“God loves me – God is calling me”, was the slogan printed on cards that identified the young people present at Loppiano (Italy), between 14 and 19 March 2011. This slogan expressed the goal of the days: to delve deeply into the vocation of a focolarino, someone who is called by God to become an “apostle of unity” – a beautiful expression used by John Paul II – and to follow Jesus by pursuing his prayer to the Father: “May they all be one” (Jn: 17: 21).

The thirty-three young people came from different parts of the world. There were students, labourers and entrepreneurs among them. But they were all united in the single desire to put aside everything for God, to renounce starting a family, in order to dedicate themselves to the building of the unity of the human family that Jesus prayed for. Many impressions were shared during those days, like Andrew and Jonas from Brazil. Andrew  who just finished his master’s degree in history, said:  “I left behind some nice things, some very nice things, only to find more beautiful things here.” Jonas, who is an airline pilot, remarked: “I’m left with the certainty of God’s call, because of the strong spiritual experience I had here.” Indeed, it is often the presence of the Risen Christ in the midst of the community who amplifies the voice of God and allows it to be heard in one’s heart. Stephen, an engineer from Rome, talks about the intensity of those days: “I will take home with me the relationships that I built with each one of you. I understood that Jesus Forsaken is the essence of our vocation.” He was referring to a central point of Focolare spirituality: Jesus dying on the cross for everyone and experiencing the abandonment of the Father, taking upon himself all the abandonment and suffering of humankind. The focolarini choose Jesus forsaken as a model of self-giving and the basis of their choice in life. Renzo, who is also Italian from Bari, added, with his face beaming, “I take with me the extraordinary beauty of life in a focolare”. Jay is a journalist from the Philippines. He says he learned in Loppiano “to recognize in pains and difficulties the face of Jesus forsaken.” Not only: the real discovery for him was that he had tried “to love Jesus forsaken with joy, not merely to get through the difficulties.” Anthony a young Kenyan student summarizes the challenge:  “To aim high. This is the vocation of the focolarino, it’s mine, it’s ours.” At the end of those days that they will never forget, they wrote the following to Maria Voce, President of the Focolare Movement: “It was Jesus guiding us deeper into our vocation, in order to take us to a new level of intimacy with Him. We asked him to help us to be always faithful to Him.” And they affirmed their decision to live this “divine adventure, trying to imitate the transparency of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who never thought about herself but only of God, the most perfect model for a Christian of today and always.” Here are some images of some of the highlights of these days, which speak louder than words. [nggallery id=38]