Among the readers of Ombre e Luci, some belong to the Fede e Luce movement, others do not. To the latter, we want to explain why we have devoted this special issue to the Pilgrimage to Assisi that the Fede e Luce communities from across Italy undertook on April 24-27.
We believe this event—so exhilarating for those who lived it—has something to say to those who could not attend, for these reasons:
- it gives us the chance to introduce Fede e Luce: a network of communities made up of parents, their children with disabilities, friends of all ages—people who gather regularly to know one another, live out fraternity, support and help each other, celebrate together, and pray.
- these three days, though they made no headlines, represent something important in their human and Christian meaning. Nearly a thousand people from across Italy came to Assisi as part of a pilgrimage that, for more than a decade, has testified to something remarkable: people who would never have met—separated by background, culture, age—can live together in joy. We are pilgrims, certainly, but of a particular kind. Among us are children and adults facing severe hardship, profound disabilities, behavioral challenges. It is precisely these brothers and sisters who have brought us together, teaching us a new way of walking—a pace suited to their steps, which we sometimes struggle to keep, which carries us further than we imagined, which asks us never to stop because we never truly arrive.
- by presenting in brief and summary form what was organized and experienced during these days, we hope to kindle in some readers a desire to know Fede e Luce more deeply, to roll up their sleeves and help start a new community. Fede e Luce is hard to describe to those who have not lived it, yet it wishes to be open and welcoming to all who wish to join.
Such is the main purpose of this issue—we hope it serves as a reminder of Assisi, but above all as an encouragement to continue the road we are walking together with our brothers and sisters.
by Mariangela Bertolini, 1986