Tag: Unity

Encanto – Unity

Published on by KateLeave a comment

We come to the conclusion of the Encanto Series and can finally answer the most pressing question of the movie, “What is Mirabel’s gift?” Being that this is a Catholic blog and is the lens through which I try to view the world, my take on Mirabel’s gift comes from a Christocentric place.

There are a few names you could give to Mirabel’s gift once the film is finished. She helps to heal the wounded relationships between the family members, making her a Healer. She also is unafraid to speak truth to Abuela about the harmful pressure she has put on the family, making her a Truth Teller or in Biblical terms, a Prophet. It is Mirabel who places the doorknob on the rebuilt Casita, bringing it back to life, making her a Life Giver.

I would like to take all of these facets of Mirabel’s gift and bring them under one theme – Unity. I’ve been learning more about unity lately and it seems Mirabel was tapped into it in a special way. It is Mirabel who has a heightened sense of the disunity happening within the Casa Madrigal. She sees it first in the cracks forming on the walls and then within the family itself – there’s the Bruno ban, Luisa’s insecurity, Isabela’s sacrifice, Pepa’s anxiety, etc.

Our first indication that Mirabel has a heightened sensitivity to familial relationships comes in her conversations with Antonio before he receives his gift. You would expect a 5 year old to turn to his mom, dad, or perhaps an older sibling with his fears about receiving his gift. But he looks to Mirabel instead and she’s the one he needs by his side when he approaches the door. The movie does a good job showing how painful this moment is for Mirabel as it brings into sharp relief everything that went wrong for her. Instead of refusing to participate, she places Antonio before herself and is there to support him in a way no one else is.

Mirabel seems to have a unique relationship with Luisa as well. Again, Mirabel is the one confided in when Luisa feels her power fading. Luisa’s admission is something she would never have said aloud to anyone else. With Mirabel, she can be her true self.

When she finds Bruno, she draws him out of hiding and back into the family. He is reluctant at first but is encouraged by Mirabel’s strength and perseverance to set things right. After learning about Bruno’s vision, she sets out to find a way to embrace Isabela. I think it’s interesting to note than while Mirabel is able to see the cracks and problems in the Casita, she isn’t able to affect any changes until she first fixes her relationship with Isabela.

What does all of this have to do with unity? As I mentioned, I’ve been spending more time pondering what unity looks like. Specifically, I’ve been beginning to dig deeper into the Focolare Spirituality, of which the reality of unity is central.

Chiara Lubich, the founder of the movement, discovered the desire for unity in Jesus’ final prayer in John 17:21 – “May they all be one.” She was inspired by the Holy Spirit to make Jesus’ prayer a living reality. She strove to make herself one with everyone she encountered. How, you may ask? Chiara understood that if God is Love, and in God we find our true selves, then we need to strive to live every action in that Love. Chiara explains:

Christ is love and a Christian must be love. Live generates communion: communion as the basis of the Christian life and as its summit. In this communion a person no longer goes to goes alone, but travels in company. This is a fact of incomparable beauty that makes our soul repeat the words of Scripture, ‘How very good and pleasant it is when kindred lives together in unity!’ (Ps 133:1)”

Chiara Lubich, No Thorn Without a Rose, pg. 33.

How beautiful! I find this really describes the reality Mirabel brings to life in her family. When we strive to love someone as God loves them, we seek what is best for them. We speaks truth to them, even when it is difficult to say or hear. We desire for them to be whole, to help repair what is broken, to encourage the full flourishing of their lives. There isn’t room for pressure to perform or for unrealistic expectations. When we love as God loves, when we allow ourselves to be transformed in love by Love, communion between people springs forth.

I do hope you’ve enjoyed this series on Encanto. It has brought about fruitful conversations in my own life and I hope in yours as well. Looking forward, I truly do feel myself being drawn more closely to the Focolare movement and am feeling inspired to continue sharing more about the journey with you here. I’m planning to do another series, perhaps starting in mid-to-end of June, which will go through what the Focolare call the Aspects of the movement, or more colloquially, the Colors. It is how the movement practically comes alive in an individual’s life. I’ll be sharing how I’m seeing these colors shimmer in my own daily ordinary.

I’d love to hear what you thought of the series and if you like this more scheduled approach to things. I’m curious! Peace my friend, May your summer be full of sunshine and peace.

Daily Advent Prayer Experiences for 2016 by DailyGraces.net

December 22, 2016 – Unity

Published on by KateLeave a comment

O King of all nations and keystone of the Church:
come and save man, whom you formed from the dust!

Today’s antiphon is particularly insightful for our world today. We are recognizing that Jesus is King of all nations. He is not king over some nations or peoples. Nor is He king over a special selection of people, particularly those who agree with our understanding of Jesus or our worldly perspective. If we are to shout this antiphon as it is intended (today even gets an exclamation point at the end of it), then we are recognizing the universality of Jesus as King of all nations, of all peoples.

This antiphon was especially important for the early Church because of the divide that existed between the Jewish people and the Gentiles (basically everyone who wasn’t a Jew). There were many laws and customs that restricted or even forbid contact between the two groups, mostly imposed by the Jewish side of the equation. If Jesus is King of all nations, then that means that He is King over Jew and Gentile alike.

Think of our world today, particularly the political tensions that have arisen in America yes, but many other countries as well. Consider Syria and other war-torn countries where the mentality of “us vs. them” is literally killing people of every age every single day. Today’s antiphon reminds us that Jesus is both King and keystone, or cornerstone. Jesus is the King of unity. This unity is foundational, the cornerstone, of the Church. As members of Christ’s Church, this unity is supposed to course through our veins. We are called to see one another as men and women uniquely and specifically formed by God. There is no room for “us vs. them” when we recognize and love one another as images of God.

*** Please feel free to share your experience, thoughts and offer support to one another in the comments, on Twitter with the #DailyGraces or on the Facebook page. Daily Graces. kktaliaferro.wordpress.com

Advent Reflections – December 23, 2015

Published on by KateLeave a comment

Living in Harmony: Real Life

Living in harmony and unity grows out of the cultivation of a few habits. Really, living in harmony and unity, within ourselves, with others, and with God could be concluded to be our main goal in life. After all, Jesus’ final prayer, according to the Gospel of John, was

That they all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they may also be in us. John 17:21

Jesus’ final prayer is about our unity, both with God and with one another. You can be sure that if this is a desire of Jesus, it is a desire of Mary, our Mother, whose purpose is always to concretely bring us into greater unity with her Son. In a way, each of the themes we have reflected on this Advent season pave the way for unity.

  1. Open to Life – we cannot find harmony and unity with others if we are not open to experiencing their life, no matter how different it is from our own. No only must we be open to it, we must find a way to reach common ground when our differing experiences cause us to view one another in suspicious, concerning or even hostile lights.
  2. Able to Love without Requiring Love in Return – we cannot find harmony and unity with others if we are not willing to be the first to love, to be the first to extend a hand of friendship. Being willing to love without requiring or needing love in return means making ourselves vulnerable and humble. We love not because someone else acted toward us in kindness, generosity, respect, or love first, but because we have been created in the image and likeness of Love Itself. We love because God loved us first, unconditionally and completely (cf. 1 John 4:19).
  3. Willing to Sacrifice for Others – we cannot experience harmony and unity with others if we are not willing to give up something of ourselves for the sake of the other. The gift of perfect love, of perfect unity, is Jesus on the cross, giving His whole self for the sake of our broken, imperfect, yet beautiful selves. If we are to live out Jesus’ call for unity, we can expect nothing less to be demanded of us. The more we die to self, the more we allow God to move and shape our lives, the greater and more perfect unity we will experience.
  4. Capable of Forgiveness – we cannot experience harmony and unity with others if we are not willing to seek and extend forgiveness. We are no longer the perfect creatures from the garden. We are broken. We are sinful. We are in need of mercy. These are not sentiments. They are facts. If we wish to find true harmony with one another and with God, we must accept the fact that we will need to become the living embodiment of forgiveness – quick to forgive and quick to seek forgiveness.

The beauty of Jesus’ final prayer is that even before He prayed it, He had prepared for us a practical, living example of how to bring it to fruition. The example of Mary’s Motherhood shines forth for each person, illuminating key moments which, when gathered together, present a path for holiness, for peace, and for unity among all peoples and most importantly, unity with her Son, Jesus our Savior.