A challenge for the young to become “more idealistic” and “rediscover the joy of service”: this is the most urgent task that awaits the Irish Church, in which the youth apostolate is still not very popular and the young, in spite of the fact that they have attended Catholic schools for years, reveal widespread religious ignorance. If the parishes were once the traditional vehicle for evangelization, today they are far less so. The volunteer services, too, say those responsible for the youth apostolate, are little developed due to the excessive labour mobility of the young (who often work on weekends or part-time) or due to the fact “that they seem less idealistic than the previous generation”. If the World Youth Days have shown themselves to be “a great blessing” for the Church because “the international dimension is a very positive element”, the urgent need still remains to evangelize the young in such a way that it is they themselves who bring the faith to those in their own age group. Irish youth define themselves as “spiritual” rather than “religious”, something that “has little to do with Christianity and that tends to bring them closer to an indefinite sense of the new age”. They seldom go to Mass, which they find “boring” and “irrelevant”, and express difficulty in accepting the Church’s teachings on sexual morality. That’s why the suggestion is made that churches and centres specifically dedicated to the young be made available. Moreover, in spite of the economic progress of the country, many young people feel “lonely and lost” and are desperately searching for a meaning to their life. The number of young suicides is also alarming. The success of events like the WYD or the pilgrimage of the relics of St. Theresa throughout Ireland, demonstrates that the young, if involved with new formative methods able to communicate the Gospel in a “fresh and direct” manner, are receptive to the proposal of faith. An important role must also be played by the bishop who has the task of being a “good communicator” with the young; he must make them feel his presence and his loving care. ¤
