Chiara Lubich: the essence of Christian love

Apr 11, 2022 | Non categorizzato

We are just beginning Holy Week and at its heart is Holy Thursday when we re-enact the moment when Jesus washed the feet of his apostles. He carried out this act of love putting himself in the last place. In the following text, Chiara Lubich draws us in to the essence of Christian love, which has to be lived in our practical way of behaving and which then generates reciprocity and peace. The unity, given by Christ, has to be constantly renewed and should be expressed concretely through our behavior which should be totally motivated by reciprocal love. This is the basis for the following suggestions about how to live our relationships with one another. Kindness: wanting the good of others. This means “making ourselves one” with them, approaching them being completely empty of ourselves, of our own interests, our own ideas, of the many preconceived notions that often cloud our vision. In this way we can take on ourselves their burdens, their needs, their sufferings, and we can share in their joys. It means entering into the hearts of the people we meet in order to understand their mentality, their culture and their traditions, so as to make these, in a certain sense, our own. In this way, we can really understand what they most need and we can discern in them the values God has placed in every person’s heart. In a word: kindness means to live for whoever is next to us. Mercy: welcoming others as they are, not as we would like them to be, for example, we would like them to have a different character, or to share our political views or our religious convictions, or not to have those faults and habits that annoy us so much. No, we need to enlarge our hearts and welcome everyone, with all their differences, their limitations and their problems. Forgiveness: always seeing the other person with new eyes. Even in the most beautiful and peaceful environments – in the family, at school or at work – there are inevitably moments of friction, differences of opinion, clashes. We might reach the point of totally avoiding someone or refusing to speak to them, not to mention actually nurturing an attitude of hatred towards those who don’t think as we do. Instead, we need to make a strong and determined decision to try to see each brother or sister every day as though they were new, completely new, with no memory of how they may have hurt us, covering over everything with love. We need to have an absolute amnesty in our hearts, imitating God who forgives and forgets. Furthermore, true peace and unity can be attained when kindness, mercy and forgiveness are lived not only by individuals, but together with others in a reciprocal relationship. Just as the embers in a fireplace need to be stirred up every now and then, to prevent them from being smothered by the ashes, so too from time to time it’s necessary to revive our mutual love intentionally, to revive our relationships with everyone, so that they won’t be smothered by the ashes of indifference, of apathy and of selfishness. These attitudes need to be put into practice in concrete ways. Jesus himself showed us what love is when he healed the sick and fed the crowds, when he brought the dead back to life and washed the feet of his apostles. Actions, concrete actions: this is what it means to love. We too can fill our days with concrete, humble and intelligent acts of service that express our love toward others. And we will see fraternity and peace spread around us.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita [Words of Life], Città Nuova 2017, pages 786/8

The Living Gospel: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” (Mk. 16:15)

Apr 9, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Proclaiming the Word is not only about speaking. It also involves practical actions that bear witness to belief in everyday life, in relationships with others and with creation. It is a mission: it invites us to be brothers and sisters – the image of the Kingdom of God in our time. Artisans of peace Burundi is a very beautiful country, but after the civil war thousands of people from different ethnic groups emigrated and we are now scattered all over the world. The Tutsis fled from the Hutus and vice versa.  In addition, there is strong regionalism that creates opposition between people from the south and those from the north  particularly when it comes to sharing power. So what can we Christians do? Here in Canada, my husband and I thought of creating a little “new world”, so to speak, within the Burundian community.  By using various cultural and sporting events, we give not only our compatriots but also other Africans and our friends and neighbours in Quebec the opportunity to meet around a traditional meal, a drink and good music. Our main objective is to contribute to the fulfillment of our Lord’s will: ‘That all may be one’. We are convinced that every Christian must contribute, in his or her own way, to the realisation of this project. Now several Burundians are in permanent contact and shake hands with each other, something they did not do before. Florida K. – Canada A shared decision One day, noticing that something was bothering a colleague, I approached her and gently asked if something was wrong. She confided in me that she had decided to take her sister who was  suffering from terminal cancer in her home. She told me that her sister needed special food, including a very expensive type of milk.  When I heard that,  I felt I wanted to contribute. I could draw on my account, sure that my husband would agree, but this time I wanted to make the decision with him. I had not always done this in the past, especially for small expenses. But since we had begun to put  the words of the gospel into practice with more conviction, we had become more sensitive to the fact that “it is better together”. So, after we both got home from work, I told him about my colleague and the help I wanted to give her. He immediately supported me. Not only that, he suggested giving twice the amount I had planned. There was an expression of joy on his face. This shared awareness of our neighbour’s  suffering  made us feel more united. Thanh – Vietnam “Optimising” relationships I am often tempted to “optimise my time” according to my schedule but then I am left feeling disappointed when something unexpected happens and I can’t complete the tasks in the order planned.  Unexpected events, however,  often convey God’s will and bring a different quality to the day. More and more, I am realising that, in the complexity of everyday life, the best attitude is to “optimise relationships” with every neighbour I meet. And here, haste is the great enemy! So I try to stop, for example, with the pensioners downstairs, or with the neighbour on the landing who was recently discharged from hospital. I stop to say “good morning” to the resident under house arrest, whom many people avoid out of fear, and I tell  him that today the water will be cut off in the whole neighbourhood because of maintenance work. Ciro – Italy

Edited by Maria Grazia Berretta

(taken from Il Vangelo del Giorno, Città Nuova, year VIII, n.2, March-April 2022)

Being and building community

Apr 7, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Focolare Movement in the world Around the world, wherever there’s a group, however small, of people taking the spirituality of unity to heart, you’ll find local Focolare communities striving to live in the spirit of the first Christian communities. French philosopher, Emmanuel Mounier (1905-1950), leading exponent of the movement known as personalism, said, “The primitive experience of the person is the experience of the second person. The ‘thou’, including the ‘we’ precedes the ‘I’, or at least accompanies it”. In essence this means: being community. And because we “are” community, we must “create” and work on building community. The challenge in these our own times, is to strive to go beyond individualism and look around ourselves, to strengthen ties with the people sharing our geographical space, be it in a city, in our local quarter, or our place of work or education. It’s the same challenge that every Focolare group strives to meet in different parts of the world, from large cities to small towns or villages and rural areas around the planet. I’ll never forget how encouraged I felt a while back when I visited a small town in the heart of the Argentine countryside. I’d been invited to visit a center for children with disabilities. While there I soon experienced being in the presence of a lively commuity, united by strong ties like a family. You could see it wherever you looked in the township: in the sporting club, the parish, the townhall, the school. You could see it among the adults, the youth, the children, all together. And I’ve seen the same kind of thing in my contacts with other parts of the world too. In the province of Namibe in Angola, local Focolare communities unite for different activities, spurred on by the challenges identified during the Movement’s General Assembly in 2021, and the call to reach out towards the cry of suffering humanity, in whom we recognize the face of Jesus Forsaken. Once a month, members of the community work together to prepare a good meal to share among those most in need. They do this in collaboration with the local church, and the action has expanded to include collection and distribution of clothing and household items to people who really need them. Another group – this time the youth – support a center for over 30 street children aged from 5 to 17 years. Every month they organize a collection of food and household items. Other young people, responding to the Cry of the Planet, collect plastic mineral water bottles (consumed and discarded everywhere in the city streets). They pass them on to local people who, in these difficult economic times, manage to earn something from them. The young collectors mobilize their families, friends and colleagues to save their own empty bottles and contribute to this project. The community of Tombwa, in another part of Angola, has chosen to organize a project of clean-up and refuse-collection in the city, protecting and taking care of the trees too. Moving our attention to the Netherlands, to the southern region of Limburgo, Peter Gerrickens (Volonteer of God) explains, “In late November 2019 we visited a nearby city where we knew they offered regular meals to the most needy residents, because we wanted to start the same kind of activity in our own parish”. Unfortunately, just as they were about to launch this action, the Covid pandemic hit, so they were not allowed to set up a dining hall as planned. Instead, they began distributing packed meals. Focolare member Maria Juhasz is one of the team. She reflects, “It’s not just about giving out food, we want to give something more. This is much more than a charitable activity”. Over the year, the number of meals they provide increased to 400 per day, far too many for the original group to manage on their own. But when they looked around, they soon found reinforcements! Members of the Salvation Army and the Community of Sant’Egidio brought their valuable practical expertise to contribute to the successful continuation of the project. The support of providence is never lacking, in various forms. Some local businesses contribute their excess products. One shop, in particular, delivers large quantities of fruit and vegetables every week. Peter and Maria continue, “One evening every fortnight we hold a prayer meeting together. Everyone is welcome: our friends who receive the meals, the kitchen volunteers, the delivery teams, everyone.  Among us are Christians from all different churches, people of other religions and some without any particular religious faith”. Once a week they also serve coffee in the public square alongside the parish church and the parish priest is always available for anyone who wants to talk with him. “We know everyone carries many worries and sufferings which can’t be resolved with a meal,” admits Peter. “Our friends are grateful for the food they receive but equally for our prayers when we can remember a friend who has passed away or a newly-born grandchild. It’s important to give food, but it’s equally important to build true friendships and to recognize Jesus in the other person. This is our starting point, creating contact, entering in dialogue, person to person, and to discover each one’s need. Some people come along just for a chat. For example, one man after eating the meal thanked us for having listened to him because he felt no-one in his family listened any more.” Currently around 2,000 people receive food every week. But the community is not stopping here. A new project is underway, sponsored by the town of Heerlen, to set up a professional skills centre for youth from disadvantaged backgrounds who will receive catering training while assisting in the preparation of these meals. “The Word of Life sustains us in all our challenges,” conclude the project team. “We hope we are truly giving food to Jesus: ‘When I was hungry you gave me to eat’…”. We could continue to travel the world and find local Focolare communities forming wherever two or three have taken the spirituality of unity to heart. Drawing inspiration from the first Christian communities, they strive to be a living testimony of mutual love. “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13,35). Together they contribute to the transformation of their own environment, with a particular focus on the most disadvantaged.

Carlos Mana

School local community To reflect on the potential of the local community in expressing preferential love for those who are suffering the most, and to witness to the Gospel alive in different expressions of the Church and in the world today, the local leaders (or local “pivots”) of Focolare communities around the world are holding a School from 7th to 10th April 2022. Participants will link in for two hours each day from hundreds of points around the world, sharing in a “glocal” experience: being deeply rooted in their own local situation while at the same time being part of an extended global family.

Burundi: “It can be done!”

Apr 5, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The story of Rose from Burundi who, thanks to a community microcredit project, has opened up her own restaurant. Rose lives in Burundi and has six children. A few years ago she opened her own restaurant where she prepares meals which she also delivers to customers beyond her village. Thanks to this activity she has been able to send her children to school and even pay a number of employees a salary. Thirteen years ago, however, the situation was very different. Rose did not understand the meaning of the word “savings” and struggled to manage her family’s finances. Everything changed when she got to know the “It can be done!” project, facilitated by AMU, Azione per un Mondo Unito, and Casobu, a Burundian NGO and local partner. “Through this project,” explains Rose, “we learned how to save money. I was put in touch with a group of people who, like me, needed money to improve their situation. When I received the first loan I immediately bought some clothes because I didn’t know how to make a proper investment. Then I said to myself: how can I take the money without having a concrete project? So I decided to buy pots, dishes and pans. And that’s how I opened my restaurant.” “It can be done!” is a project based on community microcredit, a methodology through which groups of people get together and self-finance by putting their savings into a common fund. In this way the group can grant small loans to individual members enabling them to meet certain expenses and supporting them in starting up or managing small income-generating activities. As Emanuela Castellano, who manages the project on behalf of AMU, explained: “Community microcredit projects are based on a participatory approach which aims to empower group members so that the project can go ahead and grow. Funds raised and our support are used to raise awareness within the communities, train and accompany group members but the money put in common is theirs. The project’s main feature is the call for reciprocity whereby each person can contribute to developing the community. So the “You can do it!” project also seeks to provide support for activities that are growing and in need of more substantial funding for expansion.” Since Rose heard about the project she has been able to realise her dream of opening a business that would enable her to support her children and put them through school. The number of clients has increased over time, and now she can even pay five employees to help her. They, too, have plans for the future.  One of them would like to buy a goat, another a plot of land. Initially every dream seems difficult to realize, especially in a country like Burundi. It is the second most densely populated country in Africa and one of the top five countries in the world with the highest rate of poverty. Here, one in two families, around 4.6 million people, suffers from food insecurity and 56% of children under 5 are malnourished. In such a complex landscape, Rose’s restaurant is truly the realization of a dream, and can also become a sign of hope for her children and employees to realize their dreams. The “It can be done!” project does just that.  It provides hope for others, like Rose, to realise their dreams and look forward to a better future.

 Laura Salerno

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t0W6a2khA3Q

Chiara Lubich: “Love your enemies”

Apr 4, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Peace is about people, each and every one of us. It is something we all have to build, always and in all circumstances. This is not an easy or obvious commitment, especially today. In a talk she gave in 1978, Chiara presented us with a tough challenge. “Love your enemies…” This is indeed a strong statement. In fact, it turns our way of thinking and acting upside down and makes us change the direction our life is going in. Let’s not hide the fact that we all have enemies, enemies of one kind or another, even small ones. … It might be our next-door neighbour, or the meddlesome, unpleasant lady I try to avoid whenever I meet her on the stairs. My enemy could be a relative who wronged my father thirty years ago, and so I never spoke to him again … It could be the boy sitting at the desk behind you at school and you never looked him in the eye again after he reported you to the teacher. Perhaps it is the girl you were dating who suddenly dropped you to go out with another guy … The enemy could be the salesperson who tricked you … And then there are the politicians who don’t share our views and so we consider them enemies. Today some people even consider the government itself as their enemy and willingly resort to violence towards those who represent it. In addition, there are, and have always been, people who see priests as their enemies and hate the Church. However, all these people, and many others whom we might call our enemies, should be loved. Loved!? Yes, loved! And don’t think you can manage that just by changing a hateful feeling to a kindlier attitude. There’s more to it than that! Listen to what Jesus says: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you.” Lk 6:27-28 Do you see? Jesus wants us to overcome evil with good. He wants love to be expressed in concrete gestures. We might wonder why Jesus gave a command of this kind. The fact is that he wants to shape our conduct according to that of God, his Father, who “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous.” Mt 5:45. This is how things stand. We are not alone in this world. We have a Father and we need to be like him. What is more, God has a right to expect this kind of behaviour from us because he loved us first, while we were his “enemies.” While we were still immersed in wrongdoing, He sent us his Son, who died in that terrible way for each one of us. Perhaps we too need to sort out some difficult situation, especially since we will be judged according to how we judge others. In fact, we are the ones who will give God the measure with which he will have to measure us. Don’t we ask God to, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”? (Mt 6:12). So, let’s love our enemies! Only by acting in this way can unity be recomposed, barriers removed, and a community built up. Do you think this is too hard and burdensome? Does the mere thought of it stop us sleeping at night? Take courage! It’s not the end of the world. All that’s needed is a little effort on our part, then God does the other ninety-nine percent and… our hearts will be flooded with joy.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, pp. 105-108) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJbs06gE8dE

Guatemala: technology at the service of indigenous culture

Apr 1, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Educa is a project that has offered 25 young people in Guatemala training in computer programming and web design. Some of the scholarship holders come from indigenous ethnic groups and want to put the technical skills they have acquired at the service especially of the women in their communities. The aim is to enhance their culture and help women to excel, so that there are equal opportunities for all. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qAQb1XlAH1Y

Chiara Lubich: the path to fraternity among all

Mar 28, 2022 | Non categorizzato

How can we ensure that our daily efforts, our work and our relationships become a means of building a united world? One way is to see the people we meet every day with new eyes, being ready not to judge but rather to trust, hope and believe always. We need to acquire a merciful outlook. Mercy is a virtue that the times we live in ask of us with our neighbours both near and far. God’s great plan for humanity is universal fraternity. A fraternity that is stronger than the inevitable divisions, tensions and hard feelings that so easily creep into relationships due to misunderstandings and mistakes. Families often break up because they cannot forgive each other. Old hatreds maintain the division between relatives, social groups, and peoples. At times there are even those who teach people not to forget the wrongs they have suffered and who cultivate feelings of revenge… And a dull resentment poisons the soul and gnaws at the heart. Some people think that forgiveness is a weakness. Instead, it is the manifestation of the greatest courage. It is true love, the most genuine love, because it is the most selfless. “If you love those who love you, what merit have you?” – says Jesus – everyone knows how to do that: “Love your enemies”[1]. We are asked to learn from him and to have the love of a father, of a mother, a merciful love towards all those who come our way, especially towards those who do something wrong. Moreover, to those who are called to live a spirituality of communion and fellowship, that is, the Christian spirituality, the New Testament asks for something more: “Forgive one another”^[2]. We could almost say that mutual love requires that we make a pact with one another to be ready to forgive one another always. This is the only way we can contribute towards universal fraternity. These words not only invite us to forgive, but they remind us that forgiving others is the condition for receiving forgiveness ourselves. God listens to us and forgives us according to how much we forgive others. … Actually, a heart hardened by hatred is not even capable of recognizing and accepting the merciful love of God. … Precautionary measures are needed. So, every morning, in relation to the people around me, whether at home or at school, at work or in a shop, I’m ready to overlook anything I don’t like about their way of doing things. I try not to judge them, but I want to trust them, always hoping, always believing. I approach every person with this complete amnesty in my heart, with universal forgiveness. I do not remember their faults at all, and I cover everything with love. Throughout the day, then, if I have been unkind or impatient, I try to make up for it by apologizing or showing some sign of friendship. Then, when I pray to the Father, especially when I ask him to forgive my mistakes, I am sure that my prayer will be granted. I’ll be able to say with complete trust: “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” ^[3]

Chiara Lubich

 (Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, p. 667) [1] Cf. Mt 5:42-47 [2] Col 3:13 [3] Mt 6:12.

The Pope and the act of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary

Mar 25, 2022 | Non categorizzato

On 25^th March, Pope Francis will consecrate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.This plea is part of the choral prayer that rises up in the world for peace and accompanies the great network of solidarity to which the members of the Focolare Movement also adhere. On 25^th March, the Solemnity of the Annunciation of the Lord, around 6.30 p.m. (Rome time), from St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, Pope Francis will consecrate all humanity and in particular Russia and Ukraine, to the Immaculate Heart of Mary. With this act, according to Catholic tradition, every person on earth, especially those who suffer today because of war, is entrusted to Mary our Mother and through her intercession, to God. The Pope wrote to all the bishops in world to invite them to participate. He said, “The Church is strongly called to intercede before the Prince of Peace and to demonstrate her closeness to those directly affected by the conflict”. Because there is no victory in a war. With war, everything is lost. Therefore, the Pope continues, “in response to numerous requests by the People of God, I wish in a special way to entrust the nations at war to the Blessed Virgin Mary”. This act “is meant to be a gesture of the universal Church, which in this dramatic moment lifts up to God, through his  Mother and ours, the cry of pain of all those who suffer and implore an end to the  violence, and to entrust the future of our human family to the Queen of Peace”. The Focolare Movement, present in more than 180 countries, therefore also in many places where conflicts and wars are still taking place, adheres to the Pope’s appeal. A few days ago in Assisi, the President of the Focolare, Margaret Karram, who together with the General Council of the Movement was in the “city of peace” for a few days of retreat, invoked a prayer for universal peace: “We ask you with the faith that moves the mountains, that there be a ceasefire in the war and that dialogue will be victorious ‘in seeking paths to peace’ between Russia and Ukraine. We ask for the grace that every ongoing conflict, in particular the most forgotten ones, can end”. Since 1991, the years of the Gulf War, the Focolare communities have been united in prayer for peace through a daily “time out” at 12 o’clock in each time zone. Christians of different Churches, faithful of various religions stop for a minute of silence or prayer to ask for peace and to focus on their personal commitment to build it wherever they are. On Friday 25^th March, at the same time that the Pope will perform the act of Consecration, Car. Konrad Krajewski, the Pope’s envoy to Fatima will do the same in Portugal, to plead for Peace together.

Lorenzo Russo

Here is the link for the live prayer from 5.00 p.m (Rome time) Here the act of consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in various languages.

Composers of values: notes and words from a children’s workshop

Mar 24, 2022 | Non categorizzato

On 26 February a partnership between the children of the Focolare Movement (Gen 4) and the Forme Sonore Association brought about a workshop on composing children’s music, with about a hundred participants from various continents. Many reflections were collected from participants, as were the impressions of the teachers, Sabrina Simoni and Siro Merlo. This beautiful collaboration began in the summer of 2021 between Forme Sonore, an association that deals with music production and experimentation to encourage the growth of musical thought, and the Gen 4. It lead to a piece of music recorded by a small choir of children from Burundi. The opportunity to join forces and achieve something beautiful together rose once again on 26 February 26, the day in which the founders of Forme Sonore, teacher Sabrina Simoni (director of the ‘Mariele Ventre’ choir from Antoniano in Bologna, Italy, who plays a lead role in the annual Italian children’s ‘Zecchino d’oro’ event) and maestro Siro Merlo (an expert in writing children’s songs and artistic direction) held a beautiful workshop, organized and promoted by the Gen 4. It was aimed at those who understand music and work with children. It included a training session that was followed online by a hundred people from all continents. It focused on the composition of children’s music, not only from a technical point of view, but as a means to convey values such as sharing, unity, fraternity, care for others and nature. “When Valeria Bodnar, the Gen 4 assistant from Burundi, contacted us last August, we were deeply impressed by her enthusiasm,” Sabrina and Siro said. “We felt the same way on Saturday 26 February. The word that more than any other that describes it is ‘chorality’ – that intense feeling you get when, moved by sincere joy, you perform a song together with others. “The people who participated, in addition to being geographically very distant from each other, belong to remarkably different social and cultural spheres, yet the messages that reached us by the end of the workshop expressed similar views perfectly in harmony.” Filippo from Monopoli, Italy said: “This course has particularly revived my desire to compose something for our Gen 4. I learned that songs for our children must be simple, playful and make them feel free and happy to sing them.” There were many expressions of thanks. Ramia from the Ivory Coast wrote: “I understood that the song must be composed taking into account the psychology of children, the target audience that will interpret it, finding the best way to convey an emotion and the right rhythm to allow the child to sing without worries.” It was a real journey among notes, technique and passion, which revealed to participants how important it is to consider music as a “means and not as an end,” explain maestros Simoni and Merlo, “a vehicle that not only ‘transports’ content of various kinds (didactic, pedagogical, emotional or playful), but does so more quickly, directly and profoundly.” This moment of great sharing became a mutual gift. It left an important mandate for those who work in childcare and music: to grow and shape themselves more and more so they can accompany the children in this path of discovery where, as the teachers conclude, “music has a particularly powerful socializing energy that must be properly guided and channelled by competent teachers, animated by great passion, rich in empathy and sensitivity.”

Maria Grazia Berretta

I was fleeing and you took me in

Mar 23, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Through the reports sent to us by journalists and news broadcasts on the web and social networks, we are following the conflict in Ukraine as it happens.  Every day we witness the human drama of large numbers of people, mostly women and children, who have to flee from the bombardments. At the same time, actions that welcome refugees  are silently multiplying in many European countries. Here are some testimonies. A month ago, none of us could have imagined that today there would be more than three million refugees from Ukraine. But this is the reality we are experiencing not only in the countries close to the conflict zones but now in all the countries of Europe and beyond. Practically overnight we had to organise ourselves to welcome our Ukrainian brothers and sisters, mostly children and women, who are fleeing from the horror. “When the conflict began and the first people arrived from Ukraine,” says Manuela from Berlin, Germany, ” I saw it as a response to the fact we have had to cancel the annual Focolare meeting that we call the European Mariapolis. Welcoming people as best we can,  is now my and our Mariapolis. This is what God wants from me and from us.” And from Munich, also in Germany, Dora says: “The priests’ house where I work took in two women and a 12-year-old child. They don’t speak German or English but we understand each other by using web translation on our mobile phones. A few evenings ago, after dinner, I asked them if they needed anything. The mother replied: ‘Yes, I need a pair of size 42 shoes for my son.’  At that moment I felt Chiara Lubich very close to me and I understood that we were on the right path.” Dora is referring  to an event that happened to Chiara Lubich during the Second World War when a man who was poor and struggling asked her for a pair of men’s shoes size 42, and, almost immediately, a friend gave her a pair of shoes in that size which her family did not need. At the moment, some some Focolare Centres with residential facilities are being made available  to host the refugees from Ukraine.  As early as 3 March 2022, the first 5 refugees (2 young mothers with their children) were given accommodation in the Mariapolis centre ‘Dialog.hotel.wien’, near Vienna, Austria. They were grateful for the hot showers and the food they received.  The following day they continued their journey by train. Ten days later, 34 refugees arrived, including 15 children, who were accommodated for between one to five nights. The same happened with the Mariapolis Centres in Germany: Zwochau/Leipzig, Solingen/Cologne and Ottmaring/Augsburg. Twenty-five young people from north-west Germany took part in a charity run for Ukrainian orphans on Saturday 12 March 2022. A large group ran in Solingen and others from Cologne, Munich and also from Graz.  Other participants joined in along the course and ran with them. In total, the young people ran more than 250 kilometres and collected more than 10,000 euros! At the end, they connected via videoconference with the focolarine who are in Ukraine and were able to talk and share the experiences they are living. Taking care of refugees and collecting money, clothes or food are not the only things to do; it is also important  to raise awareness of the idea of peace. Margarete D. is a teacher and started a special campaign with her class in Krefeld, Germany. She saw that the children in her school wanted to do something practical  and so they began the  “Postcards for Peace” initiative. Some sentences were translated into Russian and meticulously written by the children in Cyrillic letters next to the translation in their mother tongue.  These messages were sent to people who have influence to stop the fighting. There is still a great deal to be done. In the meantime, efforts are being made to organise the logistical and practical aspects of welcoming refugees in the best  way possible whilst hoping there will soon be an end to this conflict.  This is the hope expressed by Pope Francis  after the Angelus on Sunday 20 March 2022: “I plead with all those involved in the international community to truly commit to ending this abhorrent war. “

Carlos Mana

Living the Gospel: «Forgiveus our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors» (Mt 6:12)

Mar 22, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Is it really possible to imitate God our Father in a love that truly forgives? It’s most certainly not easy. However, what can prepare the way for us to reach this point is to have received what Pope Francis calls “the grace of shame” in our lives and the subsequent joy that comes from having been forgiven. It’s a mysterious pathway which Lent indicates to us so that at the end of it we can arrive at unexpected places. Healing wounds One day someone surprised me with a really sharp personal criticism, which I didn’t think I deserved. I was deeply hurt and the attack burnt inside me afterwards. I was tempted to cut that person out. I no longer wanted to have anything to do with them. But I realised this attitude was not coherent with my choice to live the Gospel. How could I heal this wound? I turned to Jesus, and immediately his words came to mind: “Don’t do to others what you would not wish them to do to you”. For days I practised this motto with everyone I met, including the person who had so insulted me. And I noticed something healing within me, replacing any bitter thoughts. I experienced that sense of relief which can only come through forgiveness. (R. – Italy) Unconditional love For quite a while my wife and I had been arguing more and more. Who knows why? The smallest trigger, a word out of place, a something which was nothing, and we’d start to raise our voices, dragging up old grudges. One of those evenings, when the atmosphere between us was truly electric, I noticed our nine year old daughter sitting on the stairs and apparently playing with paper aeroplanes.  She was smiling, as was our younger son. They really seemed to be enjoying themselves! That got my attention, so I picked up some of the paper planes and showed them to my wife. Close up we could see that each plane was decorated with little hearts and messages like “We love you lots”, “You’re the best parents in the world!”, “We want to hear you singing!”. As my wife read them, I saw tears running down her cheeks. We looked at each other, ashamed of ourselves. We hugged and promised to rediscover our “yes” of love pronounced years ago. (M. – Portugal) The first step From when I was a teenager, my father and I could never get on. My mother suffered a lot over this, but we could never find a way through. Until one time, when I was travelling away from home, I confided in a friend who was an active member of a Catholic movement. He said that in difficult situations he would ask himself the question: “If I don’t love that particular person, who can do it in my place?” I returned home with these words ringing powerfully in my ears. Surprisingly I began to recall many occasions in which I could have taken the initiative to show love to my parents but didn’t. To make up for this, I decided to start with small things, helping out in little ways which before I always avoided. Basically, I noticed something inside me change. Twenty years have passed since then and now I have my own children. I understand the importance of taking the first step, as if the other person’s happiness depended only on me. (R.T. – Hungary)

Edited by Maria Grazia Berretta

(from Il Vangelo del Giorno, Città Nuova, anno VIII, n.2, marzo-aprile 2022)

Chiara Lubich: Boundless mercy

Mar 21, 2022 | Non categorizzato

In the Our Father, Jesus invites us to ask God to forgive our debts as we too forgive our debtors. It is the Word of life that we try to put into practice during this month of March 2022. Our love for our brothers and sisters must be full of mercy, even to the point of forgiveness. Jesus says that we must always take the initiative so that harmony and fellowship are constantly maintained. Therefore, he urges us to live the commandment of love of neighbour in a radical way. In fact, he does not say: ‘if you remember having offended your brother or sister’, but rather, ‘if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you.’ For Jesus, the very fact that we remain indifferent about any disharmony with our neighbour – even if we ourselves are not responsible for this disunity – is already a reason for not being acceptable to God and, indeed, being rejected by him. Jesus wants to put us on our guard not only against serious outbursts of hatred toward others, but also against any expression or attitude that in some way denotes a lack of attention or love for our brothers and sisters. … We should try not to be superficial in our relationships, and instead search the innermost depths of our heart, to be sure that we have eliminated even the slightest attitude of indifference or lack of generosity, every attitude of superiority or any intentional neglect of others. In everyday life, we can make up for any rudeness or impatience with an apology or a friendly gesture. If at times this isn’t possible, what counts is to radically change our inner attitude. Any instinctive rejection of our neighbour needs to be replaced by an attitude of welcoming, of full and total acceptance of the other, of boundless mercy, forgiveness, willingness to share and attention to their needs. If we do this, we can offer God all the gifts we want. He will accept them and take them into account. Our relationship with him will grow deeper and we will experience true union with him, which is our happiness, both now and in the future.

Chiara Lubich

 (Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, p. 283)

Dominican Republic: Open arms and open heart

Mar 17, 2022 | Non categorizzato

A cultural exchange project breaks down the barriers between Haitian migrants and the community of La Romana in the Dominican Republic. The Dominican Republic is a country in the middle of the Caribbean Sea that shares the territory of the island of Hispaniola with Haiti. Historically, it has a cultural value for the entire American continent, since it was there that Christopher Columbus landed on his first voyage. Both countries share cultural and historical roots, but also have contrasts that have separated them for centuries. Haiti is the poorest country in the Americas. Political instability and internal violence have caused thousands of people to migrate to other countries. Every year thousands of migrants cross the border from Haiti to the Dominican Republic in search of a better future, creating tensions between the two nations. “It is estimated that there are about 2 million Haitians in the Dominican Republic. They come mainly to work in the cultivation of sugar cane, because there are several sugar factories here, “says Modesto Herrera, a doctor who is part of the Focolare community in the Dominican Republic. Although there is mutual exchange between these neighbouring peoples, there are also latent tensions and discrimination against Haitians living in the Dominican Republic. One of the biggest barriers is language, because in the Dominican Republic the language is Spanish, while in Haiti Creole is spoken. A few years ago, the Focolare community of La Romana began a project that aims to create bonds of fraternity with Haitian migrants living in neighbouring cities. “We work in the parish where there is a “Batey”, a rural community of sugarcane workers, mainly made up of Haitians,” says Sandra Benitez, a businesswoman. Although many had never visited the Batey because it is a remote area of the city, a group of young people and other members of the community decided to break down the barrier that has divided them for years and began to visit it. They gradually discovered that the Haitian community needed to be integrated into society. La Romana is known for its textile industry. “We saw the potential of young people and decided to work in the textile sector,” says Cristian Salvador Roa, who teaches sewing to the Haitian community. He adds: “It gives me great satisfaction to see that young men no longer wasting their youth, but becoming productive and who start to make the most of their lives by doing something productive.” “The best testimony we can give is that, given the barrier of language, the barrier of social bias, when that barrier is broken, we discover the great wealth that can be found in a culture or that can be found in sharing our human condition with others,” concludes Concepción Serrano, an industrial engineer.

Clara Ramirez

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UeyGvKnZJAs&list=PL9YsVtizqrYsxCVExqFc_vvuzCKyNbr43&index=4

Chiara Lubich: only the Gospel

Mar 14, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Everything passes, even life. Only the Gospel will remain forever, since it is not subject to the passage of time. Today, 14 March 2022, 14 years after Chiara Lubich’s death, we publish this text in which she hands over the Gospel to those who follow her on the path of unity. It is an invitation to live the Word in all our daily activities.    A thought constantly comes to mind: “Leave only the Gospel to those who follow you. If you do so, the Ideal of unity will remain. It is obvious that in the time in which you and the others are living, there have been useful concepts, phrases, and slogans that have made the Gospel relevant and applicable in modern times, but these thoughts, these sayings, these almost ‘words of life’, will pass away. When unity among Christians is almost achieved, ecumenism will no longer be a distant goal. When a certain degree of unity has been reached in the world, there will no longer be talk of a global person as an ideal to be pursued. When the predominantly atheistic world is permeated by the reality of God, atheism will no longer be so prominent. The spirituality of unity itself, which is now a medicine for our times, once having achieved its purpose, it will be placed alongside all the others arising from the various charisms given by God to the Church down the centuries. What remains and will always remain is the Gospel, which does not suffer the passage of time: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Mt 24, 35). This means all of Jesus’ words. I feel that we must certainly adapt ourselves with all our might to the times in which we live, following the particular inspirations that God gives us to bring about and cultivate the kingdom of God in ourselves and in those entrusted to us. But we must do all this knowing that life is transitory, knowing that there is eternal Life announced by Jesus in his Gospel. We must put in second place in our hearts all ideas and ways of doing things that are useful but not purely evangelical, and constantly renew our faith in the Gospel, which does not pass away.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in La Parola di Dio, [The Word of God] Città Nuova 2011, pp. 112-113)

Vatican Council II and the charism at the service of unity

Mar 12, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Concluding on day two in the splendid setting of Florence’s Palazzo Vecchio with day one at the Theological Faculty of Central Italy was the conference entitled “Vatican Council II and Chiara Lubich’s charism of unity”.  With topics ranging from synodality to the commitment to peace and dialogue between individuals and peoples, the event forms part of an extraordinarily topical debate. The great wave of new ecclesial movements which reached a peak under the pontificate of John Paul II certainly originated in the pre-conciliar period. It subsequently found its raison d’être in the Vatican Council, in particular by the value it gave to the Catholic laity, redefining the Church’s presence in the world (Lumen Gentium) and highlighting the centrality of the Word shared in communion (Dei Verbum). The post-conciliar period then saw a qualitative and quantitative explosion of those movements, valued in their inception and developed by Paul VI then applauded and supported by the Polish pope with his magisterium. A story of unity and distinction, particularly in the Church of the second half of the 20th century, which found its maturest expression in the charism of Chiara Lubich, a charism at the service of unity within the Church and of humanity. Testifying to the relevance of the charism at the service of unity, in the complex and at times convulsive moments we are living, the conference was part of the great movement of solidarity with victims of the war in Ukraine and with all people of peace who are working in Ukraine and Russia, Europe and Asia, everywhere. Councillor Alessandro Martini reminded us of this on a day when Florence was hosting an international demonstration for peace. For these reasons, since the Focolare Movement appears to be the first and most widespread ecclesial movement of the conciliar period, an international conference was organised by the Sophia University Institute and the Chiara Lubich Centre to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of its founder which then had to be postponed twice due to the pandemic. The title was: “The Second Vatican Council and Chiara Lubich’s charism of unity: Dei Verbum and Lumen Gentium“. The venue was the Theological Faculty of Central Italy in Florence on 11 March and the Salone dei Cinquecento at the Palazzo Vecchio on 12 March. The conference was sponsored by the Comune di Firenze, with participation from the Italian Theological Association, the Theological Faculty of Central Italy (FTIC), the Paul VI Institute, the Giorgio La Pira International Student Centre, Città Nuova, the Abbà School and of course the Focolare Movement. The scientific committee was composed of Alessandro Clemenzia (FTIC), Piero Coda (Sophia University Institute), Florence Gillet, João Manoel Motta and Alba Sgariglia from the Chiara Lubich Centre. At the Vatican Council’s closing ceremony, in November 1965, Chiara Lubich summarised in a meaningful prayer what is perhaps the Council’s most striking note, the Church born from the presence of Jesus among his own: “Oh Holy Spirit, make us become, through what you have already suggested in the Council, a living Church: this is our only desire from which everything else will follow”. It is in this spirit that the conference set itself the goal of launching an detailed investigation aimed at understanding, on the one hand, whether and how the Council’s message found a fruitful place of interpretation and development in the experience brought about by the charism at the service of unity; and, on the other hand, whether and how the flowering of ecclesial life promoted by the charism of unity were made possible and propitiated by horizons opened up by Vatican II. Attention was centred in the first stage on Dei Verbum and Lumen Gentium, in order to bring into focus the convergent profiles and the contributions of conciliar doctrine and the inspiration of the charism of unity around the crucial link whereby the Church is born and grows as the historical incarnation, in the breath of the Spirit, of the Word that “became flesh” (Jn 1:14). The conference programme was particularly dense, as often happens when it is the result of serious work of conception and preparation. A river of words that, little by little, took on their full meaning, thanks to the wide-ranging contributions of the scholars. On the first day, Piero Coda, former Dean of the Sophia University Institute spoke on the theme “A chronological and kairological coincidence: a council and a charism. Towards a theological discernment of the correlation between Vatican II and the charism of unity”), Paolo Siniscalco of the University La Sapienza of Rome (“Chiara Lubich at the time of Vatican II”) and the Istrian-Pisan theologian Severino Dianich (“The event of Vatican Council II event: sacrament…of the unity of the whole human race”). Coda highlighted how the charism at the service of unity has made a very decisive contribution to Church history by way of communion based on the crucified, abandoned and risen Christ. Siniscalco, for his part, wisely and with historical accuracy retraced the various stages of Chiara Lubich’s existential adventure before, during, and after the Second Vatican Council. Dianich, on the other hand, with his characteristic clarity and frankness, gave an interpretation of Vatican II as the cradle for a more secular and communitarian reinterpretation of the Gospel. On Saturday 12th, the conference moved to a civic setting after the first session took place in an ecclesial setting, as if to reaffirm the charism’s double operational worthiness at the service of unity. In the prestigious venue of Palazzo Vecchio, in the Sala dei Cinquecento, where a number of Focolare meetings have been held since 1964, and where Chiara Lubich herself received honorary citizenship of Florence in 2000, the current President of the Focolare, Margaret Karram, opened the meeting, stressing the importance of Florence as the venue, in memory of Giorgio La Pira, the saintly mayor, a man of peace and the “living Church”. Back in 1974 Chiara Lubich with Cardinal Benelli founded the Giorgio La Pira International Student Centre named after him, thus creating and inseparable link between his name and the city on the river Arno. Florence as a city of peace, therefore, with special ties with the Middle East from which Margaret Karram originates as a Palestinian with an Israeli passport. “We work to weave relationships of peace everywhere, the most precious good that humanity can have”, said the president of the Focolare Movement. She was echoed by Card. Cardinal Giuseppe Betori who was absent for health reasons but who said in his message: “The experience of dialogue, at all levels, that characterised Chiara Lubich’s life, was based on an evangelical intuition about the relationship between interiority and exteriority, where relationship with the other was the causal and consequential extension of intimate union with God”. As the conference continued in Palazzo Vecchio, Vincenzo Di Pilato (FTP), commenting on Dei Verbum, addressed the theme: “The alphabet to know Christ. The Word of God, a permanent event of salvation in Dei Verbum“. Florence Gillet, from the Chiara Lubich Centre, dealt with a theme on the borderline between history and ecclesiology: ‘The Word of God in Chiara Lubich: the living presence of Christ that generates Church’. This was followed by a round table with Giovanna Porrino (IUS) on “The Word in the life of the Church”, Declan O’Byrne (IUS), “The Word and the Spirit”, Angelo Maffeis (FTIS) on “The Word of God as a principle of unity” and with the evangelical theologian Stefan Tobler (USBL) on “A mysticism of the Word as the way to ecumenism”. This was followed by the third and final session of the conference, dedicated to Lumen Gentium, with an eagerly awaited talk by Bishop Brendan Leahy (Bishop of Limerick, Ireland) on “The Church and the Marian Principle”. The following round table saw interventions from Alessandro Clemenzia (FTIC / IUS), “The Church from the Trinity”, Assunta Steccanella (FTT/TV), “The Messianic People”, Erio Castellucci, Bishop of Modena-Nonantola and Vice-President CEI, “Episcopal Collegiality and Synodality of the Church” and Cristiana Dobner (Discalced Carmelite), “The Charisms in the Mission of the Church”. Finally, the theologian Yvonne Dohna Schlobitten of the Gregorian University spoke on the theme of “An icon of Vatican II ecclesiology”. On 11 and 12 March, the Sala dei Cinquecento, full of warlike symbols in the large paintings on the walls, heard words of peace from La Pira, Bargellini and Lubich, and thus hosted an event that showed how the Church and civil society can bear witness to communion and dialogue, stimulating politics to make peace and peace-building its own goal.

Michele Zanzucchi

At the birthplace of Chiara Luce Badano

Mar 10, 2022 | Non categorizzato

On 6–7 March 2022 Focolare’s president and co-president were in Sassello, Italy, the birthplace of Blessed Chiara Luce Badano in the province of Savona. It was an intimate, personal meeting with Chiara Luce and the foundation that protects and promotes her memory. Things change after you visit Sassello. The young Chiara Luce can certainly be known through books, documentaries or her massive presence on social media. But if you are lucky enough to go to Sassello, everything changes. This is because at the cemetery, or through her mother Maria Teresa and friends, the relationship with her immediately takes on a personal quality. That is exactly what happened on 6–7 March to Margaret Karram and Jesús Morán when they went there. It was one of the first off-site trips by the Focolare president and co-president, one year after the General Assembly that elected them. This private visit came from a desire to know Chiara Luce, but not just that. “During these days I understood the extraordinary nature of Chiara Luce, the roots of her holiness,” commented the president, who was able to embrace Maria Teresa Badano, meet the Bishop of Acqui Mons. Luigi Testore and meet members of the Chiara Badano Foundation. These were important days, with an atmosphere of growing affection, dialogue and sharing. It was a time to rebuild relationships of trust, collaboration and take a look together at numerous challenges and future projects. It was a brief visit, marked by precious anecdotes from Maria Teresa, who recalled pieces of Chiara Luce’s daily life, such as her constant and total openness to welcome anyone who came to visit her – right up to the last days of her life. At the cemetery, meeting Chiara Luce face to face, “we entrusted to her, first of all, peace in Ukraine and in the many places where conflicts are not in the media spotlight,” said Jesús Morán,  “and then all young people, for whom she is an extraordinary and extremely necessary model, today more than ever.”

Stefania Tanesini

The thread that unites: a Council and a Charism

Mar 9, 2022 | Non categorizzato

On 11^th -12^th  March 2022, a Conference entitled “The Second Vatican Council and the charism of the Unity of Chiara Lubich” will be held in the heart of Florence (Italy). It is being jointly organized by the Chiara Lubich Center and the Sophia University Institute and can be followed via live streaming in Italian and English. On 11^th-12^th  March 2022, Florence, the cradle of the Renaissance, will host a Conference entitled The Second Vatican Council and the Charism of Unity of Chiara Lubich. Starting with a careful analysis of the conciliar event, the aim is to go to the heart of this itinerary, a moment, that was fixed in history and continued over time. They will be two full days that, thanks to the presence of numerous personalities and experts, will open up a journey of investigation and study, outlining the vital link between the charism of the foundress of the Focolare and Vatican II. There will be three important sessions: A chronological and kairological coincidence: a Council and a charism; The Word becomes Church; The Church becomes Word. Vincenzo Di Pilato, Professor of Fundamental Theology at the Faculty of Theology of Puglia,  and Florence Gillet of the Chiara Lubich Center, theologian and expert on the founder of the Focolare, are speakers at this Conference. We asked them about the event. Prof. Di Pilato, what, in particular, will this Conference highlight ? Originally, the conference was part of the centenary celebrations for the birth of Chiara Lubich (1920-2020). However, due to the global health emergency it was postponed until now. The objective was and remains, to probe the productive reciprocity between the charism of unity and the two Constitutions promulgated by the Second Vatican Council, on the Revelation of God and on the Church: Dei Verbum and Lumen gentium. How much have the two documents found a fertile place of interpretation and development in the ecclesial experience aroused by the charism of unity? And vice versa: how much was the flowering of ecclesial life promoted by the charism of unity made possible precisely by the horizon opened by the extraordinary event of the Council? These are the basic questions that will accompany the dialogue between the participants. It should be remembered, however, that it was Vatican II who reiterated this essential unity between hierarchical gifts and charismatic gifts (cf. Lumen gentium, no. 4). Both John Paul II and Benedict XVI went so far as to speak of the “coessentiality” of these gifts, while recently Pope Francis stressed how the action of the Holy Spirit produces “harmony” between the different gifts, recalling charismatic aggregations to missionary openness and synodality. Dr. Gillet, what questions led you to organize this conference? One may wonder if it is too daring to parallel two such different events. What relationship could there be between an ecumenical Council that saw 3,000 bishops and great theologians intervene with prophetic visions for the Church and a charism given to a young woman twenty years earlier, from which a worldwide Movement was born? To answer this, let us first note the harmony in their origin: the Holy Spirit who wanted to speak to the world on the threshold of the third millennium. Then these are two ongoing events that must increasingly fertilize each other: the Second Vatican Council has not yet been fully received, even if its reception is now significantly in progress in the synodal process desired by Pope Francis. The Holy Spirit still has surprises in store. The charism of unity has also yet to reveal all its potential. It must be translated into life in the people of God. In short, it is only at the beginning as the Pope also said during his visit to Loppiano in 2018. Prof. Di Pilato, how can we reread Chiara Lubich’s charism of unity in the light of what is happening in the world today? If the pandemic seemed to be the deadly context in which the conference should initially have been held, the decision to postpone it suddenly catapulted us into another, no less dramatic scenario. In this sense, the paradigmatic experience of Chiara Lubich and her first companions in Trento, during the Second World War, offers us a key to interpreting the conference. Everyone is aware of the role that the Word of God assumed for those young women at a time marked by the collapse of the ideals with which they had grown up. The light that emerged from the pages of that little book of the Gospel that they carried with them during the bombings, guided them to heal physical and existential wounds, to inspire millions of people in the world and to involve them in the realization of God’s dream: universal brotherhood, “that all may be one”. And it was the Word of God translated into social commitment on behalf of the poor and the most needy that generated a living Church, as their Bishop of that time was able to confirm, with amazement and great joy. Even today, while everything seems to collapse again under the blows of a short-sighted and forgetful policy, there is nothing left in our hands but the Word of Life, the only thing capable of regenerating the Church. And it is on this witness of life that the Church can become for the whole world, an authoritative Word of peace and unity. To follow the event via live streaming: https://live.focolare.org/firenze2022.

Maria Grazia Berretta

Press Release Program bochure

Chiara Lubich: the beauty of Christianity

Mar 7, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The Word of Life for March 2022 invites us to put into practice a phrase we recite every day in the Our Father: “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us”. But how can we forgive? Forgive. Always forgive. Forgiveness is not forgetfulness, which often means reluctance to face a situation. Forgiveness is not a sign of weakness, whereby we ignore an injustice we have suffered out of fear of the stronger person who committed it. Forgiveness does not mean saying that something serious is just a trifle or that something evil is good. Forgiveness is not indifference. Forgiveness is a conscious act of will, and therefore, a free act. It consists in accepting our neighbours as they are, despite the wrong done to us, just as God accepts us sinners, despite our faults. Forgiveness consists in not responding to an injury with another injury, but in doing what Paul says: “Do not be overcome by evil but overcome evil with good.”^[1] Forgiveness consists in offering the person who has wronged you the opportunity of a new relationship with you. It makes it possible for both of you to start over again and to experience a future in which evil does not have the last word. … You should act this way, first of all, towards those who share your faith – in your family, at work, at school, or in your community, if you belong to one. And you know that even people who live in the same household often hurt one another because of differences in personality, nervous tension, or other causes. Therefore, you must remember that only a constantly renewed attitude of forgiveness can maintain peace and unity among everyone. You will always tend to think about other people’s faults, to remember their past, to wish they were different from the way they are. Instead, you should develop the habit of seeing them with new eyes, of seeing them as new people, accepting them always and immediately and just as they are, even if they do not repent or change. You may say: “But that’s hard!” And you are right. However, this is the beauty of Christianity. In fact, it is not by chance that are you following a God who, as he was dying on the cross, asked his Father to forgive those who had caused his death. Take heart! Start living like this. I assure you that you will experience peace and joy that you have never known before.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, pp. 218-219)  [1]     Rom 12:21.

Next door

Mar 4, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Living next door to one another and being strangers. This is what often  happens. All it takes is courage and  simple actions to begin to really get to know one another.  This is what the Scariolo family did. “Meeting other people  is  mutually enriching –  beyond cultures, religions and ideologies. When we do this, we discover that the other person was created as a gift of love for us and we for them.” These are the words used by Adriana and Francesco Scariolo, Swiss focolarini, who have been married for 42 years, to describe a particularly enriching experience they had a few months ago. “We live in Canton Ticino, in the Italian part of Switzerland, and for a year and a half we have been living in a building that consists of thirteen flats. In the days leading up to Christmas 2021, we thought we could  go door-to-door to share Christmas greetings. The surprise and gratitude of all the neighbours was great: ‘I was the first tenant to come to live in this building and this has never happened before – it’s the first time someone has come to wish us well at Christmas,’ said one of them. ‘We are Muslims, but we want to wish you a Merry Christmas too,’ added another. We also distributed an invitation to everyone to celebrate the end of the year in our home and to wish them a Happy 2022. So on 29 December we held an aperitif-dinner with three families, one Muslim and two Christian, one Evangelical and one Catholic, respecting safety regulations and wearing masks. It was a nice occasion when everyone got to know one other quite spontaneously. ‘It’s good to know that there are neighbours to help out, to say hello to,’ said the husband of the Muslim woman. ‘It makes us feel less alone.’” Is this something you have done before? “Yes, it’s not the first time we’ve tried to create relationships with other people in  apartment blocks. It all started many years ago when we heard about the ‘neighbours’ party’, an initiative proposed to give people a chance to meet each other. We realised that we also needed a bit of courage and imagination to do our part, so we tried. The first thing we did was to take advantage of the new year and put a greeting card in the letter boxes, then, depending on people’s reaction and by  making more friends, we organised a lunch in the garden all together before the summer. Then we left that block of flats for a 7-year volunteer programme working abroad.  When we came back, since we are in this new building, we wanted to keep up the tradition.” What surprised you about their reactions? “Seeing their smiling faces. They didn’t expect it, especially in such a sensitive period because of the pandemic. It also seemed like a gift to be able to end the last days of 2021 with a moment of socialising after so much isolation, a sign that gives hope and does not dampen the desire to love others and build fraternal relationships. On 2 January 2022, we were waiting for other families who had said they would like to come to us. Due to the social distancing, it was not possible to host them at the same time as the others. Some were affected by covid and therefore could not come, but the dinner with them is only postponed until better times.” What does it mean for you to meet your brother or sister? “It means reaching out to today’s humanity through simple, everyday gestures of love. For example, helping the neighbour who sometimes has problems with the TV, listening to the couple who have just had a baby, breaking down the walls of indifference  and anonymity that the pandemic has increased because they are obstacles to relationships. Jesus’ phrase “Whatever you do to one of my least brothers, you do to me” challenges us. So every neighbour is really the person God puts next to us to be welcomed and loved. And who is closer than our neighbours?”

Maria Grazia Berretta

Hombre Mundo: artisans of peace and unity

Mar 3, 2022 | Non categorizzato

From 25 to 27 February 2022 over 3000 young people witnessed universal fraternity developing active citizenship through local and global actions, committing to the great challenges facing the planet, from peace to environment and the fight against hunger and poverty. The desire to be together, meeting to build peace, live universal fraternity, take action for the environment and the weakest in society. In the three days from 25 to 27 February the Gen3 who are the adolescents of the Focolare Movement experienced the planetary workshop known as Hombre Mundo. More than 3,000 young people from more than 600 locations around the world took part in concrete actions and were connected through an online videoconference to bear witness to a united world. They were also able to share videos and photos of their experiences through teens4unity social networks. There were numerous messages of peace and solidarity including one from the Gen3 of Siberia, from the city of Krasnojarsk in Russia who sent a message during their Hombre Mundo to say: “we are living for Peace”. A message filled with hope, especially during these days of conflict between Russia and Ukraine. The programme of the planetary workshop was divided into three stages. 25 February: Our way of life is the art of loving: how have we lived this and can we live it during the pandemic? How can we carrying on loving in the virtual world of social media? “We have understood,” said Samira from Congo, “that we have to accept one another despite our differences, which are of enormous richness. It’s a way of promoting values whilst simultaneously banishing anti-values.” And Élise from France: “in one meeting we were really struck by certain statistics concerning infant mortality around the world, mainly due to the lack of drinking water. So we organised a concert to raise funds to drill a well in Cambodia that would provide clean water for a dozen families for life”. On 26 February, the young people strengthened their commitment to integral ecology and the “Zero Hunger” Objective, to improve protection of the planet in an effective way and drastically reduce hunger and poverty until they disappear. One of the experiences shared was from the Gen3 in Austria for a reforestation project. “The money invested in the tree project was raised during the Fair Play tournament held in Vienna,” they explained. The theme was ‘Fair Play against Climate Change’. About 120 players and 100 helpers took part that day.  With the money we raised, we were able to buy around 1,500 trees”. The 27 February was dedicated to the beauty of the encounter between peoples and the common commitment to build a world of peace and unity. A worldwide live videoconference connection enabled over 3,000 young people from 600 different connection points to meet and pray for peace. Then many experiences of peace and unity despite the many difficulties were shared. Like that of a girl in Myanmar, which is going through a very difficult political situation with many families having to leave their homes and take refuge in reception centres. She really wanted to be able to do something for them. “So I made myself available to help the refugees who had been taken in by the church. Even though I was tired, I believed that God was with me, looking at me and giving me the strength to carry on and help others. Now I can say that it was a wonderful and beautiful time for me. It was unforgettable.” In Lebanon, Maria Sfeir, Ambassador of Peace from the Middle East, together with Fouad Sfeir, told how they had “incorporated the culture of peace, educating our children and raising them with good values such as love and giving to build a better society, in an environment of non-violence and justice”. Among the many talks there was also Gen Rosso who were connected from the Italian island of Lampedusa, famous for welcoming migrants: “We are here in Lampedusa to support the wonderful people who welcome those forced to leave their land because of war, hunger and violence. Lampedusa is an island of fraternity, an open port, with people who look towards the horizon and jump into the sea to reach and save those at the mercy of the waves. Lampedusa: lamp, luminous beacon that signals land.  Land that means home. From here we want to say: let us always keep the doors of our hearts wide open”. Margaret Karram, president of the Focolare Movement, then gave a message: “You have built the building site with your testimony of life”. (…) Don’t feel alone, know that the Movement throughout the world is with you and supports you. (…) I too often feel powerless in the face of the evil in the world: wars, injustice, the destruction of nature. In these moments it helps me to talk to God. It gives me strength and courage to know that He is with us. The certainty of his love warms my heart, makes me able to love, to forgive, to hold out my hand to build unity with those I meet every day. I feel that only in this way can I be a little artisan of peace”.

Lorenzo Russo

Ukraine: agreement with Caritas-Spes to aid the population

Mar 2, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Contributions collected by Focolare Movement Emergency Coordination through the non-governmental organisations Azione per un Mondo Unito (AMU) and Azione per Famiglie Nuove (AFN) will go to support assistance activities for the Ukrainian population carried out by Caritas-Spes Ukraine. The actions of war in Ukraine show no sign of stopping, and among the population there are thousands of displaced people fleeing. Many are trying to survive between homes and emergency shelters, where they can receive initial support. With contributions collected through the appeal launched by Focolare Movement Emergency Coordination, AMU and AFN are firstly supporting the actions of Caritas-Spes Ukraine. The organisation is providing aid to thousands of people forced to abandon their homes and flee to the border, or to take refuge in underground shelters set up in the immediate area where possible. Caritas-Spes Ukraine is committed to offer safe shelter, food, medicine, hygiene products and psychological support for close to 500 displaced mothers with children housed in their centres. More than 2,500 people are also receiving aid through Caritas in the parishes and 14 soup kitchens that remain active in the areas of Kiev, Lutsk, Berdiansk, Kamenets-Podolsky, Zhytomyr, Kharkiv, Lviv, Odessa, Vinnitsa and several cities of the Transcarpathia Region. The images of the war in Ukraine every day in international media, and the testimonies of our contacts on the ground, such as Mira Milavec, a Slovenian focolarina who lives in Ukraine and collaborates with Caritas-Spes, describe the state of emergency of a population under siege. The people are defenceless in the face of the bombing, and they crowd routes to reach the borders, or take refuge in basements or shelters, where makeshift beds have been set up as they wait for a hot meal, drinking water and electricity. At the border with Poland, the line of desperate people who hope to cross the border is tens of kilometres long. Caritas-Spes in Lviv has organized special aid for mothers who try to escape with children, even very small ones, in their arms. They need everything, especially hot water to prepare meals or change diapers. In Odessa, which is under attack, shelters are being set up, even under the cathedral. The activity is punctuated by the sound of sirens announcing danger arriving or its temporary cease. In Vinnitsa a psychologist is organizing online training sessions for volunteers and operators about providing psychological help in stressful situations such as this. The first has already been attended by more than 120 people. Currently, the fundraising has already reached 100,000 euros, and the first shipment of funds has already been sent. It is being used to support the actions of Caritas-Spes for early aid to Ukrainian families. We are also evaluating the possibility of supporting the costs to take in the many Ukrainian refugees who are arriving in the surrounding countries, such as Slovakia and Poland. They are being welcomed by the generosity of local families who are opening their homes to them. Unfortunately, military activities show no signs of ceasing, and as confirmed by local contacts, needs will only increase. Frequent updates about the aid activity being carried out on the ground are available via the online and social channels of AMU and AFN. To support Ukraine and aid families devastated by the war, donate online on these sites: AMU: amu-it.eu/dona-online-3/ AFN: afnonlus.org/dona/ or through bank transfer to the following accounts: Action for a United World ONLUS (AMU) IBAN: IT 58 S 05018 03200 000011204344 at Banca Popolare Etica SWIFT/BIC: ETICIT22XXX Action for New Families ONLUS (AFN) IBAN: IT 92 J 05018 03200 000016978561 at Banca Popolare Etica SWIFT/BIC: ETICIT22XXX Reference: Ukraine Emergency

News from the Focolare in Ukraine

Mar 1, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Donatella Rafanelli told Maria Chiara Biagioni of the Italian news agency “SIR” about the life of the Focolare community in Ukraine in recent days. A 29-hour trip from Kiev. “Now our dream is to go back there”. A 29-hour drive out of Kyiv to reach Mukachevo, a town in the west of Ukraine. Heavy traffic on the roads, long queues at cash machines and petrol stations, tanks and people along the way asking for a lift. Donatella Rafanelli is a focolarina, from Pistoia in Italy, who has lived in a Focolare community in Kyiv since 2019. She spoke to “SIR” about that journey along the ‘route’ of internally displaced persons. Donatella told us, “We were in Kyiv when we received a phone call on Thursday morning advising us to pack quickly because there was shooting 70 kilometres from the capital. We didn’t know what to do because for all of us it was the first time that we were in that kind of situation. We went to look for the closest shelter to our house and were directed to an underground carpark. We went home and rang the Italian embassy on an emergency number. They told us to stay home and go to the shelter only if there was an alarm. Everything seemed normal. People had been talking about the possibility of an attack on Kyiv for days, but when it happened, the first thing we did was look each other in the eyes. We said, here we go, we’re at war. And we prayed. We asked Jesus to give us strength and to give us peace. From then on, it was all a race against time. We put a few things together in a small bag. We took very little, the bare essentials and personal documents. We tried to get train tickets so we could go to the west, but they were sold out. The airport was closed. So we decided to take the car. The roads out of Kyiv were blocked. There were very long queues at the bank to get money and at the supermarkets. It took a long time just to get out of the city. We stopped twice for petrol. At the first petrol station we queued for an hour. And while we were there, waiting, we heard the shots. It was an emotional moment. We stood still, in silence. When we set off again, you could see tanks and people hitchhiking for a lift. Our phones were constantly receiving and sending messages and calls: from those who had left, from who had decided to stay. We were sharing news and putting the people who were trying to leave in contact with the Focolare communities in Slovakia and Poland, who had offered a welcome. Only as we were travelling, did we realize what had happened to us. We weren’t in the car to go to an appointment or a trip. We were leaving a city, our home. We would never have wanted to leave. But we realized it was impossible to stay.” In Mukachevo, Donatella and her companions were welcomed by a Parish Priest and by the community of the Focolare there. “We are still in Ukraine; this is very important to us. We didn’t run away. We want to continue living in this country. We’ve been offered lots of places to go. The fact that we left Kyiv is just because it’s dangerous right now. There was no point in staying under the bombing. But now our dream is to go back there.” She continued, “War? It’s madness, no one has the right to take someone else’s life or rob them of the chance to live a normal life. People here have made a lot of sacrifices to buy a house, save money. And now with the war, their plans for the future are jeopardized, their dreams are shattered. We are praying that this madness will end as soon as possible. We are following the news of the talks between the delegations and of the efforts being made at the level of international diplomacy. I think the only thing that can help us is a miracle. It really helps us to hear all the news from people who pray for us and who demonstrate in the streets for peace. We need a miracle.”

Maria Chiara Biagioni

Walking together: the synodal pathway in the Holy Land

Mar 1, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The 2021-2023 Synod convened by Pope Francis is an opportunity to listen to and dialogue with others; a moment to rediscover the true identity of the Church, the “universality” from the beginning. The pathway involves all the dioceses of the world, including the Holy Land. “As we set out on this journey, we are more aware than ever that together, as disciples of Christ on  this earth which is his home, we are all called to be his witnesses. Let us remember that his greatest desire is that we are one.”  (cf. Jn 17). This is what we read in the letter of 26 January 2022 sent by the Catholic Ordinaries to the heads of the Christian Churches in the Holy Land regarding the 2021-23 Synod which has been  convened by Pope Francis and is entitled “For a Synodal Church: communion, participation, mission”. Pierbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem,  signed the letter which had the explicit aim of informing and involving brothers and sisters in various local ecclesial communities about the synodal journey that has begun in the Holy Land. He underlined the importance of listening to each other in order to grow closer  together on this fraternal journey. Reference was made to the missionary nature of a “universal” Church, in Jerusalem, in particular. During a meeting held on 9 November 2021 after the opening of the Synodal Pathway, the Patriarch had spoken about this with the ecclesial movements and new communities present in the Holy Land. “Our Church, the Church of Jerusalem, began life in the Upper Room at Pentecost, and, even then, it was both local and universal (…) especially in recent years, it has been enriched by many more charisms. For this reason, your presence here is not only a gift and  a sign of God’s providence (…), but it is also a contribution to the fulfilment of what God, the Lord, desires.” The participants all listened to each other and spoke of their own experiences.  The valuable help of the Patriarch enabled them to  better understand how to approach the Synod at a local level. Answering various questions, Mgr Pizzaballa shared his thoughts on synodality which “is a style – he said – a way of being, in the Church, but also outside the Church. It is an attitude.  Listening and dialogue are  expressions of this (…)”. The movements and new communities – says the Patriarch- need to work in “cross platforms”, going to the heart of the experience of “communion” of the universal Church, the experience that, more than others, seems really difficult to live in the Holy Land. “By communion I mean the awareness of belonging, of having freely received this gift, of having a life that is ‘inserted’  into other lives (…). All this stems from the experience of the encounter with Jesus. (…) after having met the Lord and experienced salvation, you understand that this experience becomes complete and  profound, when it is shared in a community (…). This letter sent by the Catholic Ordinaries to the heads of the various Christian Churches in the Holy Land  renewed a deep longing in many people and opened up new horizons by underlining the desire to grow in fraternity and be enriched by the wisdom of others. The hope of the Synodal Journey is that we should all experience ‘being together’ in  the atmosphere  similar to a shared meal where the group not only embraces suffering together but wants to immediately speak of the joys that life offers. It would be like the disciples’ journey to  Emmaus.  Although they were disappointed and sad, they  walked together and, in communion, supported each other until the Risen Lord came to them. An opportunity not to be missed, to recognise him in our midst.

Maria Grazia Berretta

Chiara Lubich: the relevance of the Gospel

Feb 28, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Encountering the Gospel today means finding the living Word of God. Chiara Lubich, through her experience with the first community of the Movement in Trent, makes us appreciate the effects of putting the Gospel into practice. If God speaks to us, how can we not welcome his Word? In the Bible there are 1,153 instances when God repeats the invitation to listen to him. It is the same invitation that the Father extended to the disciples when the Word, his Son, came to live among us. He said: “Listen to him.”^[1] The listening that the Bible speaks about, however, is done more with our hearts than with our ears. It means adhering completely to what God tells us, making it our own, obeying him with the same trust as children who abandon themselves into their mother’s arms, letting her carry them. … In this, we hear an echo of Jesus’ teaching when he calls blessed those who hear the Word of God and obey it, ^[2] and also when he acknowledges as his mother, his brothers and sisters, all those who hear his Word and put it into practice.^[3] Jesus said that a person who listens well to the Word is the one who puts it into practice, thus giving a firm foundation to their life, like building a house on rock.^[4] In every one of his Words, Jesus expresses all his love for us. Let’s incarnate his Word in our lives and make it our own. If we put it into practice, we will experience the enormous potential for life it brings forth both within in and around us. Let’s fall in love with the Gospel to the point of allowing it to transform us and overflow onto others. This is our way to love Jesus in return. It will no longer be we who live, but Christ will be formed in us. We will experience first-hand what it means to be freed from ourselves, from our limitations and all the things that tie us down. Moreover, we will see the revolution of love that Jesus, now free to live within us, will bring about in society around us. This was our experience at the beginning of the Movement in Trent, during World War II, when we often had to run to the air-raid shelters, taking with us only a small copy of the Gospels. We opened it and read it and, due to a particular grace of God, I believe, those words, which we had heard so many times before, shone out for us with a totally new light. These were Words of life, words that could be transformed into life. … We witnessed the growth of a living community around us, which after only a few months numbered some five hundred people. All this was the fruit of our living contact with the Word, which was constant, dynamic, moment by moment. We were “inebriated” with the Word; we could say that the Word lived us. We would ask one another: “Are you living the Word?” “Are you a living Word?” And that would be enough to increase our swiftness in living it. We should go back to living as we did then. The Gospel is always relevant. It’s up to us to believe in it and experience it.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, pp. 789-791) [1]     Mt 17:5. [2]     See Lk 11:28. [3]     See Lk 8:20-21. [4]     See Mt 7:24.

Stop the war in Ukraine: rebuilding the space for dialogue and political negotiation

Feb 25, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Faced with the events that have been shaking the world for days, the Political Movement for Unity, which draws its inspiration from the experience and ideals of the Focolare Movement, affirms its common commitment to peace, which can only be achieved through concrete ‘doing’. “If you want peace, prepare for peace” are the words of Igino Giordani, a pacifist politician of the 20th century. Only a daily and multipronged peace effort can stop war. History has already declared too often that war is a crazy choice. The means of confrontation are outdated and open the way to greater insecurity, both locally and globally. Of this we are convinced, we politicians, officials, citizens and diplomats of the Politics for Unity Movement. From all over the world we express our closeness to the peoples suffering this tragic war, while we strongly support those who, in various capacities, continue to negotiate for peace, the only true solution. It is never too late to reopen negotiation and dialogue, in the short and long term. May the imperative of peace guide us. We single out these three main directions for commitment: 1 – Often the creation of nation states has not been a free choice of peoples, but the result of post-war negotiating tables, legacies of imperialisms. Old and new divisions call for a courageous political effort that gives new meaning to national identities, that challenges continental unions, first and foremost the European Union, beyond their immediate interests. 2- History teaches that economic sanctions leave governments unscathed and impoverish civil society, women, men and especially children. Syria is the latest, most serious example. The choice of sanctions must be pursued cautiously, so that it does not become part of the logic of war and power struggles. Politics must be able to control the arms and carbon industry circuits, and only in this way can true peace be built. 3- In the face of the resurgence of nuclear weapons and their strategic enhancement, today we appeal strongly to our governments to sign and implement the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, adopted by only 122 states on 7^th July 2017. The political power of the UN must be brought back into action and the voice of governments must be integrated with the voice of the cities of the earth, gathered in a special world assembly, to give more strength to our peoples. In these times when the naked power of force seems to prevail, we do not hesitate to affirm that we still believe, and will always believe, in peacebuilding, in the processes of dialogue, in the tools of politics. It is the components of civil society, with the spiritual and cultural strength of their faiths, and with their many good practices, that will bring to light the great ideals that sustain history. May our representatives silence their weapons as soon as possible and listen to the women and men of peace.

Mario Bruno, president MPPU (Politics for Unity Movement)

Ukraine: let’s continue to implore for the gift of peace

Feb 24, 2022 | Non categorizzato

We hear from the Focolare communities, present in various cities of Ukraine. They invite us to join them in their worldwide prayer for peace every Thursday at 7.30 pm (Italian time). “In this terrible moment, we are sustained by the faith and love that we are receiving from all over the world through messages, telephone calls and prayers. We would like to thank each and every one. They give us strength and increase the hope that God will give us the gift, the miracle of peace”. With these words Donatella Rafanelli, an Italian focolarina and a teacher, who lives in the Kiev focolare, shared how the Focolare communities in Ukraine are living this frightening time. She continued, “In recent weeks, with the growing tension we felt we were living a truly special moment in our life, even if everyday life flowed as usual. By talking to the people around us, we realized how much fear, worry, sadness and disappointment there has been for months and which now,  with the worsening of the situation in the last few hours, is even more accentuated”. She explained, “We too, as a community of the Movement, are certainly not immune from all this. We have wondered and continue to ask ourselves what to do in this situation. We are living this painful moment with everyone. We are aware that we cannot do extraordinary or special things, but we can listen to those around us sharing fears and concerns and try to understand, moment by moment, what is best to do “. Yesterday, Pope Francis invited everyone, believers and non-believers, to join in a choral plea for peace by praying and fasting, especially  on 2^nd March, the beginning of Lent. Together with him, other leaders of various Christian Churches are inviting people to pray to implore the gift of peace. In the Focolare Movement around the world, the time-out for peace continues every day (at 12:00 in each time zone). It is a moment of silence and prayer for peace in every corner of the globe. Donatella told us, “Here in Ukraine, every Thursday for a year now, at 7:30 pm (Italian time) we have a moment of prayer for peace, in Italian and Ukrainian, at this link We invite everyone to join us for this moment, which recently, has attracted many people from various countries of the world who have peace at heart”. The focolare in Ukraine opened in Kiev in May 2019. Some Focolare communities were already present in the country. People in Ukraine had heard of the charism of unity thanks to many members of the Movement from neighbouring nations who, through visits and various contacts, had introduced this spirituality to several  cities. Today the members of the Focolare, of different ages and vocations, are present in Mukachevo, Uzhgorod, Storozhniza, Lviv, Kiev and surroundings.

Anna Lisa Innocenti

The power of religions for the environment

Feb 24, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The role of faith communities in limiting climate change and building the future is one of potential, yet humility. Martin Palmer discusses the Faith Plans programme, as well as Focolare’s role. The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 26) in Glasgow concluded in November 2021. Martin Palmer, former Secretary General of the Alliance of Religions and Conservation and current CEO of FaithInvest, helps us uncover the potential that faith communities have in limiting climate change and the role that Focolare can play in this context. Martin is an international expert on major religious traditions and cultures, the author of more than 20 books on religious and environmental issues. He is a regular contributor to the BBC and is a lay preacher in the Church of England.

What is the specific role of faith communities in the face of such an unprecedented ecological crisis?

The great faiths are not only sources of ancient spiritual wisdom. They are also among the most important actors on the planet. Without the educational, medical, welfare and charitable work of faith communities through schools, hospitals, youth work, welfare agencies, etc., civil society would collapse in a matter of weeks. So while the spiritual aspect is vital because it gives us the broader perspective of time, space and meaning, if we ignore our role as stakeholders in building our future, we end up standing on the sidelines, shouting and hoping someone will listen.

An active role for faith communities in driving change is important. Have you noticed a change in attitude in recent years?

I see a huge shift. For the first time, all the major religious environmental groups – like GreenFaith, Eco-Sikh, Daoist Ecological Temple Network, Hazon (the largest Jewish environmental group) and of course now the Vatican through the Laudato Si’ Movement and the Focolare – are working together side by side, bringing the wonderful pluralism of different beliefs, values and networks together, especially through the Faith Plans program.

In October 2021, on the feast of St. Francis of Assisi, Pope Francis and other religious leaders – including Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby and Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew – issued a call on climate change and a public commitment to create plans for the environment. Why is it important to make a plan?

For faiths to be truly effective, we need not only the wonderful words and wisdom drawn from the great spiritual currents, but we also need to know where they could be architects of change. That means knowing how extensive their role in education is in each place or country, how many clinics and hospitals they have, where their investments are, how much land they own, what range of professional expertise there is in the faith community and so on.

What do you see as the specific contribution of the Focolare in bringing about this ecological conversion?

The role of the Focolare is unique. Not only are you a large organization of laypeople in one of the most hierarchical faiths in the world, you are an inspiration that goes far beyond your members. For decades you have worked through the Economy of Communion on the life and work realities of faith in market practice. Creating new models and initiatives seems to come naturally to you. Your style of sharing what you do is an inspiration. You have decades of interfaith work and a depth and integrity not easily found in the often-superficial interfaith world. Your connections to other faiths show a joy in pluralism not often found in religious organisations of the scale and impact that the Focolare has. Finally, you seem to have already engaged some of the most charismatic, highly motivated, skilled and caring people in the world, who are already active.

Nino Puglisi for cittanuova.it

“Hombre Mundo” Worldwide Workshop

Feb 23, 2022 | Non categorizzato

From 25^th to 27^th February 2022, “Hombre Mundo”, a global project, conceived and implemented by young people as a way to reach universal fraternity, will take place. Local and global actions to foster knowledge between different cultures and religions, develop active citizenship, show the commitment of teenagers to overcoming the major challenges of the planet, from environment to the elimination of hunger and poverty. Claire Mulimbi, a Gen 3 (the 10 to 17 year olds of the Focolare Movement) who lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo, was one of the organizers of a two day “Hombre Mundo” event in September 2021. She said, “We understood that we have to accept each other, despite our differences, which can actually turn out to enrich us. It is a way to promote true values and ban false values. It was a very nice experience of sharing cultures through songs, dances, poems and guessing games. Experts came to teach us about ecology and then we planted some trees”. “Hombre Mundo”  is a project that involves thousands of boys and girls of the Focolare Movement all over the world. The aim is to learn about universal brotherhood, getting to know young people of the same age from other cultures and religions, discovering and sharing the riches of each people, working together for the major challenges of the planet. But “Hombre Mundo” is not only an opportunity for getting to know one another, it is also based on concrete actions to develop active citizenship for the common good of the communities to which the teenagers belong or by twinning with others. “Hombre Mundo” therefore includes actions at local and global levels alongside international events, such as the one to be held from 25^th-27^th  February 2022. The first “Hombre Mundo” workshop took place in 2014 in Argentina, then in 2017, three were held in Eastern Europe (in Croatia, Serbia and Poland): these were international “laboratory” type workshops, to get to know, love and respect the homeland of  others as one’s own. The program is designed and carried out by the young people,  from the choice of themes to be addressed to the experiences to be shared, to the lyrics of the songs. This edition should have had two central events, in Kenya and in  Ivory Coast and many local events in many countries of the world. For the first time, however, due to the pandemic, it will be completely online . The internet was a great help in the preparation. Gašper Jošt, a Gen 3 from Slovenia said: “We split into smaller groups according to time zone and language. From Slovenia, we met up with Malta and Ireland. We wrote a song together. Miha wrote the lyrics and Anja wrote the melody. Through it, we want to encourage people to continue building a more beautiful world and to say that as long as there is even one person trying, they will encourage others and bring them hope”. The Gen 3 from all over the world have also initiated various concrete actions in order to live out and spread a culture of giving and sharing. For example, useful educational material was sent to the young people of some countries of central-eastern Africa, Vietnam, Indonesia and Myanmar. In India, on the other hand, funds were allocated to prevent child labour, to build safe places where children can participate in activities to regain their self-esteem, socialize with others and develop their talents. Becoming more and more “world” men and women, that is people with a heart open to all humanity, with its riches and its challenges, is the goal of this year’s three days. Each day a theme will be explored. They will start from personal life and then broaden their gaze around the communities in which they live and then to the whole planet. February 25^th  will be dedicated to the lifestyle that characterizes these young people: the art of loving proposed by Chiara Lubich will be at the centre of their reflections and testimonies, with particular reference to the time in which we are living: how can we live it during the pandemic? How can we continue to love in the virtual world and social media? On the second day, the focus will be on integral ecology and the involvement of the Gen 3 for the “Zero Hunger” Goal, the second of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. On the third day the title will be, “May all be one” and the attention will focus on the beauty of peoples coming together and their common commitment to build a world of peace and unity. Our two international bands will also participate in the 2022 “Hombre Mundo”. Gen Verde will give a percussion workshop that will involve 60 boys and girls from the inter-American region and Gen Rosso will give a concert for peace on 26^th February  at 12:30 (Italian time), live from the Italian island of Lampedusa, famous for welcoming migrants. Before the concert, at 12 noon (Greenwich Mean Time) there will be a worldwide link-up to pray, all together, for peace. Granville from Bangalore (India) told us, “Every person on planet Earth is endowed with aspects, faculties, abilities and skills that make them a unique work of art. Therefore, whenever we stand side by side, supported by a spirit of unity, we compose an amazing art gallery. What does “Hombre Mundo” mean to me? I believe one word perfectly answers this question: unity. There can be no unity without love. Love is the bridge over the abyss of division. Love breaks down the walls that fragment us and love unite us. It is only through love for my neighbour that I can do my part to create a world in which each of us, works of art, come together to create a synergistic art gallery”. For more information visit teen4unity.org

Lorenzo Russo

Chiara Lubich: build the civilisation of love

Feb 21, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The words of Chiara Lubich on which we reflect today are remarkably topical and will not leave us indifferent. They will surely lead us to look around and act for the benefit of all our brothers and sisters. … During his life on earth, Jesus always welcomed everyone, especially those who were outcasts, those most in need, or who were furthest away. Jesus’s love conveyed his trust, confidence and friendship to everyone, breaking down, one by one, the barriers of pride and selfishness that had been built up in the society of his time. Jesus was the visible sign of the perfect, welcoming love that the heavenly Father has for each one of us, and of the love which, as a result, we should have for one another.   This is what the Father wants first from us. That is why we can render no greater glory to God than by trying to welcome each other in the same way as Jesus welcomed us. (…) Our attention is drawn to one of the aspects of selfishness that is most common and, let’s admit it, most difficult to uproot. It is the tendency to isolate ourselves, to discriminate against and exclude others who are different and who could disturb our tranquillity. Let us try, first of all within our families, associations, communities and working groups, to get rid of our tendency to judge others, discriminate, be prejudiced, hold resentments or be intolerant towards one neighbour or another. These attitudes are common and easy to fall into, but they have a damaging and chilling effect on human relationships. They block the flow of mutual love. Then, let us do the same in society around us, bearing witness to the welcoming love of Jesus with any neighbour the Lord puts next to us – especially with those whom our collective social selfishness tends to exclude or marginalise. The act of welcoming others who are different from ourselves lies at the very basis of Christian love. It is the starting point, the first step to take in building a civilization of love and fostering the culture of sharing that Jesus is calling us to especially today.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, pag. 512-514)

Living the Gospel: The creative power of mercy

Feb 17, 2022 | Non categorizzato

In one of her meditations Chiara Lubich writes “mercy is the ultimate expression of charity, the one that fulfils it[1]. It is not a feeling, therefore, but a concrete action that, united with an inner intention, pushes us to distance ourselves from ourselves and turn our gaze to the other. A revolutionary movement that heals and generates life.” Don’t miss the opportunity At the station, I had just bought a return ticket to a certain city. I rushed to the platform but was disappointed to discover the train had just left. I went back to the ticket office to try and get a refund and further information but the lady in charge told me she couldn’t spend time on me with so many people in the queue. Disgruntled, I walked away feeling really angry but as I was putting my tickets in my diary, a phrase I had written down that morning caught my eye: ‘Don’t miss any opportunities’. I stopped, reflected, then made up my mind: “I must not miss the opportunity to love!”. I walked back to the lady at the ticket office, and when it was my turn I told her I was sorry if I was too demanding with her and that I understood her reaction. The expression on her face and her tone of voice changed and, without persuasion, she started to deal with my situation. She even started looking for alternative routes to enable me to reach my destination in time. It really doesn’t take much to restore harmony in relationships. (R.J. – Romania) The list of enemies As his followers Jesus wants us to love our enemies.  He wants us to forgive. For a long time I didn’t think this concerned me. I live a quiet life, have a good position in society and a calm family. We don’t hurt anyone and try to protect ourselves from the negative in society. Nevertheless, that phrase troubled me. Enemies?  When I really thought about it, I realised I still did have some but had relegated them to a part of my brain where they would not bother me. One by one, situations came to mind in which, rather than face the opposition of an ‘enemy’, I fled. Running away had become a real habit. But Jesus was asking something else of me. So I made a list of all the ‘enemies’ for whom I had to do something: with a phone call, a message or a meeting to let each of them know they were part of my life. It really wasn’t easy – obstacles and reasonings kept holding me back.  Now that I have overcome myself, I can truly say that Jesus’ commandment has achieved its purpose – it has made me feel alive. (G.R. – Portugal)

Edited by Maria Grazia Berretta

 (taken from Il Vangelo del Giorno, Città Nuova, year VIII, n.1, January-February 2022) [1] C. Lubich, “When you have known suffering”, in  Essential writings, Città Nuova, Rome 2006, pp. 140-141

A truly faithful life

Feb 16, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Darci Rodrigues was someone who knew how to live her life for the cause of unity, in her characteristically “marian“ style. From the moment Brazilian Focolarina Darci Rodrigues left us on 10 February 2022, and again in the hours after her funeral, social media was humming with expressions of appreciation and gratitude for her life. She was well known throughout Brazil and beyond due to the many roles of responsibility she had undertaken in the Focolare Movement, which allowed her to forge relationships with a staggering number of people around the world. “A life as full and challenging as hers never stopped her from being refreshingly ‘normal’, as many have commented, combined with a great spiritual depth. And she was so greatly loved by everyone because of this”, reflected Saad Zogheib Sobrinho, Focolarino also from Brazil, summing up the reactions of many who lived and interacted with her over the years. The young Darci first met the charism of Chiara Lubich in 1963 at a Mariapolis gathering over a few days in the city of Garanhuns, in the state of Pernambuco. “It was such a strong experience” Darci herself said when relating her first contact with Focolare. “I was fascinated! Especially by how I saw the Gospel being lived”. At that time she was a student at the University of Recife, “surrounded by Marxist ideas and strong criticisms of the Church” as she recalled. The contrast with this new encounter with God was overwhelming. She embraced the charism of unity and decided to consecrate her life to God in the Focolare as a Focolarina. Once decided, she left her fianzé, her family and studies behind to attend the formation school for Focolarini in Italy from 1964to 1966. She then returned to Brazil and dedicated herself to working for the aims of the Focolare. After a time in Belo Horizonte, she was transferred to the region of Vargem Grande Paulista, near São Paulo to support the beginnings of Mariapolis Araceli (now known as Mariapolis Ginetta), one of the three main Focolare centres in Brazil. She later moved to the city of São Paulo from where, for 20 years, she guided the development of the Focolare Movement in the south-east and centre-west states of the country. In 2002 she was elected as Counsellor for the Focolare Movement in Brazil. In the Movement’s next Assembly which took place in 2008 after the death of founder Chiara Lubich, Darci was re-elected as a Counsellor, this time nominated by the newly-elected Focolare President, Maria Voce, as ‘Central Delegate’ with a leading role in the governance of the Movement at an international level. “At times I had to tackle difficult issues. But in those moments, I always found peace and a special assistance of the Holy Spirit“, she recalled. “Often I may have had my own idea ready, but then I could recognize that Jesus – through another person – wanted something different, perhaps the exact opposite of what I was thinking! What was important was to trust in the presence of Jesus among us, and not only rely on my own common sense“, she explained. In May 2012 she was diagnosed with serious lung disease. She described receiving the news: “The test results were conclusive. The doctor told me I was going to need a lot of courage to combat it and persevere. But deep inside, I held the strong conviction that nothing happens by chance and that God has a plan of love for each one of us“. To the amazement of her doctors, Darci responded unexpectedly well to the treatment. Her close colleague Gloria Campagnaro remembers that period very clearly. “Life went on as usual, in the sense that she retained her calm demeanour whatever she was doing: therapy, daily walks prescribed by her doctor, as well as her work for the Movement albeit for a reduced number of hours. Her life continued to be fruitful and to build unity“. In May 2020 her illness returned and she was admitted to hospital on several occasions. In these last steps of her life, Darci was surrounded by the love and prayers of the whole Focolare community. She recorded a video message just before Christmas in which she declared her conviction which had guided her whole life: “Jesus is in our midst“. Federal Government spokesperson, Luiza Erundina, responded to the news of Darci’s death with the declaration: “She leaves an exemplary lesson on how to live fully the ideal of unity and fraternity which humanity needs so badly“. What stands out from the countless expressions of gratitude to God for the life of Darci Rodrigues is a universal recognition of the serenity and joyous welcome she extended to every person she met throughout her life, wherever she was.  In essence, as someone described it, hers was a ‘Marian’ presence.

Luís Henrique Marques Editor of Cidade Nova magazine

Italy / Lebanon | A bridge between Italy and Lebanon

Feb 15, 2022 | Non categorizzato

From thinking about how to share came a great deal of solidarity: an airlift to Beirut to transport both medicines for the chronically ill, and powdered milk for new-born babies. This action, in response to an appeal by the Latin Rite Apostolic Vicariate of Beirut and the Vatican’s Apostolic Nunciature in Lebanon, involves the Focolare Movement, the John Paul II Foundation and many people from Italy and Lebanon, who have joined together to support this project, as if part of one family. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z84D_ZOdVgY

Chiara Lubich: Jesus speaks in our heart

Feb 14, 2022 | Non categorizzato

On life’s journey, we sometimes need to slow down for a while and listen to the voice that speaks in our heart. We will discover new challenges as Chiara Lubich suggests in this text. Listening to the voice of Jesus does not only mean listening to his teaching and adopting it as our own. It means establishing a personal relationship with him, as he calls each one individually, by name. He makes his voice heard deep within us, and his truth – which is the truth – is at work in our heart, even though each person is free to answer his invitation or not. Giving the example of the good shepherd, Jesus states that there is opposition between the legitimate shepherd, who enters by the door, and the thief or brigand who climbs over the fence. Throughout the centuries, false messiahs have tried to attract people with their ideologies – and they still do today! However, those who belong to Jesus know his voice, and do not allow themselves to be deceived by these false promises. They do not trust other voices. (…) Try to listen to the voice of Jesus speaking in your heart. You will see that it will lead you out of your selfishness, your lack of love, your desire to dominate, your pride, your tendency to violence… out of everything that enslaves you. If you entrust your life to Jesus and let him be your guide, you will certainly never succumb to the temptation of an easy, comfortable Christian life. You will be led away from a life that is mediocre and without meaning In following him, who speaks in your heart, who calls you personally (because he calls us one by one), you will not be following a “beaten track,” but you will set out on a divine adventure that you would never have dreamed of. Everything will be new and beautiful, even though it will not be easy for your human nature. You will see how creative God’s imagination is, and you will understand that by following a shepherd like this, your life will be full, abounding in fruits and spreading goodness everywhere. And you will finally understand what a powerful, amazing revolution the Gospel produces when it is lived.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, pp. 204-208)

Dominican Republic: When the heart speaks

Feb 11, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Allowing God to guide us and discovering that His love, even in silence, acknowledges our efforts. Ángel Canó, a married focolarino from the Dominican Republic, shares his experience. In 2001, routine medical examinations revealed a slight problem with my heart’s mitral valve but the situation unexpectedly got worse at the end of 2020 and the cardiologist confirmed the presence of a ‘time bomb’ in my chest. My wife, Margarita, also a married focolarina, and I accepted the diagnosis with great peace, placing ourselves in God’s hands. We decided to discuss it immediately with our son, Angel Leonel, and our daughter, Zoila, who is a doctor in the USA. She spoke directly with the cardiologist and consulted a colleague at the centre where she works who confirmed that surgery was needed. I spent the evening before the operation very peacefully with Margarita, preparing myself physically, mentally and spiritually for what lay ahead. We felt confident and the next day, when we arrived at the operating theatre, we declared our love for each other and said goodbye, certain that we would see each other again soon. When I woke up, I felt as if I had come back to life, even though I had a strong arrhythmia, my heart was racing like a horse and I was struggling to articulate words. The doctors were quick to analyse everything while I was dealing with the post-operational pain. They then allowed Margarita to come in and her words of encouragement and faith gave me a lot of peace. I then spent ten very difficult days in intensive care dealing with pain, the helplessness of feeling immobile, the sense of loneliness, insomnia and the fear of dying. Long nights in which God seemed to remain silent in front of my cry. I didn’t think I would get through it all. One morning, heavily sedated, I heard a voice saying ‘brother’ to me repeatedly. When I opened my eyes, I saw the face of a priest whom we love very much. It was a moment that really restored my faith.  Heaven had always been with me and this feeling stayed with me during those days. One day, when I had come out of intensive care, Margarita, laying her head gently on my battered chest, said: “What a joy to be able to hug you again”. Words that not only expressed happiness, but the meaning of life. It was like rediscovering the love she had for me. I was alive, not only thanks to medical skill but also to the Will of a God who was manifesting his love by giving me a new chance at life. Today, I see everything as a great gift and feel strongly committed to understanding what God wants from me now, how I can reciprocate. Every evening, in my prayers, I thank Heaven and when a new day dawns, there are no words to express my gratitude for the opportunity to see the light of the sun again and to look at my wife and children with new eyes.

Ángel Canó

Living the Gospel: “I will not reject anyone who comes to me” (Jn 6:37)

Feb 10, 2022 | Non categorizzato

To meet Jesus in our neighbour is to discover the tenderness and beauty of his love. Opening ourselves to each other allows us to be a gift to anyone who passes by and even unexpectedly receive a hundredfold. Heart full of joy A very poor family with five children lives in our village. The father is an alcoholic. Three of them are in the same class as my children. One evening, as we were leaving school, it was raining hard. I took the children in my car and, seeing the three of them on the street, I picked them up and drove them home. “Come and meet my mother,” the youngest said to me. We entered the humble house, and the woman thanked me. Then, chatting, she told me that she was looking for a bargain bed for her youngest and showed me their rooms, where the upholstery was peeling away from the walls due to the humidity. The other four children all sleep in the same room. The little two-year-old, practically naked, was wearing an apron that was too long for her. I promised that the day after I would bring her the folding bed that we rarely use. The next day, when we arrived at the family home with the bed, some toys and some clothes, the children jumped for joy, including my own. We left promising to come back. On the way home, my little one exclaimed, “Mommy, my heart is full of joy.” O. D., France The former principal One day, on the street, I ran into the principal of the institute where I was teaching. He had fired me some time before under false pretences. At the time he was still a priest, but he had then left ministry and married. When he recognized me, he tried to avoid me, but I went to greet him. To break the ice, I asked him about his life. He told me he lived in another city, was married to a widowed mother of two, and had come in search of work. He reluctantly shared his address, then we said goodbye. The next day, I spread the news among my friends that I was looking for a job for a person in need. A response did not take long to arrive, and I heard about something that could answer that request. When I contacted him to tell him, he almost couldn’t believe it! He accepted with deep gratitude. He was touched that I took an interest in him. J., Argentina Grandpa Since Grandpa suffers from serious walking problems, he has given up his usual walks and instead stays home and reads in an armchair and sleeps, even though the geriatrician has encouraged him to exercise and go out. How best to rekindle in him the drive to heal, to fight for life? Our daughters, with so much love, came up with the best way to help their tired and depressed grandfather. Every now and then they would take out their playing cards and ask him to play a game of briscola. He would try to get out of it, saying that he was no longer able to play, but they would not give up. During the game, which played out with all the enthusiasm and liveliness of children, he rediscovered the joy and the desire to be together. The girls also continually reminded him of the exercises he had to do, such as a step competition. To help their grandfather raise his knees and not drag his feet, they sat on the ground with their legs outstretched, so he had to climb over them. G., Italy

Edited by Maria Grazia Berretta

 From “Il Vangelo del Giorno,” Città Nuova, year VIII, n.1, January–February 2022

Synod of Bishops 2021 – 2023: Called to make a contribution

Feb 9, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The 2021-2023 Synod entitled “For a synodal Church: communion, participation, mission” is underway. In this first phase, in addition to the involvement of everyone in their own parish or diocesan community, we are also invited to make a contribution as the Focolare Movement. The reason for our participation In a letter addressed to Margaret Karram in May 2021, calling the Focolare Movement to live the path towards the 2023 Synod of Bishops with the whole Church, Cardinal Mario Grech, Secretary General of the Synod of Bishops, said, “Considering that the Associations of the faithful are ‘workshops of synodality ‘(…) they are unique partners in this phase of consultation. Therefore, at the beginning of this ecclesial adventure I would like be close to all of you, to encourage and support you on this journey together with the people of God ”, In response to this invitation from the Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops, the President of Focolare appointed an international team to prepare the first step that is the listening phase. As a Movement, we are therefore invited to seek opportunities to discuss the theme of synodality from the perspective of the charism of unity. Synodal Church In 2015, on the occasion of the commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Synod of Bishops, Pope Francis recalled that “the path of synodality is the path which God expects of the Church of the third millennium. (…) A Synodal church is a Church which listens, which realizes that listening “is more than simply hearing.” On 18^th September 2021, in his address to the faithful of the diocese of Rome (Italy), the Pope issued a strong encouragement to follow the voice of the Holy Spirit who knows no boundaries, to listen to everyone who belongs to the one people of God, including those who live on the margins of the community. “Are the poor, the beggars, young drug addicts, all those people that society discards, part of the Synod too? Yes, dear friends (…) Synodality is an expression of the Church’s nature, her form, style and mission” . Three stages: This very rich vision offers us an important key for getting into the reality of the synodal process, which opened on 10^th  October 2021 in the Vatican and in local Churches on Sunday 17^th  October 2021. It is a three-year process, divided into three phases, characterized by listening, discernment and consultation. It is an absolute novelty both in method and implementation. It will take place not only in the Vatican, but in every Church of all five continents. It is the first time in the history of this institution, that a Synod has been held in a decentralized way. The first stage (October 2021 – April 2022) concerns the individual diocesan Churches where the synodal journey will try to answer various questions about the life and mission of the Church, in particular, as the Vademecum published by the General Secretariat of the Synod reminds us, one basic question: “How does this “journeying together,” which takes place today on different levels (from local to universal), allow the Church to proclaim the Gospel in accordance with the mission entrusted to Her; and what steps does the Spirit invite us to take in order to grow as a synodal Church?” After the consultation with the dioceses, the Bishops’ Conferences will prepare a summary which will be sent to the General Secretariat of the Synod along with the contributions from the dioceses. Then the General Secretariat will draft the first Instrumentum laboris by September 2022. The purpose of the next phase, the continental one (September 2022 – March 2023), is to dialogue on the text of the first Instrumentum laboris in seven continental meetings: Africa, Oceania, Asia, the Middle East, Latin America, Europe and North America. These seven international meetings will in turn produce seven Final documents which will be the basis for the second Instrumentum laboris, which will be used in the Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in October 2023. The last stage of the synodal journey is that of the universal Church (October 2023). A fundamental stage of this process is the celebration of the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, in October 2023, which will be followed by the implementation phase, which will again involve the local Churches. The charism of unity for a synodal spirituality With what attitude should we approach the synodal process? During the General Assembly of the Focolare Movement, Pope Francis invited the participants to prioritize synodality: “With regard to your effort within the Movement, I urge you to increasingly promote synodality, so that all members, as depositaries of the same charism, may be co-responsible for and participants in the life of the Work of Mary and its specific goals.” Reflecting on the experience which is at the heart the Movement, the President, Margaret Karram recalled the points of reference in the spirituality of the Focolare that can help in the implementation of a synodal process. The Pact of mutual love, renewed and placed at the basis of every process of discernment, represents the commitment to be ready to love one another. Mutual and continuous charity requires learning the Gospel Art of loving: listening, putting yourself in a position to learn,  speaking with respect, sincerity and clarity. Everything can be shared with parrhesia, putting yourself in front of God and keeping alive the reality of the new commandment.

Liliane Mugombozi (Yaoundé, Cameroon),

International team for the synodal journey of the Focolare Movement.

To facilitate the journey of reflection, sharing and listening, the team began the “synodal journey” in July 2021. In addition to a video of interviews, published on the YouTube channel of the Focolare Movement, a study aid was created to help members of the Movement experience the synodal process, collect and elaborate contributions to offer to the Synod secretariat.  Link to the vademecum in English Link to the video in English: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEb0owmRcTE&list=PLKhiBjTNojHpVNzhRRVCRJ-2BDdMzArXH&index=6

The power of care: united against trafficking in persons

Feb 8, 2022 | Non categorizzato

8 February is the World Day of Prayer and Reflection Against Trafficking in Persons. This year 2022 an online prayer marathon starts in Oceania, crossing the globe to conclude in North America. The Focolare is among those active against human exploitation. “In our area there’s a lot of prostitution. The Pope’s invitation to go towards the existential peripheries to seek out the most vulnerable, needy and forgotten, encouraged us to approach those involved in prostitution. Our aim is simply to accompany them, be close to them, make them feel we love each of them as a person”. Laura Diaz, a Volunteer in the Focolare Movement, is one of eight women forming the “Juntas en camino” (“Together On Our Way”) group, launched in 2013 from the parish of the Holy Eucharist in the Palermo quarter of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Every day they dedicate themselves to tackling prostitution by taking care of those caught up in it. “By serving,” she continues, “we receive so much more than we give. Something has changed within us: our mentality, our attitude without prejudices. This change has affected some of our families too. We look at the people we approach as people whose dignity has been violated and whose dignity can be restored”. This and many other testimonies from over 30 countries will be presented during the online Prayer Marathon on 8 February. Entitled “The Power of Care”, organized to coincide with the World Day of Prayer and Reflection Against Trafficking in Persons, the prayer marathon runs from 9:00 to 17:00 (CET) passing from Oceania, Asia and the Middle East to Africa, Europe, South America and finally North America. It will be streamed live in five languages (English, French, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish) on the website www.preghieracontrotratta.org Marcela Villares is a Focolarina living in Argentina who strives every day to combat the tragedy of trafficking. She works with the members of the Episcopal Commission for Migrants and Refugees of the Argentinian Bishops’ Conference as their anti-trafficking

Marcela Villares hands over the booklet of educational activities to the Pope

The statute of Saint Bakhita by artist Timothy Schmaltz

Lorenzo Russo

Chiara Lubich: forgive one another

Feb 7, 2022 | Non categorizzato

In today’s society, choosing to forgive is very unconventional. Some people think that forgiveness is a weakness,” Chiara Lubich affirms in the passage we publish here. “No, it is the manifestation of the greatest courage, it is true love, the most genuine love because it is the most selfless.  If we want to contribute to creating a new world, the only way is to do as God does. God not only forgives, but also forgets. The Lord forgives all our faults because “he is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness”[1]. He overlooks our sins[2], he forgets them, casting them behind his back[3]. God forgives because, like any father or mother, he loves his children and therefore always forgives them, covers their mistakes, gives them confidence, and encourages them without ever tiring. Because he is father and mother, it is not enough for God to love and forgive his sons and daughters. His greatest wish is that they treat each other as brothers and sisters, get along well, and love each other. Universal fraternity, that is God’s great plan for humanity. A fraternity that is stronger than the inevitable divisions, tensions and hard feelings that creep in so easily because of misunderstandings and mistakes. Families often break up because they cannot forgive each other. Old hatreds maintain the division between relatives, social groups, and peoples. At times there are even those who teach people not to forget the wrongs they have suffered and who cultivate feelings of revenge… And a dull resentment poisons the soul and gnaws at the heart. Some people think that forgiveness is a weakness. No, it is the manifestation of the greatest courage, it is true love, the most genuine love, because the most selfless. “If you love those who love you, what merit have you?” – says Jesus – everyone knows how to do that: “Love your enemies”[4] . We are asked to learn from him and to have the love of a father, of a mother, a merciful love towards all those who come our way, especially towards those who do something wrong. Moreover, to those who are called to live a spirituality of communion and fellowship, that is, the Christian spirituality, the New Testament asks for something more: “Forgive one another”[5]. We could almost say that mutual love requires that we make a pact with one another: to be ready to forgive one another always. This is the only way we can contribute towards universal fraternity.

Chiara Lubich

 (Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] Città Nuova, 2017, pp. 666-667) [1] (Ps 103:3:8) [2] (Cf Wis 11:23) [3] (Cf Is 38:17) [4](See Mt 5:42-47). [5] (Col 3:13)

Living Peace International Celebrates its 10th Anniversary

Feb 4, 2022 | Non categorizzato

“Living Peace”, a peace education project promoting a culture of peace and fraternity, began in 2012. It involves more than 1,000,000 young people, teenagers and children from 130 countries around the world and is inspired by Chiara Lubich’s “Art of Loving”. On 5 February 2022 an online event on Living Peace International’s Youtube channel will celebrate its 10th anniversary. “I was teaching in an American school in Cairo, Egypt, and the idea of contributing to peace and culture developed: it seemed a way of responding to the many challenges in the Middle East.” This is how Carlos Palma, focolarino and teacher, creator of the “Living Peace” project, begins the story. The initiative started on  5 February 2012 with the aim of promoting a culture of peace, fraternity and solidarity. Today, after 10 years, this peace education pathway has developed all over the world. It is promoted by the  AMU  Association Onlus – Action for a United World, in partnership with Teens4Unity and New Humanity. More than 80 international organisations and more than 1000 schools and groups take part in it, involving more than one million children and young people. On 5 February from 2.30 pm to 4.00 pm (UTC+1) on the YouTube channel of “Living Peace International” there will be an online event translated in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Italian, to mark the tenth anniversary of the project.  The “Dice of Peace” lies at the heart of the “Living Peace” project.  There are no numbers on the faces of this dice but phrases that suggest ways of building peaceful relationships between all. The dice was inspired by the points of “The Art of Loving”, which Chiara Lubich had proposed to the children of the Focolare Movement many years ago.  She too used a dice to explain these ideas. “Time Out” is also offered as part of this project: at 12 noon every day, in every time zone, thousands of people take a moment to be silent, to reflect and to pray for peace. Initially, this project seemed most suited to primary schools but it soon spread to secondary schools and reached universities, youth movements, associations, foundations, prisons, religious communities and art centres, etc. What does peace education mean? The UNESCO Constitution states: “Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defences of peace must be constructed.” Educating for peace is not just another discipline to learn, but rather it means making every educational environment an instrument of peace, a pathway that tries to develop creativity and autonomy in children in dealing with problems and conflicts and learning to dialogue. Educating for peace, therefore, means promoting concrete actions for peace and reconciliation, starting from schools and reaching as many educational environments as possible. “In 2013 I was appointed ambassador for peace by the Universal Circle of Ambassadors for Peace in France and Switzerland,” says Carlos Palma. “Two years later the idea emerged to also appoint young ambassadors for peace ranging from 6 to 25 years old. Today there are 600 young ambassadors in the world who carry the ‘Dice of Peace”’ everywhere.  They are  protagonists of the most varied activities in many different areas. This project has also become a subject of study in some universities. Thanks to the young ambassadors, the ‘Dice of Peace’ has been created in braille for the participants who are blind.  In addition,  they have devised the” Peace Got Talent”  programme which takes its cue from the television series known in various parts of the world.  This gives space to young talented people to promote peace. Then came the pandemic. But in spite of this,” concludes Carlos Palma, “young people have continued and continue in a thousand ways, through the web and social networks, to promote peace and fraternity.” For more information, see this link.

Lorenzo Russo

Chiara Lubich: Unity

Jan 31, 2022 | Non categorizzato

On this occasion we dwell on the fundamental cornerstone of the Spirituality of Unity. Chiara Lubich shows us the way to obtain the grace of unity from the Father. (…) This cornerstone, which is typically ours, implies “something more” than is usually required of the more individual spiritualities, at least as they develop. The “something more”, as we know, is reciprocity and unity. Unity. What is unity? Is it possible to achieve unity? Unity is what God wants from us. Unity is the fulfillment of Jesus’ prayer: “May all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us “ (Jn. 17:21). But unity cannot be achieved through our own efforts. It can be achieved only through a special grace which the Father grants if He finds us prepared, in accordance with a precise and necessary requirement. It is mutual love, put into practice, as Jesus’ commanded… his mutual love, what he wants of us. It is not – as we know – simply spiritual friendship, agreement or mutual understanding. It means loving one another as He loved us, to the point of forsakenness: to the point of complete material and spiritual detachment from people and from things, so that we can make ourselves one reciprocally and perfectly. By doing so, we will have done our part and fulfil the conditions for receiving the grace of unity, which will not be missing, which must not be missing. … (…) We must remember that there is an added grace in our communitarian spirituality; that heaven can open up for us in every moment. If we do what our spirituality asks of us, we’ll be filled with this grace, and can do much, very much for the kingdom of God. … (…) During the next month, let us make every effort to obtain this gift always! And let us not seek it only for our own happiness, but to carry out our characteristic evangelization. You know it: “That they may be one so that the world may believe” (Jn. 17:21). The world needs faith, it needs to believe! And we are all called to evangelize. (…) May whoever observes two or more of us united (in the focolares, in the nuclei, in the units, in our meetings, or because we are together for any reason) be struck by a ray of our faith, and believe. May they believe in love because they have seen it. Let’s do this. It’s what the Lord wants from us. He wants it through our charism which has been engraved in our statutes: unity is the premise that comes before every other will of God.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, Conversazioni, Cittá Nuova, 2019, p. 523-524) https://youtu.be/YEth9TWpKUY

World Gen Day: Together for a greater good

Jan 28, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The Gen, the young people of the Focolare Movement, aim to reach holiness. They are young people like all the others: with their joys, pains, dreams, difficulties. But they know that such a lofty goal is not achieved overnight. It is built moment by moment and not alone, but together. This expressed this through testimonies of life, songs and stories on Sunday 19^th December 2021, in a World Day during which they met virtually for over two hours. Margaret Karram, President of the Focolare, greeted them and invited them to build true, profound relationships with everyone, stopping in front of others to meet them in the “here and now”. Let’s hear what they had to say, through this selection of experiences of life from the day. Unity in diversity The Republic of Indonesia recognizes several official religions: Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, Confucianism and traditional beliefs. The largest population is the Muslim one. This diversity makes interreligious dialogue an experience of everyday life. I am studying for a Masters in Pharmaceutical Sciences. At the university I have many friends from different islands, belonging to different religions. Some of them are very close to me, they are like my sisters. I am a Catholic Christian, the friend next to me is a Hindu and others are Muslims. During the month of Ramadan, I often accompany the Muslims to break their fast. Once I invited them to break it together in the Focolare. They felt very much loved. After the meeting, one of them wrote on his Instagram profile: “We don’t have the same background, religion, age and we don’t even come from the same country, but we have a dream: to build a better home for everyone, to hope and pray for a prosperous future. We long for a universal world, as our country’s motto says “Bhineka Tunggal Ika” – “Unity in diversity”. I live in a boarding house where most of the girls are Muslim. At first they were afraid of me, because I seemed very serious and most of them had never lived with non-Muslim people. One day I had a lot of cakes and I thought I could share them with them. The relationship between us is growing. We cook, eat, and play sports and games together. Our experience of living together has broadened our horizon and this makes us happy. Tika (Indonesia) Love beyond our strength My sister studies architecture. She had been dedicating herself to work her degree for three months, even working through the night. She had to present a project on the city: prepare the presentation documentation and the models. Junior students usually help senior ones, but due to COVID-19, my sister had to do it all by herself. At one point she asked our Mum and I for help. I happily replied: “Okay! I’ll help you!” However, I thought: “Really, I have enough to do with my own homework at the moment” and I wondered “Was it a good idea to say I would help her? It’s an important assignment for her degree, would I be able to do it right? Wouldn’t it be better to have someone who knows the subject?” However, seeing my sister in need, I thought, “If I finish my homework early, I can help her.” So, every evening I wholeheartedly helped her with her project, as if it was mine. In the end she was able to hand in the work, finished on time and was successful. She thanked me very much and was happy that this work was completed not only by her, but with everyone’s strength. However, seeing my sister in trouble, I thought, “If I finish my homework early, I can help her.” So, every evening I helped her with all of her heart in her homework, as if they were mine. In the end she was able to deliver the work, finished on time, with success. She thanked me very much and was happy that this work was completed not only by her, but with our contribution too. It would be a lie to say that when I helped my sister I was always loving one hundred percent, not complaining, but I don’t regret doing it, in my heart I felt light and happy. Also, inside me, there was a little joy. I remembered a phrase from the Gospel that says: “Whoever abides in love abides in God and God abides in him”, and I thought: “Perhaps God has taken up his abode in me?” Rosa (Korea) Between war and hope I study computer engineering. Ever since I was a child, I’ve tried to live the spirituality of the Focolare. For a while however, I felt far away from Jesus and Mary. I was wondering where God is and why He allows the difficulties that we have here in Syria, such as the lack of electricity, high prices and the difficult economic situation. Also, all of this had an effect on my relationship with others. I recently went to London for a month to visit my sisters and there I took part in a weekend with the Gen, the young people of the Focolare. This experience helped me to find answers and to rediscover myself by living the spirituality of unity. I will never forget the love I found among the Gen, a love that filled my heart … it was as if we had known each other for a long time. This experience impressed me a lot and as a result I felt that something was beginning to change within me. As soon as I returned to Syria there was also a Gen congress in which I took part. Due to the difficult situations of the war, it was the first time in 10 years that we were able to meet. It was a rich experience characterized by mutual love and lived as if we were all one family. Inner peace was growing in me day by day. The experiences of the two weekends with the Gen and the people I met, left a mark in my heart and helped me to once again be that positive person who looks forward with courage. There are times when, due to the pressures of life, we lose hope … as if it is the end of the world and there is nothing left. However, if we experience God, with his grace, He allows us to return to him and we discover that the difficult things we experienced were like our little participation in the sufferings of Jesus on the cross. We realize that our pains are small in the face of the sufferings he experienced to redeem us. One thing I want to say is that when we experience painful moments in life, which seem to have no end, they can turn into light, but it is up to us to ask for God’s help in prayer. He is always ready to help us and with great hope we can start over and have an ever stronger relationship with him. Paolo (Aleppo, Syria) Meeting those who suffer most After the earthquake two years ago in Croatia, we decided to take action by going to the places of the epicentre. When we asked the Parish Priest of Sisak how we could best be of help, he surprised us by asking us to collaborate with him to prepare a group of Romany children for their first communion. We agreed to go every week for a few months to the village of Capranske Poljane, where Muslim and Christian (Orthodox and Catholics) Romany people live. We held catechism classes with sketches and games with them.  From this meeting, beautiful relationships began that continue and grow even today. Through the focolarini we also met and visited a family in Petrinja, in a very difficult situation (both due to the earthquake and the socio-economic reality in which they find themselves). With the aid of the Caritas organization, we were able to buy material and tools both to repair their house and to help them get back to work. They found Hope again! During a meeting with the Gen, inspired by the example of so many around the world, I felt that I had to take a step to get out of my comfort zone. I wanted to “take to the streets” to try to love others as myself. One day we went to Sisak to talk to the Parish Priest about how to go forward with the Romany people and then we visited this family from Petrinja and brought them various basic necessities. We saw how they had used the money we had raised to fix up their living room which is now really cosy! We also brought a laptop so that the children could follow school online. I felt very much at home. There was a lovely family atmosphere. Even though I hadn’t done anything concrete for their situation up to that point, I gave what I could: myself with my good will and some of my time. I am grateful to God who gave me this opportunity to love and I want to continue to love because I have found the hundredfold of joy that I want to share with others and now I’m sharing it with you. Thiana and Peter (Croatia)

A soulmate beyond the wall

Jan 27, 2022 | Non categorizzato

A meeting capable of overcoming great obstacles; a leap in love bringing two people together and generating unity. Bella Gal, a Jew living near Tel Aviv, talks about her special friendship with E., a Palestinian Christian. A few years ago I had a really interesting and profound encounter with a Palestinian woman, a Christian, a university lecturer, at a conference in Jerusalem where she was giving a talk. Her name is E. She brought up her children alone while her husband was in an Israeli prison for 10 years. He was released due to health problems and sadly died shortly afterwards. Although she was suffering, E. never gave up on life and educated her children who are now professionals, each in their own area of expertise. Her talk was very interesting but also very sad. At the end of the speech, I left the room without waiting for the question and answer session. I could not bear to hear her story. It reminded me of my own suffering, my early childhood and my parents who died during the Holocaust. Maybe it was very selfish of me but E. gave me a very important example and lesson in “making every encounter worthwhile”. After leaving the hall, I sat down in the cafeteria. Suddenly I felt someone put their hand on my shoulder. It was E. who said to me: “I saw you at my lecture, and I also saw you leave at the end. Did something happen? Did I offend you?” Although E. had every reason to be hostile towards me, we approached each other with great compassion, realising that we had both suffered but had found our inner strength, picked up the pieces and embraced the situation. As we finished sharing and crying, E. and I immediately felt connected, and a great love and appreciation for one another. We were able to unite deeply as women and see beyond our country’s differences. Over the years, E. has also held important political offices which is a major and historic achievement for a Christian woman living in that context. Today, I can truly say that E. is my soulmate beyond the wall.

Bella Gal

An in-depth study on unity

Jan 25, 2022 | Non categorizzato

Lately, Città Nuova published the book “L’unità. Uno sguardo dal Paradiso’49 di Chiara Lubich”. It is edited by Stefan Tobler and Judith Povilus, and soon it will be published in other languages. This in-depth study, to which many contributed, will help one understand the meaning of unity, the core of the Focolare spirituality. “Unity is our specific vocation”[1]; “So, our ideal is unity and not any other”[2]. Chiara Lubich had a very clear idea about the mission of the Movement she gave life to. If “unity is the specific characteristic of the Focolare Movement”[3], then it is called to question itself on its patrimony and on how to develop it with creativity and faithfulness. How can the Focolare communities, the nuclei,  the “Word of Life” groups live unity today? How can they walk bravely and freely on a road that avoids authoritarianism and individualism,  and  allows full development of personal gifts and the pursuit of common goals? How can they walk along the difficult path of communion, that needs to safeguard its legitimate autonomy and search for identity and acceptance, integration and openness to diversity? This subject concerns the entire Work of Mary, but Chiara Lubich’s legacy is much broader: unity concerns the ecclesial world and also relationships between people of different religions, cultures, nations… The Work of Mary at the Centre  entrusted the Abbà School with a study about all this. The members of the Abbà School, who have worked on this theme for quite some time started from Chiara Lubich’s experience during the years 1949-1951. And this is what gave birth to the book“L’unità. Uno sguardo dal Paradiso’49 di Chiara Lubich” . The book is divided into three parts. “Foundations”,  the first section offers a general outlook on unity from a biblical, theological and spiritual point of view.  Chiara’s writings are marked by their profoundness and vividness. They show the divine ‘logic’ of a God, whose ‘interior’ ‘is not to be thought of as a whole in which differences disappear, but on the contrary: God is One precisely because he is infinite multiplicity’, a dynamic reflected in creation. As Chiara wrote, the Father “says ‘Love’ in infinite tones”, to show the extraordinary richness through which He manifests his infinite love. The second part of the book presents texts from Paradise ’49 that highlight fundamental intuitions on unity, thus shedding light on writings or practices that the wear of time or inactive repetition may have rendered incomprehensible or unacceptable. Does the life of unity require the annulling of one’s own personality, or does it require the “unreserved gift of self following the logic of God’s life that leads one to ‘run the risk’ of ‘losing’ one’s own life”? What does to live “in the manner of the Trinity” mean? Does unity imply putting everyone on the same level or is it rather the manifestation of plurality? Inexact understanding of expressions such as “losing”, “dying”, “annulling oneself” that can lead to misunderstandings and derivations are addressed with clarity, and the fruitfulness of a demanding, total love that leads to full self-realisation is highlighted.  Chiara affirms “that each one of us has a distinct, unmistakable personality”, which is “the word God pronounced when he created us”. So, unity appears dynamic, constantly evolving, creative; it emerges as something that needs everyone’s input, and that respects one and all. Hence, Chiara’s unique and unrepeatable contribution, as a foundress and an instrument of the charism, is apprehended. The third part of the book speaks about different disciplines that get inspirations relevant to their specific fields from the writings of Paradise ’49. This last part is the one that required more methodological attention. Since the language of Paradise ’49 is predominantly religious in nature, the question arose of how to write a transdisciplinary book around a multi-semantic word – unity – without the risk of speaking about different things and confusing languages. If a Movement and a spirituality that define themselves “of unity” gave rise to social realities and academic contributions in the most diverse fields, this means that there is a common denominator, a starting point and a stable foundation that makes it possible for everyone to recognise a common horizon in unity, even though they work in different fields and express themselves in the specific language of their own discipline. One traces only a few intuitive points in certain fields of social life and thought that will require further development. This book is the fruit of a gradual process of work carried out by the Abbà School. It began around 2017, and for more than two years, Paradise ’49 was read in the light of this specific theme. The twelve contributions are signed by the respective authors, who retained their own specific style, expertise and methodology. At the same time, it is the fruit of  communion lived  by the whole group; a way of working that  requires an exercise in “unity” – in keeping with the theme itself! It has not always been easy to welcome and understand the other in his or her diversity, due to the fact that the authors come from different countries, have different scientific backgrounds and specific disciplinary and methodological fields. The book limits itself to only some of the pages of Paradise ’49. Therefore, one cannot claim that it exhausts such a vast and demanding theme, though thanks to the depth of the reference texts, it offers a great wealth of insights and proposals.

Fabio Cardi

[1] Unity and Jesus Forsaken, Città Nuova, Rome 1984, p. 26. [2] Ibid., p. 43. [3] Ibid.,  p. 26                                                                                                                                             

Publication of the report on former French focolarino JMM postponed

Jan 24, 2022 | Non categorizzato

GCPS Consulting announced in November that it would postpone the release of the results of its independent investigation until the first quarter of 2022.   The investigation into the sexual abuse perpetrated by J.M.M., a former French consecrated member of the Focolare Movement, is taking longer than expected. This was announced in a statement last November by GCPS Consulting, the specialised consultancy firm to which the Movement entrusted the independent investigation. “The information-gathering process is continuing well beyond the planned timetable,” the statement says, “and the Commission is planning interviews with key people within the Focolare (…) also as part of a review of safeguarding arrangements. On a positive note, this shows that the process is thorough and complete (…). We aim to publish it as soon as possible in the first quarter of 2022.” Expressing regret for the delay, the appointed Commission hopes that “all interested parties understand that the scope of the work has been expanded and that the aim is to fully reflect the voices of all those who have provided evidence and other information to the Commission”.

Stefania Tanesini

Chiara Lubich: go against the flow

Jan 24, 2022 | Non categorizzato

The Word of Life for January 2022 says that the Magi arrived in Bethlehem following the star to pay homage to the Child Jesus. Today we too can pay homage to the Lord by our life choices, as Chiara Lubich suggests in this passage. You are in the world. Everyone can see that. But you are not of the world. This implies a big difference. It classifies you among those who do not nourish themselves on the things of the world, but on what you hear from the voice of God who dwells within you. The voice of God is in the heart of each person, and it leads those who listen to it into a kingdom that is not of this world. It is kingdom where true love is lived, together with justice, purity, meekness, poverty and self-control. (…) Christian life is not calm and comfortable. Christ did not, and does not, ask anything less of you if you want to follow him. The world comes at you like a river in flood and you have to go against the flow. For a Christian, the world is like a thick forest where you need to watch where you put your feet. But do you know where to put them? In the footprints that Christ himself marked out for you when he lived on earth, which are his words.

Chiara Lubich

(Chiara Lubich, in Parole di Vita, [Words of Life] a cura di Fabio Ciardi, Cittá Nuova, 2017, pp 110-112)