“I think young people will come if they realise that it is an event that will take
a very important place in their lives and that they won’t be the same after”, says
Belgian native Francois-David Freschi. No, he's not talking about World Youth Day,
he's talking about the oldest global gathering of Catholics, the International Eucharistic
Congress, which is taking place in Dublin, Ireland in June.
And this young
Belgian lay man is tasked with a difficult job. He is , Youth Officer, in charge of
mobilising participation at the Congress among the 17 – 25 age group. This is a challenge
in the Irish Catholic Church of today that has lost one if not two generations. In
fact, Dublin Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has often said that his greatest pastoral
concern is the “rift between the Church and young people”.
This, he says,
is why the Irish Church is targeting the young. For the first time ever in the history
of International Eucharistic Congresses (Dublin marks the 50th), and in one of the
‘most ambitious youth ministry programmes ever presented’ in the country (according
to the Irish Bishops), there will be a specific programme geared towards young people
who feel distanced from the Church, run by young people active in the Church. A peer
to peer New Evangelisation that will take place in tandem with the Congress itself,
from June 10-17.
The programme is simply called ‘Go! Be Church!’. Listen
to Emer McCarthy’s full interview with Francois-David Freschi:
“We believe
that Jesus Christ, through his Holy Spirit wants to tell them ‘I have something that
I want for you, I have a project of love for you’” – continues Francois-David – “and
the fact of coming to the Congress would really help them live a specific, strong
joyful and intense experience that they would never forget”.
“We have a full
programme with interactive catechesis, work shops, sharing groups, testimonies, liturgies
as well as dramas and concerts. We will also have specific prayer like the Taize
prayer in the presence of Br. Alois and other brothers from the Taize community, and
we have an evening dedicated to reconciliation, followed by Eucharistic Adoration.
This shows the will of the Congress to target specifically young people and to tell
them you are part of the Church and your role is important”.
Q: This is
also part of the new evangelisation…
“We are hoping that every parish in
Ireland will send at least one young person to represent them in the IEC2012 Chiara
Luce Youth Space. The Church in Ireland needs young people and the Congress is a fantastic
opportunity for young adults to explore and celebrate their faith. At the end of the
week, young people will be missioned to go back to their parishes to begin local faith
programmes”.
Q: But another important aspect perhaps, is for young Irish
people to realise they are not alone in struggling through life and struggling with
their faith and this is why the participation of young people from other countries
is so important. How are you going about attracting other young Catholics from abroad
to Dublin?”
“In Belgium, one of our Archbishops once said ‘a Christian
alone is a Christian in danger’ and that is very important. This aspect of the gathering,
a Congress is a gathering, and this gathering is not only for Irish people but for
people from every country in the world”. I think that the Church is a universal adventure,
people gathering from every country. In doing this we can gather the Church, we can
rebuild the Church and like our programme for the Congress says, go and be Church
with Christ and one another. Here we have the opportunity to live this in an international
way!”.
The IEC2012 Youth Space is named after Chiara Badano, an ordinary young
woman involved in the Focolare movement, who died in 1990 at the age of 18, after
succumbing to bone cancer. Because of her qualities as a friend, and her deep sensitivity
to the needs of others, especially the poor, she came to be known as ‘Chiara Luce’
(Claire ‘the Light’ in Italian). Chiara was beatified in 2010 and is the patron saint
of the IEC2012 Youth Space.
And to help young people who may not have the economic
resources for a 7 day stay in Ireland, IEC organisers have appealed to Dublin families
to open their homes to pilgrims as part of the Host a Pilgrim Programme (HAPP). To
get involved and become part of the Congress in Dublin, Ireland this June you can
register as an individual pilgrim or a group at www.iec2012.ie.