John Bergin

The campaign, brainchild of Bible Society NZ Catholic adviser John Bergin, is a follow up to Pope Francis’ exhortation Christus Vivit, which was based on the results of the 2018 synod on young people, faith and vocational discernment.

“The idea was to specifically help young people discern their calling in life by encouraging them to develop a closer relationship with God through Scripture, and seeking the advice and help on the big issues that they said were impacting on their life,” Mr Bergin said.

He added that it is hoped that the campaign will create a movement which young people, particularly young Catholics, would be quite happy to become part of, and which would help them determine what God’s plans are for their lives.

“Don’t ask your mate. Don’t ask your schoolteacher. Don’t ask your gym instructor. Ask God,” he explained. “And the only way you can do that, really, is to have a relationship with God.”

He said three words were taken from the Pope’s exhortation: listen, decide and act. “Listen to God’s word, decide what you are going to do about it and act, put it into action,” he said.

Mr Bergin said there are four key elements to this campaign. The first is the creation of the Catholic Bible website called The Word (theword.nz).

“It has on it video clips of all the New Zealand bishops, about 30 priests in New Zealand, and a large number of students and young people reflecting on Scriptures in various ways,” he said.

The second element is the establishment of a New Testament text that is accessible to young people – called “Identity Identified: a young person’s guide to life”.

This text will have highlighted passages throughout which address the issues that are impacting young people like bullying, coming from a broken family, sex before marriage, loneliness and suicide.

“It will have Church teachings on those topics as a special inserts throughout the whole book,” he said.

Mr Bergin said New Zealand Bishops Stephen Lowe and Michael Dooley, as well as Cardinal John Dew, are among the many contributors who have written reflections and specific articles on the big issues of life for the new publication.

“The [work] will be submitted to Cardinal [Luis] Tagle, who will be asked to issue an imprimatur for it. A special edition of the finished product will be presented to Pope Francis as Bible Society’s response to his call for young people to listen to God’s Word, decide what to do about it and to take action,” he said.

Along with the bishops of New Zealand, bishops and theologians from Australia, the Philippines, Vietnam, India, Borneo, Indonesia, and Malaysia have contributed articles to the work.

Mr Bergin said the campaign will be rolled out in New Zealand and four other countries in July, 2021, and to four other countries the following year.

The third element in the campaign is the development of a parish project aid “so that young people who want to do a period of time of working through these issues in a group environment can”.

The last element in the campaign is a downloadable app which links to Identity Identified and The Word website. “Once they get the app, they will have a daily reflection available to them on these issues,” Mr Bergin said.

“A lot of young people . . . struggle with issues, and we don’t know about it. It’s easy to say – go and pray about it, go and talk to the saints, go and read the Bible, but that’s not going to cut it for a lot of young people,” he said.

Mr Bergin said Come and Follow Me is Bible Society’s response to the challenge for young people to be more engaged and more enthusiastic about life, through the guidance of the Scriptures, in ways that they can relate to, as well as helping them understand Church teachings on key issues when everything can be confusing and troubling for them.

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by ISABELLA McCAFFERTY

This document as a whole reads almost like a compilation of Pope Francis’ trending quotes from the past seven years. In many places he re-emphasises them in response to the last two years of listening intentionally in the lead-up to and during the synod of bishops. I mean that in the most positive sense, as throughout his pontificate, these words
have been a constant source of encouragement in my own faith journey and have inspired me in my ministry.

It has been interesting to read a document that both speaks to me personally as a young person as well as in my professional world of pastoral ministry in the Church. The first few chapters of the document address young people directly. The second part focuses more on the practical and practitioner approach; to youth ministry, vocation and discernment. I can feel Pope Francis’ desire for young people, for me, to encounter daily the love of God and the living person of Christ. Our Shepherd shows how much he
cares for his people and points us back to what is most essential.

Many of the key themes that have become central to this synodal journey and, indeed, my own experience of this
journey, are certainly reflected in this document. These include the importance of accompaniment, a synodal approach and listening, being able to acknowledge the sociological context in which young people find themselves, focusing on discernment and vocation. Finally, there is always a call to action and renewal on the part of young people and the Church.

A great document, a gift to the Church and a solid acknowledgement of the importance of our young people. But the challenge remains. This document (and indeed all of the work leading up to it) cannot be the closing of the door on the last two years of active listening and journeying with young people. Pope Francis’ final words address young people directly once again, urging us to keep running since “the Church needs your momentum, your intuitions, your faith. We need them!” [CV299] May the Church in Aotearoa make radical room for this momentum to move us forwards.

Here are a few practical suggestions to consider in light of this document and the journey that has brought it here. Some of these I have already been suggesting to those I have discussed these themes with over the past twelve months. As with anything, these suggestions are only a drop in the ocean of what we need to be open to if we are really to see substantial change as a result of this document and what it offers us.

Constantly return to our source — “God’s Word, the Eucharist, the daily presence of Christ and the power of the Spirit in our lives” [CV35] .

Come together — gather young people and the elderly to exchange dreams, with a look to the future [CV192].

Don’t get stuck asking “who am I?” or even “who are we?”, rather be bold enough to ask “for whom am I?” or who are we being called to live for — always our lives must look to the other [CV286].

Risk some time to engage with the document — but don’t let it stop there; be willing to listen, accompany and be moved into action as a result of what you encounter.

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Pope Francis’ message is addressed not only to young people, but also to “the entire People of God”. The Pope says he was “inspired by the wealth of reflections and conversations” that took place during last October’s Synod, on the theme of “Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment”, and he divides his reflections into nine chapters.

Chapter 1: The Word of God and Young People

Pope Francis begins by giving Old Testament examples of how, “in an age when young people were not highly regarded, some texts show that God sees them differently”. Turning to the New Testament, he reminds us that, as far as Jesus was concerned, “age did not establish privileges, and being young did not imply lesser worth or dignity”.

Chapter 2: The Ever-young Jesus

The Pope continues by presenting an eternally young Jesus as the model for a Church that is young “when she is herself”, a Church that “dares to be different”. Pope Francis admits that the figure of Jesus is not always presented in an “attractive and effective way”. On the contrary, he writes, there are young people who consider the Church “a nuisance, an irritant”. They want a Church that “listens”, not one that “condemns”.

Chapter 3: The “Now” of God

Young people are more than “the future of our world”, says Pope Francis: “even now they are helping to enrich it”. Which is why they are not satisfied with “prepackaged answers and ready-made solutions”. The Pope examines a series of challenges, ranging from migration and exploitation, to sexuality, and the pros and cons of living in a digital world. He also addresses the issue of child abuse. “With the help of young people”, he suggests, “this dark moment…can be an opportunity for a reform of epoch-making significance”.

Chapter 4: Three Great Truths

Chapter four of the Exhortation contains what Pope Francis calls Three Great Truths. The first is that “God loves you”, with a love that is more concerned with “reconciling than forbidding…with the future than with the past”. The second is that “Christ saves you”, forgiving us “time and again…bearing us on His shoulders”. The third is that “Christ is alive”, a realization that helps us to “stop complaining, and look to the future”.

Chapter 5: The Age of Choice

Pope Francis describes youth as “the age of choice”, and suggests we should not be “afraid to take chances and make mistakes”. Working for the “common good” and “living the present” are themes the Pope explores in Chapter five, along with a call for young people to be “protagonists of change”, and “courageous missionaries”.

Chapter 6: Young People and the Elderly

In Chapter 6, Pope Francis reminds young people how important it is for them to maintain a relationship with the elderly: “so that we can benefit from their experience”, he writes. The Pope observes how “the old dream dreams and the young see visions… If young people sink roots in those dreams”, he says, “they can peer into the future”.

Chapter 7: Youth Ministry

Youth ministry is the focus of Chapter seven. According to Pope Francis, youth ministry should be “flexible”, an opportunity to “journey together”. Young people are moved by “the grammar of love”, he says”, “not by being preached at”. The Pope stresses the need to identify “new approaches” that are creative and even daring. The arts, sports, and care for the environment”, are all areas of positive pastoral development, he writes.

Chapter 8: Vocation

Responding to our vocation means fostering and developing “all that we are”, says Pope Francis in Chapter eight. This may find expression in Holy Matrimony, he writes, where “true love is passionate” and sexuality has two purposes: “to love and to generate life”. But the Pope also challenges young people to consider “the vocation to special consecration” and not to “dismiss the possibility” of devoting themselves to God.

Chapter 9: Discernment

In the final Chapter of the Exhortation, Pope Francis reminds us that: “Without the wisdom of discernment, we can easily become prey to every passing trend”. A vocation is a gift, but it is also demanding, he writes. In order to enjoy the gifts of God, “we have to be ready to take risks”.

The Pope’s final words in the document are an implicit challenge to take such risks: “Dear young people”, concludes Pope Francis, “my joyful hope is to see you keep running the race before you, outstripping all those who are slow or afraid!”

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