In preparation for the group meetings on Thursday, Fanny and Domenico from the New Humanity secretariat talked to us about the Final Document, "That All May Be One" produced on September 14th 2014, which talks about the three points, 'Going Out', 'Together", "Prepared". They only had time to talk briefly about the first two points. Going Out involves taking on the challenges of society such as poverty, social injustice, immigration, multiculturalism, conflict, war and peace. This involves the whole of the Work of Mary, not just New Humanity or the Volunteers. We need to live the Ideal in our daily lives and incarnate it in humanity. They stressed the importance of building the presence of Jesus in the Midst in our environmental cells. Going out should be part of our daily life. We need to give as much value to our civil and social obligations as we do to our spiritual ones. In the nucleus we should share our civil and ecclesial commitments as well as our spiritual life. If the nucleus is not the appropriate place to do this, perhaps because some members do not have the preparation to share someone's professional life, they should share these in the 'Worlds' or 'environmental cells'. They also spoke about the importance of local communities as a place where we can deepen our understanding of the needs and problems of our society. We should work together with experts in different disciplines. What they called 'local cells' with Jesus in the Midst can start small but are enough to ignite a whole area in which we live and work. Using the analogy of a fire, a small flame can ignite a city. Environmental cells are not something that goes in and out of fashion but part of the statues of the Movement.
Together requires charity and a culture of trust. We need to work as a team and to value different points of view. It is not the Volunteers who have this task but the whole of the Movement, all the branches, structures, families - everyone together. It is not just the task of New Humanity, but also New Youth and the other mass movements, all coming together. Local communities were likened to a gym where we train to work together. We don't need to be geographically in the same place to carry ahead this work. The Volunteers secretariat had the experience of preparing the New Humanity congress next week together while physically living in different places. It takes longer to consult one another and to get feedback from the members all over the world, but the experience itself is a process of building unity and living together. It requires the culture of trust. The other one may not do things as we would, or even as well, but that is less important than going through the process. Together also involves a rediscovery of the colours, the 'Rainbow Revolution'. The colours are a way of incarnating the Ideal in our lives.
When we came to feedback after the groups it became apparent that the Secretariat assumed everyone had read and was responding to the final document, whereas most had only had a summary. This is a place where we need to communicate more clearly and ensure that the material from the Centre reaches each one.
Here is the text of the 'final document'.
"That All May Be One"
General Guidelines and Courses of Action for the life of the Focolare Movement in the next six years. Approved by the General Assembly on 20 September 2014.
Together requires charity and a culture of trust. We need to work as a team and to value different points of view. It is not the Volunteers who have this task but the whole of the Movement, all the branches, structures, families - everyone together. It is not just the task of New Humanity, but also New Youth and the other mass movements, all coming together. Local communities were likened to a gym where we train to work together. We don't need to be geographically in the same place to carry ahead this work. The Volunteers secretariat had the experience of preparing the New Humanity congress next week together while physically living in different places. It takes longer to consult one another and to get feedback from the members all over the world, but the experience itself is a process of building unity and living together. It requires the culture of trust. The other one may not do things as we would, or even as well, but that is less important than going through the process. Together also involves a rediscovery of the colours, the 'Rainbow Revolution'. The colours are a way of incarnating the Ideal in our lives.
When we came to feedback after the groups it became apparent that the Secretariat assumed everyone had read and was responding to the final document, whereas most had only had a summary. This is a place where we need to communicate more clearly and ensure that the material from the Centre reaches each one.
Here is the text of the 'final document'.
"That All May Be One"
General Guidelines and Courses of Action for the life of the Focolare Movement in the next six years. Approved by the General Assembly on 20 September 2014.
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