November 12, 2000November 12, 2000
A SPIRITUALITY OF UNITY
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| Excerpts from Chiara Lubich's address at the Faith Communities Together event: First of all, my heartfelt thanks to Imam W.D. Mohammed, leader of the Muslim American Society, for having invited me to be here in Washington with you today. He has asked me to prepare an address that would foster increasingly deeper relationships between individuals and peoples of diverse backgrounds. This closer rapport is demanded both by the times in which we live, and by our common awareness that we are all children of God. Because of the positive, joyous, fruitful experiences that our two movements have had in the past, we can attest to the fact that it is definitely possible for humanity to move ahead toward the fulfillment of the dream of a more united world. Christ himself prayed for this goal: "Father, may they all be one" (Jn 17:21). The message I am about to share with you, speaking as the representative of the Focolare Movement, will undoubtedly interest members of the Catholic Church, to which I belong, and Christians of other Churches. But it should also be of interest to faithful of the world’s other great religions, as well as to all those who believe in the value of the human person and in respect for the natural world around us. There is a reason for my saying this. As we know, from time to time down through the centuries, God—who guides the course of human history—sends special gifts to enlighten the world. These gifts of God are more properly referred to as "charisms." Their purpose is to enlighten not only the individuals who receive them, but, through those persons, many, many others, enabling them to face—and frequently resolve—the challenges, dangers and problems of their times.One such charism has been given to the Focolare Movement. Over the past fifty-seven years, it has been a source of light and a force for renewal in the lives of millions of people of different religions and cultures throughout the world. The purpose of this charism is to contribute to the fulfillment of the plan God has had for the human race from the beginning: that all of humanity should be one family. Pope John Paul II, universally recognized as a great religious leader, in his message for the World Day of Peace, New Year’s Day 2000, made the following statement: "Humanity, though greatly marred by sin, hatred and violence, is called by God to be a single family. This divine plan needs to be recognized and carried out through the search for harmonious relationships between individuals and peoples." The charism I mentioned has been given to us for this very reason: to actively support this divine plan and help bring it to fulfillment. To do so, this charism has given rise to a new lifestyle, an innovative spiritual itinerary. It offers a new spirituality, so that by living accordingly, the people of the world may more easily come together as sisters and brothers.Chiara then highlighted the origins of the Focolare and the key points of its spirituality, as they led to interreligious and ecumenical dialogue: God who is Love, the will of God, love of neighbor, mutual love, the presence of Jesus in our midst, unity, and the acceptance of suffering out of love. After referring to the expansion of the Movement to so many places around the world, Chiara explained how this fact created the opportunity to establish relationships with sisters and brothers of other religions. Already in 1977, we began to see that the spiritual path along which
God is leading us, while retaining its own identity, brings us in contact with other
spiritual paths. And it allows us to establish relationships of mutual understanding and
dialogue with the great religious traditions of With those of the Jewish faith, for example, we have in common the whole of the Hebrew Scriptures (which Christians know as the Old Testament). We also share a common faith in the one God, whom Jews strive to keep uppermost in their thoughts, just as we choose God as the Ideal of our lives. For Jews, to do God’s will is extremely important. And it is the second point of our spirituality. In this regard, there is a beautifully-expressed passage in the "Sayings of the Fathers," which are part of the Mishnah: "Be strong as the leopard and swift as the eagle, fleet as the gazelle and brave as the lion to do the will of thy father who is in heaven" (Mishnah Avot 5:20). 1 For us as Christians, love of neighbor is of central importance. Jews have the very same commandment: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Lv 19:18). And our stress on the presence of Christ in our midst when we are united in his name, brings to mind another of the "Sayings of the Fathers": "If two sit together and the words between them are of Torah, the Shekhinah [the Divine Presence] is in their midst" (Mishnah Avot 3:2).2We are also very close to our Muslim sisters and brothers. Both they and we regard Abraham as our father in faith. A sign of our closeness is this wonderful meeting today of Christians and African-American Muslims in harmony and deep spiritual sharing. What might have seemed impossible not so long ago has become a joyous reality. Our Muslim friends firmly believe, as do we Christians, that God loves all people. This is expressed in the Qur’an in 82 different places. For example: "He is the Forgiving, the Loving" (85:14). And again: "If you would count God’s favors, you will not be able to number them; most surely God is Forgiving and Merciful" (16:18). The Qur’an also says: "Righteous is he who believes in God ... and gives away wealth for love of Him to kinsfolk and to orphans and the needy and the wayfarer and to those who ask, and to set slaves free..." (2: 177). Thus love of neighbor is also important for Muslims. Mutual love is also mentioned in the Sacred Writings of Islam. There is a beautiful Hadith in which God himself says: "My love is given to those who love one another, in me to those who sit together, in me to those who visit one another, in me to those who help one another ... in me" (Hadith Qudsi 262) And in Islam, as we know, the concept of unity is to be found everywhere: from the unity of God, to solidarity among people; unity in diversity; unity in a plurality of expressions. The Qur’an says: "O mankind! We have created you male and female, and have made you nations and tribes that you may know one another" (49:13). And the great Pakistani scholar, Mohammed Iqbal, asked: "What is the ultimate goal of nature and the innermost secret of Islam? Universal brotherhood and the presence of love."3 To put these teachings into practice leads to the experience of communion in God which explains the affinity felt among those involved, and the hope of sharing it with many others. We can see that people of different faiths have many beliefs and attitudes in common. But I am convinced that if we want to work for universal brotherhood— which I would invite everyone here to do—we must focus first of all on what is called the "Golden Rule," which is common to almost all religions. It says: "Do to others what you would have them do to you" (Lk 6:31). It tells us in other words to love our neighbor. "Love!" it tells us. Love everyone without distinction, just as God does.Don’t make distinctions between the people of your own country and foreigners, or between Americans and Europeans, or Africans and Asians; or between Jews and Muslims, or Christians and Hindus. Love everyone! Love the other person as yourself. Not with words, but with deeds. Imagine how the world could be if the Golden Rule were put into practice not only between individuals, but also between ethnic groups, peoples and nations. If everyone loved the other’s country as their own. We must be first in loving, as God is: not waiting for someone else to make the first move; but taking the initiative ourselves. If others love this way, the love will be mutual and will be the force needed to bring the human family together. She then concluded by inviting all to move forward together in the peaceful march towards unity. And in the Third Millennium may this help eradicate from the world the "endless, horrifying sequence of wars, conflicts, genocides and ‘ethnic cleansings’ which have caused such unspeakable suffering"4 in the past. But let it not stop there. May our love continue to bring people together in unity, as it has us Christians and Muslims today. And wherever we are, may it give life to a new world renewed by love, a world in which all people recognize one another as sisters and brothers, children of the same Father. And I have still another word of encouragement that I would like to give you, Muslims and Christians. Let us go deep down in our hearts where God is present, and let us tell him that we are committed to do this: we want to be people who are on the front lines bringing forward this peaceful revolution, involving many, many other groups of all religions, of all types of thinking, of all cultures, provided that they are in good faith and that they want to work for universal brotherhood. May God embrace us all with his Love. God is great! 1) The Living Talmud: The Wisdom of the Fathers and its Classical
Commentaries (New York, |