The Story of Chiara and the Focolare (1956-1960)

In the autumn of 1956, Europe watched helplessly as dreadful events unfolded in Hungary. On October 23, a student protest that began in Budapest, with students and workers parading in solidarity with Polish workers in Poznan, was brutally crushed by 4,000 Soviet tanks. On November 4, some 200,000 Soviet forces invaded Hungary, causing 3,000 deaths and forcing 250,000 Hungarians to flee to Western Europe.

The world was on the brink of a third world war. The leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Pius XII, was “deeply moved by the sorrowful events in Hungary,” published three short encyclicals condemning the clampdown, pleading that people all over the world pray for peace and freedom.

A few days later, on November 10, the pope also gave a long radio message in which he passionately urged the peoples and rulers “of the East and the West, members of the same human family, to be united with one another in the cause of liberty and peace … and to seek and find new solutions to the problems that threaten the world.”

He continued: “God! God! God! Let this ineffable name, the source of every right, justice and freedom, resound in parliaments and city squares, in homes and workshops, on the lips of intellectuals and workers, in the press and on the radio ... “May God shake you out of your  lethargy, separate you from any complicity with tyrants and advocates of war, enlighten your conscience, and strengthen your  will in the work of reconstruction.” 

One can well understand how this powerful call resonated in the soul of Chiara Lubich, who on January 15, 1957 wrote an article in Città Nuova magazine entitled, “The Volunteers of God.” 

“It’s impossible to stand by passively and watch such things happen,” she wrote. “We need an army of people to follow Jesus as he wants to be followed — renouncing themselves and taking up their cross.”

Hundreds responded to this appeal, giving rise to the most secular of the vocations within the movement: the “Volunteers of God.” These are people committed to living the Gospel to the fullest and freely, bringing its light into every area of society. Chiara described them as “the first Christians of the 20th century.” 

Years later, presenting the “volunteers of God” to St. Pope John Paul II, Chiara described their vocation as a “total gift of self to God, but without any particular consecration … They seek to spread the fire, the light, the power and the richness of life that comes from the risen Lord. 

“They do this by striving to make him shine out, both within themselves, through embracing their daily crosses, and in their midst, through their life of mutual love and unity. They desire to generate his presence in families, schools, hospitals, parliaments, businesses — everywhere.”

The birth of the Volunteers of God was also the result of what Chiara had lived, together with the whole Church, in the years immediately following World War II. In 1945, she followed with trepidation the events unfolding in Eastern Europe, including the invasion of Eastern European countries by the Soviet Union, which introduced “real socialism” into those countries and caused the suppression of religion and the persecution of believers. 

In 1954, Chiara met Bishop Pavel Maria Hniliça, who had been clandestinely consecrated a bishop in Czechoslovakia. “Father Maria,” as he would be called, fully appreciated the spirituality of unity, adhering to it personally and asking Chiara to spread it within his country. She invited him to consecrate himself to the Immaculate Heart of Mary, asking her to fulfill God’s plan on the Focolare, known officially as the “Work of Mary.” 

Just a short time later, in 1955, circumstances developed that permitted a number of Focolare members to enter the Eastern European countries and quietly share their experiences of living the Gospel with the people there. They also began a delicate mission at the service of the Church. From East Germany, the movement spread to Poland, Hungary, Siberia, Czechoslovakia and, further south, to Romania and Bulgaria.

When asked why the movement wanted to expand into those countries where Christians were persecuted, Chiara answered, “Because we love Jesus Forsaken.” She felt no political motive behind this decision, only faithfulness to her vocation and love for her crucified and abandoned spouse.

Those were also the years when Europeans fervently desired new life after two devastating world wars. The World’s Fair held in Brussels in the spring of 1958 was an example of this hope for the reconstruction of society. Chiara went to see the “Expo,” as it was called. 

On April 20, 1958, she wrote an editorial in Città’ Nuova magazine entitled, “Jesus at the Expo.” Here’s an excerpt: 

“The Son of Man did not disdain from mingling with people, entering into all their affairs. With the beautiful sound of ringing bells, he is calling people back to divine and eternal truths, while they gather there in praise of the human accomplishments of people of all nations, who indeed were created by him.” 

Her message was directed especially to all those who would participate in the Mariapolis two months later. “This Mariapolis will be an Expo of God!” she wrote. Its purpose would be to put on display the value of Jesus present in the midst of people of different nationalities. 

It was the first Mariapolis with a significant presence of people from other countries. In fact, it was during that Mariapolis that the idea emerged to send some focolarini to South America. On the last Sunday of October, the feast of Christ the King, three focolarini set sail for Brazil.

The following year, on July 1, 1959, the last Mariapolis to be held in the Dolomites began. Its title was “The Glory of God,” and approximately 10,000 people participated from 27 countries. A representative of each country consecrated their own country to Mary.

That was the last year that only one large Mariapolis in the Dolomites was held for the whole movement. The number of people who wanted to participate had grown too large to accommodate, and the movement itself was going through a particularly difficult phase. Notwithstanding that, the Focolare kept growing and multiplied all over the world, just like the grain of wheat, which by dying, produces abundant fruit.