On the Way to the 2018 Synod

In the context of the preparations for the General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on “Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment,” the Diocesan Secretariat for Youth Ministry in Santiago, Capo Verde, has elaborated a project of formation and animation for the leading youth ministry agents and facilitators.

Cardinal Gomes Furtado, Bishop of the diocese, invited Father João Chagas, head of our Dicastery’s Youth Office, to the first formation meeting to speak to the young people about the effect and repercussions that the Synod may have on the Church’s youth ministry and the path towards the World Youth Day in Panama.

During his trip this week, Father Chagas also had other occasions to share with young people and facilitators.
Pastoral care in the Church cannot be carried out without young people, and they must therefore be engaged in animation and evangelization. These were the points that Father Chagas particularly focused on in his interventions.

The Synod cannot take place without young people—according to Pope Francis’ wish—, and the same is true of the Church’s constant pastoral action. The gaze must not stop at the young who are already present and the young people themselves must become the protagonists.

Speaking about the WDY, Father Chagas hghlighted the importance of the course of preparation during these years: This is the first time in the history of the event that the path of preparation (which normally covers three years) is entirely based on Marian themes, and that Panama WYD will be the first of these international events celebrated around a Marian theme.