OFFICE FOR SOCIAL MINISTRY
“This is what it means to be a church on the move: unafraid to go out and get involved, even when it might seem that we pour ourselves out, lose ourselves, in going forth to the weak, the neglected, those dwelling at the margins of life.” (Pope Francis in Lithuania, Sept. 23, 2018)
Pope Francis is challenging us now to stop and reflect for a moment on how we all fit in this world together — to see things differently as a “church on the move.” Being a church on the move means to “lose ourselves” for the sake of others, especially the most vulnerable. On his trip last month to the Baltics, our Holy Father underscored this message, a message that will continue to surface at the upcoming Synod on Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment in Rome.
There are almost one billion people on the move in the world today, including persons internally displaced within countries, international migrants and millions of refugees. The majority of them are under the age of 35. Vulnerable youth on the move make up a major portion of the world’s population. How is the church walking with them on their journeys? How can we make them feel at home when they reach our borders or our seashores? Each of these youth has a name and a story — a past to recognize, a present to interpret, and a future to discern. Among many other issues, the synod on youth will address how the church is dealing with this critical issue.
The very existence of vulnerable youth on the move is both a gift and a challenge for Catholics worldwide. As a church on the move, Pope Francis says, we must go to places out “there” on the margins, to accompany the vulnerable where they are and where we are most needed. We also need to be a church that welcomes strangers “here,” where we are, embracing arriving migrants and those in transit, helping them feel at home. Whether “here” at home, or “there” on their journey, each young migrant we welcome represents an opportunity to experience God through the sharing and transformation of our vulnerabilities together.
Vulnerable youth on the move today are living in desperate situations, traumatized by horrific violence, family separation, human trafficking and hopelessness. These youth are asking the synod for the opportunity to “talk story” and share their vulnerabilities with a welcoming church on the move with them. Instead of being victims of the past and present, these youth want to be protagonists of their own future, offering their own special gifts of creativity and culture.
Youth want to amplify their voices, to be heard, to be valued and celebrated, with all their potential and all their desires. It is imperative that we take youth, including young migrants, seriously, embracing their unique cultural backgrounds, collective needs, resources, strengths and even weaknesses. As our church becomes more aware of vulnerable youth on the move, we need to be open to the gifts and challenges new generations bring.
As a church on the move, we must change the way we perceive these vulnerable youth, through thoughtful, non-judgmental listening, and the welcoming of their gifts by the leadership of a caring church building a future in joy and hope.
Pope Francis has called us to work together for transformative change within our churches at the local and global levels. During this critical time in church history, we ask for your prayers and support that the Holy Spirit will guide a productive synod, and that we will be a church on the move in Hawaii, as Bishop Larry Silva always reminds us, witnessing to Jesus.
Mahalo,
Your friends at the Office for Social Ministry
