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Harness the energy of the young – Aug 11


Harness the energy of the young – Aug 11 PDF Print E-mail

Revitalising Catholic Culture and IdentityBy Vernon Khelawan

The pilgrims from Trinidad and Tobago who attended the recent World Youth Day (WYD) in Brazil – and who were most likely able to see Pope Francis up close and personal – have returned home and are all probably on a Jesus ‘high’. This is great. But what next?

Are the various ministries from which these young people were selected ready and willing to make this ‘high’ work for the particular ministry or group – and by extension the Archdiocese?

A suggestion: Why not gather these youngsters, find out about their experiences in that foreign land, find out about the lessons they have brought back and then give them a mission to take their various messages to the wider Church, through seminars, workshops, meetings and roundtable discussions, etc., as a means of pushing ahead with the New Evangelisation.

I am sure the young people will be only too happy to share what they have learnt during their time in Brazil in a way that will be spiritually uplifting to the rest of the Church. And, what better witness than sharing a personal experience!

We have a tendency in our Archdiocese to hide good experiences under the biblical bushel, thus losing the opportunity of having the Church benefit from them.

It is essential that the pilgrims be ‘debriefed’ so that the real value of the journey is not lost.

Our tendency at the level of ministry leadership not to harness the power and energy of experiences like World Youth Day and similar activities hinders the Church in following the Synod mandate of “Revitalising Catholic Culture and Identity”. The reverberating success of the recent Jesus Explosion has not been built upon.

There must be a call to capitalise on these enriching exercises for the benefit of the Archdiocese.

In this Year of Faith, every opportunity must be snatched which can serve to boost the development and expansion of the Church’s drive to make faith more meaningful in Catholic lives in our Archdiocese.