Chiara Lubich, born Silvia Lubich (Trento, 22 January 1920 – Rocca di Papa, 14 March 2008) spent her entire existence promoting and supporting unity between peoples with conviction. From Trento, since 1943, the Work of Mary has spread throughout the world starting from the ancient Trentino word focolare indicating the heart of the house, where the family gathers around the fire.
Since then the Focolare Movement, in the light of the Gospel, in its message of universal brotherhood, has also found support from people who are not of the Catholic faith and its works have been recognized by numerous organisations, academic, religious and state institutions.
With Gaeta, the Focolare Movement has a very close bond, an authentic and strong bond of friendship and spiritual harmony with the Focolarini priests Don Cosimino Fronzuto, parish priest of the church of San Paolo, and Don Gennaro Avellino, parish priest of the church of the Scalzi, who have carried out intense and fruitful pastoral activity, especially in our city, encouraging the spread of the Movement in the world of the family, young people and children, culture, politics, economics and more. As part of her social and religious commitment, Chiara Lubich also cultivated a love for the city of Gaeta.
This sentiment was expressed several times in his speeches and messages addressed to the members of the Movement also present in the city community involved in social and parish activities. Chiara Lubich is an honorary citizen of Gaeta. The Gaeta city council, in the session of 5 April 2022, on the proposal of the Mayor Cosmo Mitrano, unanimously voted the resolution with which she was awarded honorary citizenship. In recent days a memorandum of understanding has been signed between the Municipality of Gaeta and the Don Cosimino Fronzuto Foundation, an act which also involves the Focolarini Movement of Gaeta for the placing of a stele in honor of Chiara Lubich in Piazza Trieste precisely in proximity to the church of San Paolo Apostolo.
“This is a moment that we have been chasing since 2020, from the centenary of Chiara Lubich’s birth and which due to the pandemic emergency we had not been able to materialize – declares the mayor Cristian Leccese – We have finally signed this act through which, with the support of all our energies, we will achieve an objective that we care a lot about, namely the creation and affixing, and therefore the use for the public, of a stele-monument. This is an important action, not only to recall the memory but also to ensure that our community is increasingly characterized by a Movement that is always active in the area and attentive to the critical issues linked to hardship, of those who have less, of those who have need help and support. And in any case it is a moment of which I am proud and which represents the right spirit of collaboration to carry out beneficial initiatives of high human, social and solidarity value in our territory. Therefore I feel obliged to thank the Don Cosimino Fronzuto Foundation and the Focolarini Movement, our Director of the SEAT Department Pietro D’ Orazio, my staff collaborator Roberta Castini and all the offices that, in various capacities, have committed themselves to the drafting of this act“.
“In thanking those who offered their collaboration to arrive at this significant protocol today I can only express clear satisfaction – adds the President of the Don Cosimino Fronzuto Foundation Davide Piras – We have reached the completion of a journey, from the conferral of honorary citizenship to Chiara Lubich to the protocol for the creation of this stele dedicated to her in Piazza Trieste. The Don Cosimino Fronzuto Foundation is committed to giving support to the Focolare Movement primarily because Don Cosimino was a Focolarino priest, to whom credit must be given for having favored the presence of this Movement in Gaeta and in any case together with Don Gennaro Avellino, of made it take root in our territory. Now we will work to ensure that the stele can be installed as soon as possible“.
