SituationInmovement Affinity of Experience In 1971, the Christian Life Sodality was born in Peru and, in 1985, the Christian Life Movement. We spoke of them with the founder, Luis Fernando Figari. Baptism and mission. “Affinity seems to me an appropriate word to describe the relationship between the two spiritual families and their spirit of ecclesial communion.” edited by Riccardo Piol The Sodalitium Christianae Vitae [Christian Life Sodality] was born in a precise historical and geographical context, in Lima, in 1971. At that time, you were only 24 years old. What pushed you to begin this ecclesial experience? The Sodality was born within a course of research, of encounter and answers. Looking at things in perspective, it is important to stress that the Sodality was born because God had foreseen its existence within His divine plan. The recognition on the part of the Church’s hierarchy and the caring proximity of the pastors to this religious experience that was beginning in the seventies are signs that make more evident what the Sodality means to be. All single human beings live within a social and existential context. The early seventies bore the burden of important events that happened in the immediately preceding years: the events of May 1968 in France, the Cultural Revolution in China, and the assassinations of Martin Luther King and of John Kennedy and his brother Robert, just to recall a few. In Peru, there was the military coup, which called itself a revolution, and I could add other events that struck me profoundly. All these facts witnessed not only that the world was in rapid change, but also that the world was in crisis. Where was it going? In those years, I was actively involved in politics, and I was disappointed to see that it was not the answer I was looking for. I realized that it was necessary to help people concretely to change. It is people who make structures, politics and social-cultural changes. What is really important is the change in the person! So I began to look into philosophy, and then, living more intensely, I understood that the eternal, definitive dimension of man’s life refers to God. I found the answer that makes possible the building of a better world in faith, which transforms man’s heart. I began to appreciate the prophetic action of the Second Vatican Council, and I took to heart its teachings, which even today are a light for the future. I read the documents of the “real” Medellín, the Second General Conference of Latin American Bishops, and I was astounded at how rich they were. All this led to the founding of the Sodalitium (now a society of apostolic life), which began its journey on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception in 1971. What gave rise to the later decision to found an ecclesial movement? The Sodalitium is an ecclesial experience whose trajectory from the start has been in line with the new evangelization. Already in 1968, the Latin American bishops were inviting people to a “new evangelization” in order to attain “a conscious and committed faith.” In 1984, when I went to Rome to give one of the catecheses for the Youth Jubilee, I found myself face to face with the phenomenon of the movements. This led to prayerful reflection. I was fully convinced that God was arousing a new mode of community life in the Church, the movements. At the same time, I was convinced that this series of initiatives and witnessing groups, which were born around the Sodalitium, should become an ecclesial movement. The Holy Father’s invitation to the faithful for a greater effort for the new evangelization gave greater thrust to these discoveries, in reflection and prayer. Thus, in 1985, in Lima, Peru, the Christian Life Movement (CLM) was born, within the same spiritual family as the Sodalitium. In a few words, how can you describe the charism from which the Sodality and the Christian Life Movement were born? I would first of all stress the expression “Christian Life,” which both have as part of their name. The Father sends the Eternal Word to become man in the immaculate womb of the Ever-Virgin Mary, by the work of the Holy Spirit. This divine initiative of love is aimed at man’s redemption and reconciliation. The Lord Jesus shows man his identity. Following Jesus, man discovers the path of his own realization. Christian life does not take man away from participating in the transformation of the world and society according to God’s plan but, on the contrary, gives all this a precise meaning. The person must let himself be transformed into a new man, cooperating actively with divine grace. Loving the Virgin Mary with filial love, he must let himself be led to identity with Christ, and cooperate so that the Good News be spread in all the world and in all cultures. In little more than 15 years, your experience has crossed the borders of Peru, putting down roots in Latin America, in the USA, in Canada, and even in Europe and Asia. How did it develop so rapidly? Love for the Church and harmony with it are a reality we live in the CLM. Thus, living the faith that the Church teaches, experiencing ecclesial communion, bringing the Church’s announcement are fundamental dimensions. Desire for God, nostalgia for the infinite find their answer only in the Lord Jesus. The encounter with Jesus brings you to adhere to Him, to let yourself be led to identity with Him; from the depth of your heart, attachment and love for Jesus shine out, and this constitutes a witness. Someone who is in the attitude of research has the sensitivity to perceive this witness, and this makes him come close to those who are living what he desires. But all this is the work of God; without Him, we achieve nothing. I think that it is a question whose answer is in God’s hands alone. How does your movement normally spread? Life lived day after day in the desire to give glory to God with the whole of one’s being is a witness, and it carries within it the announcement of the Christian life that one experiences. Personal witness, showing one’s faith and the announcement of Jesus using all licit means possible: from these are born communities that live the faith with joy and enthusiasm; groups that, aflame with evangelical freedom, form communities of faith that announce the Lord Jesus to people who are in search of God or who want to deepen their Christian experience. To what contemporary human needs do you mean to answer? To the fundamental one, to the hunger for God which is proper to man. Then, on the other hand, the hunger for bread, for respect for human dignity, for universal rights, for a home, for charitable solidarity, for meaning–to the needs of everyday life. This is all a consequence of following Christ. In virtue of reconciliation with Christ and with each other, man becomes the author of reconciliation; his work is expressed in personal life, in social life, and in the proper use of things. The children of the Church, converted with the help of grace into servants of reconciliation, are transformed into builders of a new world. The reconciliation brought by the Lord Jesus opens up a horizon of hope to man. The Sodalitium was born as an attempt to live the consequences of Baptism in day-to-day life, and from this beginning were born thousands of realities and enterprises, today joined in the CLM. Why do you attribute a fundamental value to the figure of the baptized? Baptism in Christ is a gift through which the baptized is reconciled with God and transformed into a new creature in the Lord. It’s a spiritual dynamism nourished by charity that leads one to reformulate his relationship with God and with the deepest level of himself, setting aside selfishness, sin and divisions, and living in love. The Christian sees other men as his brothers, and feels growing, in his mind and heart, a solidarity full of charity that pushes him to action. He is aware that things exist so as to be used according to God’s plan. Baptism calls the person to integral perfection, and makes him sensitive to a profound transformation of society and culture, enlightened by the burning fire of love that comes from the Lord Jesus. The Movement was born and grew under the pontificate of John Paul II. What has this Pope meant for you? When Cardinal Wojtyla was elected to the throne of Peter, I felt a great joy. In 1979, I wrote a book entitled Voice of Hope: John Paul II. I have always looked at him as a messenger of hope in a world that longs intensely for the light that comes from Christ. After 25 years, I still consider John Paul II to be a “voice of hope.” The Pope arouses a deep filial love in me. I think his pontifical ministry indicates a road full of passion for man at the dawn of the third millennium. I am convinced that his teaching is forging important keys for overcoming the fractures between lived faith, culture and reason. What is the meaning in your history of the Pope’s recognition of the Sodality as a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right, and of the Pontifical Council for the Laity’s recognition of the Movement? We have taken it as a sign of God’s approval for the journey we have undertaken. One indication regards the responsibility of the Sodalitium to answer with greater coherence to the dynamic of Baptism and of Confirmation in its members, and at the same time to travel again its spiritual itinerary, which has been taking shape through the action of the Holy Spirit. We treasure in our heart this Pontifical recognition as a manifestation of the ecclesiality we live as children of the Church. When, in 1994, on the Feast of St Turibius of Mogrovejo, we got the news of the approval of the CLM, we were struck by God’s attention for us. A movement born in Lima got the approval of the Apostolic See exactly on the day when the saintly Bishop of Lima is celebrated. This is a sign that hints at the deep Catholic roots of the peoples of Latin America and that invited the CLM to commit itself even more to the new evangelization. Two keywords in the life of CLM are education and mission. What do these represent in the life of the movement? Faith is a gift, but so is the personal response to the gift received. We need to know this faith and live it. John Paul II, during the great meeting in 1998, warned the movements of how secularization is putting faith to the test. The Pope spoke then of strong proclamation, solid and deep Christian formation, knowledge of one’s own Christian identity, of awareness of one’s own mission and of that of the Church, and of living Christian communities. Why do we need formation or education? Because adherence to Christ means accepting His person, His life, His works and His teachings. Today, the teaching of Christ is not known, or only superficially, by many of those who call themselves Christians. Whoever loves Jesus must deepen knowledge of Him, of His teachings and the road He invites us to follow. The faith requires that its contents be taught, and this teaching leads to the realization of the evangelizing mission to which all believers, whether priests or lay people, are called by means of their Baptism. We are all called to the mission of participating actively in building up the Body of Christ. Charity teaches us that this building must begin from ourselves, because the first terrain of apostolate is inside us, and from here we open up to the announcement and commitment of evangelization. Amongst the guiding ideas that characterize the life of the Sodalitium, you often recall that of the “vocation of man as author of culture.” What is meant by this? The concept appears in a text of Cardinal Wojtyla. Shortly before he became Pope, he stressed how man is author of culture and, as such, in realizing and producing goods and products, he expresses himself and, in a certain way, realizes himself, bringing to sure completion his own potentialities. As we studied the Book of Genesis, the concept became very enlightening and we adopted it. In the second chapter of Genesis, before the fall, man appears already an authentic author of culture. Culture is the world of man. In this sense, culture as such must be always in man’s favor. The concept of “anti-culture” expresses the choices of those who accept anti-values and oppose the realization of human nature. When the human being, the image of God, acts as God’s co-worker, he lives firstly for himself the process of full realization of man and his work, and contributes to the humanization of society and of the track he leaves on the universe. Recently, you met Fr Giussani. You had met twenty years ago. What do you remember of your first meeting, and what did you talk about when you met again? I have a very vivid recollection of our first meeting. The founder of Communion and Liberation was waiting for me at the top of a long staircase. As we approached each other he smiled amiably. He welcomed me with the warmth of a brother in faith. We sat down in a lounge and spoke for a long time. He asked me some precise questions and he paid great attention to my answers. It was an ecclesial conversation in an atmosphere of true communion. He accompanied me down the stairs. For my part, it was a very instructive meeting. I was amazed at the coincidences between his existential journey and my own. What struck you in this last meeting in Milan? Fr Giussani was as amiable as ever. We understood each other deeply. Our dialogue was pervaded by love for the Church, by concern for what is happening, by hope, and by the need to act at once. I found him extremely lucid, quick to understand, and precise in his answers. His directives to his collaborators were punctual, direct, conclusive and opportune. The meeting was extremely instructive, very rich in hope and openness to the future. I could see how much our personal understanding has matured. I could not have had a better impression of Fr Giussani. He told me to come to see him when I come to Italy. I promised to do so. During your meeting, you spoke with Fr Giussani of an “affinity” between you. Can you summarize it for the readers of Traces? It was during the meeting in Milan that Fr Giussani expressed the idea that there is a significant affinity between Communion and Liberation and Sodalitium. I agreed with him. I thought of the meaning of affinity: similarity, nearness, concord. It seemed to me a very appropriate word for describing the relationship between two spiritual families and their spirit of ecclesial communion. We used the word affinity very often in the context of that rich fraternal dialogue held in Milan. It’s a word that now forms part of my day-to-day language. Quoting Dante’s Hymn to the Virgin, Fr Giussani insists on the figure of Our Lady, indicating her as “the method we need for familiarity with Christ.” What does Mary represent in your life? The importance of Mary in my life? It’s enormous! Suffice it to say that Mary is my mother and that I love her with deep filial love. Historic Milestones 1971 The Christian Life Sodality is born in Lima, Peru, on the initiative of Luis Fernando Figari, “a community of priests and laity,” the founder explains, “that tries to live the consequences of Baptism in day-to-day life and that feels a clear apostolic vocation.” 1985 In line with the spirituality of the Sodality, the Christian Life Movement (CLM) is born, which groups together the various apostolic initiatives that developed over the years on the initiative of the members of the Sodality. It includes lay people and religious. The first General Coordinator of the CLM is the layman Germán Doig Klinge (1957 - 2001). 1986 The movement begins life in Brazil, at San Sebastiano in Rio de Janeiro, at the invitation of Cardinal Eugenio de Araújo Sales. It is the first step of the CLM outside Peru and the beginning of its spread throughout Latin America and then to the USA, Canada, and then to some European countries, including Italy, and as far as the Philippines. 1991 Following the experience of the Sodality, Figari founded in Lima the Marian Fraternity of Reconciliation, a religious association of consecrated laywomen, approved by the Archbishop of that city, Augusto Vargas Alzamora. 1994 On March 23rd, the Feast of St Turibius of Mongrovejo, second Archbishop of Lima and patron saint of the Latin American bishops, the Pontifical Council for the Laity decreed the recognition of the Christian Life Movement as Lay Association of Pontifical Right. It is constituted as a federation of apostolic associations and initiatives; as the decree of recognition explains, the CLM is organized “on the basis of previous initiatives and experiences that flow into each other.” 1995 On the initiative of the founder of the CLM, the confraternity of Our Lady of Reconciliation is born, dedicated to invocation very much tied to the Sodality’s spirituality. 1997 The Sodality was recognized by John Paul II as a Society of Apostolic Life of Pontifical Right. 1998 Figari founded another female association, the Servants of God’s Plan. 1999 The first Plenary Assembly of the Christian Life Movement is convened. Today, the CLM has about 20,000 members and is present in 20 nations: Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Paraguay, Brazil, Venezuela, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Cuba, Mexico, United States, Canada, Italy, Germany, Spain, France, and the Philippines.