USA
LIVING REALITY INTENSELY


What We Have Seen...

"One day Father Giussani said to his students, 'I see the things that you see, but you do not see what I see.' Being Christian means seeing reality in all its depth." Notes from the annual assembly of CL leaders in North America, Washington, D.C., January 14-17, 2000

BY GIANCARLO CESANA

Last January 150 CL leaders in the United States and Canada met in Washington for a moment of judgment on the life and the presence of the Movement in North American society. We offer here a concise summary of those days by Giancarlo Cesana, who answered questions that arose during the dialogue

1. In one of his most recent books Fr. Giussani tells how years ago, when he was at the beach in Italy, he saw the stars in the night sky reflected by the sea, making a silver stream. It was a spectacular view, and Fr. Giussani said he was astonished by this view because he was closer to the Infinite, to God. And he also said another thing: there were people on the beach with him but none of them saw, none noticed this view. Fr. Giussani concluded, "I see everything you see but you don't see what I see." To be a Christian means to see reality in its depth-its real meaning. Many people don't see this meaning, this presence, this fact that is the sense of life. And when we see reality in its depth, its beauty, in all the factors that constitute reality, we also see the correspondence of reality to our desire. This is rational; this is according to the reason of man. This is a better proposal for life-we can live better. Other people are distracted. Many times we too are distracted and forgetful and this is the main reason why we are unhappy, because we don't look at what we've seen and what is present inside reality. In fact, when Fr. Giussani told the people about the silver stream on the sea, they saw it and saw that it was spectacular. They were distracted but when they were recalled they had to admit that this beauty existed. And discovering this beauty inside their reality, this meaning inside reality, this possibility inside reality makes life fascinating. This is what we call the event, the encounter; we are here because we discovered such a possibility in our life and in reality. And we understand that if we follow what we have seen, what has been demonstrated, indicated to us, our life can be better. This is our hope and the reason we're here. The origin of this meaning that is in reality-this positive that is in reality-is Jesus Christ. And we start our journey following this beauty, this miracle that has been shown to us. This is the first point.

2. We had the possibilty to see something that is completely different from what we imagined for a long time. But we also have to recognize that life is oftentimes contradictory. Life can sometimes seem against us, because in the end each of us must die. The question is, "How can we be happy?" or "What is happiness?" And in reality there are many problems, many factors that make us unhappy. What is happiness, then? Happiness isn't the elimination of contradictions, of what we don't like. It may also be this, but not necessarily, not always. Happiness is to recognize that in reality there is something that is definitively positive even if many things are against us. The fact that there is a contradiction is not the last word on reality. The last word is the positive that is present inside reality. Sometimes the positive that is present in reality is very tiny, very small. For instance, we were talking with Giorgio outside and we asked, "Why was Fr. Giussani so glad about the meeting at the UN?" No newspapers in the U.S. wrote about it, and there were few people there in comparison to the millions of Americans. The event at the UN was a very little event in New York City. But Fr. Giussani said it was the most important event for the Movement in the past 20 to 30 years. It was like the beginning, a new beginning.
So the positive may be very small-in a sense, hidden. And the greatness of man is the capacity to see this positive because you can build, you can construct, you can promote your life and the life of the people around you only if you see this positive. One of you said that there is drama in many things and that there are many things he doesn't like and he asked what to do. Who can help? The only one who can help you is the one who shows you the positive that is in reality in spite of what you don't like, the hope that is in reality in spite of what you don't like. And what we really don't like is to die because it seems too definitive, like a stone put on our road.
This positive that is inside reality is the meaning, the possibility for you to acknowledge the relationship among people-between, between you and reality, between you and things. So we see things that other people don't see and these things are made up of the meaning of reality. To be Christian is to discover the meaning of reality that isn't an idea but is a man, an event at once historical and eternal.

3. What is the function, the reason for our friendship? We don't understand very much about what we see because it's a mystery. A mystery is something we see but don't possess, and this is why we become doubtful. The reason of our friendship is twofold. First, through it we discover the event in which we understand the meaning of our life. Second, the friendship continuously recalls us to this event-a help in order to understand, not a refuge. The friendship is the place of the event. We met the meaning of reality through a friendship that educates us. What we have to decide now-not only in America but also in Europe because we are becoming more and more alike-what we have to decide is to be educated. We have to decide to be in a position that allows us to learn, to understand reality. We have to invest our intelligence, time, money-our life-first of all in being educated, in being helped to understand what the meaning of reality is. We are very concerned about work and family. But we are very poorly concerned about the meaning of our life. Society is not concerned at all about this, only about the rules. So we are here to help ourselves in this education, in this awareness. Because daily life, the sense of daily life, is made up of what happens and of our awareness of what happens. Daily life is characterized by minor happenings. There is a routine. There are not usually earthquakes, bombs, war, or fantastic girls that fall in love with us. Usually daily life is made of routine, work-very little events. What can endure in this daily life? The awareness, the capacity we have to understand reality, what happens. To see the things that other people don't see. To be sure about the friendship-about the meaning of reality that we've met. To be educated is the work of our life. We have all our life; all our life is given to us to understand the meaning of life. No one pays for this work; on the contrary, many pay so that you don't do this work, so that you don't educate yourself. But we have to educate ourselves, we have to understand. So we have to work with the books of Fr. Giussani in order to understand them, to become one with them. This is the help that we need. Fr. Giussani said that our life goes on with the help of two kinds of texts: written texts and "living" texts (that are people). The School of Community is made of written and living texts, and we participate in order to understand what we are living for. This is the real decision. From this decision come many choices about life. When I decide to stay I decide how to use my money and time, how to stay with my family, with the goal of understanding what I'm living for. Nothing is taken for granted, in particular about the meaning of life because we know so little of this. In this sense, we have to be really poor-poor men and women who want to understand what they live-because we do live, have already started to live this meaning of reality. But it is infinite and so we are always at the beginning.

4. One of you asked me, "In what sense is the suffering and death of Christ the origin of positivity within reality and what is the difference between this positivity and 'positive thinking.'" To answer I'll start with an example given by Fr. Giussani. Let's imagine being born with the consciousness that we have when we are twenty. The first glance at reality, the first perception, the first impression is fascination-you understand that this reality is for you when you open your eyes on the trees, mountains, sunset. For people, the first impression is fascination; this is the original position of man, the perception that reality is for him. Actually, a baby is made like an absorbent piece of paper. Starting from scratch, in one year he completely learns a language. He is made for reality as reality is made for him. The original position of man is understanding that reality is for him. This is the positive. We are not in this world by chance. And it is not the same thing if we are or if we are not. We are in this world because the world has been made for us. This is the first, original impression of people in front of what they see. Then there is contradiction-there is pain, fatigue, illness, death. This is the problem, the question: What is true? The original impression and fascination we have toward reality, or the hostility toward this reality that is against us? What's true? If it were the second hypothesis it would mean that we are wrong, that our positive desire is wrong, because our desire cannot find any correspondence-everything is absent and desperate and life is not worth living. The second hypothesis is that the truth is that there is no sense, no correspondence; that reality is bad, is against us; and that we are made because we have to die. This is the second. The first is that reality is positive and made for us. The second is that we are pure chance-without sense-pure desperation not worth living. Why do we live? Because it is rational-it is according to our reason that we choose the first hypothesis that the world, reality, all that exists is positive-there is a correspondence. This is reasonable, not a sentimental emotion. We seek whoever can keep the promise that exists in reality. We sang, "Seeking Your face in the darkness…" this morning. Man invented religion because man always has searched for the One who can keep the promise that is contained in reality in order to live. Who is Christ? Christ is the One who has the capacity to keep the promise contained in reality, to make us aware that what we have seen as positive is the truth. He resurrected-He is the master of the world; this is the announcement. God came to earth, became flesh, lived, suffered, died, and then resurrected. He shared our destiny completely so we can understand that reality is for us but it is not ours. And we are following Jesus Christ because we understand that this is the only possibility through which we can live reality according to what we feel about reality-according to the original impression we have that everything is positive. And so we can have sorrows, pains; we can bear all the problems we have because we know there is Someone who can give an answer to the things we meet in reality. It is not simply emotion, it is reason that guides us. Faith is what comes from reason. In order to live according to reason I must have faith in this man, this fact, this proposal. And actually in living according to Jesus Christ, we understand that our humanity becomes better. We can understand reality more and more, we can live better together, we see that there is mercy and forgiveness; that there is help, friendship. Life begins to correspond more and more to what we want from life. Contradictions are not eliminated; pain and fatigue are not eliminated but we can live all these situations even if they become very difficult.
What is the difference between the recognition of reality as positive and a sentimental optimism? I think the difference is that these "positive thinkers" do not consider the fact that man is weak and fragile, that man is a sinner and can do bad things. They think that man with his will can do anything, but we know that this is impossible. We know that our starting point is our weakness. We know that our starting point is the fact that we are not able to fulfill the desire of our heart and we need someone who not only helps us but who is really capable of answering us with the real answer that corresponds to what we are looking for. We know that "cursed is the man who trusts in man." (Jeremiah) We know this, and so our thinking is not positive in the sense that we consider only the positive things, but we consider reality in all its factors and we understand very well how many problems there are in life.
The main content of reality is positive. We know also that the most important reason why reality has become so hostile to us is our sin. Our original sin. So Christian thinking is not only sentiment, but it takes into account all the factors that are present in reality-good factors and bad factors; everything. Christian thinking does not forget that reality is for the good; it corresponds to the original impression, the original feeling of man in front of reality that everything is for him. We are Christian because we heard the news that there is Someone who can keep the promise-the promise that we have seen in reality.

To be Christian
is to discover the meaning of reality
that isn't an idea
but is a man,
an event at once historical
and eternal

We are following
Jesus Christ
because we understand that this is the
only possibility
through which
we can live reality