Common life for charity

Sharing everyday life, being there for each other, don't be afraid to add a seat at the table.
In Milan and its province, dozens of young people have chosen these actions as the basis for their daily lives. In fact, they divide some apartments made available by the diocese of Milan for the Vita comune per la carità project, into groups of three, four or more. “Each of us continues to do her job – explains Greta Piruffo, 27, who lives with five roommates -. When we return home, however, we maintain a style of fraternity, we take care of moments of prayer and reflection among ourselves. In their spare time everyone is engaged in voluntary work and once a week we invite the priest who is accompanying us on this journey to dinner".

The young people who participate in the project usually do not know each other before becoming roommates, Greta underlines, «sharing space and time is beautiful and also tiring, it pushes us to broaden our gaze and not to be withdrawn in on ourselves. For me it is an opportunity to see myself with new eyes.

The diocese of Milan has been proposing this project for some years and the boys and girls who join are more and more numerous. The minimum time of coexistence is one month, but often the young people themselves ask to extend the experience up to a year. The planned voluntary activities take place in the local area and become a way to better understand the social fabric in which one is inserted.
"I'm guiding some churches in Milan, it's an opportunity to meet many people and also listen to their stories," explains Piruffo.

The young people who take part in Vita comune per la charity hope that other people of their age can have an experience like theirs, potentially replicable in any city. "It's a style that allows you to live fully and not just on the surface," concludes Greta.

Chiara Vitali
NP January 2023