International Youth Forum discusses globalization and Fraternity

In a world that connects and develops faster and faster in terms of technology, globalization is a well-known fact. But despite so much progress, ideas that promote exclusivism and inequality have also reached a global level. In order to contribute towards urgently changing this scenario, young people from all over the world will get together for another edition of the Legion of Good Will’s (LBV) International Forum of the Ecumenical Protagonist Youth of the Good Will of God.

Vivian R. Ferreira

The proposal for a better world that guides the event is the expressive and internationally recognized banner of the President of the LBV Paiva Netto: the Globalization of Fraternal Love. The author, who is also the leader of the LBV’s Youth Movement, sent the proposition to the United Nations in 2007 in the article “Eight Millennium Goals — Responsibility of all those endowed with common sense”, defending the revolutionary action of Fraternity as an indispensable factor for progress towards the eradication of so many social ills: “To combat the globalization of poverty, we counterpose the globalization of Brotherhood, which spiritualizes and ennobles the Economy and disciplines it in a solidary way, as a strong instrument for reacting to the pseudofatalism of poverty.” 

The theme of the 39th edition of the International Forum of the Ecumenical Protagonist Youth of the Good Will of God was chosen by the young people themselves: “Globalization of Fraternal Love — Building a Better World”. Throughout the year the LBV’s Protagonist Youth developed many activities, which exemplify their protagonism in favor of a fair and solidary world. Among them were: ecumenical meetings and studies; social and environmental actions; artistic and cultural events; and communication campaigns. All of them were carried out from the perspective of all-encompassing Ecumenical Spirituality*.

Also part of this series of activities are the Spiritual and Cultural Rounds, which were held this year on May 4 in many regions of the world. On the conclusion of the Forum, June 21, 2014, the LBV’s International Music Festival will be held and Paiva Netto will lead the solemn session via satellite. The concluding event will take place simultaneously in all the Ecumenical Churches of the Religion of God, of the Christ, and of the Holy Spirit worldwide. 

You can check out soon the news and photos of the event on the Good Will Portal website: www.boavontade.com. For further information, write to english@boavontade.com.

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*Ecumenical Spirituality — This banner of the Legion of Good Will is present in all its socio-educational actions, because it is understood as “the cradle of the most generous values that are ​​born of the Soul; the dwelling of the emotions and of the reasoning enlightened by intuition; the atmosphere that embraces everything that transcends the ordinary field of matter and comes from the elevated human sensitivity, such as Truth, Mercy, Morals, Ethics, Honesty, and Brotherly Love.” Extract taken from the book É Urgente Reeducar! [It is Urgent to Re-educate!], which is the fundament of the LBV’s educational proposal, written by educator Paiva Netto, the author of various best-sellers who has sold more than 4.7 million books in Brazil and abroad.