3-Minute Catechesis Week 162 – Pope Benedict’s Message to Young People

World Youth Day began twenty-six years ago when Pope John Paul II invited young people to meet with him in Rome to celebrate their faith. On this 30th Sunday in Ordinary Time, we listen to an excerpt from Pope Benedict’s message to the youth of the Church, and to all of us:

“... In thinking of my own youth, I realize that stability and security are not the questions that most occupy the minds of young people (today). True enough, it is important to have a job and thus to have firm ground beneath our feet, yet the years of our youth are also a time when we are seeking to get the most out of life. ... We wanted to discover life itself: to break out into the open, to experience the whole range of human possibilities. I think that, to some extent, this urge to break out of the ordinary is present in every generation.

“... Is this simply an empty dream that fades away as we become older? No! Men and women were created for something great, for infinity. ... The desire for a more meaningful life is a sign that God created us and that we bear His "imprint”.... We reach out for love, joy and peace. So we can see how absurd it is to think that we can truly live by removing God from the picture! God is the source of life. To set God aside is to separate ourselves from that source and, inevitably, to deprive ourselves of fulfillment and joy.

“In some parts of the world, particularly in the West, today's culture tends to exclude God, and to consider faith a purely private issue with no relevance for the life of society. Even though the set of values underpinning society comes from the Gospel - values like the sense of the dignity of the person, of solidarity, of work and of the family - we see a certain "eclipse of God" taking place, a kind of amnesia which … is a denial of the treasure of our faith, a denial that could lead to the loss of our deepest identity.

“For this reason, dear friends, I encourage you to strengthen your faith in God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. … As young people, you are entitled to receive from previous generations solid points of reference to help you to make choices and on which to build your lives …

“Dear young people, the Church depends on you! … Your presence renews, rejuvenates and gives new energy to the Church. That is why World Youth Days are a grace, not only for you, but for the entire People of God.”