María Salto Galdón examines the impact of Pope Francis on young people’s attitude to the Church
Pope Francis: a revolution in our Church nowadays but also in the vast width of our world. ‘The humble Pope’, ‘The Pope of the poor’ that is how the Pope is regarded by everyone. However, are young people today aware of the Pope’s work? Is Pope Francis one of the main role models that young people are willing to follow?
If I was asked to describe Pope Francis, I would not know how to start, but at the same time I don’t know if I would ever be able to stop. He is so open, so humble and so sincere. He is not afraid of expressing what has to change, but on the other hand, he is constantly praising the good deeds done in our society.
There is something about him that makes me feel I have known him since I can remember, and yet, he also holds a great mystery, a profound message that appears through his always jovial face: the mystery of never losing hope and always encouraging us to spread the good news of the Kingdom of God.
I believe that, if I ever have the amazing opportunity of meeting him, it would be like meeting an old friend.
But what is the main message from Pope Francis for my generation? One thing that appears to stand out in his attempt to reach young people today is his invitation to us to not be afraid to “swim against the tide” and to be enthusiastic and tireless bearers of the great message that Jesus brings us – a message of forgiveness, understanding and mercy.
World Youth Day is a major example of the unity of all young Catholics; gathered together with one main goal – proclaiming the glory of God. It is here that the Pope launches his most important messages to our young society, messages to which we have to strongly commit ourselves for a more humane world.
Passive
Although the community of Catholic youth is immense, it seems that a lot of young people are leaving the Church or behaving in a passive and indifferent way towards Christianity. The enormous and extremely dangerous wave of temptations that are propagated by social media, such as external appearance, money, fame and popularity is creating a serious impact on us.
It is sometimes incredibly difficult to “swim against the tide” as Pope Francis encourages us to do. There appears to be a great need to be part of society, to feel ‘included’. Standing out, giving your own opinion or having a different way of living and experience things from a Christian perspective seems totally ridiculous for many young people nowadays.
These outside influences are creating a lack of freedom within the youth, a lack of possibilities to express our beliefs. Pope Francis is extremely aware of this. That is why he is never tired of encouraging us to be brave, to be free and to represent Jesus in our everyday life.
When I asked some of my classmates about their impression of Pope Francis, I got a mixed response. “I don’t really know a lot about the Pope, but I don’t think he helps a lot of other people, [even though] he has a lot of money,” said Eugénie (15). Claire (14) also said she didn’t “really know a lot about the Pope”.
Does this mean that there is a lack of knowledge among young people about Pope Francis?
Misinformation
It appears that some people aren’t aware of the work he is doing, and not even that, but also they receive a lot of misinformation about the Pope and the Church in general.
A lot of people are critical of Catholicism because of the great harm the Church has caused in the past. Pope Francis is aware of this. He recognises that the Church has made mistakes and is determined to heal the wounds.
Fortunately, not everything is going downhill and there is still a flourishing hope among young people and their vision of the Pope is encouraging this. “I think Pope Francis is an inspiration to everyone and I think he is the best Pope there’s ever been,” said Elizabeth (14). “I think Pope Francis is a humble person,” said Carlota (14).
At the same time, do the Irish youth support the Pontiff? As far as I am concerned, Ireland is a country full of faith and engagement with the Church. However, the majority of people who attend Mass and Church events are adults. Perhaps this means that parishes should organise more activities to engage young people in the Church.
On the other hand, the great number of Catholic schools in Ireland is an extremely important factor, as they help to spread the Gospel to students and a positive image of the Pope.
To sum up, I find that Pope Francis has started to inspire young people in our society. I believe that he, with the help of God, will be able to redirect young people into a life of greater freedom, forgiveness and humanity.
*María Salto Galdón is a Transition Year student in Alexandra College in Dublin.