The Vatican’s working document for October’s Synod of Bishops on “Young people, the faith and vocational discernment” has been published.
The document is divided into three sections: recognising; interpreting; and choosing with regard to vocation in life.
Young Catholics “want an authentic church”, the document says.
“With this, we would like to express, particularly to the church hierarchy, our request for a transparent, welcoming, honest, attractive, communicative, accessible, joyful and interactive community.”
The first section (recognising) is dedicated to a Church that listens and is open to the realities and challenges young people are faced with today: “religious discrimination, racism, job insecurity, poverty, drug addiction, alcoholism, bullying, sexual exploitation, child pornography and corruption … culture of waste and .. .improper use of new digital technologies …”
The second section (interpreting) focuses on discerning vocations in the light of theological and biblical tradition.
The third section (choosing) indicates the paths of pastoral and missionary conversion. These begins with discernment as a Church that is going out.
The document also includes the views of young Catholics who express disagreement with church teachings, and young gay people. Gender issues are highlighted for attention.
Input into the document came from over 100,000 respondents to a questionnaire sent out to national bishops’ conferences around the world last June.
Other inputs came from the International Seminar on the Condition of Youth held in Rome in September 2017, and the March pre-synodal meeting. Three-hundred young people attended the pre-synodal meeting, while another 15,000 participated online.
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