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And you, what are your dreams for Youth Ministry in the world?

September 26, 2022

And you, what are your dreams for  Youth Ministry in the world?

With this question and the invitation to pray with n. 6 of the “Calls in Apostolic Action” of the GCVIII, we were called to participate in the first meeting of the International Team for  Youth Ministry, appointed by the General Government, in its quest to promote, as a universal body, this apostolic field of “youth”.

Saturday, 10 September was our first meeting, which does not begin with us but is another step in the process of reflection, discernment, and participation that began in October 2020, to put into practice what we received as a “call” from the last General Congregation, and we saw as mediation of the Holy Spirit to be lived at this time in each and every one of the places where we are present. For this stage, the Superior General has appointed a team, made up of a Daughter of Jesus from each province, directly involved in Pastoral Youth Ministry :

Celina García – Andean America
Teresita Tsai – East Asia
Janaina Pereira – Brazil-Caribbean
Naike Martín – Spain-Italy
María Crystal Bermejo – Indian-Pacific

together with Teresa Li, General Councillor in charge of this field, and Mª del Carmen Jiménez, coordinator of the team. Thanks to virtuality, the journey of Pastoral Youth  is becoming possible, also as a universal body

We began by praying

“Our task is to listen and to discern, to make the way possible, it is Yours, Lord, here we are, you can count on us”.

Graciela Francovig, Superior General, accompanied us in this first meeting to share with us this beginning. We are grateful to her for her availability, her closeness, and her determination to promote this field of youth ministry. In this sense, after listening to us, she shared the following:

“It gives me great joy as a Daughter of Jesus and from the service I now have as Superior General, that there are Daughters of Jesus who are passionate in the field of youth… How good this call has been! Because today young people need accompaniment, closeness, guidance, that we are at their side because there is so much loneliness… That we, Daughters of Jesus, are there, at the side of young people, thank you, Lord, we are already being prophets, sisters, because we accompany them and we do it freely and who knows if we are not saving lives? And in this we are walking together. That’s why from the general level this helps.

There is Teresa, Mª Carmen and now also this team, that there are dreams and then there will be vocations”.

Our starting point

Each one shared her current situation in terms of her main dedication in her sending, and how she sees and dreams of Pastoral ministry for the youth, to be listened to and to walk from there: to meet, to find God’s will, to identify it from listening in the discernment of what each one shares.

After the presentation of the “starting point” of this team, within the process that is being carried out, Mari Carmen presented the proposal for the “International Youth Pastoral Team Project”. We dedicated space of inner listening to welcome it and then we shared our first resonances, which were all of consonance and consolation.

We ended our first meeting by echoing a word that expressed how we felt:

– Celina: AVAILABLE
– Naike: THANKFUL
– Teresita: THANKFUL
– Janaina: HAPPY AND INVOLVED
– Teresa: HOPE
– Crystal: FAMILY
– Graciela: ENCOURAGEMENT AND BODY
– Mª Carmen: OVERWHELMED and THANKFUL

With great enthusiasm and gratitude, we are getting ready for our next meeting which will be on the 3rd of December.

We know that we can count on the prayers and support of the whole Mother Candida Family!

INTERNATIONAL YOUTH PASTORAL TEAM

 

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