Mar 31, 2012 | Non categorizzato, Word of
“You are already made clean.” What does Jesus mean with these words, what kind of purity is he speaking of? He is referring to the attitude one needs to have in order to stay in the presence of God; he means the absence of obstacles (such as sins) that come between us and any contact with the sacred, any encounter with the divine. To possess this purity, we need God’s help. In the Old Testament, people had already discovered that human beings are unable to approach God if they rely on human strength alone. God must purify their hearts; he must give them a new heart. There is a beautiful Psalm that says, “A clean heart create in me, O God” (Ps 51:12). You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. According to Jesus, there is a way to be pure of heart; it is his word. The disciples had heard and accepted his word, and it had purified them. The words of Jesus, in fact, are not like human words. Jesus is present in them as he is present in the Eucharist, though in a different way. Through his words, Christ enters us, and by accepting them and putting them into practice, we allow him to be born and grow in our hearts. Pope Paul VI said: “How does Jesus become present in souls? Through the communication of the word, the divine thought is conveyed; the Word, the Son of God made man, is conveyed. We could assert that the Lord becomes incarnate in us when we allow his word to come and dwell within us.”[1] You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. The word of Jesus is also compared to a seed sown in the heart of the believer. When it is welcomed, it penetrates deeply, and like a seed, it develops, grows and bears much fruit. It “Christifies” us, making us similar to Christ. The word, which has thus entered a person’s life through the power of the Spirit, truly has the ability and strength to keep the Christian far from evil: that is, as long as we allow the word to act in us, we will be free from sin and, therefore, pure. We will sin only if we cease to obey the truth. You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. How then should we live in order that we too might merit Jesus’ praise? We should try to put each word of God into practice, to nourish ourselves with the word moment by moment, making of our lives a work of continuous re-evangelization. We do this so that we might have the same thoughts and sentiments as Jesus. We do this so that we might relive Christ in the world today and show to society, often enmeshed in evil and sin, the divine purity, the limpidness of spirit that the Gospel gives. During this month then, if possible (that is, if there are others with us who share the same desire), let us try in a special way to put into practice those words of Jesus that contain his commandment of mutual love. In fact, in John’s Gospel, where we find this month’s Word of Life, there is a bond between the word of Jesus and the New Commandment. According to John, it is in the context of mutual love that the lived word has its effects of purification, holiness, preservation from sin, fruitfulness, closeness to God. An isolated individual cannot long resist the enticements of the world, whereas in mutual love, everyone finds the healthy environment that protects their authentic Christian life. Chiara Lubich [1] From a talk to the parishioners of St. Eusebius in Rome (February 26, 1967)
Mar 31, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
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Mar 30, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
‘We want to share with you our joy at how the recent referendum turned out,’ write Anča and Vine Povirk from Domzale in Slovenia, members of the Focolare’s New Families Movement. ‘It was the result of a great deal of cooperation between various civil and religious movements, and numerous families, all united in a peaceful battle in favour of the family.’ The vast majority of the media and of influential politicians were in favour of the new law that sought, among other things, greater liberalization for same sex couples – for example, with regard to third-party adoptions, by allowing a same sex couple to adopt the biological child of one of the partners, as well as a whole raft of measures regarding unmarried couples. The ‘yes’ campaign had huge financial resources (more than 2 million euros), while the ‘no’ campaign was entirely self-supporting. It was in no sense an equal battle. The initiative, promoted at first only by Catholics, soon drew in other Christians, members of other religions and many who, without professing any specific faith, uphold human values. Together they managed to collect the 40,000 signatures necessary to call for a referendum. It was held on 25 March with a turnout of 30% and, contrary to expectations, the ‘no’ vote was 55%. ‘For two and a half years we worked beyond our capabilities and our strength to defend basic family values,’ Marjana and Pavel from Ljubljana – Delegates of the New Humanity Movement in Slovenia – tell us. ‘We spoke in Parliament, held public events before the vote, organized a Family Day, collected signatures… we wrote to MPs, to the Constitutional Court, speaking many, many times on discussion programmes on television, national and local radio… and in this way we built up numerous friendships with the members of other ecclesial movements, with important people in the sphere of civil life and politicians of various parties… Now, however, we are beginning the most important phase: working to give our contribution to a new law for family life framed around the values we strongly believe to be basic to society and which have their roots in the Gospel.’ A comment put out by Mgr Anton Stres, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Ljubljana and president of the Slovenian Episcopal Conference, thanked ‘all those who were committed to achieve this aim and to make the electorate aware of the irreplaceable role of the family in our life.’ Nonetheless, the comment continues, ‘with the outcome of the referendum, family values are not assured; indeed, it is necessary to live them every day in our relationships with one another.’
Mar 29, 2012 | Non categorizzato
26 March – 2 April 2012
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Mar 28, 2012 | Non categorizzato
This year,” the Holy Father begins by saying, “the theme of the World Youth Day is brought to us by an exhortation from the Letter of St Paul to the Philippians: “Rejoice in the Lord always! I say it again, rejoice!” (Phil 4:4). Joy is in fact an essential element of the Christian experience. (. . . ) And we see what a great strong attraction it has. In a world so often marked by sadness and anxiety it is an important witness to the reliability of the Christian faith.” As he describes some of the characteristics of joy Benedict XVI underscores that “our hearts are made for joy” and that “God is the source of true joy.” He explains to young people how to find and to “preserve Christian joy in their hearts through living the Word. His message goes on dealing with “joy and love’ which, according to Benedict XVI, are intimately linked: “Love produces joy, and joy is a form of love.” And recalling a statement of Teresa of Calcutta: “. . . God loves those who give with joy. And whoever gives joyfully gives more.” He then goes on to discuss “the joy of conversion” and the challenge of discovering “joy in trials”. “Suffering,” says the Pope, “can be transfigured by love and be mysteriously inhabited by joy.” Here he offers two young people as models: Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-1925) and Chiara Badano (1971-1990), quoting a letter that Chiara Badano wrote to Chiara Lubich, dated December 20, 1989 in which the young Blessed confesses “I suffer much physically, but my soul is singing”. The text concludes with an invitation to young people to become “witnesses of joy” because, according to the Holy Father, “you cannot be happy unless others are: and so joy must be shared.” Complete text: MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS POPE BENEDICT XVI FOR THE TWENTY-SEVENTH WORLD YOUTH DAY 2012
Mar 28, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
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Mar 28, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
“Hi to all! We want to let you know how special this year is for the young people of our country. We are sharing wonderful moments in preparation for our long-awaited Genfest. Last September we agreed to set our sights on a unity that would gradually envelope all of us, our friends and also our great Focolare family. And we see it happening. 
To raise funds for the journey – which is very costly – and also to have opportunities to spend some time living together and starting already to build some “local bridges” (in accordance with the title of this year’s Genfest), we’ve come up with a schedule of many activities, some of which have already taken place and others that are still being prepared. “Unight”: An evening with a hundred youths at a pub in Beirut, including a presentation on the Genfest event. “Unight Your Talents Show”: A talent show with songs, dances, musical numbers, theatre, storytelling and creative performances. There were 550 of us on March 3, 2012 for a two hour show in a large hall at the university. Fundraising: We began a taxi service for accompanying people to the airport and other places. We also began a babysitting service. We set up a refreshment stand at the Mariapolis Centre. We make and sell jewelry and special occasion cards. These are not only opportunities to raise funds for the trip to Budapest, but also occasions to know one another better and to “build bridges.” “Unite in Depth“: March 23-March 25. Three days of preparing for the Genfest through deepening and strengthening our faith. Eighty young people have already signed up, including 20 from Syria.» We have encountered many difficulties along the way: The young people from Lebanon are in suspense becuase the airline from whom they purchased tickets for their flights to Budapest has gone out of business. Together with them we continue to believe that with the help of everyone and with the help of God, a way will be found to overcome even this obstacle.
Mar 27, 2012 | Non categorizzato
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Mar 27, 2012 | Non categorizzato
Video: Shrine of Guadalupe, 7 June 1997
«We are all here in front of the very beautiful image of Our Lady of Guadalupe which was painted in heaven, first of all, out of love for the very beloved Mexican people.
Like you, I too ardently wished to come here after learning more about this very sweet Mother of God and our Mother, and after reading the story of Our Lady of Guadalupe which surprised me and moved me.
What do we feel in our heart after this heavenly contact in which we contemplated the great privilege that the world, and first of all Mexico, received through the apparition of our sweet Lady? A deep conviction easily surfaces in our soul: Our Lady of Guadalupe has much to do also with us, with the Focolare Movement, the Work of Mary.
Why do I say this? Because Our Lady of Guadalupe is the Madonna of love, and love is the very essence of our spirituality. Our Lady of Guadalupe indeed manifests, explains, and teaches, in a sublime way, that art of loving which we have understood in the Gospel. We know that supernatural love has very precise demands: Above all, this love requires that we love everyone. This love asks that we do not allow ourselves to be conditioned by whether people are pleasant or unpleasant, beautiful or ugly, fellow countryman or foreigner, Asian or African. The love which Jesus brought on earth requires that we love everyone.
And what did Our Lady of Guadalupe do? She gave an extraordinary example: she loved the indigenous people and the Spaniards. Furthermore, true love demands that one take the initiative in loving, as Jesus did. He gave his life for us when we were still sinners. This is what the heavenly Morenita did. Unexpectedly, she appeared to an indigenous man and thus underlined, among other things, Jesus’ preferences. In times when the indigenous people were living their terrible Good Friday, she did not appear to a member of the dominating part of the population, but to an indigenous man, speaking his language. And she didn’t only appear, she brought about relief and happiness, and with heavenly sweetness she led millions of people on both sides to convert to her son, Jesus.
Supernatural love certainly doesn’t nourish itself on sentiments, or on a bit of good will, or just on solidarity, or almsgiving. It is that love which Jesus himself has borne witnessed to, by making himself one with us in the incarnation, and then in his passion and death. Another attribute of love is indeed knowing how to make ourselves one with others in order to understand them, and to share their joys and sufferings. It is this attribute of love, this making ourselves one, that substantiates inculturation, which is so very much needed today, and which the Church strongly emphasizes in order to offer an authentic evangelization.
Mary of Guadalupe is really the Mother of true love, the Mother of knowing how to make ourselves one. Our Lady of Guadalupe is an extraordinary and wonderful example of inculturation, which she expressed in the way she appeared. She did not have a white countenance as Mary of Nazareth is depicted; her features are those of a woman who is a “morena,” neither white nor indigenous. She is “morena,” and thus preaches to all the need not to ever clash, but always to come together. She shows her divine maternity, symbolized by the dark ribbons which hang down from her chest, as was the Aztec custom. By wearing a dress reserved for God and for the king, she wants to demonstrate that although she is not of divine origin, she is the queen of the universe. Next to the black ribbons, she has a small Indian cross to indicate that the center of the universe is Christ whom Mary is carrying in her womb. That cross, however, is accompanied by a small Christian cross engraved in the brooch she wears at her neck.
Her image highlights the presence of the sun behind her, with the stars on her mantle and the moon beneath her feet: the sun, stars and moon are not opposed to one another as people thought; rather, they co-exist in peace.
And we could go on and on…. As Mexicans, you would have many more things to tell us. What I have mentioned, however, seems sufficient to help us understand something very important: inculturation doesn’t only mean to make ourselves one with another people spiritually, discovering and perhaps potentiating the seeds of the Word present in them. It also means to receive, with humility and gratitude, valid elements that the culture of our brothers and sisters have to offer. Inculturation demands an exchange of gifts. This is what Our Lady of Guadalupe wants to tell us. Only in this way will the Gospel be able to penetrate into the depth of our souls and bring about its revolution, with all its consequences».
Chiara Lubich, Guadalupe, June 7th 1997
Mar 27, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
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Mar 27, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide, Focolari nel Mondo
Maria Voce and Giancarlo Faletti were welcomed by a colorful carpet of flowers from ancient religious tradition and by a festive atmosphere at the Our Lady of the Focolarini Mariapolis Center in the Guatemala capital. This is the first stop on an extended visit to Latin America. They have come to visit “the family of Chiara” that lives in this corner of the world. It has been an intense journey in which they have met civil and ecclesiastical authorities and representatives from various lay organizations who are members or friends of the Focolare. It has been a story of life and relationships that have been sown and nourished by Chiara Lubich’s charism of unity. Some have travelled from Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua and Belize. The ancient cultures of the region are living on in them: Maya, Garifuna, Garifuna, the Incas and Mestizos. A set of dances is offered by children and teens who attend the Fiore Educational Centre in Guatemala City. One moment of the program is dedicated to Fiore Ungaro, a focolarina who first brought the spirituality of unity to these lands. Today the education center has 210 students with 28 teachers and staff. It is a concrete answer of love by the people of the focolare, because as in all Latin American countries, education is perhaps the decisive battlefront in which the wounds of this society will be defeated. The Bishop of Escuintla, Victor Hugo Palma Paúl was also present at a meeting with representatives from ten Movements who are members of the “Comisión de Movimientos Laicales y Nuevas Comunidades” (Commision of Lay Movements and New Communities), an agency of the Bishops Conference of Guatemala. He welcomed Maria Voce and Giancarlo Faletti: “The Focolare is one of the most vibrant schools that we have.” “Your charism is one that enflames, welcomes and warms the Christian life, placing the accent on unity.” Forty focolarini and focolarine live in this Central American country. They come from Argentina, Ecuador, Mexico, Colombia and Italy. They are the “heart” of the Focolare Movement and a true reflection of it: different ethnic groups, professions, political, social and economic sensibilities. Maria Voce listens and, at the conclusion of the meeting, shares an idea: Unity should pass through a “culture of trust”. “It is a matter of having absolute trust in the other, in the sister or brother. The other wants what I want – unity. Let what you do not be done to be admired, to assert yourself or so that you may stand out. Let it be done for the sake of unity. Each of you works in a different way, but let each one work for unity. To trust in God and in the other, therefore, is an imperative. It means believing that God is at work. He doesn’t need perfect people, but only those people of whom he has need.” There was folkloristic costume and dance, engaging rhythms and sounds. Six hundred people gathered in the Mariapolis Centre hall. They were all members of the Focolare community living in these lands. This history of the Focolare in Central America goes back to 1954 and it is extraordinary because of the war, the economic difficulties, and the great distances. Yet it is a story that expresses gratitude to God. “Your peoples,” Maria Voce concluded, “seem to me to have a destiny: that of showing what the world would be if account were taken of the value of each human being. Everyone’s experience is necessary to others in order to construct a mosaic of unmatched beauty.” During a meeting with more than 200 youths between the ages of 15 and 25, a deep relationship was established in which, amid the exuberant joy of being together, there also emerged the difficulty of going against the current when it came to making certain choices: “You’re not alone,” Maria Voce told them, “each time that you find yourselves before a choice you must make, remember that you’re not alone, but that all the youths who have made the choice for a united world are with you.”
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Mar 26, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Mar 26, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Mar 25, 2012 | Non categorizzato
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Mar 25, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
“But is it true that you lie here on earth? Not for always here! One moment on the earth, if it is jade, it breaks into pieces; if of gold it is destoryed; if feathers of quetzal, it is torn to peices. Not always here. One moment on the earth.” This was written by Netzahualcoyotl, King of Texcoco (1402-1472), and it reveals the great sense of the transcendent that characterized the early people of Mexico. The United States of Mexico, the country’s official name, is comprised of 31 federal states and a Federal District and extends over a vast area (1,972,550 Km2) to the south of USA and to the north of Guatemala. It is home to seventeen original ethnic groups representing 10% of teh total population: 112 million people. It is a country of contrasts. Modern metropolitan areas stand alongside marginalized regions (15 million of its citizens live in extreme poverty); vast expanses intended for cultivation, while thousands of peasants live on only a hectare of land. After 200 years of independence, Mexico is still in search of its identity, one that is an expression of the encounter of its ancestral cultural values with those values brought by Catholicism. The so-called “Guadalupe event” marked a decisive moment of reconciliation and merging between these two cultures, that forged a new people, the Mexican people. This unique event took place five centuries ago between the 9th and 12th of December 1531. According to tradition, a “sweet Lady” with a mestizo face, appeared to the indigenous Juan Diego and introduced herself as the “Mother of Everyone.” In his 1999 visit there, John Paul II would underscore the importance of that fact which “had determining repercussions for the new evangelization, an influence that goes beyond the Mexican nation and reaches the whole continent. America, which has been a crucible of peoples, has seen in this appearance of Our Lady a strong example of evangelization, perfectly inculturated.” 
Chiara Lubich, when visiting Mexico in 1997, took up the theme of this encounter between the two cultures, which was brought about by the Guadalupe event. “Inculturation,” she said during that visit, “is not merely making yourself spiritually one with another culture, perhaps uncovering and strengthening the seeds of the Word that are present in it, but it is also humbly and gratefully assuming that something true that is offered by the culture of our brothers and sisters. Inculturation involves an exchange of gifts. This is what Our Lady of Guadalupe wants to tell us.” The Focolare Movement has been present in Mexico since 1980, even though it was visited in 1975 by focolarini from Colombia. Today there are centers of the Movement in Mexico City, Netzahualocoyotl, Guadalajara and Acatzingo (Puebla) where there is a Mariapois Center and a Mariapolis town, El Diamante, which was founded in 1990. The Mariapolis is the heart fo the Movement in Mexico and is a place of Christian witness for the more than 20,000 visitors who go to it each year, showing that in a nation so rich in cultural, social and ethnic contrasts, inculturation of the Gospel life is possible if founded on dialogue and mutual giving and receiving of the gifts of the various cultures. The communities of the Movement, including some 15,000 people who have embraced the spirituality of unity, are scattered throughout the Mexican territory, from Mexicali (on the border with the USA) to Merida (in the southeast). They pursue an open dialogue with several sectors of society, trying to bring a contribution of unity. They have already been involved for years in building relationships among ecclesial movements and new associations in the Catholic Church. In August 2011 the first “Juntos por México” (Together for Mexico) gathering was held, which involved 350 leaders and representatives of the some 8 million lay Catholics in the whole country. And many foresee this to herald the opening of new paths of communion in the Mexican Church that could lead to major involvement by lay people in the various fields of society. In the civil society, in collaboration with the Mora Institute of the City of Mexico, one highlight has been the monthly lecture series on “Brotherhood in Politics” with the involvement of politicians who adhere to the Spirituality of Communion, and people engaged in civil service. This was an important event in the formation of a civic conscience. Finally there were the Bioethic Seminara (Seminar on bioethics) held in several cities, which were the initiative of the “Netemachilizpan AC” Association of Bioethics and Human Rights together with the “New Humanity Movement” of the Focolare. Hundreds of people attended, drawn by the topics that were discussed. The presentations that were given in line with the thinking of the Church and supported from a medical and scientific point of view, were a light for all who attended. There was a large crowd of young people from the La Salle di Neza University who say that the seminar helped them find answers to their uncertainties. The group of experts who run the bioethic courses, work at the Chamber of Deputies to support and write laws that favor life. Focolare Mexico website: www.focolaremex.org Visit Mexico in Focolare Worldwide!
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Mar 25, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
In the field of education, in 1992 the Santa Maria School was born, within the “El Diamante” citadel (Puebla). Its objective was to respond to the needs of the surrounding population. It currently welcomes 500 students, from kindergarten to lyceum. In order to take the project forward, many children are helped through the Support from a Distance project of the New Families. Collaboration between teaching personnel, parents and state agencies, makes it possible to give a more complete formation, and the students acquire the necessary skills to act positively in their socio-cultural context. Many initiatives come about, to respond in a concrete way to the needs of the population. These initiatives bear witness to how fraternal relationships can generate solutions that were previously unthinkable. These are some examples of actions that are taken forward with the contribution of AMU (Action for a United World), that is an international agency of the Focolari and is active in the social sphere: 
The mobile medical-dental clinic “Igino Giordani” situated in the large and poor periphery of the city of Mexico, in the commune of Netzahualcoyotl. It emerged in 1989, to respond concretely to the health needs of the region, at the request of the local Church. The clinic offers free medical services, including dental service. Also included are the medicines, dietary advice, to improve the level of nutrition and the distribution of clothes and toys. Social Centre Hallelujah (Hornos, Las Aguilas). The work here started 26 years ago, at the foot of a large residential zone in the City of Mexico. It is a neighbourhood permanently at risk, also owing to the high incidence of alcoholism, drugs and prostitution. The work is taken forward in close collaboration with the Commune, the Parish, and the private schools of the richer zone that recognise in the Centre a strong means of resolving the conflicts of the region. !4 persons currently work within this structure; some of them are locals, who are indispensable to build a society that is transformed from within. They offer their services in various areas: psychological, medical-social, educational, dental, etc. It is possible to take this initiative forward also thanks to the collaboration with the German association Mexicogruppe. Moreover, groups of doctors, dentists, social workers, nurses, youths and other volunteers move sporadically for some time to the commune of Huejutla ( in the State of Hidalgo), to offer help, free of charge to 32 native communities.
Mar 24, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Mar 23, 2012 | Non categorizzato
Visit of Maria Voceand Giancarlo Falett to the Focolare communities in South and Central America.
Mar 23, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Mar 21, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Mar 21, 2012 | Non categorizzato
Mar 20, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
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Mar 19, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
On this sunny afternoon in the end of the austral summer, the atmosphere at Mariapolis Lia was serenely festive. This was the fourth anniversary of Chiara Lubich’s birth to Heaven and this year the focus was on the relationship of the Movement’s founder with youth. It was also the opportune moment for the academic opening of the Gen School’s annual course on the Culture of Unity, for the youths who had arrived from seventeen different countries. Eighty young people from the American continent and a few Europeans have interrupted their studies for a year and gone to the Argentine pampa to be part of this training course in becoming builders of brotherhood in their home environments. “All the moments of the day, from workshops to sport, from moments of study to the liturgy, from welcoming visitors to the Mariapolis – all of it is part of the training,” explains Adriana Otero who specializes in microbiology and the environment and is in charge of the Gen School. “In practice,” adds Omar Diaz, Education graduate and in charge of the Gen School for the young men, “as Chiara had suggested, the daily life of this school revolves around four daily “communions” – the Eucharist, the moment by moment living of the Word, the neighbor and Jesus in the midst of the community, a presence that becomes palpable when there is mutual love.” Most of the students have just finished high school and are having their first work experience here. They live in small groups of seven to ten young people, with all that community life implies: preparing meals, caring for the house, being attentive to one another’s needs. . . all flavoured, naturally, with that typical flavour that internationality brings. “It’s beautiful to then see how each year they arrive as adolescents, but leave as adults with their minds and souls expanded toward all of humanity,” explains Silvana Verdun, a Bolivian psychologist and instructor at the school. 
What are the expectations of these young people? Luce, a seventeen year-old from Argentina, wants to grow more as a person, and he thinks that living with other guys from different places will prove to be an enriching opportunity. Andres, a nineteen year-old from Venezuela hopes to learn to grow more integrally. Thomas, a twenty one year-old is looking forward to deepening his relationship with God and with his brothers and sisters. They have a whole year to be lived. A journey filled with straight paths, curves, climbs and chasms. A path, although well defined, will still present many surprises. It is a goal they shall reach together by their daily efforts to translate into life, into concrete facts, all that they will discover day by day.
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Mar 18, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
The name Guatemala comes from náhuatl Quauhtemallan, ‘place of many trees’ and its location is on the extreme north-west of Central America. The indigenous culture derives from a Mayan legacy and from the Spanish influence of the colonial period. The country has tremendous natural beauty. Its official language is Spanish and there are also 23 Mayan dialects, and the languages of the xinca and the garifuna peoples. It covers an area of 108,889 square kms and it has about 14 million inhabitants, a third of whom come from indigenous peoples. We will deal here briefly also with the countries close to Guatemala that will be involved with the trip of the president and co-president of the Focolare. The idea of a united Central America has caught on in many parts of society, in the political arena, and led to an attempt to have open borders and to discover a Central American identity. Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua are the countries of this region which is rich in its ethnic diversity. Its peoples have suffered a great deal, with more than 40 years of military dictatorship resulting in the civil wars of the 70s and 80s and of ‘internal armed conflict’, which in Nicaragua began at about the same time as the cold war in Europe. There were more the 36 years of armed struggle, with thousands of victims, genocide, persecution of the Church, summary executions, assassination of priests and catechists, among them Mgr Romero and Mgr Gerardi, devastated lands and the violation of human rights. In the 80s about 90% of the populace in Guatemala was made up of indigenous people, now it is estimated at 51%. 
In the 90s peace was consolidated and a new stage began. The postwar conditions meant that this was not easy as there was an ongoing lack of security, family breakdown and emigration by many in search of work. These difficulties have since been caught up in new problems such as drug trafficking, gang warfare and extortion. These countries are among those with the world’s lowest Human Development Index (HDI) but, despite this, their peoples maintain hope born of their faith in God, are tremendously generous and they never give up. The Ideal of unity came to these lands in the 80s and, in the midst of the remaining challenges faced by all, it contributes to dialogue among cultures and different ethnic groups and encourages a deep mutual acceptance. A small Focolare community was started in Guatamala by an Italian priest, Fr Vitale Traina. Some of its members, a short while later, went to a Mariapolis in Mexico, and when they got back they were full of enthusiasm and wished to bring this life to others. In 1981 they held two Mariapolises in Guatemala. 1986 was an important year: a focolare house was opened. Valeria Ronchetti, one of Chiara Lubich’s first companions, during a visit laid the basis for the establishment of a Mariapolis Centre and two married focolarini, Paolo and Pinella Maciotta, moved from Italy. The Ideal of unity also began to spread beyond the capital to an indigenous region near Patzun. In February 1992 the Mariapolis Centre St Mary of the Focolarini was opened. It was to become a formation centre for all the different nations of the region. With the help of AMU (Azione per un Mondo Unito, meaning Action for a United World), an NGO set up by Focolare Members, there was established a ‘School for Human Development’ close to the Mariapolis Centre. The school has helped large numbers of people learn a trade to live by. Later on the Fiore Educational Centre (an early learning centre and primary school) was established. There are at present about 3,100 members of the Movement. 
El Salvador had its first Mariapolis in 1982, with about 600 people. It was a real miracle given the extremely difficult conditions caused by the country’s civil war that had broken out two years before. It could be said that that Mariapolis marked the Movement’s consolidation as it included many people who would become core members. Today in the nation’s capital, the city of San Salvador, there are centres that coordinate the Movement’s life in the five countries of Central America. 
In Honduras apparently by a luck. Someone went to Mexico to study Catholic literature and by chance met the focolare. In June of the same year, 1981, the same person went back to Mexico together with two others in order to go to the Mariapolis. In 1982 the focolarine in Mexico started going to Honduras and, in the capital city, a decisive event for the small community living the Word of Life took place with the arrival from Italy of the Turatti family, who stayed 10 years. An key moment was in 1995, when the first Mariapolis, of about 250 people, was held. The bishop Mgr Oscar Andrés Rodríguez, now a cardinal, was present and he encouraged everyone to take the spirituality of unity everywhere. He asked Chiara Lubich several times for a centre of the Movement to be opened and his dream became real in February 2010 when the focolarine set up house in Tegucigalpa. There are now about 900 members of the Movement in Honduras. In December this year Maria Voce, in conversation with the focolarini from Guatemala, during a conference in Castelgandolfo, considering the difficult situation of the peoples where they were living, encouraged them to behave as Jesus did: ‘Jesus did not despair, because he looked within himself. That is, he looked to his relationship with God and knew that God would carry out his plan even in this situation… A plan that passes, perhaps, via the cross, via persecution, that passes today via these catechists who have been killed, via these priests who have been killed, that passes via drug traffickers, but it is part of God’s story that, despite everything, builds up humanity. It is a story with pages of light, pages of pain, beautiful moments, difficult moments, but they are God’s story.’ What needs to be done then? ‘Into this story of God we too enter, as Jesus entered in his time. What do I do in Salvador with such an immense Ideal in the face of these situations? What do I do in Guatemala with this power of Jesus within me, among us, in this situation? I do what he did. I pass though the streets, I look, but my looking is full of God and of what God is doing. So, it seems to me that it is here that our strength lies.’
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Mar 17, 2012 | Cultura, Focolare Worldwide, Focolare Worldwide, Focolari nel Mondo
Focolare website team with Giovanni Silvestri (right), President of WeCa Association
The international web portal of the Focolare Movement received a special mention in the category of institutional websites, because of its ‘rich information, providing ample space for unity, according to the charism of Chiara Lubich, and is published in 7 languages (including Chinese)’ as the citation puts it.
The ceremony took place during the workshop entitled ‘Young People, Internet and Faith Education’ run jointly by the Italian Bishops’ Conference’s national service for the pastoral care of young people and the Italian Association of Catholic Webmasters.
‘A space where anyone can feel welcomed and at home’; ‘to show people the life born of the charism of unity spread throughout the world’; ‘to put highlight the journey to unity of the whole human family, through its various dialogues with different religions and cultures.’ These are a few of the guiding principles in place since the construction of the new version of focolare.org. Hence it was a welcome surprise to hear the citation for the prize, which has come a year after the new site went online. What was said will be a stimulus to continue faithful to the Focolare’s basic values.
There are about 15,000 Italian Catholic websites and WeCa, recognized in the Italian Bishops’ Conference’s Directory of Social Communications as ‘the first European initiative of its kind – as they themselves point out – which is intended to unite, in a living community and in continuous synergy, the knowledge and experience of Catholic Webmasters.’
WebCattolici website report (Italian): “Premiati i migliori siti cattolici italiani 2012”
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Mar 16, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
URL. This time it is not Unique Resource Location that allows you to locate the address of an internet site, but United in the Revolution of Love, love that is inspired by the Gospel, the love that thousands of young people throughout the world have drawn from the life and teachings of Chiara Lubich whose fourth anniversary of the departure for Heaven is being remembered during these days.
URL was the title chosen by young people from the Philippines for a gathering on 10 March, the day chosen to pay tribute to Chiara and to the impact of her charism on the young people of today and of yesterday. The venue was also symbolic. The event was held in the 400 year-old pavillion of St Thomas University, the royal pontifical university that had conferred a doctorate of Theology on Chiara in 1997.
During his welcoming remarks, Fr Rolando De La Rosa, ninety-fifth Rector of the university, shared of his personal encounter with Chiara in 1977. He described her as a person worthy of imitation, because she proposes holiness as a goal that is within the reach of everyone.
The Gen – youth people committed members of the Focolare Movement – along with adult members of the Movement witnessed to the “constellation of stars” that Chiara had once intuited would come to exist in the heart of the Movement as a “second generation” that would come after those who had begun. They would be true protagonists of the “revolution of love”.
Among the 2000 young people who filled the pavillion was a group of Buddhists who offered a song about unity. There were also many men and women religious from several congregations and some seminarians who were struck by Chiara’s message to the young. One girl writes: “This is the most beautiful moment I ever lived in my life. Knowing Chiara Lubich is the greatest chance that has ever been given to me becuase, like many others who’ve met her, she made me able to discover God . . . who is Love.”
One young man summarized the two-hour programme in this way: “Celebrating the 4th anniversary of Chiara’s birth to Heaven – the presentations and video-clips about her – evrything spoke of the possibility of giving your life for a revolution capable of changing the lives of thousands of people. The interviews with people of different ages, professional and cultural backgrounds underscored the revolutionary effects of the Gospel when it is put in practice. All the songs, the dances and expriences focused on Chiara’s impact on society, the Church and the world, they gave you an idea of the impact of her Ideal on the lives of so many people of diverse cultures, on interpersonal relationships, vocations, the arts, politics and business. . . on every aspect of life.”
The day concluded with the solemn celebration of the Mass, presided over by Bishop Gerard Alminaza and concelebrated by Bishop Antonio Tobias, in charge of ecumenical affairs at the Bishops Conference of the Philippines. In their closing remarks, the directors of the Focolare in the Philippines offered the words that Chiara used as she imagined what her encounter with God would be like: “If You asked me who I was, I wouldn’t say my name. I’d say THANK YOU for everything and forever!” It was with these words in their hearts that everyone left the pavillion that afternoon.
Mar 16, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Mar 16, 2012 | Non categorizzato
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Mar 13, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide, Senza categoria
Roberto and Patrizia live in the province of Naples, Italy. Like many Italian families they have really been put to the test by the economic crisis. Ten years ago they adopted a girl and now their family has grown in size with the adoption of a Chinese boy who is in urgent need of sugery and medical care. This experience of welcoming children into their home has brought them much joy, but also sacrifice. While reviewing the family budget, the question arose whether or not to continue the distance support which they had been providing for a girl in Brazil. “Life isn’t easy,” they write to their friends at Santa Maria di Igarassu School in Recife. “We Italians are losing economic certainty and peace of mind as an advanced industrial society. Many parents are losing jobs, young people can’t find work, people of advanced age are no longer certain of their pension. Health care is no longer completely free and the cost of living has risen so much. Faced with a scenario such as this, many families have begun to reduce cut back, to shorten their holidays – and we have also had to make sacrifices.” 
As the days passed, there was a growing sense of emptiness. Their thoughts kept returning to the “Escola Santa Maria” located, since 1967, in one of the poorest regions of North East Brazil, surrounded by unemployment, alcoholism, drug abuse and violence. Many children living below the poverty line have been rescued over the years thanks to the generosity and perseverance of distance adopters, and even the entire community has benefited from their support. “We looked at each other, spoke some more, and realized that it would be a mistake to turn in on ourselves. We realized that we should rather widen our hearts and continue with the distance support (link http://www.famiglienuove.org/it/sostegnoadistanza.php) for the Brazilian child. She and everyone else at St Mary’s School were our family in Brazil. It would never be justifiable for us to just abandon them.” 
Meanwhile little A.X. will be facing his first surgery, which will last six hours. “We got through it with much serenity and courage. Those who sow love, reap love. Our hope for him, for his sister at home and for the one in Brazil is that they will have a positive future in which the love they’ve received and will one day emanate, may one day reach out to help others.
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Mar 12, 2012 | Non categorizzato
In these two hours we had a way to emerge ourselves, not only in “Chiara’s thought on the young people,” as the title could make us think, but to penetrate, nearly to relive, an extraordinary experience which we want to see grow. The experience that Chiara’s life passed on shone forth a particular light when it composed a second generation in the bosom of the Movement. That is, second, in relation to the first generation of people who founded the Movement with her. A new generation: it didn’t exist before, but from a certain moment onwards it came about. What have we admired today? Certainly, Chiara’s relationship with this new generation: that special relationship that she established with young people of very different formations, cultures, backgrounds, societies and historical eras. It was a relationship which, whether she was meeting small groups or stadium crowds, Chiara always extended to all young people of the world. And in a totally special way, I think, we were inwardly engaged by the reciprocity that this way she loved generated, and brought about in the young people just as much love, trust, hope and concreteness. In fact, Chiara gave them everything, all that light and those universal, concrete and demanding horizons that God opened wide to her. So, she accompanied these generations of young people closely, allowing them to live this experience directly. Hers was, or rather, is total, absolute trust. Total, as the total trust she felt God had towards her. Trust, which was also certainty that young people are made to contribute in first person to world unity: the dream of a God who makes history with us. From here came the unconditioned hope which has been deposited in them. Chiara knew how to dare; to dare to look in Heaven to know what to build on earth. From here she got the courage to place in front of our hearts, before placing in front of our eyes, the model for relationships which guarantees fruitfulness. Therefore, in order to describe the existing relationship between the first and second generation she makes us look up, to the relationship between the Father and the Son in the Trinity. This is a Paradigm which represents the maximum openness of love from both parts, the most evident demonstration of what is giving and receiving; receiving and giving. She was always inspired by this relationship and invites all of us to embody this model. Chiara did not hesitate to speak to the young people about a “revolution.” Revolution: meaning a complete change that is the effect of living with trust and without calculating Jesus’ words. From this came all objections to more reduced and impoverished ways of living. She even invented a new language which fascinates. Like when she indicates “the universal being” as the model for young people today, a Jesus who offers us the key and the capacity to transform suffering into love, and because of this, to embrace humanity with its contradictions fearlessly. Today, all of this passed through our soul, our mind and it was renewed in our heart. It was witnessed to us by pragmatic people, young people of yesterday and today, who with faithfulness, without escaping from pain, with commitment and imagination, have built and still build a new world on the rock, brick by brick. It’s a very precious inheritance that we have in our hands. It is a legacy which will continuously be enriched with the alternating of new generations. Therefore, let’s take this day as a stepping-stone. Today we have not “remembered” or “celebrated,” but, once more and all together, we let ourselves be engaged by the grace of the charism. Chiara from Heaven thinks of us as one body and, I dare say, she already sees us like this. Let us feel newly and all together invested by her trust to face the new challenges which await us and to be a current of love in humanity. In this way we can bear witness to the revolution of the Gospel lived-out; we can be a seed of Paradise spread all over the world, a multicoloured and pluralistic people which decidedly contributes to “that all may be one,” universal brotherhood, with all those who do their utmost for the common good. We owe it to Chiara and the charism that she transmitted to us. We owe it to humanity which we love.» 
Mar 12, 2012 | Non categorizzato
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Mar 12, 2012 | Non categorizzato
Young people of today, yesterday and tomorrow, and people of every age, on 11 March were in Castel Gandolfo, for an afternoon dedicated, on the fourth anniversary of her death, to Chiara Lubich and the new generations. There were witnesses from the earliest times of the unique rapport that the founder of the Focolare built up with the generation inspired by the protests of ’68 and who had not hesitated to follow her on the path of a different revolution: that of the gospel. Together with her first companions there were those who had never met Chiara personally but who today are working throughout the world to realize the project of universal brotherhood proposed by her charism. They come from places as far apart as Vietnam and Argentina, the United States and Hungary – indeed, in Hungary from 31 August to 2 September there will be the next Genfest, a worldwide youth meeting. 
A message of revolutionary potential was proposed in six scenarios by the young people that afternoon. The first was dedicated to the theme of change, characteristic of the times both then and now. All expressed their gratitude to Chiara – from Valerio Ciprì who gave voice to the longing of the protests in the 70s that inspired the musical group Gen Rosso, to Antonios from Egypt eye-witness to a revolution under way in his country. Among them was Pasquale Ferrara, now a diplomat involved in various peace projects, and Joao Braz Avis, recently made a Cardinal, called to Rome from Brasilia to head the Vatican Congregation for Religious Life. 
Freedom and justice were made concrete by a different way of looking at material goods that, as Chiara herself recalled in one of the numerous videos that were seen (all of them still up-to-date), ‘cannot move of their own accord.’ But giving time and goods is not the only way of ‘building an earthly paradise’ as Chiara urged in the 70s. This was demonstrated by several people. Giuseppe Milan has given a ‘communitarian’ character to courses held by the Science Department of Padua University, where he is head; Emanuele Pili is a student at the Sophia University Insititute, which has set up an interesting cooperation with Emanuele’s original University of Genoa; Patience Molle, an engineer and the first woman to head the Ministry for Public Works in Cameroon, in her administrative activities has respected the law and been faithful to the values that as a young person she imbibed from the Focolare; and Maria Chiara Campodoni at thirty years of age is town councillor with special responsibility for Sport in Faenza, near Ravenna, Italy. Another milestone was Chiara’s legacy and the tremendous value of suffering – a starting point for other goals. This was expressed in a moving way by Beppe Porqueddu, who was confined to a wheelchair after a motorbike accident when he was eighteen. He has found that his disability has been a ‘spark of social transformation’ in a world that seems to reject any limitation or illness. Today he is a rehabilitation technician and an instructor for workers in the field of rehabilitation. Even though it is rooted in the vision of God as love, Chiara’s message is not addressed only to Christians. On the stage there were also Habib, a young Muslim man; Metta, a Buddhist, who observed how this vision helped her to ‘come closer to the truth’; and Andrea ‘a non-believer more than an atheist’, who laid great emphasis upon the welcome and acceptance he had found. 
The afternoon was concluded by Focolare President Maria Voce. She put into light that ‘we have not done an act of remembrance or of celebration, but we have live’ and that Chiara was handing on again ‘here and now’ her message to young people. Young people who are called to welcome it and to put themselves on the line by committing themselves: ‘We owe it to the charism and the humanity.’ 12-03-2012 by Chiara Andreola – Source: Città Nuova
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Mar 11, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Hungary has a very clear identity and it is a centuries-old bridge between Eastern and Western Europe. After the fall of communism it now finds itself in a crucial moment of transition. The country is seeking a new equilibrium between maintaining its specific characteristics and openness to the rest of the world. Speaking to the Hungarian community, during her recent visit, Maria Voce, the current president of the Focolare, invited them to ‘be aware of the many talents you have. Give them and welcome those of other peoples, learning always more how to work together.’
As a result of its geographical location and its past history, Hungary has had an important role also for the Focolare. Already in 1965, following the tragic events of the revolution that year, Pope Pius XII launched an appeal to the faithful throughout the world to ‘bring back God into society.’ Chiara Lubich responded with an exciting initiative: she began the Volunteers of God. In 1996 Budapest hosted the celebrations of their 40th anniversary and in 2006 the city hosted the ‘Volunteerfest’ with 12,000 people who came from 92 different countries.
In 1961, Chiara Lubich, visiting Budapest, was struck by the Church’s enforced clandestine existence. That year a focolare house was opened in Vienna, and from there, in the 70s and 80s, visits to Hungary took place. Contacts were made with people previously met in Italy and Austria. The first Focolare community in Hungary goes back to the years of communism when, between 1981 and 1982, men’s and women’s focolare houses were opened in Budapest.
The Focolare Movement in that difficult moment of history had an important role in supporting relationships between Catholic individuals and organizations, and so contributing to maintaining and developing the faith. Especially important was the role of several families who, with generosity, moved house and brought the Spirituality of Unity to various towns in Hungary and beyond. Thanks also to the commitment of several priests, the spirituality of the Movement spread further afield, transmitting the freshness and genuineness of gospel life.
Their shared suffering also strengthened relationships among Christians from the historic Hungarian Churches (Catholic, Reformed and Lutheran). Today they witness together to a fruitful ecumenical dialogue. The result has been two historic youth events: in 2000 the first ecumenical meeting for young people, organized by young people’s movements, with 3000 participants, and a repeat in 2003 with 16,000 participants. The Spirituality of Unity is spreading by means of books and the magazine Új Város.
The Word Life, which has 15,000 printed copies, is published in weekly newspapers and on the internet and is transmitted by radio.
History, therefore, has prepared the Focolare in this country to do its part in promoting initiatives that witness to the effort to build up fraternity, locally and internationally, run by younger and older people together: ‘72 hours without comprise’, ‘Peace Project Network’, ‘Mission to the City’, ‘Run for Unity’, ‘United World Week’.
In 2011, fifty years on from Chiara’s visit to Hungary, Maria Voce, visited the Movement’s communities, meeting priests, families and young people. She saw the commitment of New Families to work with young couples and how they work together with other associations and with various Churches to support marriage and family life. Maria Voce met with the members of New Humanity, which brings together people active in various worlds: health, economy, politics, sport and education.
But one of the most important meetings was with young people. Indeed, the Movement in Hungary is currently preparing to welcome 12,000 young people from all over the world between 31 August and 2 September 2012 for the 10th Genfest. Budapest will become a workshop of unity for the world. The event is called Let’s bridge and it will help Eastern European countries to ‘build bridges’ by displaying their specific values and characteristics. ‘It should be a huge celebration,’ Maria Voce said to the young people when they met. ‘It should give huge joy to the young people who come… letting them see for themselves that there is nothing more beautiful than the gospel revolution. We’ve seen revolutionaries of another sort: in the fields of art, of music … but a revolution that changes our lives and that can change the lives of others … the revolution of the gospel, the only one that God has really shown us with such power … let’s give all we’ve got to show it also to others!’
Visit Hungary’s pages on Focolare Worldwide!
Websites: Focolare Movement: www.fokolare.hu
Young People for a United World: www.ujifju.hu
Genfest: www.genfest.org
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Mar 11, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
‘God! God! God! Ring out this ineffable name, source of all rights, justice and freedom, in Parliaments, in town squares, in houses and in offices!’ Wishing to answer this heartfelt plea contained in Pius XII’s radio message on 10 September 1956, which had been provoked by the repression in Hungary, Chiara Lubich wrote a letter that was to become the ‘founding charter’ for a new vocation in the Focolare Movement: the ‘volunteers of God’. Men and women, committed to bringing God, with their own lives, into society, into all the places where they are active. ‘There has come to be,’ Chiara wrote on 15 January 1957, ‘a society capable of excluding the name of God… taking the love of God from human hearts. There must be a society capable of putting Him back in His place. 
(…) ‘May there be those who hallow Him with all their strength and who gather together with those who feel the very same call to form a bloc under the orders of that Eternal Word which no one can ever cancel from the earth. ‘There need to be people who follow Jesus exactly as he wants to be followed: denying themselves and taking up their cross. People who believe in this weapon: the cross, more powerful than the most powerful of bombs because the cross is a breach in the soul by which God can enter into hearts … Creating a bloc of people of every age or condition, linked by the strongest bond that exists: that mutual love left to us by the dying God become human as his last will and testament … 
Mutual love that forges Christians into a divine unity … which alone can oppose the unity that comes from selfish interests, from reasons of this earth, from hatred. ‘Mutual love which means: practical action, giving all our love to our brothers and sisters out of love for God. ‘In summary, there need to be disciples of Jesus, genuine disciples in the world not just in the religious houses. Disciples who voluntarily follow Him, motivated only by an illuminated love towards Him, in this hour of darkness… ‘An army of volunteers, because love is free….‘There needs to be … the building of a new society, renewed by the Good News, where justice and virtue shine out with love….(…)‘A society that bears witness to a single name: God.’
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide, Senza categoria
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
Mar 9, 2012 | Focolare Worldwide
Please note: The geolocalisation feature on this website – which displays cities and towns where Focolare centres are present – is only meant to be a guide. The markers on the map do not necessarily point to a specific address and they must not be relied on for navigational purposes.
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Mar 9, 2012 | Non categorizzato
For some time the date has been fixed: 31 August-2 September. The countdown on the site www.genfest.org reminds us that between now and then there are 25 weeks, 1 day, and… hours, minutes, seconds rush by. The programme is taking shape, and on planet earth (aka, in various parts of the globe) people are getting ready to arrive in Budapest. Here are a few examples of what has been going on lately.
Radio Warsaw
Two hours of broadcasting dedicated to young people, during which the Y4UW from Poland have spoken on one of the main national radio stations of their experiences and their invitation to all the young people of Poland to be united in walking together towards Budapest. They write: ‘It was our first chance of announcing the Genfest and enthusing the hearts of many young people!’
Café in Milan
In Italy, ‘Coffee Bridge’ is the initiative launched by Y4UW in Lombardy. Having got good price from a wholesaler and put the Genfest logo on bags of coffee, they have begun selling them. The aim of the initiative: to promote the ideals of Y4UW and to gather funds for the journey to Budapest. Email address: coffee@genfest.tk
Partying in Nazareth
40 young people from various regions have started up a day for teaching songs, playing games and … having great fun. It was impossible not possible to talk about the Genfest and give everyone an invitation, which was immediately accepted, to be ‘bridge builders’. The next appointment is in April for another weekend together.
Show in Indonesia
In Yogjakarta, the Y4UW of the second city, of Java organized a concert for 500 people to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the largest Catholic publisher of the archipelago. ‘It was a fantastic chance to present ourselves and to tell of our commitment to build a more united world,’ they write, ‘by living the present moment, loving our neighbours and so overcoming every difficult moment.’
Chinese meal
From Macao they tell us: ‘We invited our friends to eat a “hotpot”.’ They presented their experiences and then spoke about the Genfest and ‘as a sign of gratitude to those who’d come, we gave a small present to each person with best wishes for a “prosperous Chinese New Year”!’
Experiences, activities, things of interest… and a new video on the history of Genfest are available of the sites of Genfest and of Youth for a United World.
(link: http://www.genfest.org/program)
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This communication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
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