Pope
meets leaders of the international Focolari movement
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met on Friday with leaders of the
Focolari movement who are holding their General Assembly at Castel Gandolfo
from September 1st to 28th. Half a century on from the Second Vatican Council,
he said, they are called, with the whole Church, to follow a new path of
evangelisation, witnessing God’s love to all and in particular to the poor and
most marginalised.
Listen
to Philippa Hitchen's report:
Greeting
especially the Focolari president, Maria Voce, who has been elected to a second
term of office, the Pope said the movement was born from a tiny seed in the
Church and has grown into a tree whose branches spread through all kinds of
Christian families and through all different religions as well.
Pope
Francis said the movement, which is also known as the Work of Mary, flowed from
a particular gift of the Holy Spirit which is the charism of unity. The
Focolari founder, Chiara Lubich, he said, was an extraordinary witness to that
gift which she spread to so many different parts of the world.
The
Pope also offered three words upon which all members of the movement can base
their efforts as they seek to contribute to the work of challenging task of
evangelisation today. Firstly, he said, contemplation is an indispensable
condition for effective action. Secondly, he said, they must go out in a spirit
of dialogue, giving freely of themselves just as Jesus gave his life for us on
the Cross. Finally, the Pope stressed the importance of forming young people,
so that they too can serve the needs, concerns and hopes of men and women in
the world today.
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