CHRISTUS VIVIT – “Christ is Alive”

Post-Synodal Exhortation to Young People and the Entire People of God

Youth ministry in educational institutions

221. Schools are unquestionably a platform for drawing close to children and young people. Precisely
because they are such privileged places of personal development, the Christian community has
always been concerned to train teachers and administrators, and to found its own schools of various
kinds and levels. In this field of educating the young, the Spirit has raised up countless charisms and
examples of holiness. Yet schools are in urgent need of self-criticism, if we consider the results of
their pastoral outreach, which in many cases focuses on a kind of religious instruction that proves
often incapable of nurturing lasting experiences of faith. Some Catholic schools seem to be structured
only for the sake of self-preservation. Fear of change makes them entrenched and defensive before
the dangers, real or imagined, that any change might bring. A school that becomes a “bunker”,
protecting its students from errors “from without” is a caricature of this tendency. Yet this image
reflects, in a chilling way, what many young people experience when they graduate from certain
educational institutions: an insurmountable disconnect between what they were taught and the world
in which they live. The way they were instructed in religious and moral values did not prepare them to
uphold those values in a world that holds them up to ridicule, nor did they learn ways of praying and
practicing the faith that can be easily sustained amid the fast pace of today’s society. For one of the
greatest joys that any educator can have is to see a student turn into a strong, well-integrated person,
a leader and someone prepared to give.

222. Catholic schools remain essential places for the evangelization of the young. Account should be
taken of a number of guiding principles set forth in Veritatis Gaudium for the renewal and revival of
missionary outreach on the part of schools and universities. These include a fresh experience of the
kerygma, wide-ranging dialogue, inter-disciplinary and cross-disciplinary approaches, the promotion
of a culture of encounter, the urgency of creating networks and an option in favour of those who are
least, those whom society discards.[116] Similarly important is the ability to integrate the knowledge
of head, heart and hands.

223. On the other hand, we cannot separate spiritual from cultural formation. The Church has always
sought to develop ways of providing the young with the best education possible. Nor should she stop
now, for young people have a right to it. “Today, above all, the right to a good education means
protecting wisdom, that is, knowledge that is human and humanizing. All too often we are conditioned
by trivial and fleeting models of life that drive us to pursue success at a low price, discrediting
sacrifice and inculcating the idea that education is not necessary unless it immediately provides
concrete results. No, education makes us raise questions, keeps us from being anesthetized by
banality, and impels us to pursue meaning in life. We need to reclaim our right not to be side-tracked
by the many sirens that nowadays distract from this pursuit. Ulysses, in order not to give in to the
siren song that bewitched his sailors and made them crash against the rocks, tied himself to the mast
of the ship and had his companions plug their ears. Orpheus, on the other hand, did something else
to counter the siren song: he intoned an even more beautiful melody, which enchanted the sirens.
This, then, is your great challenge: to respond to the crippling refrains of cultural consumerism with
thoughtful and firm decisions, with research, knowledge and sharing”.[117]

Areas needing to be developed

224. Many young people have come to appreciate silence and closeness to God. Groups that gather
to adore the Blessed Sacrament or to pray with the word of God have also increased. We should
never underestimate the ability of young people to be open to contemplative prayer. We need only
find the right ways and means to help them embark on this precious experience. When it comes to
worship and prayer, “in many settings, young Catholics are asking for prayer opportunities and
sacramental celebrations capable of speaking to their daily lives through a fresh, authentic and joyful
liturgy”.[118] It is important to make the most of the great moments of the liturgical year, particularly
Holy Week, Pentecost and Christmas. But other festive occasions can provide a welcome break in
their routine and help them experience the joy of faith.

225. Christian service represents a unique opportunity for growth and openness to God’s gifts of faith
and charity. Many young people are attracted by the possibility of helping others, especially children
and the poor. Often this service is the first step to a discovery or rediscovery of life in Christ and the
Church. Many young people grow weary of our programmes of doctrinal and spiritual formation, and
at times demand a chance to be active participants in activities that benefit others.

226. Nor can we overlook the importance of the arts, like theatre, painting, and others. “Music is
particularly important, representing as it does a real environment in which the young are constantly
immersed, as well as a culture and a language capable of arousing emotion and shaping identity. The
language of music also represents a pastoral resource with a particular bearing on the liturgy and its
renewal”.[119] Singing can be a great incentive to young people as they make their way through life.
As Saint Augustine says: “Sing, but continue on your journey. Do not grow lazy, but sing to make the
way more enjoyable. Sing, but keep going... If you make progress, you will continue your journey, but
be sure that your progress is in virtue, true faith and right living. Sing then, but keep walking”.[120]

227. “Equally significant is the emphasis that young people place on sports; the Church should not
underestimate the potential of sports for education and formation, but instead maintain a strong
presence there. The world of sport needs to be helped to overcome some of its problematic aspects,
such as the idolization of champions, subservience to commercial interests and the ideology of
success at any cost”.[121] At the heart of the experience of sport is “joy: the joy of exercising, of being
together, of being alive and rejoicing in the gifts the Creator gives us each day”.[122] Some Fathers of
the Church used the example of the training of athletes to encourage the young to develop their
strength and to overcome idleness and boredom. Saint Basil the Great, writing to young people, used
the effort demanded by athletics to illustrate the value of self-sacrifice as a means of growth in virtue:
“These men endure sufferings beyond number, they use many means to build their strength, they
sweat constantly as they train... in a word, they so discipline themselves that their whole life prior to
the contest is but a preparation for it... How then can we, who have been promised rewards so
wondrous in number and in splendour that no tongue can recount them, even think of winning them if
we do nothing other than spend our lives in leisure and make but half-hearted efforts?”[123]

228. Nature holds a special attraction for many adolescents and young people who recognize our
need to care for the environment. Such is the case with the scouting movement and other groups that
encourage closeness to nature, camping trips, hiking, expeditions and campaigns to improve the
environment. In the spirit of Saint Francis of Assisi, these experiences can be a real initiation into the
school of universal fraternity and contemplative prayer.

229. These and various other opportunities for evangelizing the young should not make us forget that,
despite the changing times and sensibilities of young people, there are gifts of God that never grow
old, for they contain a power transcending all times and places. There is the word of the Lord, ever
living and effective, the nourishing presence of Christ in the Eucharist, and the sacrament of
Reconciliation, which brings us freedom and strength. We can also mention the inexhaustible spiritual
riches preserved by the Church in the witness of her saints and the teaching of the great spiritual
masters. Although we have to respect different stages of growth, and at times need to wait patiently
for the right moment, we cannot fail to invite young people to drink from these wellsprings of new life.
We have no right to deprive them of this great good.

[116] Cf. Apostolic Constitution Veritatis Gaudium (8 December 2017), 4: AAS 110 (2018), 7-8.

[117] Address at the Meeting with Students and Representatives of the Academic World in Piazza San
Domenico, Bologna (1 October 2017): AAS 109 (2017), 1115.

[118] FD 51.

[119] Ibid., 47.

[120]Sermo 256, 3: PL 38, 1193.

[121] FD 47.

[122] Address to a Delegation of the International Special Olympics (16 February 2017): L’Osservatore
Romano, 17 February 2017, 8.

[123] Ad Adolescentes, VIII, 11-12: PG 31, 580.