Putting the Youth Synod into practice: the exhortation Christus vivit and the International Youth Forum

The document Christus vivit is yet another gesture of the Holy Father’s love for young people, the gesture of a Pope who allows himself to be inspired by the new generations, recognizing in them the action of the Holy Spirit that makes old people dream and gives young people a vision  (see Joel 3, 1). “The Church, through Peter’s Successor, is crying out that young people count, that they are the necessary protagonists of change and that is why they are called to the mission!”, says Father João Chagas, Head of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life’s Youth Office  in regard to Pope Francis’s new document, published on 2^nd April and inspired, among other things, by the voices of the young that emerged during the Synodal process last year. As the Holy Father highlighted in the introduction to the document “this is a milestone in the context of a Synodal journey. I am calling to all the People of God, to the pastors and to the faithful so that reflection on young people and for young people involves and stimulates us all”.

The Apostolic Exhortation Christus vivit will be a reference point for the forthcoming International Youth Forum that will take place in Sassone di Ciampino from 19^th to 22^nd June.  The meeting, called “Youth in Action in a Synodal Church”, will bring together young representatives from the Episcopal Conferences, ecclesial associations and movements from all over the world as well as some young auditors  present at last year’s Synod.  Answering the Holy Father’s invitation to promote the spirit of synodality in the Church, the young participants (all younger than 30)  will work together to share these initial months of reception of the Final Document of the Synod, the Apostolic Exhortation that has just been published and the good practices and possible future steps for implementing the Youth Synod in the daily life of the Local Churches in relation to the youth mission.   This meeting will renew and relaunch the tradition of the International Youth Forums created at the time of the World Youth Days in the Eighties.