United In His Name

Jesus in the Midst in the Experience and Thought of Chiara Lubich

“Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt. 18:20). These words from the Gospel of Matthew, written almost two thousand years ago, have rarely been mentioned after the patristic era. In United in His Name, a spiritual-dogmatic study, Povilus explores this central element of Matthew’s gospel examining the new intuitions that have arisen from Chiara Lubich’s charism of unity. “The greatest witness to the existence of God that we can give the world,” Chiara says, “is that of living in such a way as to have his presence in our midst… It is a return to the spirit of the early Christians.”

Chiara Lubich has been described as the most influential Christian woman alive today. A Templeton Prize winner and recipient of the UNESCO Peace Education prize, she is the founder of the worldwide Focolare Movement. She is a leading figure in world ecumenism and a source of inspiration for millions. Her collaboration on a vast array of issues has been frequently sought by popes, ecumenical leaders and politicians.

Judith Povilus was born in Chicago and has received a doctorate in theology from the Pontifical Lateran University. The author of numerous articles on theology, she currently lives near Rome, Italy, where she is part of the Abba School, an inter-disciplinary study group of the Focolare.