I used to be a University Chaplain, and one of the joys of that job was experiencing lively committed young people from all over the world gathered in our little Chapel for Mass. You can hear and see me give this Homily at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ibpxdtw2OjY
What I noticed however, was that quite a few of them had found their faith, and had it strengthened, when they’d gone on a World Youth Day; and I think that this was because they saw there a larger vision of what the Catholic Church is, a great vibrant international family dedicated to love and service following Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, wherever he might lead them.
It is sometimes hard to sense this in our local churches which can too often be a group of apparently rather dull people who seem to be at Mass more out of habit than out of conviction. I say “apparently”, because any priest could tell you that if you talked to these people you would find a great galaxy of faith, often forged in the midst of sadness, or an experience of struggle or death. Despite their doubts and worries that they and all of us have at times, they have hung on to the promise in our Gospel (John 10:2-30) that “They will never be lost.” This is a quiet faith that sadly they rarely show to others, and so for young people who cannot see this in those around them at Mass, such people can appear rather dull.
The solution some come up with is for the priest to try to be more entertaining; but actually that’s a great mistake, because it simply plays into a wrong idea of the Church, as another form of activity alongside music, sport, and other forms of fun. What is much more likely to convince young people, or people of any age, that the Church is worthwhile, is signs of devout faith and a preparedness to serve others, however hard that may be.
Just like my memories of Mass at the Chaplaincy, I’m always heartened when I say Mass in some of the city Churches in Oxford. Here many of the people demonstrate by the colour of their skin that the Church is truly an international body. We are, as we heard in our 2nd Reading (Apoc 7:9.14-17) “A huge number, impossible to count, of people from every nation, race, tribe and language… standing in front of the throne and … the Lamb.” But the fascinating thing about this Reading is that it was written when the Church was not like that at all. At that time, the Church was merely a scattering of small groups of Christians, meeting for Mass in houses not churches. It had not spread beyond the countries around the Mediterranean; and its people were often in trouble with the authorities, and sometimes even executed, because of their refusal to acknowledge or to worship the conventional gods of the world at that time, including worship of the current Roman Emperor.
Thus the vision that these small groups of persecuted people were part of “A huge number impossible to count” was a truly remarkable one; and we must use it to remind ourselves, especially if we belong to a local church with relatively few people, that we are actually part of a great company destined for glory. This vision was of course, a vision of those who have died and found that glory, but was written precisely to encourage the living, to show them their calling as part of that great company, and hopefully it should also inspire us to play our part too, however small, in making that vision a reality. Those early Christians did not give up because they were small in number, nor because they faced persecution; instead they remained loyal to Christ, and to one another. Indeed, one of the things that impressed the pagans of those days was how Christians not only supported one another when faced with the various plagues and famines and wars that threatened people then, but the way they were prepared to risk their lives to serve others, because they had been taught that this was the way they could serve Christ.
The Good Shepherd, whom we heard of in our Gospel today, (John 10:27-30)
knows and loves his sheep so well that they follow him whenever they hear his voice; but if we looked back to previous words from this part of John’s Gospel, we would also see that it is not just us who are in the Church who are part of his flock, but many others who might think of themselves as outside. He wants us to have a greater vision of the Church than just those who are inside. We heard this in our 1st Reading (Acts 13:43-52) where St Paul says that God means us to “Be a light for the nations, so that my salvation may reach the ends of the earth.” And this vision can be widened even further if we remember Jesus’ story of the lost sheep in Luke’s Gospel, (15:1-7) for the sheep that had strayed is brought back to the fold, not by force or by threats, but by being gently carried on the Good Shepherd’s shoulders.
In some way or other therefore, we are all called to share this greater vision of love and service with one another, so that being a Christian becomes a challenge rather than some form of entertainment. If you are old like me, remember to recommend to young people you know the World Youth Day in Portugal next year (most Dioceses will have an organised trip that they can become part of) because it is from catching a vision of the Church as it could be that such people then feel the call to serve God in all sorts of special ways, as priests, as religious, as teachers, and even simply as faithful Catholics, single or married, spreading their love of Jesus to the next generation. If you have ever been to a Papal Mass as when Pope Benedict visited the UK you will know a little of what World Youth Day is like.
Frankly I hate crowds so I would never have found my way to serve God in the way I am recommending. I tend to sense that I am part of the great company of saints and angels when I say Mass with only one or two people present, but many people are not like me. Many will find being in a praying crowd much more uplifting.
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