Scouts of Europe: Monday 1 June
Audience with the Holy Father on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Association
Following the conclusion of its 50th anniversary celebrations on 14 April – which included an online link-up and the renewal of the Promise by all the Groups – the Italian Association of Catholic Guides and Scouts of Europe will gather in the Nervi Hall on the morning of 1 June for a meeting with the Holy Father. Over three thousand people will be present, including Leaders and Assistants from the 183 groups spread across Italy, together with around 360 parents’ representatives.
The meeting will be preceded by a training session, starting at 9.30, led by Lorena Bianchetti, journalist and television presenter. Taking turns on stage to explore Baden Powell’s 4+1 points—the foundation of the Method—will be experts and speakers: Alberto Pellai and Barbara Tamborini, a psychotherapist and educational psychologist respectively, focusing on character; Chiara Amirante, founder of the Nuovi Orizzonti (New Horizons) Community, reflecting on service; Gianni Aureli, a film director, on the importance of manual skills; Costanza Miriano, journalist and writer, to explore the theme of health care and physical strength; and finally Cardinal Matteo Zuppi on education in the faith, which underpins all the other points.
It will be “an important opportunity”, emphasises President Franco Caldato, “to reflect on the journey we have undertaken.” God willing, forever, is the motto chosen for this year: “Let us look ahead, aware of the challenges and opportunities before us, ready to share with renewed commitment the charism we have received, so that it may contribute to building a better world for all.”
“Faced with today’s challenges, the Association is particularly committed to accompanying young people, so that the correct application of the Method—experienced outdoors as a privileged setting for a real adventure—may provide them with fertile ground for a true pedagogy of the faith. At the same time, it renews its focus on the care of leaders, so that each may rediscover their relationship with the Word, the foundation for true discernment”, emphasizes Fr. Stefano Zeni, Assistant General. Among the initiatives underway are Bible Camps, Ignatian Spiritual Exercises, collaboration with family ministry, and in-depth exploration of the themes of affectivity, emotionality and sexuality.
It continues to promote, as is inscribed in its DNA, brotherhood and peace, in Europe and beyond, as evidenced by the accession to the International Union of Guides and Scouts of Europe of associations from Canada, the USA, Mexico and Brazil. In 2023, it promoted and organized a travelling camp for Ukrainian Guides, and this summer too it is encouraging hospitality and the running of twin summer camps with Italian Guide and Scout groups. Every year it relaunches the Eurocamps – twinned camps between units from different nations – and is working on the next Eurojam, which will take place in Carnia, in the municipalities of Ampezzo and Socchieve (UD), from 1 to 9 August 2027. Some 8,500 young people aged between 11 and 16, from 20 nations, are expected to attend. “Real-life experiences”, emphasizes Paolo Bramini, General Commissioner, “not virtual ones, where we come together to build a Europe of peoples”.
“Faced with the fragility of so many families”, adds Manuela Evangelisti, General Commissioner, “one feels the urgency to revive the educational alliance with parents, expressed by their very presence in the Nervi Hall, and, in the face of individualism and conformism, renews its focus on the uniqueness of every person, accompanying them in a real community that recognizes differences, values them, and guides them towards service to others”.
At the end of the Audience, a multi-stage game is planned for leaders and parents from each Group to discover some particularly significant places in Rome, and at 16.00 there will be a Eucharistic celebration at Saint John Lateran, presided over by Fr. Stefano Zeni and concelebrated by the 60 Assistants present.
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The Italian Association of Catholic Guides and Scouts of Europe (part of the European Scout Federation – FSE) was founded in Rome on 14 April 1976.
It currently has 20,132 members in 183 Groups across 61 Dioceses. Its main objective is to contribute to the religious, moral and civic education of young people through the Scout Method, in the spirit of the movement’s founder Lord Baden Powell and in the tradition of Catholic Scouting.
The Association is a member of the International Union of Guides and Scouts of Europe (UIGSE-FSE), founded in 1956 and currently comprising 73,000 members across 27 countries in Europe and America, forming a Scout fraternity that transcends national borders.
ACCREDITATION PROCEDURE
Journalists and media operators who wish to participate must apply, no later than 24 hours before the event, via the Holy See Press Office online accreditation system, at: press.vatican.va/accreditamenti
Laura Galimberti ufficio.stampa@fse.it https://www.fse.it
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