17/02/2008

Sant'Egidio at 40
Community Stays Close to Its Roots

Gypsies, beggars, the elderly and the disabled were gathered Feb. 1 in Rome's Basilica of St. John Lateran alongside heads of state, politicians, bishops and cardinals.

It was a fitting testimony and tribute to the universality of the Sant'Egidio lay community founded 40 years ago to help the needy, promote dialogue and build peace.

In his address to a full basilica to mark the occasion, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican secretary of state, said the community had shown how to live the Christian life, witnessing faith and hope in Jesus.

"If our little efforts, seemingly impotent in the face of the world's problems, are one with the Kingdom of God, there is no need to fear obstacles, because the victory of the Lord is certain," he said.

Cardinal Bertone noted Sant'Egidio was founded in 1968 during a period of "turbulence and confusion" when humanity wanted to "build a world without God - or worse, against him."

Now, the cardinal said, the seed of Sant'Egidio, "had grown to become a golden tree whose branches today extend to other cities and countries."

This has been achieved "because it has put Christ at the center of everything, invoking prayers," the cardinal said, and consequently is able to "live side by side those living in misery and social marginalization."

Today, the Sant'Egidio community has 50,000 volunteers working in 70 countries. Its outreach is vast for such a relatively small organization, comprising peacemaking, help for the homeless and marginalized, interreligious and ecumenical dialogue, looking after the elderly and caring for HIV/AIDS patients.

It has also campaigned hard against the death penalty, helping to win a U.N. resolution late last year calling for a universal moratorium on capital punishment.

But its most public successes have been in peacemaking. The community - nicknamed "the

U.N. of Trastevere" after the Rome precinct where it was founded has played a key role in resolving a number of conflicts, most notably in Mozambique, Burundi, Guatemala, Liberia, Ivory Coast and Northern Uganda.

Part of its peacemaking success is due to the community's passion for interreligious dialogue, which it has pursued since the first Meeting of Prayer for Peace of World Religions in Assisi in 1986.

Sant'Egidio mediator Mario Giro said that "transporting the spirit of Assisi into the new century" is one of its greatest achievements, resulting in annual meetings of leaders from all major religions. The community has succeeded, Giro believes, because it is "working for peace and living with others at the grassroots level, among different religions and cultures, and so we've managed to create spaces of political dialogue where there is war and unrest."

At the local level, the community organizes public events to dispel perceptions of "others" as enemies or social menaces and other initiatives to integrate marginalized individuals and groups.

Since 2002, Sant'Egidio has also worked to treat AIDS victims in Africa. The community's DREAM project (Drug Resource Enhancement against AIDS and Malnutrition) combines access to free antiretroviral drugs with follow-up and home care.

The DREAM project has been so successful that President Bush made a point of meeting its staff when he visited Rome last June.

Paola Germano, coordinator of the project, said its top priority is to save the lives of women with AIDS. "If you save the woman, you save the family," she said, noting that women in Africa with AIDS often have many children.

"The world talks about orphans in Africa," said Germano. "Our mission is not to increase orphans by trying to help the family."

Despite its global achievements, the community remains close to its roots. Lay members continue to run soup kitchens, provide shelter for the homeless and care for the elderly.

Sant'Egidio is funded by private and corporate donors, as well as government agencies including the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). Almost all the funding goes to the poor and needy, and staff are all unpaid volunteers.

Said Giro, "We don't want to be transformed into an institution or an NGO - we want to maintain this spirit of charity."

Sant'Egidio's chief spokesman Claudio Betti said this approach bore fruit in 2003 when Sant'Egidio was mediating in Liberia.

"The rebels and the government had been stalling for weeks, but when a breakthrough looked imminent, I was called over and had to cut short my holiday in the Dead Sea after only three days," said Betti, who is a university professor.

"But when I arrived, they kept on stalling," Betti said. "So I started getting annoyed and said to them, 'Look, I'm not paid to do this and you've cut short my holiday.' They replied, 'Really? You're not paid?' I told them, 'No:"

Said Betti, "They signed the peace agreement the next day."

Edward Pentin