Every day we are bombarded by images that emphasise the value that our society places upon appearance. Globalization imposes a model in every part of the world whereby wealth, power and physical beauty seem to be the only values. Yet it is enough to stop and observe the people we meet daily in our cities (on trains, in the underground, on the street) to realize that there is a different reality, made up of small daily gestures of solidarity: for example, there are parents who accompany their children to school, nurses who get up at dawn to go to work alongside people who are suffering and there are workers who carry out their tasks with great commitment in factories, stores andoffices. In addition, there are countless voluntary activities.

There is a need to look truthfully at the world and go beyond appearances. We should value the positive in each person and realize that it is these small daily gestures of support and solidaritythat keep society on its feet. Even more revolutionary are the actions of those who, despite living in situations bordering on poverty, realize that they can still “give” in some way. Theywelcome others, share a meal or a room because there is always someone who has “more need” than themselves.Furthermore, they do this out of a sense of justice and with a generous and selfless heart.

We know that giving does not refer only to material things. Chiara Lubich used to tell us,: let this be the word that gives us no respite. “Let us always give; let us give a smile, understanding, forgiveness, a listening ear; let us give to others by drawing on our intelligence, our will, our availability; let us give our time, our talents, our ideas (…), our actions; let us share our experiences, our abilities and our possessions. By constantly reviewing what we no longer need and and sharing with others, we ensure everything circulates. ‘Give’ is the word that could accompany us always.”1

This idea, then, is an invitation to have a generosity that comes from within, from the purity of hearts that knows how to recognize the suffering of humanity and see themselves reflected in the disfigured faces of their neighbours. This is the very gift that makes us free and more capable of loving.

This what Etty Hillesum experienced. She was, a young Dutch woman who lived the last years of her life in a concentration camp before dying in Auschwitz. She was able to love the beauty of life till the very end and gave thanks for “this gift of being able to understand and ‘read’ others. Sometimes I see people people like houses with an open door. I go in and wander around corridors and rooms: each house is furnished differently but, basically, they are the same as one another – consecrated dwelling places” (…). And there, in those hovels, populated by crushed and persecuted men and women, I have found the confirmation of this love.” 2

There is a logic in freely giving to others because it creates a peaceful community and urges us to care for one another.It helps us focus upon profound human values in our everyday lives, without attention to outward appearance. It is a change of mindset that can become contagious.

Venant was born and raised in Burundi. He recounts, ” In the village, my family had a good farm, that always produced a good harvest. My mother believed that everything was a gift from nature and so, each year, she used to gather the first fruits and punctually distribute them to our neighbours, starting with the neediest families and then allocated only a small part of what remained to us. I learned the value of selfless giving from her example ”.

[1] CH – April 23, 1992

[2]Etty Hillesum, Diary

©Photo by Mdjanafarislam – Pixabay

THE IDEA OF THE MONTH is currently produced by the Focolare Movement’s “Centre for Dialogue with People of NonreligiousBeliefs”. It is an initiative that began in 2014 in Uruguay to share with non-believing friends the values of the Word of Life, i.e. the phrase from Scripture that members of the Movement strive to put into practice in their daily lives. Currently, THE IDEA OF THE MONTH is translated into 12 languages and distributed in more than 25 countries, with adaptations of the text according to different cultural sensitivities. https://dialogue4unity.focolare.org/en/