Elizabeth F. Jane
Faith. Nothing is as simple yet complicated and challenging as this five letter word when you are in your 20’s — a decade where your entire core metamorphoses into an unforeseen abyss of doubt, perplexity and struggle between new ideas and traditional values.
As a student I have constantly shuttled back and forth between these opposites. In Sunday Mass I can’t help thinking about Camus and other existential philosophers on my syllabus and wonder if life was really something that is devoid of meaning. I am a part of what Marx calls the “opium of masses’ ‘ yet the rigorous catechism classes that have entrenched my beliefs whispers another voice. When a preacher proclaims “God loves you for who you are ‘’, I see my gay best friend shrivel on the cold wood hoping that the hem of Jesus’ Robe would heal him from his own self.
Dan Brown in one of his books says that Faith is your belief in God and not what man says about God. Though there are so many young people who have a deep spiritual connection with Jesus, their relationship with the Church is severed because of the latter’s failure to adapt to a changing world that now demands inclusivity.
My Catholic upbringing has made me a kinder, compassionate and sensitive human being yet if I had to question if it has made me feel included or accepted at all times, I would think twice. Formation of Faithful Youth can only be possible through what St Francis De Sales remarks, Love and not Constraint.
This brings me back to an enlightening conversation I had with a priest at a time when a retreat I attended imposed upon me sundry regulations that the Church expected of me right from my attire, my behaviour and my way of life.
As I confessed to him my deteriorating faith, he began with the words of St Ignatius of Loyola that says “God freely created us so that we might know, love, and serve him in this life and be happy with him forever.” and added “You wearing a pair of jeans is the least of God’s concerns” I knew that day that as long as I serve God by being as patient and generous as Him, I become a good catholic.
If this brief conversation spurred my faith to deeper realms, I can only imagine the monumental participation the Church would have benefited from the youth, had its Elders and Reformers practiced an expansive and accommodating set of values that would couch diverse identities. I am most times embarrassed when senior parishioners throw looks that indicate moral looseness whenever they encounter a group of college hostelites. The Youth in spite of living off material allowances from their parents or guardians have real and grave problems. Their attempts to mend their severed relationships with the church are further disrupted when they lack agency or discarded from the congregation because of intolerance. Like a spiritual pariah they become the annual Christmas- Easter church goers.
Reflecting deeper on this subject, throughout Roman Catholic History, The Divine has always been most present among the Youth. It was in his spirited age of boyhood Domnic Savio heard the voice of the Lord, Francis of Assis rebuilt a ruined Altar when he was a dashing young Knight. From these instances, it is evident that if the Youth has a space of their own within the Church with a certain level of independence it would not only inspire them to utilize the platform but would further enrich their faith and religious experiences.
Today with endless opportunities, technology and sophistication the Youth must remember to practice faith to distinguish between a blaze and a raging fire. Walking with the Lord inspires peace and wisdom in their lives. The Church in turn must be willing to accept it’s passionate young worshipers as who they are so that they may walk with the Lord, proud and free
(Elizabeth F Jane is from Chennai and is majoring in English Literature at Stella Maris College, Chennai. She loves to read and write and hopes to become a journalist in the future.)
