The latest Focolare Link-up, broadcast from the International Centre in Rocca di Papa on 3rd October, brings together experiences from different parts of the world around a theme that lies at the heart of the Focolare charism: unity.
Presented by Lorenzo Russo, the Link-up includes contributions from young people, bishops, communities in Latin America and the Middle East, as well as a reflection from Chiara Lubich and a conversation with Focolare President Margaret Karram and Co-President Roberto Almada.
With around 80 young people from 20 countries present in the auditorium, the broadcast itself reflects something of the international and intergenerational character of the Movement.
Young people putting fraternity into action
The Link-up begins with three experiences from young people in Trent, Paraguay and Ascoli.
From Trent, Gaia and Miriam share how they responded to the arrival of thousands of migrants in Ceuta during the summer. Rather than feeling helpless in the face of a situation they could not solve, they looked for a practical way to respond, raising funds and providing support to people who had been left without adequate help. In Paraguay, young people describe their project “Going Out with Your Heart”, visiting communities and indigenous communities and seeking to build relationships through encounter and dialogue. And in Ascoli, young people and adults are working together as animators, creating spaces where different generations can contribute and share responsibility.
Although the situations are very different, each experience begins with the same question: what can I do in the situation in which I find myself?
The stories are a reminder that unity is not simply an ideal or something that happens at the level of international meetings. It takes shape through concrete relationships, through listening and through the willingness to take responsibility for the people and situations around us.
Bishops: communion at the service of the Church
The Link-up also features the recent international meeting of Bishops and Friends of the Focolare Movement, bringing together around 90 bishops and cardinals from 40 countries. The meeting focused on communion and the service of the Church in a world marked by conflict and division. The participants spoke of the importance of listening to one another and of building unity in their local Churches and beyond. For Bishop Markos Gebremedhin Woldesenbet of Ethiopia, unity must come before everything else if lasting solutions are to be found. He spoke of the need for unity with God, within the Church and with the people around us. For Archbishop Antoine Bou Najm of Lebanon, peace is closely connected with a love capable of going beyond suffering and difficulty. These experiences underline the connection between communion and peace: unity is not an end in itself but a way of serving others and responding to a divided world.
A focolare in the Amazon
Another part of the Link-up takes us to the Amazon region of Ecuador, where the Pompeya focolare has been contributing to the life of the Vicariate of Aguarico. The focolare works alongside 24 communities belonging to the Quichua, Shuar and Waorani peoples. Its members visit the communities regularly and contribute to pastoral work, intercultural dialogue and the formation of young indigenous leaders. The experience is one of learning as much as giving. The focolarini describe the need to approach the communities with respect, recognising the cultural richness of peoples who can sometimes be undervalued or neglected. One of the members speaks of the importance of simply being present and making whatever contribution is needed. Another highlights the work of forming young indigenous people to become leaders within their own communities. It is a particularly vivid example of what unity can mean in practice: not erasing differences but creating relationships in which different cultures can meet, learn from one another and contribute their own gifts.
Building peace in Jerusalem
The Link-up also introduces viewers to the **Within Your Gates Forum**, launched in Jerusalem in September 2026 and organised by Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa together with the University of Notre Dame. Margaret Karram is part of the organising committee for the initiative, which seeks to create conditions for peace and to address the conflicting narratives that continue to shape life in the Holy Land. For Margaret, the challenge is to help create a new culture and a new awareness among Palestinians, Christians, Muslims and Jews. Against the background of continuing conflict, the Forum is an example of the long and demanding work of building relationships and creating spaces where people can encounter one another. It reflects the Focolare conviction that dialogue and unity can begin even in situations where division appears overwhelming.
Chiara Lubich and “a new unity”
The central reflection of the Link-up comes from Chiara Lubich herself. A recording from 2000 revisits her reflection on “a new unity”, in which she uses the image of the human body to describe the Focolare Movement.The body is one, but it is made up of many different parts. Each part has its own function and identity, yet none exists in isolation. In the same way, the Focolare Movement includes different cultures, generations, vocations, structures and communities. Its unity does not depend on everyone being the same. Rather, unity allows each part to contribute its own gift for the good of the whole. Chiara also speaks of a shift from being “objects” of other people’s attention and care to becoming “responsible subjects”— people who recognise their own responsibility for the life of the whole. For Chiara, this new unity is rooted in relationships. It requires people not simply to wait for others to take the initiative, but to stand alongside one another, sharing responsibility and generating the presence of Jesus among them.
What does this mean for us today?
The reflection becomes the starting point for a conversation between Margaret Karram and Roberto Almada. Margaret develops the image of the body, stressing that the different parts need one another. Diversity is not a problem to be overcome but something that enriches the whole. Unity means taking responsibility for one another while allowing each person to bring their own contribution. Roberto similarly speaks of equality, dignity and diversity, and of the importance of welcoming and listening to one another. Identity, he suggests, is not something lived in isolation but in relationship with others. Margaret then brings the reflection into very practical territory. Being protagonists does not mean putting ourselves at the centre. It means putting ourselves at the service of others. She asks a question that could perhaps accompany the whole Link-up: “In which part of this body am I called today to let love flow?” It is a question about responsibility, but also about hope. We may sometimes feel that the problems facing the world, or even the challenges within our own communities, are simply too great. Yet the invitation is not to solve everything ourselves. It is to take the next step, however small, in renewing our relationships. As Margaret says, when mutual love is renewed, the life of the whole body can begin to flow again.
A Link-up worth watching https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XWlQn5U1Zw&t=721s
The next Focolare Link-up is scheduled for Saturday 30 January 2027.