EDITORIALWhat do we think of young people? Are they angels? -- naturally, our children and/or grandchildren are. But what about other people's? Or are youth on the steep, slippery road to perdition and self-destruction? The way we look at the up-and-coming generation reflects our attitude toward humanity in general. If we only go by what we read or hear or view in the media, then we tend to have a rather jaundiced opinion of those who are coming after us -- and they are coming "after" us whether we like it or not. It is amazing how any change, anything new affects us. Change the daily routine and we're a mess the rest of the day. We hate the unexpected. Then what is our opinion of the new generation, of "new" human beings? It is a fact that the most discriminated and oppressed segment of society around the world is youth. How can this be? As we get older we begin to believe the myth that only our generation knows how to live, have fun and get things done. We have the wisdom and we know what is right. Well, yes and no. Humanity has a congenital disease which affects us all. It is called selective amnesia. How many of us can remember the difficulty of growing up and being appreciated by our parents, teachers or siblings? Do we remember the anxiety we experienced when we wondered who we were and what we were going to become? Can we remember the moment we suddenly came to the wisdom we now have? Why is it that we don't recall that we were exactly the same as today's youth when we were their age? From our Catholic tradition we know that we all come from a loving Father who thought us important enough to gift us with life. We know that when we abused our God-giftedness we were still special enough for the Father to give us his Son as our brother. This brother in turn gifted us with resurrection and eternal life. Together this Father and Son gifted us with Gift Itself, the Holy Spirit. It seems that we and the young have great value. Let's face it. We tend to be afraid of and even resent youth. Could we resent them because they are young? Do we resent them because we have lost the energy and the straightforward way of thinking in which nothing is impossible? Do we fear youth because we don't understand them? They seem to have different values; they don't appreciate the past. As Christians and as members of the Salesian Family we are challenged to destroy these stereotypes, prejudices and barriers. Some older folk fear because they don't know how to talk to youth. One approach is so simple as to be laughable: ask young people questions and get them to talk about themselves. Don't we all love to talk about ourselves? Yet when someone does this, how do we react? "Oh no, there he/she goes again!" "Man, don't I have a dental appointment to go to?" The young need that patient and welcoming ear. They need to see and sense the interest that others, especially the older generation, have in them. They need to voice their ideas in order to find out who they are and what is expected of them. They need to hear and see our reactions to find encouragement as well as limits in their lives. The young need the wisdom of our years; to connect with our past. And we need to pass this wisdom on for our own sense of self-worth and duty to the future. Youth put up a bravado front of hardness and indifference to test us. They want to know whether our interest in them is genuine and can withstand any negativism; whether our do's and don't's are really important to us, and that we follow our own guidelines. Don Bosco loved the young, and no amount of resistance, resentment or self-destructive behavior or attitude could deter him from breaking through and befriending them. Because he did so, they became putty in his hands; they saw his love and returned it. This was not without its grief -- nothing of value is. But he was there for them and they knew it. Where do we stand? How do we deal with our children and grandchildren and their friends? Do we bravely proclaim our Faith in word and deed? Or is our fear of rejection and ridicule so strong that we do nothing? -- And these young people are our future! The young have to find their way, and we are the persons God puts in their path to give them direction. Let us not fail the challenge -- for the love of God, for the love of youth! [SBW] |
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