Don’t get discouraged!

“Dear young Catholics, even if you are in a minority in your countries, do not be discouraged!” It is the opening phrase of the message addressed to young Catholics by the Presidents of the Bishops’ Conferences of South-East Europe, convened from 3-6 March in Nicosia (Cyprus). The meeting promoted by CCEE upon the invitation of Msgr. Youssef Soueif, Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus, was attended by seven bishops’ conferences: Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Greece, Romania and the International Bishops’ Conference of Saints Cyril and Methodius, along with the diocese of Chisinau (Moldovan Republic). Also participating in the meeting were Msgr. Antonio Franco, Apostolic Nuncio to Cyprus, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem His Beatitude Fouad Twal, and Msgr. Aldo Giordano, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, as well as a number of experts. As an opportunity of preparation for the next 26th World Youth Day (Madrid, 16-21 August 2011), the basic theme chosen for this meeting was: “Rooted in Christ. Strong in faith. Youth pastoral work in South-east Europe”. At the end of their meeting, in the light of numerous addresses, the participants addressed the following message to young Catholics of the Countries of South-East Europe.We want to encourage you. Dear young Catholics, even if you are in a minority in your countries, do not be discouraged! You are in communion with millions of young Catholics throughout the world. World Youth Day in Madrid, for which some of you are geting ready to particpate in, will be a powerful and encouraging impetus for you all. You are not alone in believing and hoping in Christ. An immense sea of young people hope in Christ, love Christ and trust Christ.We are aware of your problems. Problems about destroyed families, finding stable employment, problems stemming from “the disappearance of the meaning of God” in the society in which you are called to live, problems due to the poor example of some adults. For many of you, there are difficulties stemming from living in a society which for decades has been dominated by totalitarian ideologies and the practical and theoretical atheism which still taint some souls…We trust you. Despite these problems we have immense trust in you, in your innate generosity, in your refusal to conform passively to the fashions of the times, in your sensitivity to the suffering of others, in your sense of justice, the search for peace, in hunger for the truth which characterises you. We know of your desire for inner calm and silence expressed in prolonged prayer. If all this is enhanced, it can be an immense force for the renewal of your communities. You can become the leaven which gives freshness to our tired and sometimes no longer motivated communities.Create relations, be bridge-builders. You live in multi-cultural, multi-religious and multi-ethnic societies. You are called to witness to Christ’s invitation to spread love for all people, irrespective of religion or ideology. We know that for the Christian: “there are no more distinctions between Jew and Greek, slave and free, male and female, but all of you are one in Christ Jesus” (Gal 3:28). You are called to forgive the wrongs that your forefathers have suffered, to overcome with the tenderness of Christ the tragic situations which marked the past. You are called to bring about that which, sometimes, the generation which preceded you was unable to: fraternal dialogue with your peers even those of a different religion or Christian denomination; collaboration for justice and peace. Today more than yesterday you have the capacity to understand other’s reasons. So, your testimony as Christians will also become your missionary commitment in a society where violence and hatred seem to characterise the culture of our time.“Planted and built up in Jesus Christ, firm in the faith”. The inspiring theme of the Madrid World Youth Day constitutes for us, too, your pastors, an urgent appeal: “Planted and built up in Christ”, means to root the whole of your life in the person of Christ. It is about the totality of life and not the partiality of our experiences; it is about the real foundations on which the whole of the life of humanity is based; it is a vision, a choice, an attitude, a life plan, a way of life. The baptised person is called to see in his or her baptism a sign of the person’s belonging to Christ. Here one lives the encounter with Christ the young person who calls young people to follow him and become his disciples and the prophets of his gospel in today’s world. May the Virgin, the Theotokos, the Holy Apostles the founders of this Church in Cyprus, Paul and Barnabas and Saint Maron, the Father of the Maronite Church, protect you and intercede for all our young people.