This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Welcome. Above you will see some pictures of Padre Aldo Trento as well as the works going on at the St. Rafael Foundation. If you would like to subscribe for updates, please sign up below:

- Julian Carron

As you have seen on www.clonline.org, there is a new article in which the movement gives a judgment on the current situation in Italy: “The Crisis, Challenge for a Change”. It documents what we are talking about. It’s an attempt to look at reality based on what we said tonight, because we cannot say that reality is not positive when we look at the mountains or the stars, if we can’t say this in front of the crisis! And so, what does this leaflet fundamentally say? We are already starting to receive reactions to this: “This judgment about the crisis has arrived as breath of fresh air. Finally, a concrete help to look at this thing that has not touched me personally yet, but which affects several people around me, and which appears threatening on the horizon. Above all I think it’s a very clear example of what it means to look at present things as presence. We all know there is a crisis, but normally I go straight to the consequences: what to do, what strategy to adopt, what the next move should be, that is, I skip over what is given, what I have in front of my eyes, and I don’t know its true nature. Instead our leaflet contains a very clear incipit [this is the challenge: reality is positive, first of all because it sets the person in motion; before any strategy a crisis is a fact that sets me in motion, and so it’s an opportunity]. In our small School of Community group, we worked on this article about the current crisis and after a long discussion, what came out clearly is that in front of a crisis there can be two reactions. One looks at the crisis as an opportunity: reality is ultimately positive, and he sets in motion; the other gets angry and rebels [and goes down the streets attacking banks]. At a certain point in our discussion a friend asked: what is the difference between the two positions? Where does a position like the one described in the leaflet come from? I thought this was a crucial question, in particular because it brought to the light many of my reductions. Despite having in mind several facts in which I had found myself in an open position towards the reality in front me, in that moment, faced with his question I saw that I couldn’t have answered except with theories, and actually, I realized that I would have reduced the question to a difference of psychological attitude; instead, that became my question”. Many times we think that to do the tenth chapter of The Religious Sense is like a sort of psychological introspection, but are we kidding? Don’t we have anything better to do? We are talking about the nature of reality, not about psychological introspection! We are talking about nature, reality and the “I”. But when we hear Fr. Giussani say: “Going down to the core of being”, we confuse it with a sort of psychological introspection – to say that we are really the ones “out of our mind,” not the others!

So, what is the point, as this letter says, the most revolutionary and decisive point of this document “The Crisis, Challenge for a Change”? Right at the beginning, the article proposes and puts forward a different perspective, a different way to look at things which is precisely the content of the tenth chapter of The Religious Sense and of Beginning Day: reality is positive. But as we can see from our first few conversations about it, reality is not positive for everyone, so much so that it’s enough for another thing to appear for us to doubt and question everything, or to begin the fluctuation we have seen. This is why we defend ourselves from it, we curse it, we blame it, and we would like to run far away, deny it, and if it’s not possible, hide from it. The true challenge, then, is this: why can we say that reality is positive? Because if we cannot say it with conviction, then in front of the crisis we remain silent, silent! We’ll join the procession of those who complain – I hope not the procession of those who throw rocks in protest, but at least complaints –. But here we can see that we will not become a presence, if we, each one of us personally, and together as a community, don’t face the challenge of reality, the challenge of this crisis. Otherwise, in front of our schoolmates, our colleagues, our friends who have lost their job or are going through a tough time, we don’t open our mouth, because we don’t know what to say. So, this is the most urgent problem for each one of us. Why can we say that reality is positive? Careful here, this is not a “catholic” interpretation of reality, as if saying: since we have a certain starting point, a pre-constituted idea, a religious pre-concept, we interpret reality as positive, even though it’s actually negative. And this is why we can’t say it to everyone, because others don’t share our faith. On the other hand, others who don’t have this same starting point will interpret it in a different way and can say that reality is negative, in other words they can call a spade a spade because they are not forced otherwise by their ideology. No! This is our challenge: this is not about “baptizing” reality, but rather to recognize it in its true nature. This is why it’s really the verification of what we have been talking about. And when we read the tenth chapter of The Religious Sense or we have Beginning Day, we think they are “internal” moments, for personnel only, for those who are already convinced. But when it comes to reality we cannot say these things, we need to say other things. Now we have printed in a document a judgment in which we say the same things applied to reality; do they make sense or not? Because if they don’t, it’s not just the judgment in this article that doesn’t make sense, but also Beginning Day, and not even the tenth chapter of The Religious Sense; is it clear? So this is the challenge that Fr. Giussani and the Pope carry forward, this is their battle: is the judgment that reality is positive true or not? You understand that we can’t solve this simply by talking about it or with a sentimental companionship; nor with a way of staying together that spares us this use of reason. This doesn’t mean that we need to do it individualistically; we need accompany each other in doing it, but accompanying each other so that it becomes personal, of each one of us, because otherwise we could not face this crisis. This is why we won’t baptize or re-baptize anything, because this is about reason recognizing reality in its ultimate nature. Everything there is, because it has happened, because the Mystery has allowed it to happen – since everything has its origin in that You –, for the fact that it has happened, is a provocation to our life, i.e. an invitation to change, it’s an occasion for taking a step towards destiny, it’s for us, it’s the way, it’s an instrument of our journey, it’s a sign. Let’s say it: reality is sign. This is reality’s ultimate nature. This crisis puts in front of everyone this challenge, in front of us and the others, because the challenge is for everyone.

This article talks about that Jewish-Christian tradition according to which reality is perceived as ultimately positive. Does this mean that it’s something that we “add” because of our tradition? No. It’s that our tradition, our faith, by re-awakening the religious sense, by re- awakening our reason, by re-awakening our capacity to stay in reality and to treat reality according to its true nature, enables us to perceive reality as positive because it is positive; this is different from adding something to reality as if we were visionaries: the fact that faith re-awakens the religious sense enables us to perceive reality according to its true nature. Reality is ontologically positive. The problem is that we give in to the temptation to interpret in a sentimental and moralistic way the statement: “Reality is positive”, as if positive meant desirable or pleasant. And since there are circumstances, facts that we can’t identify as desirable, we then think we’re cheating, that it’s wrong to say that reality is positive. Why? Because if we can’t see a present leaf as presence or a sickness as presence, or anything as presence of a You Who is at the origin, then we are not able to say that reality is positive. This is why if we reduce reality to appearance, we cannot say that it’s positive, as a friend was just telling me about Marco Simoncelli, the motorcyclist who died during a race; in front of someone who was commenting on his death a nun who was present said: “Is it a tragedy that he died, or is it a good thing that someone can find his destiny?”. The way we react in front of a tragedy reveals our entire attitude. It’s not that one desires it – we don’t know what God’s design is –, but are we certain that he arrived to his destiny or that he had bad luck? If we cannot answer this question about Simoncelli, we can’t answer it even for ourselves and for those who are dear to us, or for our sick ones. Reality is positive because it exists. Since it exists, reality is a provocation, it’s a sign, and so it’s an opportunity for change, for re- awakening from slumber. As our teacher friend was saying earlier, sickness can be the opportunity for a re-awakening which brings unexpected, surprising fruit, as we have seen. But what does such a recognition of reality imply? Reason, a use of reason according to its true nature of knowledge of reality according to all its factors; a true and complete use, because reason is made to know reality as something given, something that draws us, as a provocation and as an invitation, as we said. But because of our fragility and the influence of our environment, for the power surrounding us, as we have heard in a letter, many times this use of reason is strange. This is what Christ came to give us. Since we are in this situation, Christ became flesh, not to spare us this work of reason, but to become our companion, to re- awaken all of reason’s ability to recognize reality for what it is. When Fr. Giussani says that Christ came, as we said on January 26th, to re-awaken the religious sense, he means that Christ came to make us men in such a way that we can look at reality according to its true nature, without being visionaries. So, if we do this, we can be in dialogue with anyone, otherwise we will only talk with our bellybutton in our bedroom, because we’ll be scared to talk with anyone else. And so, let’s keep in mind that we are still on the same journey we started on January 26th; now we can see why the religious sense lived in this way, of which reason is a clear sign and reality is also another sign, is the verification of faith, because if in front of these situations we cannot live reality in its true nature, it means that faith, our faith, as Fr. Giussani said, is lacking the religious sense, it’s a faith that is not able to re-awaken our humanity. But who cares about a faith that is not able to re-awaken our humanity, to save our humanity? It’s an obstacle more than a help. This is why we are interested in doing this verification also with this article, which is an instrument to play ourselves out in reality. We need to do the verification not only here, at the School of Community, but in reality, by risking with everyone about the crisis. This is why we would like to use this article for a public cultural battle, a CL battle as such, as a way for us to stay in reality, to offer a contribution to our colleagues, to our friends, to bring them the hope we have in us. A hope that we can’t reasonably bring in this context if not through a true use of reason. We cannot become credible just by being “pious”, but by becoming truly men with our use of reason, as the Pope did when he went to the German Parliament and challenged everyone with a different use of reason. Our contribution will be decisive only if the intelligence of faith becomes intelligence of reality. Otherwise, although they may not put us in prison, in society we’ll be insignificant for people. This commitment does not end in the short term, but will be with us for the next few months. This article was conceived to help us and anyone we meet to find adequate reasons to live this crisis as a challenge to change, to re-awaken the hope that for each one of us there is a possibility even in a situation of crisis. Only we, as Christians, can bring this, only we can do it, because you have already seen what happens to everyone else. The judgment coming from this article is that the impetus of each one of us is something good for everyone, because the energy of the “I” is not exhausted in itself, but builds a people. And the history of Italy demonstrates this, as we have seen in the exhibit 150 Years of Subsidiarity: in the history of Italy, in front of situations worse than ours, people got together and built Italy. We can see that it has been possible. It’s not that what we propose is not realistic. Italy’s 150 years experience is evidence that it was more realistic than any other theory. This is why the public moments directly promoted by the movement, can be associated to the exhibit about the 150 Years of Subsidiarity.

From the US:

Dear Friends,

“Father, I am happy to be here, in this hospital. Arriving and seeing so much beauty, so many flowers, plants, order, cleanliness, and specially so much love, has made me feel like in paradise. Even cancer has taken on a different face.”

So said Josephine who died tonight. The clinic is always full. The dying who have been left alone, in the streets, and arrive here to receive a gesture of pure love that finds, in the sacraments, the heart and then moves to Paradise. Often we give baptism under-condition because we know nothing about them, except one thing that Carron repeats frequently: “of an eternal love I have loved you, having pity on your nothingness…” or as Giussani says in the school of community, “I was moved because you hate me.” I look at that son of mine for whom I am also godfather, baptizing him on sunday, always sub-condition (it means perhaps this person has already been baptized, but in their condition, we have no way of knowing), mongoloid, found in the street, sick with aids because of sexual abuse, and I can’t help but be moved. I think of today, Saturday, when we prayed the lodi (how I wish that you my friends, like when you were in GS and recited the Book of Hours every day to discover what, at age 17 we could intuit but wasn’t yet flesh): “Can a mother abandon her child? not be moved by the child in her womb? Well, even if she may forget, I will never forget you.”

Friends, woe be unto us if we introduce the suspicion that it is not already true, whatever our circumstances may be. Imagine what desperation our lives would be, if this certainty wasn’t granite as the content of the “i”, when one day we might get sick with cancer or be taken by depression! Friends, the gravest sin is suspicion, doubt, as if God was capable of fooling us when, “with an eternal love I  have loved you, having pity on your nothingness.”

How many dramatic moments in these weeks, I even got angry (but for a long time now my anger with God is full of tenderness) with Him, but there is nothing that can give rise to suspicion that what has happened to me is but a tenderness of God.

If I didn’t suffer, I wouldn’t have that familiarity with Him, that renders life so beautiful and that permits me to transmit to children the joy of forgiveness. The other night my girls in the Casita de Bethlehem, the adolescents came in my office to talk to me, confide in me their problems (it is a normal fact, but always new).

Among so many things that were said, some moved me and it was when, they, sexually abused by their “mother’s” boyfriend (with her consent), told me “we don’t want to live with mom because of what she’s done to us, but we forgive her.” And one told me “i would like to see her, but I know she doesn’t want to know anything about me.” “This is why we need you and Diana, the factual/adoptive mom, to be with us when we have free time in school, because we are a family.”

The other night I tried to teach Noelia (age 5) how dresses are folded. I watched her, and she, very concentrated, would look at me every once in a while to see if I approved, what tenderness! But if Jesus wasn’t here alive I wouldn’t do it, I would become impatient. It is the contemporaneity of Christ that allows the children to forgive, and allows me to teach how dresses are folded.

This contemporaneity is what has given freedom filled with love to Cesar and Lorena who, just married a few months ago, have decided to live with the boys of the Casita de Belen (orphanage). They already found themselves on their first night as spouses with beside their room, the room of the 11 daredevils who have become their children.

Now Lorena is pregnant and her happiness for all is even greater. The children that came from unheard-of violence (today they would all be in the street sowing violence), are today changed, they are beautiful.

Even Gabriele, who has given himself my last name, who has lived only violence (he would run away over roofs of houses, throw stones, break windows of cars, responding with blows, of terrible cynicism), now is the best in his class. Friends, it is the miracle of gratuitousness, just like Giussani describes in the school of community.

My teachers are all people who have passed fifth grade or middle school, and are protagonists of this miracle… but why? Because every day we remember our origins, which are the same as those of our children: “I am You who make me” or “Who are You, oh Christ, that with an eternal love you have loved me, having pity on my nothingness.”

Friends, life is a great adventure.

With affection,

Padre Aldo

Places where His work is manifested

 

Medical Center

Little House of Bethlehem

Divine Providence House