Harnessing the gifts of youths can be
very beneficial to the evangeliza-
tion of the mission of the Church
and the common good of humanity, if
properly utilised, the Catholic Bishop of
Osogbo Diocese, Most Rev. John Oyejola
has asserted.
Bishop Oyejola who is the Catholic Bish-
ops’ Conference of Nigeria (CBCN) Youth
Committee Chairman made this remark
when delivering the keynote address at the
four-day workshop seminar organized by
the Youth Office of the Catholic Secretar-
iat of Nigeria (CSN). The programme was
part of the Nigeria Church response to the
outcome of the report of the 2018 Synod of
Bishops on Youth, held in Rome; and the
subsequent Apostolic Exhortation on the
synod – ChristusVivit, by the Holy Father,
Pope Francis.
The programme which took place at
the Archbishop Obiefuna Retreat Centre,
Awka, Anambra State, with Young People,
The Faith and Vocational Discernment as
its theme; was attended by delegates of all
the youth group of the Church in Nigeria,
and presentations made of various relat-
ed topics to the team by experts in differ-
ent fields of human endeavour. Speakers
at the programme included the Catholic
Bishop of Sokoto, Most Rev. Matthew Has-
san Kukah whose paper was premised on
Thoughts on Catholic Youths participation
in Nigerian Politics.
Noting that the unique resources of the
youth can help define their roles in cre-
ating a good future for the Church, the
Bishop Chairman expressed the desire for
the maximisation of this special gifts of the
youth for the benefit of the Church and the
common good. Bishop Oyejola contended
that: “If well managed, the talents, enthusi-
asms and vigour of the youths can be ver-
itable tools in the hands of the Church to
achieve magnificent things for God.”
He however pointed out that: “The
problem most times is that the potential
of young people in the Church are over-
looked and dismissed on the grounds that
they are impetuous, ignorant and unwor-
thy of serious responsibility”; adding that if
the youths are well guided, “God can use
their impetuousness and “ignorance” to
achieve great things.”
The bishop stated further that what the
Church presently needs is to learn new
and better ways of journeying with young
people, listening and reaching out to them,
without being judgemental and empower-
ing them to make positive contributions to
the mission of the Church as well as in their
lives. He added that they must be encour-
aged to embrace a life of holiness and hard
work and make them effective agents in the
spiritual and pastoral life of the Church,
particularly as agents of evangelization
among their peers.
While advocating the need for every-
body involved in the Church to acknowl-
edge the special gifts the youths possess
and put to them to use, Bishop Oyejola
who outlined the ten most challenges
facing the present-day youths, urged
them to be closer to God in prayer and
take their faith seriously; be disciplined
and be morally upright. His words: “A
person without a sense of values will be
worthless in the society. At this point in
our national history, things are extreme-
ly difficult, you must not be tempted to
give up until you overcome all the chal-
lenges in your path to greatness.” The
bishop added: “As noted by a wise man:
“You must take personal responsibility.
You cannot change the circumstances,
the seasons, or the wind, but you can
change yourself.” To succeed in any no-
ble venture you have to take 100% per-
sonal responsibility for everything you
experience in life.”
