\u201cDestiny didn\u2019t leave man alone, from Abraham through Mary, up to each one of us, to fulfil His covenant. The common theme of all testimonies is found in Pope Francis\u2019 words indicating the direction towards the existential edges.\u201d These were the opening words with which Letizia Bardazzi, President of the Italian Cultural Centres Association, began the session (held today at 3 pm in Room D5), the first of four, dedicated to the witnesses from the outskirts, which will be held throughout the week.
\nTheme of this first session is illness: a condition that can be lived with intensity, but which often sidelines people. However, one has the need to not turn away from reality, when one is moved by the desire to see how God answers one\u2019s heart. Dr. Marta Scorsetti, Head of Radiotherapy at Humanitas Cancer Center in Milan, moved the audience by recounting several episodes in her professional career, which have been defined by her relationship with Christ. \u201cI\u2019m the first \u2018lost cause\u2019 encountered by God\u201d says Dr. Scorsetti, while identifying three crucial foundations in her relationship with the other and the divine. The first one is \u201clet yourself be loved by Christ,\u201d because \u201cyou can\u2019t give what you don\u2019t have.\u201d \u201cThere is always someone\u2026\u201d is the second one. Someone \u201cwho remains with you, waits for you and never leaves you alone, because when someone is waiting for you, life becomes something different.\u201d Human beings are by nature characterized by desire; therefore, illness cannot impede one\u2019s desire to be happy. To the contrary: \u201cIf illness cannot prevent one from desiring, it cannot prevent one from living [\u2026] Life is a journey\u201d \u2013 Dr. Scorsetti concludes by describing her third foundation \u2013 \u201cas a clear awareness of one\u2019s destiny, which is not fulfilled only if one is healthy or sick, but only in one\u2019s journey towards God. Each day is a step towards one\u2019s destiny and we can do nothing but accept it: God comes and everything is fulfilled. Death is not the end of everything, but one\u2019s call to a new life. One\u2019s value doesn\u2019t hinge on one\u2019s health.\u201d
\nThe other panelist is Gerald Mahon (a.k.a. Fr. Gerry), the Pastor of the Church of St. John the Evangelist in Rochester, USA. He begins his talk by saying: \u201cI want to live on the outskirts, where Christ makes himself present [\u2026] A shy faith and fear often prevented me from living several experiences, but when I met Fr. Giussani, my humanity awoke. The gift of his charism changed my life and my faith and my journey has been marked by new beginnings, beyond my own imagination [\u2026] Destiny didn\u2019t leave man alone\u201d \u2013 Fr. Gerry continues, quoting the title of the Meeting. \u201cI was looking for something and Fr. Giussani\u2019s embrace arrived precisely during that period.\u201d Fr. Gerry concludes his contribution by quoting the founder of Communion & Liberation once again: \u201cNothing, in the world, can justify our interruption of the memory of Christ.\u201d Letizia Bardazzi, closed the session by thanking the panelists and greeting the public, and reminding us of the meaning of the expression \u2018memory of Christ\u2019: \u201cLife doesn\u2019t consist of what we do, but rather in looking at what God does in our lives.\u201d
\n(C.R., L.T.)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cDestiny didn\u2019t leave man alone, from Abraham through Mary, up to each one of us, to fulfil His covenant. The common theme of all testimonies is found in Pope Francis\u2019 … <\/p>\n