Last Updated:Friday - 09/24/2010

World Youth Day opportunities

The 2002 World Youth Day to be held in Toronto holds a bounty of opportunities for the Church in Canada. It behooves us to begin working now so that we might take fullest advantages of those opportunities.

The first opportunity is the obvious one of enabling Catholic and other young people to experience the fullness of life that comes from faith in Jesus Christ. Young people are taught the faith in Catholic schools, worship in our parishes and may be touched by the example of charitable and devout Catholics they meet. These are all of crucial importance in helping someone to become a mature Christian.

But in themselves, they are not enough. The seed of faith will not grow unless it is awakened by experiences of communion, experiences where one comes to know that God cares for each person and that we are united in communion with other Catholics. World Youth Day is not the only way for a person to have such an experience, but it is a particularly intense one and it is one that we are now privileged to offer large numbers of young Canadian Catholics.

The second opportunity is the opening to our parishes and other Catholic communities to offer young people a fuller involvement in the life of those communities. As youth become activated for the event in Toronto, they must also be encouraged to take a larger role in their parishes. Their voices must also be heard and their hands must be given work if the grace of World Youth Day is to last and to flourish. Our parishes can be revitalized by the spirit of youth.

A third opportunity involves World Youth Day itself. May it be a truly Canadian event, forged by and displaying the talents of Canadians. Our Canadian Church still has too much of a colonial mentality, looking south of the border far too often for speakers, musicians, music and ideas for our major events and even parish life. World Youth Day holds out an opportunity for us to shed our branch plant mentality and build upon the creative forces already growing within our borders.

Prior to Pope John Paul's 10-day tour of Canada in 1984, the event was trumpeted as a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Sadly, that's what it turned out to be. It was a glorious 10 days, with saturation media coverage. But when the pope returned to Rome, all of that exuberance had little, if any, lasting effect. Our Church was not revitalized by that event.

The event was not a waste. It gave the pope a platform to proclaim Church teaching. It was a reminder that the Church was not yet dead in the hearts of the people. And it gave us a unique opportunity to celebrate our faith.

Today our situation is much different. The Church is no longer on the way down, but rather starting on the long way back up. New life is being born. Such life is always tentative and fragile. It needs nurturing and support.

One can see that new life primarily in the faces and hearts of young people who don't believe the lies of the pagan culture. They know there is truth and life and many are finding that truth and life in an uncompromising proclamation of the teaching of the Catholic faith. They don't necessarily subscribe to the accretions of faith that were let go at the time of the Second Vatican Council. Nor do they necessarily believe everything the Church teaches. But they want to hear that teaching proclaimed and defended in its fullness. And once they hear it, they will decide for themselves.

World Youth Day 2002 can be their moment, the new springtime for which they have been waiting. But for that to happen, the Church has to speak clearly so that the young people of Canada and the world can hear the truth. A muddled, confused voice will not be heard and a great opportunity will have been wasted. But speaking the truth with clarity and charity will bear great fruit for Canada and the Canadian Church for generations.

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