14/11/2007

HOW I FOUND MY WAY TO SANT�EGIDIO

On 21 October 2007 the twenty first annual gathering of world religious leaders opened in Naples, Italy. Since the first meeting was called by the late Pope John Paul II in 1986, the Community of Sant�Egidio, a lay Catholic organisation based in Rome, has continued the tradition every subsequent year. This year�s gathering was organised in conjunction with the Archdiocese of Naples and coincided with the pastoral visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Naples. The theme for this year�s meeting was �Towards a world without violence - religions and cultures in dialogue�. I was privileged to attend this gathering as a local member of the Community of Sant�Egidio, and I think I was the only South African present, apart from some religious leaders.

My journey to Naples had already begun in January 2007. I was looking for a lay Catholic organisation with which to become involved. Quite by chance I stumbled upon a reference to the Community of Sant�Egidio, and decided to investigate. Courtesy of Google, I had soon found their webpage and realised that this was everything I was looking for and more. There was the evening prayer, work for the poor, peace endeavours (the Mozambique Peace accord had been facilitated by this group), ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue and anti-death penalty campaigns. I could not see anything about a South African group on the website, and furthermore, at this stage I was oblivious of the late Archbishop Denis Hurley�s friendship with the group.

I sent a letter to the e-mail address given on the website and within less than a day I had received a reply. Although the Community was already very active in other African countries such as Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania (to name but a few), South Africa only had two tiny fledgling student groups in Gauteng and there was nothing yet in my city, Port Elizabeth.

After much correspondence and a brief meeting with one of the friends of the Community in April of this year (he was in South Africa and came to Port Elizabeth to meet me) I decided to go to Rome and see for myself. I was very hospitably received by members of the community and in the next days I was introduced to the various activities of the Community. There, in the middle of the eternal city, I encountered something which is closer to ubuntu than what I had seen here. Every evening at 20:30, the �main group� of the Community would gather for the evening prayer in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Trastevere (there are also prayers held in approximately 40 venues in Rome alone). The prayer is sung; in addition there is also a reading from the Bible and a short message. At every meeting there is a replica of the icon with the face of our Lord; the original is housed in the little church of Sant�Egidio. The icon is a symbol of community with the other communities that gather worldwide.

I was also shown a number of projects that the Community had undertaken: service to the poor, the sick and the destitute. What was astounding was that there was not merely a remote collection of money or food, but a genuine attempt to befriend the poor and to recognise them as dignified individuals. Poor and homeless people were not treated like the dregs of humanity; they were people with a right to dignity. What also struck me was the fact that no-one saw their work for the poor as a duty, but a privilege and everyone I encountered seemed peaceful and contented.

When I returned to Port Elizabeth I spoke to a few individuals from my parish and some Catholic students at my university about starting a group here in Port Elizabeth. In mid-August, we met for the first time for what has become a weekly prayer in a little chapel made available to us by our Bishop, Michael Coleman. The group had to learn the prayers (I had been given English translations) and it took a few weeks of fluctuating membership for the group to settle into its present membership. We have in the mean time begun to make contact with the poor in the outskirts of Port Elizabeth with a view to assisting with the soup kitchens. We are also in the process of arranging an anti-death penalty campaign for 30 November as part of the Community�s City for Life project.

When I was in Rome I heard of the Naples meeting. After the death of our late Pope John Paul II much was said about the first inter-religious meeting which had been held in Assisi under his auspices. I learnt that the Community of Sant�Egidio has continued this tradition ever since and I started toying with the idea of going to Naples. I contacted my friends in Rome and armed with my South African flag and rudimentary knowledge of the Italian language, I was off to Naples!

It was truly a magnificent experience and I can only mention certain highlights. At the opening mass, celebrated by His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, leaders from various other Christian denominations (Orthodox and Protestant) were present and sat within metres of the Altar. This was the first time that this had happened and it is wonderful to think of Christians uniting and forgetting their doctrinal differences, even if just for a moment. During the opening ceremony and at the various round table discussions, religious leaders of different faiths got together and tried (and succeeded) to find common ground for many global problems, including war, poverty and HIV/AIDS.

At the end of the three days the different religions all prayed for peace at various venues according to their own traditions before uniting on a stage especially erected in the Piazza del Plebiscito. What a sight it was to behold all these people, more than 300, prominent religious leaders from different Christian denominations and world religions, united on one stage to endorse the Appeal for peace.

After the declaration of peace had been signed, children from all nations came forward and were handed copies of the Appeal, which they in turn passed on to ambassadors and authorities from all over the world. All present exchanged an embrace of peace. The dignitaries left the stage and thereafter the crowd spontaneously (and without the presence of any alcohol, I might add!) began dancing and singing for another half and hour. It was truly something to see people of different ages in this unprovoked outburst of joy.

Maybe the best description of this event comes from Andrea Riccardi, the founder of the Community, who in his closing remarks asked whether the notion of a world without violence was a dream. He answered it by saying: �Yes, it is a dream. It is a very beautiful dream: it is a dream about peace. It is a human dream.� He said furthermore that for the faithful �a dream about a world free of violence is not a utopia, but rather an ideal for which they live, fight, pray and work. An ideal which cannot be abandoned!�

Here in South Africa, while the prayer for peace was being held in Rome, the little local groups joined in with the prayer for peace at the weekly meetings, praying not only for peace in the world, but also for our country which is wracked by violent crime at the moment.

Within days of returning home one of my best friends was hijacked and nearly killed, but after Naples I have hope that we can, through prayer and living the Gospel according to the way of the Community, eventually reclaim our beautiful country.

More information about the meeting and prayer for peace can be found on the website of the Community of Sant�Egidio on www.santegidio.org. Information about the activities of the Community in South Africa may be obtained from [email protected]. Information about the prayer in Port Elizabeth may be obtained from [email protected].

Andr� Mukheibir