Stories from around the globe show how a united world is already in motion. This platform highlights experiences, initiatives, and projects from people and communities working for unity and peace. Explore what’s happening and get inspired.
<p><em>A brief experience recounted by a group of young people in Taipei.</em></p> <p><strong>“</strong><strong>Here in</strong> <strong>Taiwan there has not been much news about the Ebola outbreak</strong>, apart from when there seemed to be some danger that it might spread outside of Africa. For most people, it is a distant problem that has nothing to do with them. But we Youth for a United World (<a href="http://y4uw.org/">Y4UW</a>) – both from Taiwan and some international students who are studying Chinese here – felt differently because we feel that every person in this world is part of the same human family.</p>
<p><em>Freedom of expression is not an end in itself. Opposite extremes of violent fundamentalism and absolute freedom must give way to the "will to live together". The West is becoming a multi-religious society. As in the case of the Holocaust, we must limit anti-religious "negationism". Lebanon is a model. Secularism is dead.</em></p> <p>Beirut (AsiaNews) - Pope Francis took part in the global debate about freedom of expression that followed the <em>Charlie Hebdo</em> massacre. Whilst noting that everyone "not only has the freedom, the right but also the obligation to say what one thinks to help the common good," the pope made it clear that those who provoke or offend can expect a reaction.</p>
<p><em>Shanell’s daughter Kate has autism. On the way home from a trip to Disney, she sat by a stranger on the plane. What happened on that trip is documented in this heart-melting thank-you letter. This post originally appeared on <a href="http://www.goteamkate.com/blog/dear-daddy-in-seat-16c-flight-1850-from-philly">Go Team Kate</a>.</em><a href="http://www.goteamkate.com/1/post/2014/01/dear-daddy-in-seat-16c-flight-1850-from-philly.html" target="_hplink"></a></p> <p>Dear "Daddy",</p> <p>I don't know your name, but <a href="http://www.goteamkate.com/" target="_hplink">Kate</a> called you "daddy" for the entire flight last week and you kindly never corrected her. In fact, you didn't even flinch as you could probably tell that she was not confusing you with her own "daddy," but instead making a judgment regarding your level of "safety" for her. If she calls you "daddy" then you better believe she thinks you are alright.</p>
<p><em>On Tuesday, January 27, 2015, Bishop Raffaello Martinelli will preside at the opening of the Cause of Beatification and Canonization of the foundress of the Focolare Movement, at the Cathedral of Frascati, Italy.</em></p> <p><strong>The opening of the Cause was joyfully announced in a letter to</strong> <strong>the Focolare Movement, in which president</strong>, <a href="http://www.focolare.org/en/news/2014/09/15/maria-voce/">Maria Voce</a>, invited all those who live the spirituality of unity to be a “living witness” to what Chiara had lived, proclaimed and shared with so many; that is, the common effort of “becoming saints together.”</p>
<p><em>An initiative created by kids living in the slums of Mumbai and by the friends of Shanti Ashram of Coimbatore also known as Kovai, with the support of the Udisha Project.</em></p> <p><strong>Together with </strong><a href="http://shanthiashram.org/" target="_blank"><strong>Shanti Ashram</strong></a><strong>, a Hindu movement inspired by teachings of Ghandi, the </strong><a href="http://www.udisha.org/" target="_blank">Udisha</a> movement conducts and supports various activities such as the <strong>Piggy Bank</strong>, <strong>with the motto: “The more you give, the more you get.”</strong> «Launched in March 2014, the project draws its inspiration from <a href="http://www.focolare.org/en/chiara-lubich/" target="_blank">Chiara Lubich’s </a>concept called the <strong>“culture of giving,” and which she held very dear </strong><strong>- one of the coordinators, </strong>Valentino Agri, wrote. The project thus expresses the great desire to share with the children and their families, the discovery of God’s immense love for each one of us.»</p>
<p><em>Mgr Ignatius Kaigama talks about the suffering of a country hit by Islamist violence. For the prelate, what is going on "is not a clash between Christians and Muslims", but the result of an increasingly powerful group that is willing to attack anyone who stands in its way. He wants greater international commitment and "determination to halt terrorism."</em></p> <p>Jos (AsiaNews) - "Do not forget that we are here, that we are suffering, that many people have been killed, that many have become displaced, that they do not have a place to live. We need help and practical support to put an end to attacks," said Mgr Ignatius Kaigama, archbishop of Jos, Nigeria, who spoke to <em>AsiaNews</em> about the violence perpetrated by the Islamist group Boko Haram in the Central African nation.His warning comes after three young female suicide bombers, one reportedly aged 10, killed 20 more people in Maiduguri and Potiskum.</p>
<p><em>Five years ago a catastrophic earthquake struck the Caribbean Island. Commitments for various types of aid actions were set in motion to help the Haitian population.</em></p> <p><strong>I</strong><strong>t was a tragedy «that caused death, destruction and also desperation»</strong> and where «a lot has been done to rebuild the country » but where a lot of work still remains to be done.» This was what Pope Francis said to the participants at the meeting promoted for the 5<sup>th</sup> anniversary of the 12 January earthquake.
<p><span id="result_box" lang="it"><em>Nearly a decade after Hurricane Katrina, federal action means 19 lagging states will finally require plans at all child care centers</em><br /></span></p> <p>Fairfield, Connecticut, USA - Nearly a decade after Hurricane Katrina showed the nation how vulnerable children are to disaster, basic emergency planning standards for child-care providers will finally be required in every state. Unwilling to wait longer for lagging states to act, Congress included three child-care disaster planning standards tracked annually by Save the Children in the bipartisan Child Care Development Block Grant Re-authorization Act of 2014. Today, President Barack Obama signed the bill into law, instituting new educational, safety and health standards for child-care providers across the country.</p>
<p><em><span id="result_box" lang="it">Muslims in France and around the world banded together on Wednesday to strongly condemn the deadliest terror attack the country has seen in the past two decades.</span></em></p> <p><span lang="it"><span id="result_box" lang="it"><span id="result_box" lang="it">Three masked gunmen stormed the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo, a notorious satirical magazine. One of the men reportedly shouted “Allahu akbar” as they unleashed a barrage of bullets that left at least twelve dead.</span></span></span></p> <p><span lang="it"><span lang="it"><span lang="it"><span id="result_box" lang="it">Muslim leaders and activists immediately denounced the terrorists actions, reiterating the verse in the Quran that tells Muslims when one kills just one innocent person, it is as if he has killed all of humanity.</span></span></span></span></p>
Economy & Work
Thirty-five years ago a dream was born: the Economy of Communion. In late May Argentina will host an extraordinary celebration where people of all ages will come together to breathe new life into this project and write the future for a different kind of economy.
Lorna Gold, Executive Director of Laudato Si’ Movement, reflects on ten years of the encyclical, analysing how integral ecology is an essential path to global unity and tackling the climate crisis.
Operation Mato Grosso is working on over 100 missions across Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, and Bolivia, all rooted in education, hard work, and solidarity. Jacopo Manara, who has been a volunteer for years, tells us their story.
An interview on communication with Michele Zanzucchi, journalist and writer, former director of Città Nuova, professor of communication at Sophia University Institute and at the Pontifical Gregorian University, and author of around forty books.
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