Mariapolis gatherings: unique opportunities to live the Gospel in community

By Kiki Hayden, OSV News

(OSV News) -- Marie Anne Torres attended her first Mariapolis retreat as a child in the early 2000s in Toronto. "At the Mariapolises, it's really impactful because you'll find people who are just so ready to love," she told OSV News, from people helping in the kitchen to "people who are just willing to share if you need a sweater."

A Mariapolis is a retreat hosted by the Focolare movement. Called the "Work of Mary," the Focolare movement was founded during World War II by Chiara Lubich, now a "Servant of God." Each year, the Focolare host various Mariapolis gatherings around the world.

Every Mariapolis includes Mass and confessions, learning sessions and opportunities to practice what the Focolare call "the Art of Loving." At each Mariapolis, members of the Focolare movement share their experiences living the Gospel, leaving attendees with actionable ways to encounter Christ in daily life.

Torres considers each Mariapolis to be "a one-year check-in." This year, she plans to attend the Mariapolis in Quebec from Aug. 17-20, whose theme is "God, Where Are You?"

At a Mariapolis, attendees encounter families, priests, consecrated religious, and young adults. "It's a moment of communion with everyone," explained Torres.

Margaret Edozie, a student at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, encountered the Focolare movement through the vocations office of the Archdiocese of Houston-Galveston. Edozie was attracted to the Focolare's "Art of Loving," a guide to living the Gospel in concrete ways. The "Art of Loving" includes principles such as "Be the first to love" (instead of waiting for someone else to love you first) and "Love your enemy" (instead of loving only those who agree with you). The Focolare "preach the Gospel," Edozie told OSV News, "and they live it too."

Edozie was invited to present about the "Art of Loving" at her very first Mariapolis -- a "Vacation Mariapolis" in Galveston, Texas, this past Memorial day weekend.

"To be surrounded with the Art of Loving 24/7," said Edozie, "that was super radical." During the Mariapolis, one of Edozie's friends complimented someone's T-shirt, and the wearer helped find identical T-shirts for Edozie and her friends, even offering his own to ensure everyone got the right size.

Betsy Dugas, a Focolarina (consecrated lay woman) in Houston, ministered to the 4- to 8-year-olds at the Galveston Vacation Mariapolis. In the life-size board game "Our Journey to Heaven," the children performed acts of love to move forward on the game board. The game was so popular the children asked to play it again.

Dugas encourages parents to consider themselves "part of a bigger family" at a Mariapolis. "Somebody will help with the stroller, somebody will help get the kids a meal. … It's just like a multiplication of your family."

Susan O'Gara, a "Volunteer of God" within the Focolare movement, experienced this spirit of inclusion when she and her son attended their first Mariapolis in Ireland about 40 years ago. A young widow working as a speech-language pathologist in Dublin, O'Gara learned about the Mariapolis from a co-worker. "I just felt so accepted and so loved there," she told OSV News.

O'Gara has attended Mariapolis gatherings in Ireland, Canada, New York, California and around the United States. She arranges her travel plans in the hope of attending a Mariapolis each year.

This year, O'Gara plans to attend the upcoming Mariapolis in Atlanta, whose theme is "Encountering God: the joy of deepening our interior life." From Sept. 2-4 at Immaculate Heart of Mary Catholic Church, learning sessions will include lessons about Jesus' prayer, the power of prayer in moments of suffering, and a presentation by Muslim attendees about prayer in Islam. As with all Mariapolis gatherings, there will be confessions and Mass.

"There's gonna be a lot of opportunities to see these things with new eyes," said Ada "Radi" Alonso, a Volunteer of God on the planning committee for this year's Atlanta Mariapolis. "Loving our neighbors the way they are, and seeing that we can all be really one."

Alonso is no stranger to the transformative experience of Mariapolis gatherings -- she attended her first at 7 years old. "I've experienced people that have been away from the church coming back to the church after many years," she said, "via Mariapolises."

Nick Cianfarani, a Focolarino (consecrated lay man), told OSV News that "the Mariapolis, 'City of Mary,' is a life changing experience that opened my eyes to a world where unity among people of different backgrounds, creeds, and faiths gather together in a spirit of brotherly and sisterly love. I've been attending Mariapolis gatherings since I was 12 and have been doing so for the past 50 years. It's an indescribable experience that can only be understood by being there."

At Mariapolis gatherings, Focolare members share how they live the Gospel in their daily lives. "I love the experiences," said JoAnn Rowley, a Volunteer of God living in Allen, Texas. She attended her first Mariapolis in 1979 in Las Vegas with her husband and their 6-week-old son.

At that Mariapolis, Rowley encountered a bishop in line for lunch. The bishop shared how he had recently been resting on his day off, when he heard someone at his door. He was tempted to ignore the visitor and keep resting, but then he realized this was an opportunity to practice living the Gospel. So the bishop answered the door.

From that moment on, "when the doorbell would ring, that would come to mind," said Rowley. "It's funny how these experiences, you can just put 'em in your pocket, because you know that you might find yourself in that same position."

Rowley described Mariapolis gatherings as an opportunity to "stretch ourselves, stretch our souls, stretch our love, stretch our way of looking at life in a way that will bring God closer to us." At a Mariapolis, "you're attracted to Jesus in the midst, and he's the one that ties us all together like a beautiful bouquet."