Feb 27, 2021 | Non categorizzato
“We have learned to love each other without asking for anything in return, just as God loves us.” “Little by little, we have fallen in love with each other’s souls. We find ourselves in a fullness of love that we have never experienced before, not even when we were engaged, and this is possible because now we love each other in a totally free way, without asking anything in return, as God loves us.” Nacho and Fili are from Mexico, they have been married for 30 years and have two children. They say that their love only really began after they discovered that God is Love and that he loved all human beings to the point of giving his life for them. In comprehending this great gift, they understood that they could overcome their respective limitations and heal the wounds that had torn their relationship apart. It was a discovery that gave meaning to the journey of each of their lives and made them capable of loving and freely giving to one another. Their story, up to a certain point, is similar to that of many couples. Two people feel they are in love and decide to get married: in each one there is an inner void that undermines the foundations of any project. They hope that by sharing the wounds each one feels within they will be able to fill up that emptiness but this is the premise of an abyss that leads to further disintegration. “My father had another wife and other children,” says Fili, “and that made me suffer. I wanted to get married and live a more stable family life. When I was a child, I also suffered because of my father’s absence from home and my mother’s lack of attention towards me.” Nacho continues. “Fili and I combined the loneliness that we experienced in life but we were wanting to fill up the emptiness there was within us without having known real love. We quickly realised this love between us was missing.” Problems soon began. On account of Fili’s jealousy, Nacho was forced to change jobs often and the resentment this caused created tension. The children also suffered: “We loved them a lot but we didn’t know how to teach them to love, nor how to make them love God.” Fifteen years into their marriage, the two separated: Nacho was disappointed and felt the relationship was ended; Fili could not forgive her husband. “It seemed as if nothing united us any more,” they remember, “that there was no more love.” Then something happened that changed the direction of their lives. One evening, while watching TV, Nacho was struck by a woman, Chiara Lubich, founder of the Focolare Movement, who spoke of fraternal love. He saw images of the Movement’s little town in Mexico, called El Diamante. One Sunday they went to Mass there and were invited to the Mariapolis, a meeting organised by the Focolare Movement. They do not imagine that the invitation to follow the Gospel could be revolutionary for them and bring about such a radical change: “I tell you, forgive not seven times, but seventy-seven times. ‘ (Matt. 18:21-22) is the phrase they felt called to live out in their daily lives. “They told us about Jesus forsaken on the cross,” says Fili, “how he forgave and gave his life for us. I realised that in comparison with what he had done, my sorrows were small. God had already forgiven my husband, and his will for me was that I should forgive too. I did it and experienced that it is possible to be born anew.” “We are imperfect and different,” Nacho concludes, “but I have learned to trust the God who makes everything possible.”
Claudia Di Lorenzi
Feb 23, 2021 | Non categorizzato
A social centre in Bolivia offers support to 220 children and families in need. Silvio’s story: today he works for the same institution that saved him and cared for him when he was a child. Silvio lives in Cochabamba; he has 10 siblings. His father, who was a miner, died when Silvio was 10 years old. Since then, his mother brought up a family of 11 children all by herself. They lived in a 4 x 5 metre room in a neighbourhood where drugs and robbery were the main activities for children. Now, Silvio works for the Unisol Foundation, the same charitable institution that one day saved him and his brothers from the life of sreet children. This foundation is also supported by AFN Onlus (an association set up by the Focolare New Families Movement) through specific Distance Support programmes, that offer services to help with the education, nutrition and good health of children, while also seeing to their families and communities to ensure as much as possible that the children’s development takes place in a healthy environment. The implementation of these programmes is coordinated at a distance with competent local staff. But what does the foundation actually do? We put this question to Silvio, whose life story is entwined with that of Unisol, a foundation which today supports 220 children and families in need. Can you tell us something about your family and your childhood? “We are a very large family, 11 children in all. At first, we lived in Quillacollo, one of the most dangerous areas in Cochabamba (one of the most populated cities in Bolivia). My father used to work in a mine. He died of tumour when I was 10 years old, and from then on, my mother had to shoulder the full responsibility of all the family. It was the first time she had to look for a job, and she was employed as a cleaner in a school, in another town. To make life a bit easier for her, she was given the chance to live on the school premises, in the porter’s lodge: a small room of 4×5 metres, which became the living quarters for 8 of us. Although this new neighbourhood is better than our previous one, yet it is still a very dangerous one. Very often, families cannot give the care needed by their children because they work all day, and children easily get into drugs; they deal in drugs or steal to pay for their doses. Many of my schoolmates ended up in gangs, but I still tried to keep some contact with them, even with the most dangerous ones, out of fear that they might take revenge on me or my family! Some of my friends were hooked on drugs. They offered drugs to me too, but I have always refused their offer, mainly out of respect for my mother, who sacrificed all her life for us children, and I always admired her a lot. But one day something changed….. “Yes. One day some members of the Focolare Movement came to our school and they offered help to my mother. They gave us snacks and sweets, they played with us, they listened to us, they gave us what we needed. And we felt very happy. As time went by, numbers increased and this led to the idea of finding a place, rather than the street, where we could play, study and be together. Thus, the Rincón de Luz (Corner of Light) Centre in Cochabamba came into being and later, the Clara Luz (Clear Light) Centre in Santa Cruz was also set up. This changed our lives; for example, it was impossible to find a job for one of my sisters who is deaf and dumb, and we could not afford to make her study. But thanks to the help we received from the Foundation, she was able to get some training, and now she too has a profession”. In reality, what does the Unisol Foundation do? “It helps the most needy, especially families. It provides them with food, medicine and school things. It also offers educational support through after-school activities for children;. It organises recreational activities, lunches, snacks and workshops to teach practical and manual work; it promotes recycling and environmental awareness, personal training, sharing experiences,… After having experienced the care offered by the Foundation, now, you are taking care of children and families in need. What motivates you to keep on doing this? “First of all, I need to explain a bit more about our situation. In October 2019 there was the presidential election in Bolivia, and immediately afterwards a political crisis followed. This led to a substantial decrease in funds distributed to public organizations. Then, the country had to face the pandemic and the situation became worse. As many doctors and health assistants stopped working because they were afraid of the contagious virus, those who were ready to work in hospitals were offered high wages. Even I was offered a very good job and I was tempted to accept it: who wouldn’t like to have a few extra comforts? But then I realised that money would not make me happy , but living for others would. I felt I had to continue my work at Rincón de Luz…”. How has helping families changed with the pandemic? And is there anything in particular you would like to share with those who are getting to know about the Unisol Foundation? “Families are being very hardly hit by the pandemic. Many used to sell goods or food items on the streets; now they cannot do it anymore and so they stopped earning money. Many are losing hope of recovery from this situation. In addition to this, there have been quite a number of divorce cases, and the effects of this on the children we care for are many. At the moment, even my mum is taking care of a child, the son of a couple who have just separated and have practically nothing left. This is our work; we are there to answer for all the needs of these families. Unfortunately, we don’t have enough resources to cater for a larger number of people, even though this is what we would like to do. We also continue to help the families who previously were under our care. Besides other things, we also try to offer them a place where they can relax a bit, because the situation is really difficult. But there are many more people who need support, so I invite all those who are getting to know about the Unisol Foundation to offer help, starting with people who are near and maybe we do not know them, but they are the ones who need our time, our attention and our love.
Edited by Laura Salerno
Laura Salerno’s interview with Silvio (choose English subtitles): https://youtu.be/UVTztN2UoUE Contact details: www.fundacionunisol.org Facebook: @Fundaciónunisol https://www.afnonlus.org/ Facebook: @afnonlus Instagram: @afn.onlus
Feb 22, 2021 | Non categorizzato
The most radical choice in Chiara Lubich’s life was to love Jesus above all in his greatest pain: his abandonment on the cross. But loving “Jesus Forsaken” means, therefore, above all loving those neighbours whom we feel most “distant” from us. “Anyone who gets angry with his brother is subjected to judgment” 1. […] Once again, love for our neighbour is underlined. And it’s useful, it’s necessary, it’s good for us to keep this in mind. The general aim of the Movement is the perfection of charity. We are called to love each brother and sister with a love than is more and more felt; a love that is ever more profound and perfected; a love that is ever more refined. At times, we feel that it is difficult to bend our heart to exercise a more refined love than the one we already have for our brother or sister: our heart is still partly made of stone; our love is rough, superficial, too hasty. Why? Because our hearts are still occupied by ourselves, by a certain consideration of ourselves. We are, even if we don’t realize it, selfish and proud. And this is demonstrated by the fact that when we undergo some severe spiritual test (which, like an earthquake, seems to eradicate everything at the root, thus having the effect of detaching us from ourselves, from our possessions and humiliating us, lowering our pride), we are aware of a more understanding love; a deeper, easier, more spontaneous love towards our brothers and sisters. That’s how it is. It therefore follows that poverty and humility are the basis of charity. Poverty and humility. How can we obtain them, how can we earn them without waiting for spiritual storms? […] It is necessary to “live the other” […] and this implies not taking account of oneself; having total poverty and total humility. […] Let us encounter our neighbours in a perfect attitude of welcoming their life in us. […] And since we are talking about neighbours, let’s ask ourselves: Whom should we love first? Whom should we love more? Whom should we have a preference for? We have chosen Jesus Forsaken. We must prefer those who, on account of their condition and because of the situations in which they find themselves, in some way remind us of his face: those who, although being Catholic, live separated from the Church; and then all those who in various ways are more or less distant from the truth that is Christ, including non-believers. Above all, we must go towards these. Do we want to keep in touch with those with whom we have shared our Ideal? Perhaps through letters, visits, or telephone calls. Let’s start with the people, who in a certain way, are furthest away from us. Let us revive our love for our brothers and sisters by making ourselves so one with them that we live – so to speak – their life. And let’s start with those who appear to us furthest from our evangelical way of thinking and living […] Jesus Forsaken awaits us there. Our place is there.
Chiara Lubich
(in a telephone conference, Rocca di Papa, February 12, 1987) 1) Mt 5,22
Feb 19, 2021 | Non categorizzato
The commitment of a small community in the Murcia region of Spain has led to lots of activities being set up to create space for dialogue and solidarity, such as meetings between citizens and politicians, cultural events and activities responding to social and humanitarian emergencies. 
Aljucer is a small town in the Murcia region of southern Spain. Twelve years ago, members of the local Focolare community asked themselves what they could do to make their commitment to living fraternity a reality which impacts on people in the local area which is located in fertile land close to the Mediterranean Sea, but which also has its fair share of large and small emergencies. The first step was to find a way to create opportunities for participating in the life of the town which were more open and inclusive. So, in collaboration with other groups, they set up a cultural association called ‘ACLF Aljucer’. “Our first experience as an association,” they said, “was to bring together various mayors who had been in office in the city during the Spanish democratic period. Inviting them was not easy, but in the end they all agreed to participate. They had an opportunity to introduce themselves, recall the time when they held office and, in some cases, reconcile with one another. In the end, they thanked us and encouraged us to continue in this vein.” 
This experience led to the idea of holding a meeting every year to bring politicians and citizens closer together which is how “In Our Hands” and “The Speaker” were born. The first of these meetings which have now been running for twelve years,” they explained, “took place before the elections and offered a safe space where dialogue between citizens and candidates was encouraged. In the second event, a topical issue was chosen, and politicians and citizens were given the floor. Speeches and proposals are collected, published on the Association’s website and offered as contributions to the City Council. Some of the topics proposed have been studied in depth and, from that experience, the idea of a Cultural Centre under the authority of the Municipality arose which is now becoming a reality. The Association also puts on cultural activities, such as concerts, book presentations and exhibitions. And there is also “Aljucereños”, an event where personalities from the world of culture, music, art, literature, politics, economics and medicine talk about their life experiences and the motivation behind their choices. They also hold monthly meetings with other assocations and organise an annual Associations’ Fair. But it is also important to listen and respond to the sufferings and wounds of the local area to build fraternity. “The first step we took towards solidarity,” they continued, “was to organise a dinner in aid of the ‘Fraternity with Africa’ project which provides scholarships for young Africans who have committed to working in their home country for at least five years. This very soon became our main activity, the one for which we became known by so many. Shopkeepers and associations help organise the dinners which bring together around 200 people. Participants are updated on the project’s development at every meeting”. The Association also collaborates with initiatives promoted by other organisations that support humanitarian emergencies (Philippines, Madagascar, Croatia) and has committed to helping refugees from the war in Syria. The latest activity was a fundraiser for Lebanon, after the explosions in Beirut in August 2020. Even when there were emergencies closer to home they didn’t back down. “Last year,” they explained, “we made it our priority to provide water and food to the people affected by flooding in the area. We also organised volunteer activities and collected school supplies for a school in our area where a high number of pupils are at risk of exclusion. In the last year, we have supported three families affected by the pandemic by providing food, medicine and financial assistance. We disseminate all these activities through the Association’s website and Facebook page which help us to promote a culture of solidarity on a large scale”.
Anna Lisa Innocenti
Feb 15, 2021 | Non categorizzato
If the spirituality of the Focolare, which is centered on love for one’s brother or sister, is an expression of the Gospel, then also “perfection in virtues”, as it is referred to in the Christian tradition, must be achievable in relationships with others. This is the conviction that Chiara Lubich explains in the following text. Many of us are familiar with the Imitation of Christ, a book of prayer and meditation that is rich in spirituality. In order to transform our life into a Holy Journey, and reach the goal that the book puts before us, it says that we need some attributes that are very compelling: complete contempt for the world, an ardent desire to progress in virtue, love for sacrifice, and the fervor of penance, self-denial, and knowing how to bear every adversity…. They are attributes that are necessary for all of us to possess. However, we must ask ourselves: how can we acquire them in accordance with our own spirituality? The answer is clear and certain: we have not been called by God to accomplish all this through a monastic style of life separated from the world. We are called to remain in the midst of the world and to go to God through our neighbor, which means through love for our neighbor and through reciprocal love. It is through committing ourselves to undertake this unique and evangelical path that we will discover, as if by enchantment, that we have acquired these virtues in our soul. We need to have contempt for the world. Then, there is no better contempt for something than complete disregard, forgetfulness and indifference toward its existence. If we are fully projected toward thinking of the others, toward loving the others, we no longer have concern for the world, we forget about it; therefore, we have contempt for it, even though this does not free us from doing our part in pushing aside its suggestions when they assail us. We must progress in virtue. But we can do this if we have love. Isn’t it written: “I will run the way of your commands when you give me a docile heart [a heart full of love]” (Psalm 119:32)? If in loving our neighbor we run the path of fulfilling God’s commands, it means that we are making progress. We need to love sacrifice. To love the others precisely means to sacrifice oneself in order to be dedicated to the service of others. Christian love, even though it is a source of great joy, is synonymous with sacrifice. We need the fervor of penance. It is through a life of love that we will find the greatest and principal penance to perform. We need self-denial. Love for our neighbors always implies self-denial. Finally, we need to know how to bear all adversity. Are not many sufferings in the world caused by living alongside others? We must know how to bear everyone, and to love him or her out of love for Jesus Forsaken. By doing this we will overcome many obstacles in life. Yes, in loving our neighbor we find an excellent possibility to transform our life into a “holy journey”. […]
Chiara Lubich
(From a telephone conference call, Rocca di Papa, 27 November 1986)
Feb 12, 2021 | Non categorizzato
This is the title of the conference to be held on 18-19 February and promoted by the Chiara Lubich Centre and the Central National Library in Rome. Consonances and common points between the spirituality of unity and lines of thought of great figures of our times. Can we imagine what dialogue between Chiara Lubich, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Simone Weil, Mahatma Gandhi, Giorgio La Pira, Martin Luther King or even Mikhail Gorbachev would be like? When the vision of a personality happens to be in harmony with that of other ‘great minds’ of his or her time, or of other times, such a convergence often strengthens and enriches a movement of common ideas, that can reach large patches of humanity and set a course towards a durable change. To put Chiara Lubich’s idea of unity in dialogue with different personalities who have made history, is the aim of the conference “Beyond the 20th century. Chiara Lubich in dialogue with our times”. It will be held on 18-19 February 2021, and it is being promoted by the Chiara Lubich Centre and the National Central Library in Rome. This event may be followed online on Città Nuova’s YouTube channel in Italian, English, Spanish and Portuguese. THURSDAY 18/02 ITALIANO https://youtu.be/hePSudSFdbo PORTUGUÊS https://youtu.be/91uF6G4uJ80 ENGLISH https://youtu.be/_vKWn0NNP_Q ESPAÑOL https://youtu.be/Awo4Z3sbQU0 FRIDAY 19/02 ITALIANO https://youtu.be/R1NtYaCUifA PORTUGUÊS https://youtu.be/pQKtuCs1loQ ENGLISH https://youtu.be/s8H4u-LHC70 ESPAÑOL https://youtu.be/TNFO84-RZBM During this conference, Chiara Lubich’s thought and her experience in the historical, political, economic and literary fields will be dealt with, thanks to the contribution of academics and scholars from different disciplines. Amongst these, there will be Michel Angel Moratinos, Andrea Riccardi, Piero Coda, Alessandra Smerilli, Vincenzo Buonomo, Pasquale Ferrara, Maurizio Gentilini, Giulia Paola De Nicola, Adriano Roccucci, Cristiana Freni, Lucia Tancredi, Aldo Civico, together with others from other countries, such as Andras Fejérdy from Hungary and Vinu Aram from India, just to name a few. There will be four sessions during this conference that will deal with the historical aspect, the literary aspect, the socio-political aspect, while the last one will be dedicated to some twentieth century personalities. Chiara Lubich lived through most of the twentieth century and the first years of the new millennium. She looked at this change of epoch from the perspective of universal brotherhood, convinced – as she affirmed many times – that ‘unity is a sign of the times’. The consonances that the conference aims to highlight, in fact, go far beyond the analysis of Chiara Lubich’s thought, because they place it in dialogue and in comparison with the thought of great figures who, through different ways of life and cultures, have however pointed their gaze in the same direction. Besides the Focolare Movement, the Sophia University Institute, Città Nuova, New Humanity and the Trentino History Museum Foundation are also giving their share towards this conference.
Stefania Tanesini
