“The charism of unity is one of these graces for our time, which experiences an epoch change and invokes a simple and radical spiritual and pastoral reform, to restore the Church to the ever-new and current wellspring of Jesus’ Gospel.”[1]
[1]29th January 2020, Message of the Holy Father Francis for the opening of the international conference “A charism at the service of the Church and humanity” on the occasion of the centenary of the birth of the servant of God Chiara Lubich
This sentence of Pope Francis appears on the web site of the “Mariapolis Ginetta“, the most developed of the three little towns of the Focolare in Brazil. It highlights the recent years’ focus: a journey towards organizational change to better witness to everyday fraternity and to meet the needs and questions of visitors and the surrounding environment.
This has taken shape through the initiation of an updating processand a more participatory and less centralized management of the different realities within it. Today, each part has its own council or management committee, composed of Mariapolis residents and professionals, working in synergy with the town council. “Co-responsibility” is a key word at Mariapolis Ginetta, alongside a forward-looking approach and the ongoing quest to update the town’s mission: “to welcome, educate, testify, and radiate.”
In 2022 Mariapolis Ginetta celebrated its 50th anniversary, having grown from the first group of Focolarine who came to a small house without electricity or gas, today it has a total of 454 inhabitants living on its grounds and nearby.
Over the years, tens of thousands of people have visited including families, priests, religious and occasional visitors. Many young people have spent time there learning to live fraternity in everyday life or to discern their way to follow God in the Focolare Movement.
The Mariapolis Ginetta is part of the municipality of Vargem Grande Paulista that is just an hour from the bustling megalopolis of São Paulo and the change of scene when you arrive is dramatic: greenery, houses, no skyscrapers, parks and playgrounds for children; the atmosphere of a small town, compared to a metropolis is the added value of this place. In recent years, fourteen families have moved from different cities to raise their children. A very young couple with three children say, “We moved from Sao Paulo 6 years ago to this place where people treat one another with love, where there is room to live a balanced, and person centred lifestyle”. This, together with a school for young people that started eight years ago, is signs of a renewed social vitality of the little town.
Co-responsibility and participatory management
Iris Perguer and Ronaldo Marques, co-managers of Mariapolis Ginetta explain, “Today in the little town there are many of the elements of urban coexistence, there are houses, a town centre represented by the Mariapolis Centre and the church dedicated to “Jesus Eucharist”, the publishing house “Editrice Cidade Nova”, an audio-visual centre, medical clinics, various workshops, the well-known bakery and cafeteria “Espiga Dourada”, social projects at the service of the most disadvantaged population, the “Polo Spartaco”, a commercial and manufacturing area where companies operate according to the principles of the Economy of Communion, the Brazilian section of the “Sophia ALC “University Institute (Latin America and the Caribbean)”.
Margaret Karram commented, “This new mode of participatory management that you are implementingis an extraordinary opportunity to open the little town to others who want to help build it, to learn about and to have an experience of unity. I must say that after attending the Genfest a great hope was born in my heart; I had the strong impression that in these days God has knocked again on the door of Brazil, asking for a response to and support for what began for the young people there. This little town, together with Mariapolis Gloria and Mariapolis Santa Maria, now has a new opportunity and responsibility to understand how to respond; to offer a witness of evangelical life lived in a social community.” ”.
The second generation of the “Polo Spartaco” Business Park
Mariza Preto told us that the Entrepreneurial Hub has also embarked on a courageous path of development and openness.
““In 2016, a debt accumulated over the years due to unpaid bills, clearly indicated that the economic sustainability of the Park was at risk. The entrepreneurs lacked motivation and were worried because there didn’t seem to be anyone interested in starting a new business. These have been difficult years, in which many things have been attempted, including building relationships with local entrepreneurs that has led to the common events and moments of dialogue and encounter. But the turning point came in 2019 when, during an exhibition we organised at the Park, most of the exhibitors were external to our reality. In that period “Espri”, our management company, had many vacant warehouses and a growing financial fragility. It was then that the Council decided to admit companies and entrepreneurs who were not involved in the Economy of Communion but who wanted to act according to its principles. Thus, a “rebirth” took place: every company that wishes to come today undergoes a process of induction about the business life that we live here and adheres to the lines of management of an Economy of Communion company “. ”.
Thirty years after its foundation, Polo Spartaco now consists of 9 buildings housing 10 companies with a total of 90 employees.
Jésus Morán said, “The economy of communion is alive here. In addition to the charismatic aspect, you can see that of manufacturing and a generational turnover of entrepreneurs is underway. All this tells us that we have entered a new phase in which the prophecy of Chiara Lubich is alive. We thank all the pioneers, those who started and believed in it and allowed us to reach this point”. ”.
SMFocolari
It is through the SMF, “Sociedade Movimento dos Focolari” that the little town engages in various social works in the area. SMF promotes community building, access to rights and protection guarantees, especially for children, youth and women in situations of social vulnerability. The three Social Assistance Projects, in which the inhabitants of Mariapolis Ginetta are involved, operate in the field of prevention for young people in vulnerable conditions, providing support networks for their families and welcoming homeless people. This is a drop in the ocean of the need for dignity, work and justice of many people and as Sérgio Previdi, vice president of SMF explained “It is just one piece of the cultural project based on fraternity that we want to develop in our area and in our town”.
Stefania Tanesini
[1]29th January 2020, Message of the Holy Father Francis for the opening of the international conference “A charism at the service of the Church and humanity” on the occasion of the centenary of the birth of the servant of God Chiara Lubich
Bullying At school, during a break, I was washing my hands in the bathroom when five or six girls and two boys attacked me, pulling my hair and punching and kicking me. They also broke my glasses. They ran away quickly when, at my screams, the janitor rushed in. Why? Yet I seemed to have a good relationship with everyone. From the investigation that was later made, it turned out that on that day the group’s “game” was to attack the first blond girl they would meet. And I am blond. For days I was traumatized by the idea of going back to school. In the Catholic movement of which I am a member, one day we were telling each other how we had experienced Jesus’ invitation to forgive seventy times seven. For the first time I realized how difficult it is to forgive. I thought and thought about it for days. Then I realized that the strength to forgive is a gift from the Risen One. I would not have been able to do that. And when I went back to school, feeling free and peaceful, I felt I had taken an important step in my faith life. (M. H. – Hungary)
A ” Neighborhood Treasury” I had been struck by this definition heard during one of our community meetings, “A city is man in relationship with each other….” “So is a neighborhood,” I concluded, thinking of the one in which I live. Since then, every new day seems more interesting to me if I experience it as a chance to establish authentic relationships with neighbors, acquaintances, etc… One thus enters into the most diverse stories, shares joys and sorrows, discovers ever new ways of meeting certain needs. As in the case of the “neighborhood treasury,” born from the idea of putting something of our money in common for certain needs we learn about: we placed it in the garage provided by one of us, the door of which is not locked, so everyone can access it when needed. On the box are two inscriptions, “Give and you will be given” and “He who loves gives with joy.” The amount collected has sometimes been used to buy special shoes, clothes, for drop-off at a shelter, also for interest-free loans and even loans with no return. (A. – Italy)
Edited by Maria Grazia Berretta
(taken from The Gospel of the Day, Città Nuova, year X- no.1 May-June 2024)
At the traffic light Once a week I take a trip from my town to a larger city to meet with friends with whom I share the same ideals. I try to take extra money with me to help people who ask for alms at traffic lights. Last week, on my way home, I stopped at a red light and was approached by a young man ready to clean my windshield. I rolled down my window and while looking for money to give him I told him not to clean it because he would not make it before the light turned green.
He looked at me and said, “Can you give me a little more? I need to buy some chicken for my children.” I answered yes. In fact what I was giving him was not going to do him much good. He took the money and said, “Will you let me earn it? I promise I will do it quickly.”
Almost without waiting for my response, he started cleaning the windshield, finishing just before the traffic light turned green. Immediately afterwards he approached the window of the car and, with a happy face, shaking my hand, thanked me and wished me well. As I drove home, I thought about what had happened and realized that small gestures sometimes edify us and teach us more about ourselves than the people for whom we do them. I know that God is everywhere, but it never occurred to me that He was waiting for me at a traffic light. (S. Z. – Argentina)
In prison For dealing drugs I had ended up in juvenile detention, but where I continued to receive visits from Valerio, my teacher from when I was in school. And that could not leave me indifferent. In life, I had been involved with bad people who I thought were my friends, but not with Valerio: he loved me without any interest. Moreover, he would tell me stories of other boys, who had made a different choice from mine, gospel facts. One day a new “guest” arrived in my cell: a boy so dirty he was smelly. The cellmates began insulting him, spitting on him, intimidating him to go wash up. Since he had no soap, no towel, and no spare clothes, I intervened in his defense and gave him my clothes, soap, and towel. He went to take a shower and peace returned. This experience was the beginning of a turning point. I thought that because of everything I had done, love had disappeared inside me. Instead it was like a seed that, more alive than ever, was beginning to blossom. (T. – Italy)
Edited by Maria Grazia Berretta
(taken from The Gospel of the Day, Città Nuova, year X- no.1 May-June 2024)
The risen Jesus opened a way for us, but now the Resurrection happens every time I rise up in myself, overcoming my selfishness. This “coming to consciousness,” which is charity put into action, is changing my life little by little. I hear this not only from my husband, but it is something that my children, my friends, also notice. Driven to learn more, I read the lives of saints I previously avoided, and I find confirmation of this secret that is key to a true life. One evening our son came home lightheaded, almost absent-minded. He did not respond to questions. At night he was sick. He had used some hard drugs. Being perhaps one of the first times, the reaction was strong. In the following days I tried to get past all the questions in me, the search for culprits, to investigate his friendships. At some point, however, I was “resurrected” to be only love to him. One afternoon I was sitting beside him without saying anything. In that full silence he said to me, “Thank you, Mom, for how you welcome me. If I am a father someday, I want to be a parent like you, with a heart that has no horizons.”.
(M.S. – Netherlands)
Where there is no love…
In the post office where I usually go to pick up my mail or for other reasons, until recently I often found some employees nervous and rude to me, and most of all the manager, who one day even started yelling about my being late to pick up a certain amount. I, however, being guided by the phrase of St. John of the Cross, “Where there is no love, put love and you will find love,” endured, continuing to greet everyone with kindness. With this way of doing things out of love for Jesus, little by little I was able to establish more humane relationships in that office. A confirmation of this was when, having suggested to one of the employees a ticket for a charity raffle, the other colleagues also became interested and wanted one, including the janitor. Even the manager came to get a ticket, indeed shortly afterwards he asked me for another one. To which I said, “I hope at least one prize goes to one of you.” He said, “Who cares? Even if we don’t win, we did something good together!”.
(M.F. – Italy)
An opportunity to love
About 15 years ago, I was volunteering at a Diocesan Caritas listening center. One day a young woman came to visit us, and she asked me if I could put her in touch with a gynecologist because she wanted to have an abortion; she had no financial possibility to bear the expenses of growing the new life in her. At that moment I felt a pinch in my heart, but also the great opportunity to love that young mother and her baby. I told her about the wonderful gift that is life and that financial difficulties should not be an obstacle, that we were there to help her. The young woman was moved and told me that she wished to be helped. Some time later the young mother came to greet me; she was with a wonderful newborn in her arms. She told me with a big smile, “This is my baby and I wished to introduce her to you! Thank you for listening and helping me that day. Thank you from her too!” I was deeply moved and grateful to God, grateful for that very special encounter; grateful for giving me the opportunity to love.
(M.M- Italy)
Edited by Maria Grazia Berretta (taken from The Gospel of the Day, Città Nuova, year X- no.1 May-June 2024)
