“The Challenge of Emmaus”
September 22, 2012
“Citta` Nuova” launches the Italian edition of the book- interview with Maria Voce
Four years after Chiara Lubich’s death ( 1920-2008), Maria Voce, the first president that succeeds her, lends herself willingly to be interviewed, and answers all sorts of questions that cover almost two hundred pages.
Emmaus – this is the name given to Maria Voce by Chiara Lubich and hence the name by which she is known within the Movement – has found herself entrusted with the task of safeguarding the legacy of the foundress and of guiding the movement into the phase that followed its “charismatic” beginning, while asked to answer to today’s challenges and questions through the same charism, without losing its identity but also without being tied to forms of the past.
In the work that is being offered by Michele Zanzucchi and Paolo Loriga, respectively director and editor of the fortnightly magazine “Citta Nuova”, one will find a summary of eight meetings during which Maria Voce has been interviewed for a total of nearly 20 hours.
A wide range of topics has been dealt with. Maria Voce does not avoid any of them and neither does she refuse to go deeper into them: The most influential woman (maybe) in the Catholic Church; A charism that faces global challenges; A dialogue that makes the impossible become possible; A bud and flash of ancient cultures; Spreading the culture of trust….. These are some of the chapter headings in the book, that unfolds into a dialogue posing challenging questions, at times very provocative ones: drift of the Western democracies, Europe, Christianphobia and fundamentalism; meetings for divorcees and bishops and cardinals that are part of the Movement; the Church in the near future; have the focolarini disappeared after Chiara’s death?
The launching of the Italian edition of the book took place on September 22, 2012 at Loppiano (FI), the international small town of the Movement. At that time the town was hosting the multi-event LoppianoLab ( the promoters of the publishing house Citta Nuova; the small town of Loppiano; the Sophia University Institute; the Lionello Bonfanti Industrial Estate).
“The charism itself has the answers, because it is a gift of God, and a gift of God always has the answers; it is the questions that change. Not dampening the spirit of Chiara’s time depends on this: new questions do not require new answers, because the answer is in the charism, but new ways of formulating the answers are required. And we will find these new ways together while we live and experience the drammatic events that affect us all; together we will find out how to answer. We have to answer with the logic of the Gospel; there is no other way for us”.
“The source of this ideal is an infinite one and what interests us most is not the numbers, but we want this idea of universal brotherhood to be spread. When compared to the great masses of people, the focolarini are a very small number. But this does not matter for Jesus himself said: “Fear not little flock, for it pleased the Father to give you the Kingdom”, and the Kingdom is the ability to influence all humanity. This ability is not affected by numbers but by the intensity of our living. When I travel around the world and meet our people, I tell them: “ You will always be a few, but if you are ready to give your lives to each other in such a way that Jesus lives in your midst, then that is more than enough. Even he started off with only a few around him!”.
Updated on September 27, 2012
UF
