Publication of Chiara Lubich’s Diaries from 1964-1980
Città Nuova publishing house, in collaboration with the Chiara Lubich Centre, recently published “Diario 1964 – 1980” by Chiara Lubich, edited by Fr. Fabio Ciardi, OMI. Fr. Fabio Ciardi introduced the content of the new book of Chiara Lubich’s Diaries saying, “The Diary is an extremely valuable resource, which allows you to cross the threshold of external events (the ‘external life’) and to penetrate the way in which they are lived (the ‘intimate life’)”. The book is part of the “Works of Chiara Lubich” series. Fr. Fabio told us that even though 5 volumes of this series have already been published and fifteen are in the pipeline, “It is not the complete works because that would require an immense amount of work. Future books include Chiara’s main written works ranging from an introductory first volume that will be a historical biography, followed by her letters, public speeches, what we call founding speeches and then her more informal talks or conversations.” Fr. Fabio added, “The letters and diaries are perhaps the most intimate part of Chiara, the aspect that reveals most about her. When you give speech, it is an elaborate, prepared and revised text. When I access her correspondence or her Diary, there are no filters there. It is a direct grafting with Chiara’s soul. Her Diary and letters are those pages that allow us to have an immediate, direct, unfiltered relationship with her.” Fr. Fabio continued, “Chiara Lubich’s diary is quite special because it didn’t start as a personal diary, but as a way to involve all the members of the Movement in her travels. (…) . At first it started with a description of what happened, so it is a descriptive diary but it soon became an intimate diary. Because what she wanted to communicate was not simply the facts she was experiencing but how she was experiencing them”. The Diaries cover sixteen years and, to help the reader better place and understand Chiara’s texts, Fr. Ciardi made a deliberate editorial choice: “First I gave a general introduction to the entire Diary, year by year. Then I offered an introduction to that year, placing and contextualizing it in the life of the Church, in the life of the world, so that we can grasp what Chiara Lubich was experiencing but with the broader horizon of the life of the Movement, of the Church and of humanity.” For those who want to know how best to read this book and where to start, Fr. Fabio replied: “The first thing I would recommend is to open it at random and read a page. It’s sure to be addictive so then it’s like an invitation to read another page and another. Don’t worry about reading it continuously. You can open randomly and read one day, then another or one year then another. And then maybe this will make you want to follow the thread. So then start again from the beginning and slowly follow this path, which is a journey… Chiara’s path is not easy. It is a troubled journey, there are moments of trial and moments of illness. These are moments when she didn’t write in her diary which begs the question – why not? Maybe because she was living in a moment of darkness. So retracing the whole path chronologically helps to understand this world. But for starters, maybe you can open it randomly and read here and there. Then you’ll want to read it continuously and completely”. Fr. Fabio concluded, “The diary is hers, it is personal, it is her life and this can be deduced above all from the constant conversations with God, with Jesus, with Mary and with the saints that exists in the Diary (…) She reveals her soul to us, she shows us what she has inside. And this resonated with me because it is like an invitation to go on a similar journey, to experience that same intimacy; so in the end by reading Chiara I also reflect myself not in what I am, unfortunately, but in what I feel I should be”.
Carlos Mana
Video: In dialogue with Fr. Fabio Ciardi (subtitles in English)
A: I believe this report represents a real step forward. In fact, the last report was criticised, mainly because the places and dates of sexual abuse were not mentioned. The new report covers cases disclosed in the last 10 years and adds these clarifications: it is stated that sexual abuses were carried out on all continents (about 20 countries), with a peak of cases between 1990 and 1999, as well as during the decade before 90 and after 2000. The offences sometimes are repeated over several decades, suggesting that these are multiple repeat offenders whose abuses have continued. Some offences happened and were dealt with around 2020, indicating that people abused were able to report abuse almost in real time, which is progress. All communicated sexual abuses were carried out by men. The opposite is true for abuses of authority, which in 77% of cases were committed by women, which is in proportion with the higher number of women among those belonging to this Movement. The report also contains a detailed and clear section on the measures implemented during the year, particularly regarding formation. It remains to be understood what the root causes of these abuses are. Beyond preventive measures and sanctions, further work should be done to identify the systemic causes that could explain these figures, in order to put in place a strategy that would prevent them. Q: In this second report, the people who abuse are identified according to precise criteria set out in the Communication Policy recently published by the Focolare Movement. What do you think of this decision? A: This is an ethical conflict. On the one hand, it is a matter of believing the experience of the people abused and taking the complaints they make seriously, as well as quickly putting measures in place so as to protect them. On the other hand, it is a question of respecting the presumed innocence of the alleged abusers, of not defaming them when no final criminal conviction has been pronounced. The issue is complex and finding a satisfactory solution will no doubt require a lot of listening and dialogue. Q: The UNESCO Chair on child abuse that you coordinate came about because you came into contact personally with a case of child abuse of which you knew both one of the people abused and the person who abused. It was a case that happened in the Catholic Church in France. In this case, the social or religious community is defined as a ‘secondary victim’. What does this mean? What are the wounds that people carry, how can they be healed at a social and community level? A: Yes, in fact, this chair was set up as a result of being in contact with a person who had been abused. A contact that left a deep mark on me: I was profoundly affected by this suffering, and my desire to do something came from this. First and foremost, abuse affects the person who has been abused, who often suffers lasting psychological consequences. Sometimes, the opening up about the facts can bring out a great vulnerability in this person, which requires specific accompaniment. In turn, this also affects the person’s relatives, such as their spouse, their children, but also their parents who feel responsible for having entrusted their child to an institution that did not protect them. The devastating effects also have an impact on the entire community, as members are often unaware that within it a repeat offender was concealed, a person with whom they may have had a bond of closeness, of friendship. We may ask ourselves: why didn’t I notice anything? Another aspect concerns the bond with the institution that may have protected the abuser, sometimes in good faith, producing in people a sense of betrayal and distrust. Finally, the community may also become divided, depending on their divergent analyses, between those who take refuge in denial, and those who want to fight to prevent these things from happening again. Rectifying all of this requires a wide range of measures: it is essential to take on the responsibility of accompanying the people who have been abused and their families, but it is also necessary to restore trust in the institution that has shown its weaknesses and where there is a sincere willingness to learn from its past mistakes. It’s the actions that matter in making this happen: the institution must promote transparency by communicating very precise information, put in place clear procedures, create places for listening, establish reparation procedures and, for communities, spaces for dialogue where even opposing opinions can be exchanged. Q: The Focolare Movement is a worldwide organisation, including people from different cultures and religions who are subject to different legal systems and adopt different lifestyles. How is it possible to implement anti-abuse practices in such a multicultural and diverse environment? A: The consequences of child sexual abuse exist in all cultures, they are universal. In addition to the ongoing psychological and social impact, those who have been abused may have biological ongoing effects, such as increased stress hormones, altering the expression of certain genes and brain morphology and brain functioning. These dysfunctions continue to be present throughout the survivor’s life and may be passed on to the next generation. So it cannot be said that there are cultural variations in the severity of the consequences on those who have been abused or that there are cultures where these people suffer less: always and everywhere, it’s devastating. It is therefore necessary to put in place measures for prevention, but also for reparation all over the world. One can see that awareness of the seriousness of these situations is increasing: for example, in the Catholic Church, national enquiry commissions have been set up in many countries in Europe, North America, Latin America, but also in Australia, India and South Africa. Although suffering does not vary, what may vary is that people resist in denouncing the facts and their ability to put in place protective and remedial measures. This may be related to the fact that in some cultures talking about sexuality is taboo. The first step is to make people aware of the consequences of abuse: there are already programmes promoted by various associations that take into account the way sexuality is considered in different cultures. For example, proposing that those who listen to the suffering of people who have been abused and belong to the same culture can understand them better. This can make people want to do something about it. Prevention can also be targeted directly at children, through education about their rights: again, there are programmes, for example, based on songs. Another thing that varies is the ability of countries and institutions to take measures of protection and reparation. A respectful and non-stigmatising dialogue with those who commit abuse is the way forward: this will enable everyone to understand the seriousness of the abuse, but also to find culturally specific ways to enable people to speak up, to implement processes of reparation and to educate members of the community. Q: Both within the Focolare Movement and also in other contexts there are those who express the conviction that the time has come to move forward; that is, that it is not necessary to continue talking only about abuses, but to focus on the ‘mission’ of the Movement and on what beautiful and positive things are being generated in the world by the living out of this charism today. What is your opinion on this? A: What do we mean by ‘mission’? Is it not to advance towards universal fraternity, towards a culture that puts the suffering of the weakest first, a culture of dialogue, openness, humility? It seems to me that the fight against all kinds of abuses is precisely a way of implementing this desire, putting those who suffer in the first place. Helping to heal the wounds of those who have been abused is a way of going towards universal fraternity. This also implies accompanying the people who have abused in order to prevent reoffending. Acknowledging one’s mistakes, one’s vulnerability, in order to create solutions, taking into account the opinions of experts in this field is precisely a way to build a culture of dialogue. Fighting with determination against abuse and accompanying those who have been abused are right at the heart of this ‘mission’. Therefore we don’t need to choose between the fight against abuse and ‘mission’, because this fight is a central element of ‘mission’. In today’s context, this is a priority which is painful but necessary.
all the members of the Movement, with gratitude for the fruits that the life and work of many people around the world continue to generate; and with gratitude to God for what He has done and continues to do. It is also addressed to those who would like to know more about us and actively collaborate for a more fraternal and peaceful world. This is why we chose the standard, and in this case perhaps somewhat unusual, name of ‘Communion in Action Report’ because we feel it best expresses our experience of walking together towards a united world. This is our second Mission Report’. It refers to the activities supported by the part of the communion of goods which is shared internationally and to the financial data of the Focolare Movement’s International Centre for the year 2022. This Report follows that of 2021, which highlighted the various activities that the communities of the Focolare Movement carry out worldwide in all fields and aspects. For 2022, we focused on a more thematic document, taking the specific perspective of Dialogue and trying to offer a glimpse of what we seek to bring to society on the path towards fraternity, towards that unity in which diversities can be enriched and give rise to harmonious collaborations.