The Challenge of Dana

Julián Carrón - "It is the blows of reality that cause the gaze to widen and the mind to expand."

Reality has once again dramatically knocked on our door. The DANA shakes us to the core, as it did during the Covid. Such events do not leave us indifferent.

They do not leave us indifferent. Their virulence awakens the most profound questions and "forces us to return to the questions" (Hannah Arendt).

The tragedy of Valencia," Cuartango wrote, "raises questions about the vulnerability of the human condition, our way of life, and the role of chance. We are facing an opportunity to become aware of ourselves, to discover the demand for meaning that makes us ask: "Why? The blows of reality are the ones that cause our vision to expand and our reason to widen. Only those who accept the challenge without seeking to close the wound immediately suffered can seek an answer to the height of their reason.

Faced with something like this, one discovers the path each of us has traveled in life. These days, when I talked with some friends, they told me they were overwhelmed and confused by what had happened. They asked for help in dealing with the situation. I asked them what they had learned with the Covid to face the DANA. Life tests us when it rechallenges us. It is useless to waste time with sterile discussions that distract us and justify our inability to face reality. As Fernando Vallespín pointed out in El País: "One of the great evils of today's world is that we do not know what to do with suffering.

(...) Many ways of finding refuge and consolation have collapsed".

What if this were an opportunity to face this situation of helplessness and be better equipped to face the challenges ahead? Many beliefs that allowed us to face suffering have collapsed. We have realized that they were not sufficiently rooted in us. They have yet to stand the test of time and historical change. As secularization shows, even the great convictions inherited from Christianity have not endured.

This new situation reminds us of Eliot's provocation: "Where is the life we have lost in living / Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowing? If life is not an opportunity to grow and increase our coherence, we will lose it by living. We will become weaker and more helpless in facing the challenges ahead. More knowledge will not increase the indispensable wisdom that makes us the protagonists of our own lives, that allows us not to be at the mercy of a flood. Many things in our existence do not spare us. What counts is whether, in such moments, we acquire greater personal consistency. It is the only proof that we do not lose our lives by living.

What is our contribution as Christians in this new situation? Living as protagonists in the face of the challenges we share with everyone, with reason, without pious flight is possible. The challenge is to bear witness and to show that "faith is rational insofar as it blossoms at the end of the rational dynamic as a flower of grace to which man clings with his freedom" (Giussani). No irrationality escapes. Only in this way will we be able to face challenges as an opportunity for personal growth, to become increasingly mature, and not be paralyzed by fear and the inconsistency of a reduced use of reason. In this way, we can see that Christianity is something humanly comfortable that attracts and challenges freedom.

An experience that stimulates the search for the way to the solidity desired by all. For this reason, secularization is a great opportunity. It does not allow us to take anything for granted. It invites us to return to the source: "What you have inherited from your parents, you must earn to possess it" (Goethe). Christianity will only be interesting if it generates an experience characterized by what Augustine of Hippo called "a winning attraction. It is the same experience that the disciples of Jesus had when admiring the novelty. They said: "Who knows if in our humanity, shaken by the DANA, the desire to follow this novelty will be awakened?
The author has not revised the translation.
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Julián Carrón is a prominent Spanish Catholic priest, theologian, and former Communion and Liberation movement leader. Born on February 25, 1950, Carrón has dedicated his life to religious education and leadership within the Catholic Church.

Carrón's academic career began in Spain, where he taught at several prestigious institutions. He was a professor at the San Dámaso Institute of Theology, Religious Science, and Catechetics, as well as at the Complutense University of Madrid and the San Dámaso Faculty of Theology in Madrid.

In September 2004, Carrón's life took a significant turn when Luigi Giussani, the founder of the Communion and Liberation movement, called him to Milan. Giussani invited Carrón to share in the responsibility of leading the entire movement.. This transition marked the beginning of Carrón's influential role in the organization. Following Giussani's passing, Carrón officially became the leader of the Communion and Liberation movement in March 2005. In this capacity, Pope Benedict XVI received him for the first time in a private audience in August of the same year.

Carrón's influence within the Catholic Church continued to grow. On May 19, 2011, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him a consultant to the newly established Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization. This appointment recognized Carrón's expertise in theological matters and his potential to contribute to the Church's mission of spreading the Gospel in the modern world

In addition to his leadership roles, Carrón has maintained his commitment to academic pursuits. Since the 2004-2005 academic year, he has been a professor of Theology at the Catholic University of Milan, continuing to shape the minds of future religious scholars and leaders.

Carrón has been known for his theological insights and ability to guide the Communion and Liberation movement throughout his career. His leadership style and teachings have significantly impacted the movement's members and the broader Catholic community.

Julián Carrón's life and work exemplify a deep commitment to Catholic theology, education, and leadership. His journey from a Spanish academic to a globally recognized figure in the Catholic Church demonstrates the impact one individual can have on religious thought and organization in the modern era.