Young members of the Focolare movement in the Philippines are set to join other youth of various nationalities in an international gathering called GenFest from August 31 to September 2 in Budapest.
The Filipino youth will join the 10th edition of GenFest, an international gathering aimed to unite Focolare youth from all over the world and from various cultures and ethnic groups to agree on the idea that a united world is an ideal worth living for.
According to Ms. Rhoda Agcalao, youth leader of Focolare (Youth for a United World) in the Philippines, close to a hundred Filipino youth are expected to attend the meeting.
“As of the moment, there are 94 youth who are listed to join the international gathering. But it still depends if our fundraising projects can suffice to send these 94 young people. We still continue to believe in divine providence,” Agcalao said.
Agcalao added that the 10th edition of GenFest titled “Let’s bridge” has a lot of first time.
“This is the first time that it took us 12 years to organize the GenFest, the last time was in 2000. This is also first time that our founder, Chiara Lubich can’t join us because she died last March 2008. But we are thankful for this is the first time that we have Chiara Luce Badano, a 19-year old gen, [who was] declared blessed last 2010. And lastly, this is the first time that the celebration is not held in Italy,” Agcalao said.
In their official website www.genfest.org, the group said that Budapest will become the “capital of the culture of unity’ with the sport arena and bridges that tower over the Danube will be the main locations where meetings, displays and shows will take place.
The group expects the presence of 12,500 young people from about 100 different nationalities to attend the international gathering which was organized by over 3,000 volunteers from all over the world who have been working for months just to bring the said event ahead.
They also emphasized that the event will be an experience of unity that is continually at the basis of every effort that leads to true dialogue and builds deeper relationships.
They said the gathering is a chance to exchange and compare ideas for those who see a background rich in challenges in today’s world, where there is opportunity for change, where the other is placed at the centre.
“Various themes will also be discussed such as economy, art, politics, social problems, dialogue among the different religions, the highest human values and even ecology and communication. All in an international context to involve everyone present to build in the first person, and also together with other through bridges of fraternity,” they said.
The Youth for a United World of the Focolare Movement was founded by Chiara Lubich in Trent on 1943.
Their characteristic is universality where they come from all the 5 continents and from different ethnicities, nationalities and cultures which belong to various Christian denominations, different religions and some with no profess religious belief but they all have very high human values.
They commit their energies into building a united world, to make humankind more and more into one single family, where the personal identity of every individual is respected.
Lubich, their founder, was an Italian activist who died at the age of 88 in Rocca di papa, Italy on March 14, 2008.
GenFest started in 1973 in Loppiano, Florence. The last GenFest event was held in 2000 at the Flaminio stadium in Rome coinciding with the World Youth Day celebration. (Jandel
No comments:
Post a Comment