Bishops of various Churches promoted by the Focolare Movement. In each of our “virtual visits” we had a moment of dialogue in small groups, which gave us the opportunity to get to know each other better and to build friendships with people from different Churches “. Pablo, what were the highlights and what kind of turnout was there? “In the program of the year there was a moment of prayer on the occasion of Pentecost (the period in which in the southern hemisphere we celebrate the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity) and another seven Virtual Visits to different Churches, the last Thursday of each month, as well as an ecumenical festival of biblical readings and songs at the beginning of Advent. In order to disseminate the initiative on social media and with the aim of generating an ecumenical community, we opened WhatsApp, Telegram and Facebook channels, which in the first months of the project reached more than 10,500 people from Ecuador, Peru, Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, Costa Rica, Honduras, USA, as well as several cities of Mexico. Dolores, what’s your impression of this experience? “We were surprised by the great response that this initiative had and we are happy to have contributed in our small way to the growth of the spirit of unity in and among our Churches. We realize that in this way we can realize what the Second Vatican Council already proposed in n.5 of the Unitatis Redintegratio: “The attainment of union is the concern of the whole Church, faithful and shepherds alike. This concern extends to everyone, according to his talent, whether it be exercised in his daily Christian life or in his theological and historical research. This concern itself reveals already to some extent the bond of brotherhood between all Christians and it helps toward that full and perfect unity which God in His kindness wills”.
Maria Grazia Berretta
Jan 19, 2022 | Non categorizzato
On 21 January 2022 the Focolare Movement’s international centre at Rocca di Papa, Italy, hosts the launch of an intriguing new book ‘Chiara Lubich in Dialogue with the world: intercultural, linguistic and literary perspectives of her writing’, edited by Rubbettino publishing house. “The writings of authors defined as ‘spiritual leaders’ are often considered solely as works of spiritual edification (…) frequently offered to the public within anthologies, afforded limited critical attention. The truth is, however, they can often be of great literary value, demonstrating a vital, creative, even courageous use of language[1]”, writes linguist Anna Maria Rossi in her introduction to the book she co-curated with Vincenzo Crupi: Chiara Lubich in Dialogo con il mondo, prospettive interculturali, linguistiche e letterarie nei suoi scritti (‘Chiara Lubich in dialogue with the world: intercultural, linguistic and literary perspectives of her writing’), published by Rubbettino. This volume contains the papers presented at the event of the same name held in Trento, Italy on 24-25 September 2020 as part of the centenary celebrations of the birth of Chiara Lubich. The proposal to publish this book “was welcomed with enthusiasm and without reserve as corresponding perfectly to the guidelines of the ‘Iride’ (‘Iris’) series published by Rubbettino, designed as “a meeting point between Italian academics and foreigners, to meet the need for informative resources on the best available material in the field of literary criticism, linguistics and philology,” affirmed Rocco Mario Morano, series editor. “This volume on Chiara Lubich – he continued – makes a significant contribution to this line of research, gathering as it does the depth and breadth of analysis contained within the studies of 25 academics from different parts of the world, who employ their literary experience, sensitivity and competence in a range of different disciplines to this subject”. Morano identifies how, in order to describe her own spiritual experience, the author Chiara Lubich demonstrates particular care to use “models of writing formed, time and again, to meet her driving need to communicate her innermost understanding and thought, permeated with an elevated spirituality and great religiousity (…). This drives her tendency to submit her texts to continual revisions to enable the reader to penetrate her deepest meaning in all its aspects (…). These adjustments never distract (…) from the strong desire and immense joy of giving the Word as an act of love to all people of good will throughout the whole world, whatever their religious, political or philososphical creed”. The book, which is launched on 21 January 2022 at the Focolare Movement’s international centre, focuses on the texts written by Chiara Lubich between 1949 and 1950, writings often referred to as “Paradise ‘49”. A detailed textual analysis of the author’s words and a precise study of the language of mysticism used to communicate such a deep experience, “offers – according to Rossi – through image and metaphor, insights for intertextual comparison”. The word itself is viewed, too, as a means which leads to an ideal, to unity. In fact, an analysis of Lubich’s writings in the second section of the book reveals her as a “woman of dialogue”, one who always directed her attention to others, attentive to the multicultural dimension of those with whom she communicated; a woman who with her words was capable of ‘building up’, of being ‘constructive’ in the face of differences, one who lived evangelical love in full. This love continues into the passage from one language to another in the highly delicate task of translation, which necessarily presumes a process of consultation, exchange and relationship between translator and author. According to Regina Célia Pereira da Silva, Lecturer in Portughese Language at the Università per Stranieri of Siena, Italy, specialist in Linguistic Information Translation, Strategy and Technology, “the words of Chiara come not solely from a religious theory, but rather they are fruit of a real concrete life, touched by encountering the divine. Only if the translator too experiences such giving of oneself through words, will they be able to understand this kind of reality, living it not individually but in a collective way”. To find a way of communicating such a strong experience, respecting the intentions of the author while eliminating every possible ambiguity of phraseology, is not just a matter of expressing the same language, but also the translator should give their own ideas and be ready to lose them, ‘emptying’ themselves. A dialogue must be established between “the author, translator and beneficiaries of a text,” explains Regina Pereira. “This presumes a new dynamic, one typical of Chiara Lubich (…) which involves penetrating the needs of the other in order to share in them and if possible to take the first step. It demands humility and love. The author-translator relationship has at its heart a novel form of communication based on the concept of nothingness which, as an emptiness, is able to welcome the other person completely with their own personal and cultural identity. The translator or the reader enters the text, enters the author and acquires her experience and is enriched by it”.
Maria Grazia Berretta
[1]Rossi, Anna Maria in Chiara Lubich in Dialogo con il mondo, prospettive interculturali, linguistiche e letterarie nei suoi scritti, edited by Anna Maria Rossi, Vincenzo Crupi, Rubbettino Editore, 2021, p. 11.
