Dear Sisters and Brothers
Today on the feast of Christ the King we celebrate National Youth Sunday. And so it is an opportune moment to reflect upon the importance of youth ministry within our Diocese and to remember with gratitude our young people, without whom we are unable to be fully the Church, the People of God. A question people often ask me about youth ministry is, ‘What difference does it make?’ Sometimes we look around and we don’t see a difference in the number of young people coming to our parishes, we don’t see them at Mass and it can be very difficult to get them to be a part of the life of the Church. Today, I ask that we all, young people and adults, stand together as a visible sign of the face of Christ, an image that is ever new.
Rightly, we look for a means by which we can mark the success of our efforts in Youth Ministry. We witness many of our young people experiencing something like the Diocesan Lourdes Pilgrimage, or a Mission in their school bringing their faith to life. We see some of our young people putting themselves forward for the priesthood who are the product of youth ministry in one or more of its many forms. Some of our teachers too have been inspired by what they themselves experienced as young people growing up in the Church. All of these are good measures of success. However,HoweverH they are only part of the story.
Having responsibility for the spiritual welfare of the young people of our Diocese is a huge privilege. Faith is a precious gift given to each individual. When a young person embarks upon their lifelong journey in faith, the Church has a vital role to play. We must respond to the needs of the young people in our care otherwise there will be no future. The good news is that I see amazing transformations in the lives of our young people all of the time. They are often unspectacular and unnoticed, but nevertheless, they are valuable and important. For example, I think of some young people who, thanks to the ministry of others, experience healing or reconciliation, receive the Sacraments, or hear the Good News for the first time and have their lives transformed in ways which we may never be able to comprehend let alone measure.
Young people today grow up faster and are under more pressure than previous generations. They live in a world where gratification has to be instant, success is measured by wealth and status and time for thought, prayer and privacy is a thing of the past. This is the reality in which Youth Ministry takes place, and, despite all the difficulties, lives are transformed, faith is nurtured; young people begin to understand that they are created by God to be loved by him, while at the same time they are challenged to respond by living a life of faith within the Church. This work is often unspectacular, but offers opportunities to encounter Christ and his Mystical Body, providing space to ask questions and giving time to explore the fullness of the truth and freedom that only faith in Christ Jesus can guarantee.
There is an African Proverb which says that it takes a whole village to raise a child. By the same token, it takes a whole Diocese to minister to its young people. It takes the Education Service, the Youth Service, our schools and parishes, our families, parents, priests, catechists and ministers. No one single person or agency can take the credit for success or the blame for failure. It is the responsibility of us all. Without the effort of all we will be “youth-less”!
Pope Benedict said that without young people the face of the Church is disfigured and incomplete. Today is a moment then to remember all of the young people in our parishes and schools, and recognise that we must value them and invest in them in every circumstance of their lives, for without them we, the Church of this Diocese, are disfigured and incomplete.
MYMission: The Diocesan Youth Mission Team, which I initiated when I first came to the Diocese, is our Diocesan Youth Service. They currently take the Good News to around 20,000 young people each year; this figure becomes even more impressive when you realise that the number of people attending Mass each week across the whole Diocese is certainly less than this! Let us, then, be absolutely certain that youth ministry today is very much part of the work of evangelisation, taking the Good News to those who have yet to hear, explore and deepen their understanding of it.
Working with our young people is not just the work of MYMission alone, we all have a part to play. Youth ministry in the Diocese is a partnership of our parishes, schools and MYMission, the Diocesan Youth Service. Today I ask you to sponsor our Youth Service by your prayer and your resources of time and money. Without our young people this Diocese is disfigured and youth-less, but this is equally true if youth ministry lacks the support of the not so young.
Please do all you can to help provide opportunities and support to our young people as they respond to the love of Jesus Christ so that together we can carry out the Church’s mission in the world. Please make a gift in the second collection which will support the work of MYMission which is the Diocesan Youth Service. Please be generous for we all have our part to play. Without our efforts and support we will be a Church that is youth-less!
Yours in blessed hope
+ Terence Patrick
Bishop of Middlesbrough