Behind the mask congress

Young people of the Focolare movement met in Dar Er Salaam for the Gen 2 Congress. Gen 2 is the second generation of the Focolare movement. The congress was held at Mbagala spiritual centre from the 23rd to the 27th of December 2022. There were 176 young participants, among them youth and seminarians. 23 Formators and accompaniers. All in total were 199 coming from 16 countries, including Angola, Burundi, DR Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi, South Africa and Italy. The theme of the congress was Behind the mask. It was an excellent opportunity for all the gen 2 of the big zone to get together and unveil exactly what is behind the mask.

The congress aimed to get all young people of Eastern and Southern Africa region to meet together after the long period of the pandemic to strengthen unity, improve the spirituality going deep into the charisim of unity initiated by our foundress Chiara Lubich, and renew the active commitment in the society to impact the world. It was a great moment of learning and sharing. The Gen centre from Rome facilitated the event. The world’s gen assistants, Paola and Jerome, and the Zonal Gen Assistants, Bea and Stephane and other facilitators provided us with a deep formation that helped nurture everyone’s faith. They also provided training to all the young people, enabling them to renew their commitment to building a more united world.

Among the topics were:  the radicality of gen life, the choice of God in daily life, unity, Paradise 49, Jesus forsaken and Ubuntu, many more. The workshop was handled using a methodology called 721 Methodology, which consists of 7 steps to follow to make a topic understood in an interesting way. This helped young people feel fully involved in the formation and helped everyone open up, learn, and share. It was more of an open space for most of the present young people.

Apart from the spiritual formation, many other initiatives promoted by the Focolare movement were also presented, including; Together for a new Africa and economy of communion. It was an excellent opportunity for young people who had not had the chance to learn about this initiative to at least have an idea and join, if possible for those willing. The congress ended well, and everyone was happy. Everyone returned home with only one mission, keep Jesus in the midst at all times; in simpler words,  “build unity”. The youth representatives, both male and female, Monica and Yves, were interviewed by Vatican Radio regarding the congress. You will find the link to the interviews below.

Interviews

Monica Manuel

ESAY Gen white interviewed by Vatican News (in Portuguese)

Yves Bizumuremyi

ESAY Gen white interviewed by Vatican News (in English)

Captured Moments