Review article

Some Indicators of Moral Judgment of the Focolar Movement

Zdravka Leutar ; Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Ana Štambuk ; Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
Stipe Tadić orcid.org/0000-0001-9151-4960 ; Institut of Social Sciences Ivo Pilar, Zagreb, Croatia

Abstract

The Focolare movement belongs to the modern ecclesiastical movements that rehabilitate the personal experience of the lay person. It also belongs to the renewal movements within the Church. Its members are exceptionally ecumenically orientated, foster inter-religious cooperation and dialogue with people of various worldviews. The fundamental characteristic of the work which the movement's members practice is spiritual and social renewal, and the fortification of unity within Church and society. The movement is present in more than 180 countries including Croatia. The second part of this article, involves research based on interviews (among the seven various church movements there were 99 Focolarian members) which sought to examine the proliferation and frequency of personal prayer, the frequency of Bible »The Word of Life« reading, and its influence on attitudes within the movement relating to fundamental moral issues such as: views on people who do them harm, attitudes concerning premarital sexual relations, thoughts on intentional termination of pregnancies (abortion), adultery and marital chastity. Furthermore, the aim was to research the sense of community, ecumenical predisposition, and the degree of social engagement within the movement. The results suggest, firstly, that the proliferation and frequency of prayer and Bible »The Word of Life« reading greatly influences the daily faith of the laypeople, and secondly, that their predisposition for the ecumenical movement and inter-religious dialogue was the direct result of frequent personal prayer and Bible (»The Word of Life«) reading. Members of this movement attribute great importance to membership within the Catholic Church, respect the hierarchical structure of the Church, and are very open concerning ecumenical and inter-religious dialogue, and dialogue with people of various worldviews. Being a Christian for Focolare members equates to loving God and one's neighbour, and through personal action and real social engagement, an opportunity to witness one's mission as a believer.

Keywords

the Focolar movement; spiritual and social renewal; practicing the faith; social engagement; moral attitudes; community

Hrčak ID:

24690

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/24690

Publication date:

7.9.2005.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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