People make a difference. My missionary experience in many countries has led me to believe that a country is saved by its people. There may be a lot of bad things, but there is also a lot of good: people who quietly move the country forward. But, “Of course,” you will tell me, “there are people and people!” Of course. I am referring to those who have a heart and also a conscience. We tend to be more familiar with the heart than the conscience.
I recently came across this phrase: “Conscience is that little voice that people do not listen to and that is precisely the problem of the world today.” Does it sound familiar to you? It is from the book “The Adventures of Pinocchio” that its author, Carlo Collodi, puts in the mouth of Jiminy Cricket.
Lately, luckily, I have found many people who listen and try to give space to that little voice. One of them is an Italian, Giulia. Someone told her about a boy who was having a very hard time. He had dropped out of school, could not work and had no place to stay. She, her husband and their two children wanted to meet him and after a while they offered him their house to live in. Today, Marco – that’s his name – has a career, a house and a girlfriend. Giulia and her husband will be his best men.
Examples
Another is a friend of mine who welcomed a teenage immigrant into her home a few years ago. Today, this boy is finishing university and then plans to return to his country to help young people like him.
I’m sure you know a lot of people like that too. I think they all have something in common: they put the person at the centre. And I would say that this is something that goes beyond the religious. It is something deeply human that increasingly covers more fields. This year, in Puglia (Italy), the G7 summit took place from 13th to 15th June, and one of the key themes was Artificial Intelligence. Recently, the Italian Prime Minister spoke of AI as the greatest anthropological challenge today. “Our commitment,” she said, “is to ensure that AI is centred on and controlled by humans. It is about keeping the person at the centre and making them the ultimate goal.”
Hopefully these are not just words but people who carry them out with heart and conscience. People make a difference. Which means this involves us all, don’t you think?
Rosario Garrido SEMD
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