Called to radiate His love and beauty! (BJMM040)

 

Called to radiate His love and beauty!

Jesus Youth USA National Assembly, Delray Beach, Florida. 23 Feb 24 – Edward Edezhath

When I look at this lovely gathering of Jesus Youth leaders from all parts of the US, what comes to my mind is the words of our Lord, “Blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear.” (Mt. 13:6). I would add, “Blessed are you, for your hearts rejoice in this awesome presence of the Lord, with his hand-picked friends.”  

“Blessed” is a word so beautifully used hundreds of times in the Bible. Happily, we use it so much in our daily prayer, “Blessed are you among women!” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”  Its translation is happy, fortunate, favored, or receiving a favor from the Lord (GK. Makarios), and so on. 

Why is this mention of the word Blessed? Maybe we should ask what our first emphasis should be as we gather today. Should we ask what is lacking in us, or even where the Lord is leading me and the movement? I think the first sentiment should be sensing and reflecting that abounding joy that the Lord has when his faithful ones respond to him wholeheartedly, as Jesus told Peter, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jona! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.” (Mt. 16:17). Experiencing that heavenly rejoicing and entering that joy becomes our first big step today. Of course, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Mt. 12:37). Only with that overwhelming joy will we be able to witness the Lord’s beauty and love. A Jesus Youth needs a joyful heart and a beaming face.

Rejoicing with one another.

Over the past twenty years, the Jesus Youth movement in the US has been growing with its unique flavor and strength and has borne abundant fruits . Leading up to this meeting, we used a powerful tool that the Church has been proposing for the missionary journey of any community: the synodal process of discernment. I have come to believe that the Jesus Youth movement, from its inception, made use of the same synodal process, and it has become the DNA of the movement,  mostly using it intuitively, without even realizing the technicalities of the approaches. Our emphasis on Jesus-centeredness, listening to the Spirit, friendship and informality, and life-centered and family-focused approach somehow made our movement-building dynamics much deeper than we realized. 

Now we know that through this synodal approach, we keep strengthening the movement’s triple emphases: 1. Encouraging every person in his or her Christ-focused journey, 2.  Building communities where people meaningfully belong, and 3. helping people to be motivated to bear the fruits of the mission.

I think it is important that we don’t lose sight of the various signs of the good news in JY USA. Don’t we often ask what is lacking or look for the bad news? Maybe all we can do about a person, group, and the whole movement is to see what is already sprouting and amplify and nurture what is already growing. Let our focus be on the work of the Spirit!

So, what are some joyful signs we see in the movement here? 

1. A Unique JY Culture: There is an all-pervading friendly, family spirit and close connectedness. The JY is a large family with children, youth, and elders, numerous open families, a culture of love and freedom, and a spirit of welcome and mutual support.

2. Closeness to the Church: JY is active in Syro-Malabar, Syro-Malankara, and Latin parishes, with so many actively involved there. The Church looks to JY with much love and anticipation. The recent survey indicated this lively participation. Preparations for the Eucharistic Congress have been of diverse dimensions. Offerings in the form of training and programs by JY leaders deserve special mention. All these and more naturally flow into a renewed connectedness to priests, the promotion of vocations, and greater collaboration. 

3. Diversity and wealth of leadership: Qualified, equipped, and motivated JYs of great variety make a big difference in the movement and outside. Special mention must be made of the ‘feminine genius’ in and through the movement. Women's distinctive and rich ways are well integrated into leadership, making a marked difference. The continuity of earlier leaders, welcoming the younger generation into responsibilities, and their mutual handholding result in greater richness.

4. Youth Focus: Jesus Youth is a youth-focused Catholic mission initiative. For the wider Church and society, connecting with the constantly evolving younger generation and their fast-changing culture and lifestyle is difficult. The usual challenge is that youth workers focus on what to give and the goals to reach, overlooking the how of approaches and their needs. But in JY America, I am excited to note a continuing search, listening, and reflection on “the signs of the times” or ‘youth-friendly approaches for the contemporary times.’ The JY vision of accompanying youth who will reach out to other youth is steadily being built here. 

5. The family has been the most storm-tossed institution in the wider society. Yet, for Jesus Youth, that has been the most fruitful and vibrant focus. These closely networked large, mutually interacting, and dependent families, intent on the human and faith formation of the young, are building a new kind of lifestyle and Christian culture. They build a strong intergenerational style and interacting platforms where the young generation comes to experience the kinds of lifestyle they want to build. A renewed focus on life and loving children is another great fruit. In brief, this emerging JY family culture becomes an immensely joyful Catholic witness in the wider society.  

6. And so many other sprouts of JY: I look with appreciation to the efforts toward social outreaches, especially to faraway places, the focus on building fellowship groups, the well-planned and implemented JY Formation modules, those who make financial contributions with clear regularity, the fruits of Lumen Vitae and Amoris Christi, the ongoing research and reflection on youth accompaniment and faith formation, the novel and constantly updating ministry among high schoolers, university students and children, an emerging approach to spiritual growth including silent retreats and regular spiritual guidance, eagerness for study and to join academic programs relating to ecclesiastical disciplines, the media, music, and art initiatives, a growing interest in Catholic involvement in culture and politics, and above all a mature focus on growing in holiness in contemporary times. 

I say again, let us focus on building on what is already sprouting! Let us look for, hearken, and discern where the Spirit of God is moving and building with the Lord!

That all may see the youthful Christ!

In the early 1980s, our First Line group, of around 20 of us from all parts of our state, would meet for weekends every month . There was always the joy of Christian fellowship and learning about each person and what he or she had been involved in. But there was a recurring question: what is the core orientation and vision of all that we are and our activities? In a sense, the Jesus Youth movement has been the fruit of this ongoing questioning, which should continue now and always.

Again, let us ask: What is central to our warm and friendly network?

Radiating Christ’s Youthfulness! As Jesus Youth, we are called to contemplate and radiate the youthful face of Jesus in its beauty, youthfulness, and immense love. “God so loved the world,” and so, everyone with a youthful heart in Christ has eyes that look to the world and a heart that moves with so much love for the world (Mt. 9:36). 

And how do we radiate Christ’s youthful face to the world? Touched by God’s love, the Holy Spirit moves us to look at the world with a new vision of building the Kingdom. We are equipped for this through our interior journey and in our communities. We gather in our lovely communities so that the experience of the Kingdom will grow amidst us. From these nurseries, we are sent forth to build God’s Kingdom. Thus, in Jesus Youth, through our daily journey and ministries, the Lord is preparing and sending us to radiate his beauty and love.

Like a mustard seed or a branching vine

As Jesus puts it, the image of a tree is a good representation of how we should grow or how the Jesus Youth movement should be built up.

Rooting – Belongingness to the life of the Trinity and our loving community

Growing – Never stopping, but facing changes and building

Branching – Connecting, reaching out and networking

Enduring - Getting up after every fall and restarting. Faithfully persevering with God’s steadfast love.

Fruiting – Always bearing fruits of love and service, especially to the poor and the needy

Let this mid-way stop in our synodal journey be a new outpouring of the Spirit. And let its fruits be a greater infilling of the Spirit for each of us, a new love that binds our community together, and a fresh enkindling of the fire of missionary fervor!