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October 1998

30 Sep 1998 | Non categorizzato, Word of

How often in life have you felt the need for somebody to give you a hand, and at the same time realized that no person is able to remedy your situation! It is then that you unconsciously turn to Someone who can make the impossible possible. This Someone has a name: He is Jesus.
Listen to what he tells you:

«Were your faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.»

Obviously, this image is not to be taken literally. Jesus did not promise his disciples the power to perform spectacular miracles simply to amaze the crowds. To uproot and plant in the sea is a hyperbole, that is a rhetorical exaggeration, intended to instill into the minds of the disciples the fact that with faith nothing is impossible.
The purpose of every miracle that Jesus worked, directly or through his followers, was always to further the kingdom of God or the Gospel, or the salvation of humanity. Uprooting the mulberry tree would not serve this purpose.
The comparison with the “mustard seed” is used to show that what Jesus requires of you is not a great amount of faith, but an authentic faith. The characteristic of an authentic faith is that it is rooted solely in God and not on one’s own strength. If you are assailed by doubts or reservations about your faith, then that means that your faith in God is not yet authentic. It means that you have a faith which is feeble and somewhat ineffective, which is still anchored upon human strength and human logic.
The one who trusts entirely in God lets God himself act and… to him nothing is impossible.
The faith that Jesus wants from his disciples is a totally trusting attitude which enables God to manifest his power. And this faith is not reserved for certain exceptional people. It is possible and dutiful for all believers.

«Were your faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.»

It is traditionally held that Jesus said these words to his disciples when he was about to send them out on their mission.
It is easy to get discouraged and frightened when you know that you are a small, unprepared flock, with no particular talents, faced with a great crowd of people to whom you must carry the truth of the Gospel. It is easy to lose heart because you realize that you are facing people whose interests are entirely different from the kingdom of God.
It seems an impossible task.
It is then that Jesus assures his disciples that by faith they will “uproot” the indifference and apathy of the world. If they have faith nothing will be impossible for them.
Furthermore, this expression can be applied to all circumstances of life, as long as these serve the progress of the Gospel and the salvation of people.
At times, when we are confronted with insurmountable difficulties, we might even be tempted not to turn to God. Human logic says to us, ‘Give up; it’s no use anyway.’
It is then that Jesus exhorts us not to be discouraged, but to turn to God with trust. In one way or another he will answer us.
That was what happened to Lella. Some months had passed since the day when, full of hope, she first reported to her new job in another country. But now a sense of dismay and loneliness have taken hold of her heart. It seemed as though between her and the girls with whom she lived and worked there was an insurmountable barrier. She felt isolated and estranged among those people whom she wanted only to serve with love. It was all because she had to speak a language which was neither hers nor those to whom she was speaking with.
They had told her that everybody spoke French and she learned it. But coming in direct contact with those people she realized that they studied French only in school and generally spoke it unwillingly.
Many times she tried to “uproot” this segregation that kept her apart from the others, but in vain. What could she do for them?
She could still see in front of her the face of her companion Marie, full of sadness. That evening Marie went up to her room without touching her supper. Lella tried to follow her, but she stopped in front of her door, timid and scared. She would have wanted to knock… but what words should she use to make herself understood? She remained there for a few seconds, then she gave up.
Next morning she went to church and stayed at the back behind the last pews, her face in her hands so that no one would notice her tears. It was the only place where no other language needed to be spoken, where no explanations were required, because there, was Someone who understood beyond words. It was the certainty of being understood that gave her courage and, her soul in anguish, she asked Jesus: “Why can I not share the cross of the other girls and tell them what you yourself had made me understand when I found you: that every suffering is love?”
There she was in front of the tabernacle, almost expecting an answer from him who had brought light into every darkness of her life. She turned her eyes to the Gospel of the day and read: “Trust – have faith – I have conquered the world” (cf. Jn. 16:33). These words were like balsam on Lella’s soul, and she felt a great peace.
When she went back for breakfast, she met Agnes, the girl who took care of the house-cleaning. She greeted Agnes and followed her into the storeroom; then, without a word she started to help her prepare breakfast.
The first one to come down from the rooms was Marie. She came to the kitchen for a cup of coffee, quite in a hurry to avoid seeing anyone. But there, she stopped; Lella’s peace had touched her soul in a manner which was stronger than any word.
That evening, on the way home, Marie pedaled her bicycle beside Lella’s, and trying to speak in a way Lella would understand, she whispered, “Your words are not necessary; today your life said to me: “Start loving, you too!”
Faith had won.

«Were your faith the size of a mustard seed, you could say to this mulberry tree, ‘Be uprooted and planted in the sea,’ and it would obey you.»

Chiara Lubich

EUROPEAN PRIZE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS 1998 awarded by the Council of Europe to CHIARA LUBICH

21 Sep 1998 | Non categorizzato

Press Conference – September 22nd at 14:30 at the Palais de l’Europe with the participation of the prize winners. This year in which we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the conferring of the 7th European Prize takes on particular importance. This award is given every three years to an individual or an organization which have distinguished itself in the promotion or defense of human rights, in accord with the principles of individual and political freedom and the respect for human rights. On Tuesday, 15 September, at 7 p.m. Chiara Lubich will also speak to a group of members of parliament at the European parliament. The gathering is organized by the European People’s Party but is open to members of other political groups. On that occasion Ms. Lubich will speak about the Focolare Movement’s experience in the areas of politics and economic solidarity. For the first time the Prize is being awarded to a woman. It was instituted in 1980 and it is honorific. Among others it has been awarded to the Medical Section of Amnesty International (1983), to former Presidents Raul Alfonsin of Argentina (1983), Lech Walesa of Poland and the International Federation of Human Rights (1989), to Médecins sans Frontières (1992). The Council of Europe official communiqué, announcing the assignment of the price, reads: Born on January 22, 1920 in the city of Trent in Northern Italy, Chiara Lubich has given life to the Focolare Movement in 1943. Working for unity among peoples through dialogue and concrete actions in favour of peace without frontiers, the Movement is now present in 180 countries and inspires the life and the action of millions of men and women of different religions and convictions. The defence of individual and social rights is at the heart of the Movement’s action in Europe and throughout the world. Young and adults, civil and religious authorities are involved in the action promoted by Chiara Lubich fostering the cause of Human Rights, peace and unity among individuals and peoples”. After the announcement many sent congratulatory messages: Daniel Tarshhys, Secretary General of the Council of Europe; Msgr Courtney, Special Envoy of the Holy See to the Council of Europe; The Hon. Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, President of the Italian Republic; The Hon. Romano Prodi, Italy’s Prime Minister. The Fondation des droits de l’homme de Turquie, an N.G.O. founded in 1990, has played an exceptional role in the defence of Human Rights in Turkey in the last seven years. Its purpose and its task are fostering and practising the universal values recognised by the international conventions and contributing to the abolishment of torture and other violations of Human Rights. Two are the main objectives of the organization: a project for a Centre of Documentation and Centres for treatment and rehabilitation. Recently several activities in the field of Education to Human Rights have been promoted by the Foundation. The Committee on the Administration of Justice (CAJ) was created in 1981. It is an intercommunitarian group dedicated to the defence of the highest judiciary norms in Northern Ireland. The CAJ checks that the Government respects its obligation to comply with international law. It has unceasingly and impartially worked towards the implementation of Human Rights throughout Northern Ireland. According to CAJ problems of justice and equity lye at the heart of the conflict in Northern Ireland; it deems solving such conflict intrinsically important and essential believing that it should be done by appealing to Human Rights violations in view of putting an end to them. The Council of Europe was founded in 1949. It works to strengthen democracy and Human Rights on a planetary level. It elaborates common answers to social, cultural and juridical challenges existing in its 40 member states.