Memo to a Divided Church

Folks, I am back.  First, just a word to say how much our prayers are with the people of Japan, and especially all of those who have lost loved ones. 

As many of you know from when I have come out of my cave for brief intervals to try (and miserably fail) to keep up with email, I have spent large parts of the past year in hibernation to complete (together with my co-author Tom Masters) a book to mark the 50^th anniversary of the Focolare Movement’s presence in the United States — Focolare: Living a Spirituality of Unity in the Unites States, just released by New City Press.

For me, this project was the chance to fulfill a long-time dream—to write a book which helps to make the Focolare spirituality and ideas accessible for a US audience.  After sketching the Focolare’s history and development, it describes (with lots of stories and examples) how its spirituality of unity is lived in daily life, the structures that sustain its members in their commitments, the various vocational paths within the community, the shape the spirituality gives to their social and cultural projects, and its relationship with the Catholic Church.  The last part—which brought bubbling to the surface all of my “American Studies” brain cells!—addresses how the Focolare’s ideas, structures and ways of communicating intersect with four “quests” in American culture: the search for financial security and personal identity, the quest for freedom, the search for community in a pluralistic society, and the search for the common good in a polarized political culture. 

John Allen gave us a nice plug in his recent blog, “Memo to a Divided Church: Meet the Focolare” — which features an extensive interview with the current president, Maria Voce, who arrives to our shores at the end of the month for the anniversary festivities.

As next week is our spring break, I’ll try to play some catch up blogging, to make up for my long silence.  Thanks for your patience!