Riccardi

25 December 1973 In an article of December 25, 1973 published in the Italian magazine, Città Nuova, the journalist Spartaco Lucarini asks fourteen personalities of the most different environments: What is Christmas for you? This is Chiara Lubich’s answer Christmas, feast of the birth of Jesus, is for me the reply of God and the Church to a need of the soul: to hear repeated to me every year, through the commemoration of that fact so sweet, so sublime, so simple and so deep, that God loves me.Yes, if in my existence, I am able to fulfil my deepest aspirations, it is only because God has looked also upon me, as he has upon everyone, and has become man to give me the laws of life that, like light on the road, help me walk safely towards our common destiny. But Christmas for me is not just a commemoration, however meaningful. It is a spur for me to work to restore the presence of Christ in the midst of the society

Rocca di Papa, October 9, 1978 Love of neighbour buries its roots in God, and God reveals himself in his Word: Chiara proposes us a rigorous reading of the New Testament concerning Jesus’ presence, a reading that allows all the wealth of her experience transpire. If we read the New Testament particularly the four Gospels, John's first letter and Paul's letters, we find clear and striking statements about the presence of Jesus in our neighbour.We can start with the Gospels. In some passages Jesus identifies himself with the apostles or with his messengers; in others he identifies himself with his followers; and again in other passages, he identifies himself with each person. The context in which Jesus speaks tells us which way to understand this identification. Jesus' presence in his apostles is affirmed in all four Gospels, in terms which range from welcoming, not meaning only welcoming nor just hospit¬ality, to listening to his messengers. “Who hears you, hears me….”Here are some examples:In Matthew, "He who receives you receives me, and

Rocca di Papa, November 24, 2003 This article was requested of Chiara Lubich by the daily “Vita Trentina”, which then published it on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of her consecration to God. December 7th will mark the 60th anniversary of the birth of the Focolare Movement in Trent, my beloved city of origin. How is the state of my soul, what do I have at heart in this particular circumstance? I feel a wave of emotion, if I think only for a moment at what I have in front of me: a new world born from the Gospel, spread throughout the world, an immense work that no human effort could have brought about. In fact, it is a “work of God,” for which I was the first one chosen to be his “useless and unfaithful” instrument. And a hymn of gratitude to God for what I, with all my brothers and sisters, have been able to witness, experience, build and bring up to this point with his help.A deeply-felt thank