Ecumenism: the dialogue of life
“Coming in this zone, something has exploded. This idea has exploded: truly God has given us a new ecumenism. There was already the ecumenism of charity, that is, the dialogue of charity, as when Athenagoras brought gifts to the Pope, the Pope brought gifts to Istanbul, to Athenagoras; as when Ramsey brought gifts to the Pope, the Pope brought gifts… in order to indicate a drawing closer to one another. There was already the dialogue of prayer, in which we all pray together, especially during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. And there was already the theological dialogue, which has been blocked in many parts, also here in England a little… held back a little. We realized, especially in coming here, that we have a fourth dialogue, a fourth line. Our dialogue is the dialogue of life, the dialogue of a people which is already Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Reformed… of a people who are already all united and who are a people… they are the Christian people of the year 2000, of our times. We realized that this is our way of being involved in ecumenism, that is, of awakening the Christian instinct of Christians, joining everyone together because the bottle is almost full, joining everyone together and bringing ahead this people. Years ago, the Pope said: “You are a people,” but he intended to say “because of your number.” Now we are four times as many as we were then, when the Pope told us that…. But what people do we intend? The Christian people. The people… we are this people, we are this people. When I spoke with the focolarini the other day – there was Lesley and Callan * – I said: “Who will ever separate me from Lesley and from Callan? No one, because Christ has united us! Jesus in our midst has united us. No one can separate us!” Now, who says anything like this in the ordinary Christian world among Orthodox and Catholics and Lutherans? Everyone goes off on their own. Everyone follows their own Churches, of course; in the meantime this must be done, looking after the people entrusted to them, following their own current, their own denomination; but who says: “No one can separate me, because Christ has united us!”? The fact is that Christ has united us and He has made us one people, and this is the small “bomb” that has exploded here in England. Dearest all, thank you also for this applause. I never thank people for applause, but it means that you are with me, it means that we are together in living this way!” Chiara Lubich, London, 16 November 1996 – to the Focolare community of Great Britain and Ireland
“I love to be among children because they are the ones who have best interpreted my ideal!”, 
Children are often bombarded by messages that are counter-educational and that do not respect their age. How can we offer them a formation that is both human and Christian? Difficult situations are lived within the family, causing loss of trust in adults and consequently in God: how do we make them experience the love of God? These were some of the questions they reflected upon during the week long course of formation. “Our method of transmission starts with ourselves,” the organisers summed up, “by being the first to put the Gospel into practice.” 
There was a lot of discussion and exchange of experiences and the program included in-depth studies on psycho-pedagogical themes in the light of the collective spirituality, the rights and protection of children, group workshops and plenary dialogue. Everything was done with great dedication towards children and their formation and there was renewed effort and commitment among the participants to work to this end. An experience was shared by participants from Egypt: “The Gen 4 saw the older children of the Focolare carrying out initiatives for our city, Cairo, and they wanted to do something as well. ‘Why not bring peace and joy?’ we said to each other. We bought flowers to offer the passersby. Before going out on the streets, the Gen 4 boys and girls thought of the phrases they would say while they distributed the flowers: “If you love Egypt, when you eat sweets don’t throw the wrapper away on the ground”,and similar phrases. Many – both Christians and Moslems – were amazed at this. A street sweeper exclaimed: “A flower for me?” “Yes,” said the Gen 4 because we want to love you.” And he, visibly moved, replied: “It’s the first time that someone has given me a flower.” A story from Brazil was recounted: Christina, a Gen4 girl, suffers from an illness that can provoke heart failure. After a very serious heart attack this summer she was at risk of losing her life. The doctors had to carry out numerous tests. Christina was peaceful throughout, because having heard the story of Chiara Luce Badano, she was not afraid of undergoing tests and treatments. A doctor said to her: “Did you know you were very close to the door of Paradise?” Christina replied: “Yes, but I did not go in because my backpack wasn’t yet filled with enough acts of love.” On hearing this, the doctor wanted to know more about her life. These were some of the experiences shared during the week of work at the service of the new generations. The formation course was both complex and delicate, and it was done in collaboration with families and experts in different fields, however we are all summoned to do our part as educators.
It could be said that 21 February 1966 is the date of the beginning of the Focolare Movement in Portugal. This was the day when two young Brazilian women arrived in Lisbon to open a focolare house. Chiara Lubich herself had wanted it in Lisbon so as to have a place of welcome for the first focolarini who were leaving from or arriving in Europe, because at that time many flights from South America stopped off there. In 1967 the some men arrived in the city as well, opening a second focolare house.
Today throughout the country (and its islands) the Movement has more than 2000 members and thousands of sympathizers adhering to its spirituality, ten focolare houses in Lisbon, Porto, Coimbra and Faro and, at 50 km from Lisbon, the little town of Arco-iris which is the living heart of the Movement in Portugal.
There are about 50 inhabitants: adults, families, young people, children and a priest who the Cardinal has also made the parish priest of Abrigada. It is in constant development and encourages the growth of the spirituality of unity through practical experience of the gospel lived. A moment of outreach that goes beyond the members of the Focolare and appeals, most especially, to young people is the gathering of youth every 1 May for a day of sharing and celebration. The little town is a privileged space for dialogue with civil society and with people of every conviction and culture.
In 2011, 250 young people have been helped at every level of their education, from elementary schools up to specialised post university courses, in 14 countries around the world: Bosnia, Croatia, Macedonia, Moldova, Romania, Serbia, Lebanon, Philippines, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. Allowing young people to study and train professionally is without doubt an investment for the future. The experience of Action for a United World and the 
They write for example from Cebu, in the Philippines: “Every Saturday, some students go to our social centre to do tutoring to others that are younger: the students at university help those of the secondary school, and the students at the secondary school help those at the primary school that are in difficulty. In their free time they also help with the various social programmes of the centre, cleaning the premises, feeding the smaller ones, distributing scholastic materials at the beginning of the year.” And from Brazil: “I am 20 years old, and I have 3 brothers, one of them has a physical disability. This makes us live more united as a family and helps us grow in facing life with simplicity and openness towards the needs of others. At the beginning of this year I understood that I could live the Gospel in a more radical way, both at university and during my free time, and this would make a difference in my life. How could I put this decision into practice? I got the idea of dedicating myself to voluntary work, because in this way I would be able to participate in the reciprocity typical of the Economy of Communion, through which I receive my scholarship, and “in exchange” give my free time to other persons in need. So I began to work in a home for the elderly that has more than 50 inmates. I carry out activities with them to improve their quality of life. I set myself the objective not to look at them as “aged” in general, but to get to know each one with her life history, her family, to understand what they really desire.” 
“I attend the nursing school at the University of Para’. The profession I have chosen is an opportunity to be of service to others. Sometimes I find myself in situations where I risk contagion, but I try to intervene always in favour of those who are in need. Once I was given the responsibility to care for a person who had committed crimes. For me this was simply a person who needed care. My attitude drew the attention of my colleagues who reflected on the behaviour that is required from our profession.” 
«“I am aware that the objectives of the Economy of Communion, besides helping persons in difficulties, is also “the formation of new men and women”, so I try to be a sign of communion between my student friends, by circulating between us the knowledge and experience of each one of us. I do not own my books, and I try to leave in a good state the learning material that has been given to me for my use. But others do not have the possibility of buying, not even the hand outs, so I share this material with them. This is what I can do so that others can study. I feel that the achievements made by my study do not belong only to me, but to all those who collaborate in the project.”
“I was studying for a history test in class and I could not concentrate; there were many pages and I was thinking that it would be difficult to succeed in covering them all. To make the situation worse, I get an sms from some friends who ask me for help with a mathematics test. I reread the message, think about all the history pages and almost answer that I cannot help them. After some seconds however something within me tells me that I am losing an opportunity to love friends who are in difficulty. Instinctively I had put myself in the first place, without thinking about how important it is to help the others. I close my book, and hurry to the house of one of them where they were gathered. I involve myself and help them until late in the evening. When I return home, there is no more time to study history, now how would I carry out the test? I trust everything to God, believing that He would find a solution. On the morrow, some companions ask the teacher whether she can postpone the test; evidently I was not the only one who had not studied. The teacher, who is usually intransigent, decides to postpone the test. Simply luck? I do not believe so! I think rather that God in His providence has rewarded the act of trust done the previous evening.” (S. G. –Italy)
History and prophecy, the two eyes with which humanity contemplates its scene in the drama: one looks to the past and the other to the future, so that it can regulate the present. You could say that prophecy is God’s view and history is man’s. Thus history is an epitaph of the fallen and prophecy the longing for freedom from death and new life, a longing for peace. And Christ came. And over his cradle, in the mists of time, the angels sang: “Glory to God in the highest and peace to men on earth.” What is glory for the Lord God in Heaven is peace for men on earth: Peace is the glory of men; glory is the peace of God. Now Christ indicates peace. “Christ is our peace. . . peacemaker,” come “to bear the good announcement of peace,” as Paul says to the Romans, who were a people of war. His revolution centers on the discovery of the brother, made by the light of charity, and peace is the fruit of charity. His law is forgiveness, and forgiveness replaces the impulses of war. War denounces, in those who promote it, a practical atheism, a rebellion against God. One of the Gospel beatitudes sings: “Blessed are the peacemakers, because they will be called the sons of God.” Peacemakers are makers of peace. For peace must be made, it is produced and it is the most precious product of human civilization. The Christian is a producer of peace that reconstructs the fabric of time indefinitely. He continually reconstructs life, “making war” on war, as Pius XII says, in order to combat his enemy which is death.. But there is peace and there is peace. . One is life and the other is death. “My peace I leave with you,” Jesus says, “I give you my peace, not the peace that the world gives.” The world’s peace is imposed by war; Christ’s peace is the gift of love. In this respect, both – peace and war – spring from the heart of each one of us. Too many of the world’s peoples still continue to repeat with the prophets: “We wait for peace and we do not have it; we await the hour of healing and remedy for the ills we have suffered, and behold: new tumors and disturbances are appearing; we wait for the light, and look at us still in darkness. . . We await justice and it’s not there; health, and it is still far from us.” Civilization and peace identify with each other in the same way war and barbarism accompany each other. A prophecy is needed today – a vision of love and reason – to shout on the heads of those responsible the imminent dangers to which their foolishness, their fear can lead us. If the body of humanity flows with the Blood of Christ, It shall free it of evil. To the city of man today as to the Jerusalem of then Jesus continues so say: “Oh, if you also knew – especially this day – what would bring you peace!” Precisely on this day, for there is no more time to lose. What is conducive to peace is human rationality together with the divine rationality, and this is substantially what love is. The Blood of the Redemption which makes us consanguineous with Christ and therefore with each other, reassembles as a family: in community, able to reach unity. Moreover, a universal unification seems to be already underway. The ideals of freedom, justice and peace are common to all, elevating the black and the yellow, proletarians and workers of every land and condition. Upon their agitation which is forming the dramatic history of our times, the prophetic invitation of Christ is all the more urgent: “May they all be one!” Igino Giordani 
Marisa Baù, an Italian 
The news, as is to be expected, has spread swiftly among everyone in touch with the Focolare, Marisa’s friends and all who know her. Official Focolare channels and social networks have begun a chain of communion and prayer which has the commitment to pass on any information useful to the search. ‘We are praying in Sweden too’; ‘We pray for her in Berazategui, Argentina’; ‘In Columbia we pray every day. We call upon heaven with faith!’; ‘Also from Spain we pray that she’ll be found’; ‘We miss you, aunt!’; ‘I pray that your guardian angel with be close to you and that you give us some sign to lead us to you’; ‘Marisa … you followed your star, you walked the streets of the world fulfilling the dream of your life: to serve your neighbour out of love. In this period we are the ones looking for a star to follow so we can find you.’ These are a few of the echoes received.
From the heart of Europe it takes about twelve hours to reach the farthest peninsula of the Eurasian landmass: Korea, ‘the Land of the Morning Calm’ as it is called. This country is one of the few in the world still divided between North and South. 
Social Initiative. Heaengbok Maeul, ‘The Village of Happiness’, is a monthly project that has been active for eight years. It helps foreign workers, refugees from North Korea (more than 20,000) and many others in need. Among its services, the project offers a range of medical services, food and clothing, hairdressing and lessons in Korean. ‘To begin with,’ the volunteers with the project say, ‘people were wary, but now they feel loved, and bit by bit they open up and they even bring their own food to be shared.’ 
Politics and economy. The Movement for Unity in Politics (MUP) in Korea began in 2004. It was the initiative of a group of Members of Parliament who, since 2008, have been meeting once a month in the ‘Political Forum for Unity’. The group conducts research and is recognized by the Korean Parliament. Its activity extends to a ‘Social Forum’ open to journalists, lawyers, civil servants, doctors and economists, which meets in Parliament every two months with about 30 people each time. Among the activities promoted by the MUP in 2010 there was the 
“Skip a meal and give the money for the Horn of Africa.” During the past four months the Youths for a United World of Costa Rica have thus launched in their country the Skip a Meal campaign in order to collect funds for this African region, where over 12 million persons live in a dramatic situation caused by the exceptional drought. 
The young people have organised two cultural events at which famous musicians and personalities from their country participated. Both events were a combination of music, poetry, personal experiences and audio-visual creations that brought the participants closer to the reality of the soul of Africa. Skip a meal was mainly inspired by the desire to collaborate to build a more united world; above all, they wanted to love the others in a concrete way by sending a monetary help from the proceeds of the tickets sold for the artistic events. “It was really an unusual experience: the excitement, the enthusiasm, the commitment, the love for this face of Jesus crucified and abandoned and the certainty of His presence amongst us were the ingredients essential to the preparation, during which we became aware of a magnificent reality: not only we were helping Africa, but Africa was helping us.” Through collaboration with various companies and organisations we were given food, infrastructures, and space on the mass media that allowed us to spread the initiative and involve youths and adults who identify themselves with this cause. All this became an occasion to divulge the idea of a united world. 
We have also started to build a direct relationship with the Youths for a United World of Kenya, who writes to us: “Thanks a lot for Skip a meal; we are enthusiastic knowing that Cost Rica is united with us to face these difficult challenges that signify also a sorrow for humanity.” 
Skip a Meal is not a beneficent activity, but an experience of reciprocal enrichment, of sharing, and the opportunity to enter in the African culture. We realise that sharing our competencies with the “Other” we can transcend space and overcome the differences, the geographical, ethnic and cultural separation. Skip a Meal makes us realise that two completely different cultures can unite, understand each other and help each other: “I am because we are.” (Ubuntu philosophy). We are all part of this worldwide net of unity that is being woven. It is up to us to continue to work to build a new humanity. Youth for a United World – Costa Rica Links: Twitter: skipamealer Facebook: 
“They are young; they’re like a current: everybody sees their good number, but it is the wave that pushes them. Whoever rides on the wave, travels far, without effort.” This is the beginning of the letter from Father Pietro Raimondi, chaplain of the San Vittore prison in Milan, where a group of young people of the Focolare Movement, on Christmas Eve, brought a breeze of warmth, living together with the inmates a “silent miracle of light”. The whole story begins with the youth having started to animate the Sunday Mass in the prison: a moving experience that left its mark. A few months before Christmas, they wanted to launch the initiative “Good inside and good outside”, with the challenge to succeed in collecting sufficient boxes of panettone (Christmas cake) for each cell of the prison. “The cell is the only home of the inmate,” write the Youth for a United World, “and therefore in every cell – that is in every home of the big city that is the prison of San Vittore – we want to bring about the atmosphere of Christmas.” “It is they who come out with the ideas, the proposals, the best intuitions,” continues the chaplain. And whoever tells me that they are inconstant, and changing, I say that this is typical of liquid. But I add that liquid has a magic property: you cannot compress it. The pressure they exercise is enormous, they move mountains. They are young and they put pressure always inventing something new. Who listens to them is lucky and walks on water.” 
“Today we took the boxes of panettone to San Vittore!” Now it is one of the young people who speaks. “We were a nice team: some of us unloaded from the vans, some filled the bags, some took them to the metal detector… there was work for all! Then four of us had the beautiful gift of being the ones to distribute the panettoni in the cells. It is impossible to describe the emotion when we stepped over the threshold of the cells, and gave the panettone to each inmate, and saw their joy and gratitude. For the first time after a long time they could see not only guards and their cell companions. And so we experienced a different Christmas… a much more real one.” 
“The generosity of adults often sediments in routine,” Father Pietro writes. He has seen many Christmases at San Vittore. “Even the donation of the panettone to the inmates risks being transformed into an institutional gesture. Always the same person makes the donation, with the same van, belonging to the same firm. And the mechanical gesture of distribution kills the momentum of the original initiative.” “But these young people say to you “Well, why don’t we?” First they set a challenge to themselves and then to the whole world. They say, “We will not buy not even one box of panettone and we will not seek those who make a large donation. We will talk about the dark world behind the perimeter walls. We will talk in the streets, in the schools, to friends and in families. We will talk about those who we do not care whether they are good or bad, guilty or innocent, but who certainly need a gesture of love.” Those gestures that are not an aid to fill a void, but something over and above. And the response has been beyond all expectations. They aimed at distributing 450 panettoni, one for each cell. Soon they became 500, then 1000, and then 1400 and then they lost count. Today in prison, there were 1553 men and 96 women, without counting the personnel and operators. And it appears that everyone received a gift…” .
«I’ve been working in an NGO since 2008. I started out in this job coordinating an area under the direction of the executive director. Then, in the end of 2010 I took some holidays. When I returned to work, I found that the executive director had offered her resignation and I was asked to take her place. When I began, I found things that were left suspended and among them something rather delicate. It had to do with theft. During 2007 and 2008 the ex-director had stolen the taxes from the salaries of the workers and from the NGO, and had not paid them to the State. And so we had to pay a fine of some 75,000 dollars, which was an enormous amount for our organization. Perhaps to cover up what she had done, the former director had paid a certain amount on behalf of each worker that corresponded to the amount that had been deducted from their salary in those years. And she kept for himself the amount that the organization was expected to pay to the State. Each of us received this unexpected bonus without knowing the reason why, and we were very happy and surprised. I received an additional 12,000 dollars in my salary. Happy as I was, my conscience told me that something was wrong, and so I decided to return the extra monies. I contacted some lawyers to know what I should do and they advised me to falsify the documents, even my work contract, etc. According to them, the State would never have figured out the situation and would have enforced the fine anyway. But I wanted to remain faithful to my decision to build a more just society. “What would Jesus do in my place?” I asked myself. He would certainly have gone against the current. And so I decided to act accordingly and even to involve my colleagues in my decision. 
I told them that the first thing they should was to return the monies that didn’t belong to us and to write to the Finance Ministry explaining what had occurred and asking that the fine be cancelled. To my great surprise all of my colleagues agreed this. Meanwhile, the ex-director, who had left the country, let me know that she was very angry with me and that my decision to return the monies to the State was exaggerated. She couldn’t understand my actions and said that this would destroy the team spirit that it took years to build. But for me and my colleagues it meant being faithful to our duties as workers, certain that God – who sees all things – would help us. After three months of contacting the Finance Ministry, we received the happy news that the fine had been cancelled. Moreover, the officials were impressed with the honesty of our gesture in returning the monies to the State. We experienced an answer from God toward those who love and strive to remain faithful to Christian their values. Recently we had to submit our NGO’s financial statement. The Tax Council concluded by recognizing our NGO as a reference point for the transparency of its administration and for the way in which we solved problems together». A. G. – Luanda – Angola
“As you know, a new chapter in the history of Egypt had begun this year, with the unexpected fall of the dictatorial regime. At nearly a year from the initial signs of hope and freedom as a breeze of fresh air, we find ourselves in a delicate phase where along with the great economic crisis and fear of the future, insecurity and discouragement reign among all. But in spite of this difficult situation, we have seen with astonishment the intervention of God who, in a discrete way, is helping us sew a hidden tapestry, weaved with real brotherly relationships. 
While the newspapers and television were transmitting to you the bloody attacks on churches in various parts of the country, and the acts of violence against the crowds during the peaceful manifestations in Tahrir Square, at the same exact time, in one of the districts of Great Cairo, Christians and Muslims were working together,– all animated by the Ideal of unity that Chiara has transmitted to us – in a project, even if a small one, but is a symbol of unity: the project “I belong”. In front of the mistrust, disinterest and indifference of many Egyptians, the goal of the project is to give back to the people the sense of belonging to their country, encouraging them to discover its cultural treasures, starting by cleaning the dirty and neglected angles of the city. Thus, an initiative was born – promoted by the Egyptian artist Elhamy Naguib – to paint murals that express brotherhood, peace and harmony that help make people responsible in civic engagements. So, we launched ourselves together with 40 young people and adults, for 2 days, painting the wall of a school in a poor district, with the theme “We have the right to dream!”. We were 8 months away from the 25th January revolution. Even if everything was legal, the next day we got news from the municipality to erase the painting, without any explanations. We felt as our small flame was dying.
«If I should have to leave this world today and you were to ask me for a single word, one last word that sums up our Ideal, I would say – certain of being perfectly understood – ‘Be a family’. Are there among you those who are suffering spiritual or moral trials? Understand them as a mother and more than a mother would, enlighten them with your words or example. Do not leave them alone; indeed, surround them with the warmth of a family. Are there among you those who are suffering physically? They should be your preference. Suffer with them. Seek to understand their sufferings in depth. Share with them the fruits of your apostolic endeavors so that they may realize that they, more than others, contributed to its success. Are there those who are dying? Imagine yourself in their place and do all that you would want others to do to you, to the very last instant. Are there those who are happy because of a particular achievement or for any other reason? Share in their happiness, so that their consolation may not be saddened and their heart closed, but that the joy may be of all. 
Now it’s up to us.” “It will be a great feast and an historic event as well.” “An important step in the formation of the new generations in Africa.” This is how some youths of the Focolare Movement describe the upcoming Pan-African Gen Congress which is scheduled to take place in a Focolare town in Kenya, known as 
Radicalità, comunione e spiritualità.Radicalism, communion, and spirituality. This is what the young religious desire for their future consecrated life. This emerged from a survey carried out on the eve of the V Meeting on Consecrated Life held in Rome, on the 3rd December, on the initiative of the male and female 
The second part of the meeting was introduced by an exceptional witness, 
A modest last minute compromise was reached in Durban. The conference lasted a day longer than was foreseen and didn’t produce a new binding agreement, but postponed its drafting to 2015 and its enforcement to 2020. This confirms the general tendency of recent international negotiations on climate change: deadlock. We are witnessing on a global scale, a typical scene of sibling fighting. Everyone is waiting for the other sibling to take the first step to resolve their differences. The Kyoto protocol for reducing greenhouse gases that was extended until 2015, is insufficient because of its limited objectives and because highly-polluting countries do not adhere to it. Some of the big “historic” polluters would like the so-called emerging countries to be the ones to reduce emissions. 
Neverthelss I remain optimistic. I believe that humankind will find a solution. Some countries have already understood the strategic importance of renewable energies. The European Union fits into this context with its ‘20 20 20’ (reduction of greenhouse gas by 20%; reduction in energy consumption by 20% through the use of renewable energy.) Isn’t there a risk of these decisions being to the disadvantage of emerging countries? The risk is there. In fact, some rightly oppose the reduction of greenhouse gases while remaining to stand on the side of emerging countries where a large portion of the population is still without water and electricity. It would involve supporting renewable clean energy. It makes you wonder why the rich countries do not surrender their patents. Why do they export polluting industries? Among those who hold this position there is also the Catholic Church. In Durban there were representatives of a 190 countries who seek large accords among States. But on the micro level, can’t something also be done? Yes, of course. Personal involvement, consumer and voting choice and simpler lifestyle are all important actions that can be taken. Moreover, EcoOne is trying to also develop a debate on the level of the relationship between human beings and nature. . . Could you explain that a bit more? What are EcoOne’s proposals for a more sustainable life? EcoOne’s proposal stems from the thought of Chiara Lubich. What has Chiara taught us? Not so much the latest techniques for saving energy, but an outlook toward nature that is new. She made us gather the presence of God beneath things. She made us understand universal brotherhood, which means brotherhood with other peoples within our generation and among generations as a response to questions such as: ‘What kind of planet will we leave to our children? What kind of air will they breathe?’ By reflecting on a man-nature relationship in this renewed way, we find a possibility for overcoming an excessive anthropocentrism; that is, of considering man as absolute dominator and destroyer of nature in order to make money, of no longer thinking of nature as the center, up to the point that human beings become a “disturbance” in the cosmos. We believe that the answer lies rather in the gift of ourselves, in the human person as a gift along with our fellow men and women and with nature, of which we are not the masters but the custodians, the administrators, because God has entrusted it to us. Luca Fiorani, researcher at the 
Lonavla is famous for its pleasant climate on the Deccan Plateau, two hours from Mumbai. Sixty scholars have gathered there for the Fourth 
“Claritas is an online English language journal that seeks to explore a culture of unity in an in-depth and academic fashion. The articles will be peer-reviewed to assure their quality, but above all, as in the Italian Nuova Umanità, they will seek to explore every field in light of that unity which can generate a new world. It does not seek to serve any particular cultural area in the world, but offers anyone who uses English the possibility of expressing their ideas in that language. In order to allow everyone to participate, particularly those who, in different parts of the world, have fewer economic advantages, it is free, although, in order to cover expenses we ask those who can to contribute as they would with any other professional journal they use.” How does peer review function? Why is that useful? “It’s really quite simple! Once the editor accepts an article for possible publication, it is sent to be reviewed by someone competent in the subject being treated. For the most part, these reviewers are members of the editorial board. This evaluation can be a real service to the author, as an article might have value, but might need some modifications before it can be published, so specifics improvements will be suggested. I should add that the editorial staff includes academics from institutions all over the world.” Claritas is a “trans-disciplinary” journal. Why does it take this approach? “Basically because one aspect of what we see as genuine unity is to respect, even to emphasize, the diversity of disciplines, and to recognize that one can enrich the other. Every discipline is autonomous, but none can stand completely on its own. Claritas addresses all those who wish to join in the conversation about what unity means and how it works. It aims to provide an intellectually respectable forum for promoting and spreading the culture that is born from the charism of unity.” How is it connected with the Focolare Movement? “The culture of unity that Claritas seeks to express is born from the charism within the Focolare Movement. Claritas, therefore, is a cultural expression of the Movement, but one does not necessarily have to be a member of the Movement to publish there or to find something useful or even enlightening in reading it.” Where did the idea of this journal originate? “Simply from the need to express the culture of unity in English. In practice behind this there were two parallel conversations. One was in Nuova Umanità which recognized the need to publish online in various languages, including, of course, in English. The other came about in the USA, where scholars connected with the Movement felt the necessity to express their ideas in a language that many in the world-wide academic community use. Fortunately, they also found the resources to bring this about. We shall see how things develop but the editorial line of the new journal is based on Nuova Umanità. Certainly it should be distinctive because of its rigorous nature, even as it strives, as much as possible, to be open to everyone.” On 12 March 2012 the first issue will be published. Can we have a preview? “We will publish a 1961 talk by Chiara Lubich, where she gives a summary of her experience of ‘Paradise.’ It is a highly significant text, full of cultural consequences or implications. There will be at least one article to contextualize it, and one that will examine the ideas of what it is to be human implicit in Chiara’s experience. In addition, there will be two articles on politics, one dealing with the limitations of political power and the other examining international relations. There will also be articles related to interreligious dialogue, particularly with Jews and Buddhists. Finally, demonstrating the breadth of interests in the journal, there will be reviews of various types of books–including some that go beyond the cultural contexts usually connected with the English language, such as a review examining the concept of ‘fraternity’ from a South American perspective.” Our best wishes to the journal 
It was difficult for me to see children begging for some money or people immersed in dumpsters searching for something to eat. Not that this is anything new. These things can be seen on many streets and on the TV. But when you come face to face with it, something changes and you find yourself presented with your own personal measure for living the Gospel. Returning home a few nights ago, I stopped to talk with a guy. He was 23 years old, more or less my own age. He told me about his children, one of whom was about to have surgery and there wasn’t enough money. He told me about the 150 euro he had to pay each month so that he and his wife wouldn’t have to sleep in the back seat of a car. Then there were the difficulties finding employment. Just the same old stories, just the same old excuses to scrape up a few pennies, I thought. But something pushed me to continue. Therefore I told him that I’d help him to find a job, that he could come to supper with me, and that I’d put him up at my house if his landlord threw him out of his home. I hardly knew what I was saying, but the words were flowing from my heart. I said to myself: What can someone like me do? I’ve just arrived in Rome! When I returned home I prayed for help from the Father. Two days later I received an email that told of a meeting for foreign students who were seeking employment. Here was an answer, a clear sign! I immediately sent a message to the guy, informing him of this opportunity. More than once it happened that I got home late due of similar delays. And I would be interrogated by my housemates: ‘But why do you stop to talk with these people? What do you care? It doesn’t do any good anyway…’. Perhaps my answer to them was a superficial one, but what I gathered from it all was revolutionary. I changed my way of acting because ‘everything is for Jesus.’ If you allow Jesus to work on you and change you, if you choose Him as the basis for your life, especially the Jesus who suffered on the Cross for all of us, then it’s Jesus Himself who makes you another Jesus in the dark corners and sufferings of society.” (E.P. – Italy)
One day in the 1940s, at the dawn of the Movement, a bishop sent for the young girls from Trent (Northern Italy). Unaware of the reason for the invitation 
The Political Movement for Unity (MPPU) has been active for several years in Argentina in order to disseminate the fraternity dimension in the heart of the life of political parties, as is done in other countries where the movement is present. Juan José Pfeifauf (of the “Frente Para la Victoria” Party) and Pilar Goldmann (of the “GEN/Generacion para un Encuentro Nacional” Party), are two youths who arrived on a visit to Rio Grande (Tierra del Fuego, Argentina), the most southern capital in the world. Militant in two different political parties, they wanted to put on record that to inspire oneself by fraternity means “putting this idea in concrete action amongst the different political sides, by exercising empathy towards the other, with humility, knowing that nobody possesses the absolute truth about any project, and starting to recognise in the other a valid and necessary interlocutor.” Their visit forms part of the follow up of the local School of political formation that holds its lessons regularly every Saturday. They themselves have followed the MPPU training at La Plata (Buenos Aires). Now Pilar is a tutor at a centre at San Miguel del Monte, in the province of Buenos Aires, where she has been encouraged to contest as candidate for the commune council in the last political elections. About participation in active politics by youths, Pilar’s impression is that “from the years in the nineties up to today, in Argentina, we have seen a growth in political commitment, even if we cannot yet say that 100% of youths are interested in it.” But youths should not be considered only as subjects to whom to refer some occasional projects: “youths must become the main actors in the public realm. The renewal of politics passes through here.” The Mppu/Argentina, that draws its inspiration from the principles of fraternity inherent in the proposal of the spirituality of Chiara Lubich, is 10 years old in 2011. It was formed on the occasion of the grave economic crisis that gripped the region in that unforgettable year, causing an increase in poverty in society. It was a moment which saw a real divorce between the people and the political class, a divorce that only recently seems to be recomposing. Pilar relates that, on the premise of that crisis, some persons animated with the spirituality of unity, took on the commitment to give birth to the Centres of social and political formation, “to seek to give an answer, to imprint a reversal of route, aware of the necessity to reconstruct the basis of the rapport between society and the institutions; not only, but also to diffuse seeds of dialogue and trace a common way.” Today we can say that we have come a long way and hundreds of young Argentinians have been to these centres. A “capital” now mature, ready to contribute to the development of the South American country: the commitment which they feel to bring about fraternity in politics, understood as service. Presented by Daniela Ropelato (from extracts published in the Diario El Sureno, 16th November 2011- our translation) 
“As time went by we began to see that our attitude of openness towards the other gave a special quality to our teaching: it turned into an opportunity to offer support to the people. Some needed to find employment, others needed some simple help or a comforting word.” To better meet the needs of their students, Fouzia and Sheherezad learned Braille. This did not go unnoticed: “One of our friends, seeing how we were giving out time so freely, decided to help us and join with us in this effort.” They tried to help some of the young men and women to begin jobs. One girl, for example, looked for work as a switchboard operator. They found a company: “We noticed the director’s willingness to help us in finding a way. And he was struck by our effort and decided to hire the young woman indefinitely.” All the community of Orano shares in the projects and in reaching the goals. We have organized open houses to acquaint people with the rich life that can be found in this world of the blind. “The theme of the open house is always “the other” and, in the end, there are no longer those who are blind and those who see; the Muslim and the Christian: we are all brothers and sisters sharing the same situation.” The national press became interested in these activities, recognizing the right of the blind to live like everyone else. It is also a work of sensitizing that has involved many people in the efforts of Sheherazad and Fouzia. Overcoming administrative and legal difficulties, an association has been formed for professional integration of the blind, which is very active and is working for the construction of a school. City institutions have also become involved and this training project has now been officially recognized by the department for professional training of Orano. “There is still a lot to do,” Sheherazad concludes, “but doing things for others, notwithstanding our limitations, is beautiful and thrilling! It gives everyone that strength to carry on which throws us open to new surprises.” Compiled by the Community of Orano – Algeria