Chiara Lubich (1920-2008) was an internationally known religious leader and writer. For many years, she was president of Focolare, a lay ecclesial movement in the Catholic Church. Lubich was awarded 15 honorary doctorates and numerous awards including the Templeton Prize for Progress of Religion and the UNESCO Peace Prize. She has published 50 books in 39 languages with more than one million copies sold.
In this tiny paperback, Lubich reflects on the many meanings of neighbors in her life and in the Christian scheme of things. Here is a brief sampler of what she says under some of our questions:
• Who is our neighbor?
"Your neighbor is the person next to you in the present moment."
• What does my neighbor have to do with God?
"When we love our neighbor, we notice that our union with God grows."
• What are we supposed to see in our neighbor?
"After God, with God, and in God, our neighbor holds first place in our lives."
• What role does our neighbor play our spiritual quest?
"Each neighbor is like the archway through which we must pass in order to reach God."
• What is a good closing prayer?
"Grant me, my God, to be the tangible sacrament of your Love, of your being Love, your arms that clasp to your heart and consume in your love all the loneliness of this world."
