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On November 6 and 7 will be present Maria Voce, president of the Focolare Movement. Info: Bishops segves@focolare.org tel. +39/06 947 98150
On 8 June, the Holy See presented the Preparatory Document of the Bishops’ Synod for the Pan-Amazon region, already announced in October 2017 and to take place in Rome in October 2019. The text, available on www.vatican.va in Italian, French, English, Spanish and Portuguese is divided into three parts: See (“Identity and cry of the Pan-Amazon), Discern (“Towards a pastoral and ecological conversion”) and Act (“New paths for the Amazon Church”). “The reflections of the Special Synod,” affirms the Document in the preface, “surpass the strictly Amazon ecclesiastic field, extending towards the universal church and also the future of the entire planet. Starting off from a specific territory, it casts a bridge towards the world’s other essential biomes: the basin of Congo, the Mesoamerican biological corridor, the tropical forests of Asia Pacific, and the Guaraní aquifer, among others. Listening to the indigenous peoples and all the communities living in the Amazons as the first interlocutors of this Synod is of utmost importance also for the universal Church.”
As Anna and Claudio tell the story of their life, the word passes from one to the other in such a natural way that it’s as if, after many years of marriage, they have become a single person. She begins by saying, “When we were first married, what united us was the enthusiasm and joy of seeing our family grow. I didn’t know anyone in the little town in northern Italy where we had moved for work. I took care of the house and waited for him to come home each evening. We were happy but … something was missing. One Sunday we were chatting to a priest outside the church. We invited him to the house and when he came, he brought a copy of the New City magazine. Later on, he brought us the Word of Life leaflet. We thought that we too could begin to live the words of the Gospel.” Claudio continues: “I had a good job. We made machines that developed and printed films for the cinema. However, when the owner died, there were problems amongst the people who inherited the company. Eventually, I received a really attractive offer of a very well paid job. However, I understood that the content of the films I would be helping to produce would be ethically unacceptable. My wife and I agreed that I should not accept the job. After a while, I had the offer of another job but with a much lower salary. By then, our second child had been born and the expenses were increasing. I accepted the second job, trusting that we would manage. There was a lot of work to do and I needed a helper. The human resources department suggested someone who was known to be a very difficult character. In fact, the first time I met him, he said, ‘If you think you are going to make me work, you have got it all wrong.” I realised that I was going to have to make up for his shortcomings: but in the family we had agreed that we were going to love everyone and so there was no turning back. After that, he began to really enjoy the work and I remember that at Christmas he brought me a little train wrapped up in newspaper for my son.” Anna continues, “I was expecting the third baby when Claudio had the offer of another job. We moved and the other four children were born in that town. We were a little “tribe” that was growing enjoying our way of life and the peace and harmony we tried to maintain always. I was working too. I was teaching German in a high school and this meant that I always had a lot to do. The children were very supportive: they used to help one another with their homework and prepare supper sometimes. The school was about 30 kilometres away from home and I remember coming home on the bus one very wet evening. I was expecting to get absolutely soaked on the way to our house. Mobile phones didn’t exist in those days. When I got off the bus, at the stop, I found one of the children waiting for me with a big umbrella. A few years later, when there were nine of us (plus a cat), my husband’s work meant we needed to move again. I was very hesitant at first. Then I realised how difficult it was for him to spend five nights each week in a hotel. Out of love for him, we decided to pack our bags once again. We understood how important is to always be united and we often prayed together during difficult times. I was on my own during the day but I knew he was always with me. Sometimes, after supper, we used to walk around the block together just to have a little bit of time for the two of us to be on our own.” Claudio takes up the story once again, “Our children are all married now. One of them is separated from his wife and this made us suffer a lot. Recently, when we were on pilgrimage, we entrusted this situation to Mary. At first we prayed that the family could be re united. After a while we thought it was better to ask that their hearts might be converted. Eventually, we understood that the grace we needed to pray for was our conversion. We ended the pilgrimage determined to be attentive to what God might still ask us. We don’t want to stop being instruments of his love. In a family, love is the only thing that must never move.”
At Loppiano, where the Sophia University Institute is located, there will be the inauguration for academic year 2018-2019. Enrolments are open
Some months ago in Milan, the Youths for a United World got together to plan an initiative which would focus on Genfest 2018 in Manila, Philippines. It was then that they revived the idea of selling coffee, as was done on the occasion of the Genfest of 2012 in Budapest. After obtaining a special price from a wholesale distributor, they created the labels which featured the guidelines of the activities and logo of the event. They decided to designate the funds obtained to: support the Filipino people struck by Typhoon Vinta last December, help those arriving in Manila from the farther countries, and add to the funds for general expenses in the organisation of the Genfest. One of the youths of Milano recounted that the idea came up when “we asked ourselves how we could spread the news of the Genfest here. Being an event to promote brotherhood among people, which covers material and interpersonal relationships, it seemed that one of the most representative elements was this desire to socialize, stay together, and as in our culture, share time enjoying a beverage or some coffee: that break you take during the day, which can become the occasion to exchange and share ideas, and to go beyond…” This time it was easier than in 2012, since we already had our contacts. After deciding how to go about it, we contacted the supplier and received 4,000 packets of coffee in a month’s time in the central depot of Milan. In the meanwhile, in the various parts of the region, around 20 people volunteered to create small storage in their homes. The labeling process was done by them and “it became an occasion to get together and dine together, […]. We did this not only in Milan but also in other regions where youths and families are helping one another. Lastly, this activity created many opportunities to meet people we haven’t seen for some time, thus consolidating fraternal relationships.” For further information: caffe2018manila@gmail.com Source: United World Project
I saw him out of the corner of my eye as I was rushing into the supermarket. He was behind a tree; it was almost as if he wanted to hide from something or someone. I saw him more clearly when I was leaving and he was directly in front of me. I already had two euro in my hand to give to him but I felt uncomfortable at the idea of being the “donor” who was giving some change to the “beggar.” We are both human beings, aren’t we, even if life has treated us differently? As I gave him the money, I spontaneously said, “Hello. I’m Gino. What is your name?” “Sylvester,” he replied with an embarrassed voice. “Have you got a problem?” I asked. There was a moments silence. Later I understood that this was more due to not understanding Italian than to feeling this was a difficult situation. “No. Everything’s fine,” he said. I wasn’t convinced and so I continued, “Look me in the eye and tell me if you have a problem.” Again he answered, “Everything is fine.” As I was approaching my car, I could hear him making his way towards me; “Yes, I have a problem. I want to work.” I shook hands with him as a sign that I had understood. His face and his wounded dignity entered into my heart. We exchanged contact details because we didn’t want to lose touch. That is how Sylvester and I became friends in spite of language and cultural diversity. It was a meeting between two people where each one had his own sense of dignity. From that day onwards, I became increasingly aware that the first thing to do was help him overcome the hurdle of the language barrier. Even if his documents were all in order, it was unrealistic to think he could find a job if he couldn’t express himself in or understand Italian. I didn’t know how to say this because I didn’t speak his language. I remembered that I had a friend from his country and I asked him to be an interpreter. We all met for a beer in the bar near the supermarket and understood more about Sylvester’s situation. Before leaving, I turned to him and said, “Remember Sylvester, nothing is insignificant if it is done with love. You are not here to ask for something but to offer help to whoever needs it – to carry heavy shopping or find a parking space or trolley. God loves you, me everyone. Let’s ask for this together, as the Gospel says. Maybe a door will open but, in the meantime, this is your job. Do it with your head held high – without losing your dignity.” The following evening I received a WhatsApp message from him. “Good evening Gino. How are you? I hope you and your family are well. Thank you for helping me. God bless you for taking care of me. I am longing to begin a proper job but in the meantime I will do as you said and hold my head up high. I am waiting to see you.” I had to use google translate to understand him and reply. “Dear Sylvester. Thanks for your good wishes. Today I tried to find a free Italian language course. I hope I will have good news for you soon.” After that, I began to experience what we already know – it is very difficult to help someone! To this day, I do not understand why there is so much bureaucracy! However, I didn’t give in because other people also began to support Sylvester. I was no longer alone and neither was he. Tomorrow he will begin Italian lessons. This is the first step towards finding a job and being able to send financial support to his wife and two small children who have stayed in the country where he was born. Maybe, one day, they will be able to join him. Dear Sylvester, I pray that this will happen! Gustavo Clariá
Pope Francis’s prayer for the month of June is dedicated to the social networks and the web. This was aired today through a video message in Spanish by the world Network of prayer for the Pope, translated in seven languages and rebroadcasted by Vatican News. In the video the Pope invites all to pray to God so that the social networks “do not annul our personality, but enhance solidarity and respect for others in their differences.” After the title, “May the social networks enhance solidarity and respect for others in their differences,” Francis underlined that “Internet is a gift of God, and is also a great responsibility,” and explained that “communication, its sites, and its instruments imply a widening of horizons for many people.” Francis thus relays the invitation, already expressed in the message for the day 2014, to take advantage of the “possibilities for encounter and solidarity which the social networks offer,” and the wish that the “digital network will not be a place of alienation but a concrete place full of humaneness.” The Pope’s intention is – “Let’s pray together so that the social networks do not annul our personalities, but enhance solidarity and respect for the others in their differences.” Source: SIR https://youtu.be/Tuz6zE4bd9w
