Young Catholics participate in the St. Damien feast day celebration and liturgy at the Neal S. Blaisdell Center in 2014. (HCH file photos by Darlene J.M. Dela Cruz)
Struggles, sanctity and ‘something more’ define today’s young Catholics, say visiting speakers
This article is the third in a four-part series highlighting speakers and perspectives to be shared at the Damien and Marianne Catholic Conference. In the next Hawaii Catholic Herald issue, DMCC speakers Dr. Edward Sri and Dewitt Jones will share their insights. Congregation of St. Joseph Sister Helen Prejean, who was originally slated to be the DMCC keynote presenter and the subject of the next article, is unable to attend the conference.
By Darlene J.M. Dela Cruz
Hawaii Catholic Herald
At the Damien and Marianne Catholic Conference, Oct. 20-22 at the Hawaii Convention Center in Honolulu, there will be activities for people of all ages to celebrate the faith.
The conference’s first two evenings feature special praise and worship concerts for Hawaii’s youth and young adults.
Local Catholic bands will rock the house Oct. 20. The “Ohana Means Family” concert, Oct. 21, will feature Paul J. Kim and Jaclyn Francois Angel, Catholic speakers from California who infuse music, beatboxing, humor and more into their ministries.
Kim and Angel work internationally to help young Catholics in their journeys with Christ. Kim has a background in theology, philosophy and marriage and family therapy. Angel has been involved in youth ministry since she graduated high school, and she now travels the globe speaking about God’s love.
They enjoy coming to Hawaii, and are looking forward to the Damien and Marianne Catholic Conference.
The Hawaii Catholic Herald caught up with Kim and Angel by email and asked for their insights about today’s young faithful. The next generation of ministry, they said, inspires them as much as they hope to inspire it.
They will be performing together Oct. 21 at the conference in the “Ohana Means Family” concert, an event with comedy, worship music and prayer.
J.a.M. time! (J.a.M. = “Jesus and Me”) Jaclyn Francois Angel and Paul J. Kim will be emcees at a concert featuring local youth and young adult bands at the Damien and Marianne Catholic Conference, Oct. 20 at 8 p.m.
Hawaii Catholic Herald: What inspired you to become a speaker?
Jaclyn Francois Angel: When I was 18, God turned my life upside-down at a youth conference. I fell in love with God, my Catholic faith, the Eucharist and Our Lady. In 2006, Oregon Catholic Press/Spirit & Song asked me to be a recording artist for them, and through discernment and great spiritual mentors, I realized God was calling me to do full-time ministry as a worship leader and speaker.
Paul J. Kim: As a young person, I went to Mass primarily for the girls and donuts. Eventually, I encountered and met the person of Jesus Christ during a summer youth conference. Though seeds were planted, they didn’t really bear fruit in my life until I went to college. I transferred to Franciscan University of Steubenville, grew in my formation and even discerned with a religious order. I moved back home to California and was led to begin giving presentations and talks on my experience of God’s merciful love to youth in my local diocese. Having become a speaker was really just a natural response to meeting Christ, who is love and mercy itself.
HCH: What topics do you like to share and discuss with young Catholics?
JFA: I love sharing about being on fire for our faith — how we are not called to be the “frozen chosen” or just some zombies who go through the motions of being “Catholic,” but that God calls us to be fully alive and free! I also love sharing St. John Paul II’s “Theology of the Body” and integrating that into how we are called to authentically love and be a “gift of self” in our romantic relationships and friendships.
HCH: In your meetings with Catholic youth and young adults around the world, have you found any recurring concerns about faith or the church?
PJK: The great thing about the Catholic faith is that it is universally relevant to every human being on the earth. The challenge is communicating it in such a way that the listener can truly hear, receive, and by the grace of God, accept the Good News presented. The concerns that I hear among youth and young adults nationally and internationally also take on a universal element: Why is the Catholic faith important or relevant in my life? Why does the church hold fast to “controversial” stances in regards to hot-button moral issues in our culture? Does God have a plan for my life, and what is my vocation?
HCH: What characteristics about young Catholics today inspire you most?
JFA: I love the desire for “something more” that I see within Catholic youth and young adults. In turning to their faith, they long to know, love and serve God with all their heart, mind and soul, and I see this passion to be a light to a world that is in need of love, faith and hope.
HCH: Have you gotten a good feel of what the Catholic community in Hawaii is like?
PJK: Hawaii holds a very special place in my heart. I’d like to think that the kamaaina discount would apply to me wherever I go on the Islands. I am blessed with Catholic ohana on Oahu, Big Island and Kauai, and their aloha spirit has made my family and I feel so welcome and at home. I respect and appreciate the ohana, the culture and the legacy that Sts. Damien and Marianne blessed the church with by their witness.
HCH: What advice would you give Hawaii’s young Catholics for living out their faith?
JFA: My advice would be what Jesus said to do: seek, ask and knock. Seek God and you will find him — in the Eucharist and reconciliation, in the bible, in spiritual books, in a good community of believers. Ask questions that you may have about tough issues you may be struggling to understand. Knock on the door of God’s heart in prayer, and he will always answer.
PJK: Even though Hawaii is considered by some to be paradise on earth, we know that true paradise doesn’t exist on this side of eternity. There are unique struggles that people face on the Islands, in their communities and even within their homes.
Like Father Damien and Mother Marianne, we are all invited to find strength in the Eucharist, healing in Confession, guidance in daily prayer and fulfillment in serving Christ in all of those that we meet.
Damien & Marianne Catholic Conference: Oct. 20-22, 2017 • Hawaii Convention Center • https://www.dmcchawaii.org
