Young people have been urged to shun the culture of entitlement, as they are told that if they desire to go far in life, they should be unique beings, who contribute their quota to the Church and world at large. The charge was given by Most Rev. Emmanuel Adetoyese Badejo, Bishop of Oyo Diocese at the Mass to begin the Golden Jubilee celebration of the Catholic Youth Association (CYA) in the Dioceses of Oyo and Osogbo. Bishop Badejo urged the youths to grow in holiness and in their personal vocation, as well as be witnesses to Jesus Christ through the teachings of the Church and the good things that they experience from their encounter with Christ.
He proposed ways in which young people can key into the mission of witnessing to Christ in contemporary times. The Bishop tasked the youths to practicalise the theme of the Synodal process, “For a Synodal Church: Communion Participation and Mission”, as he said those three dimensions, which are interrelated, can be a good compass with which to drive their activities and growth. According to him, when youths work for communion and participate in the mission of the Church, positive values like godliness, selflessness, solidarity, honesty, self-restraint, compassion, and consideration for the common good will become part of them. “In doing this, you will embody your cultural values, namely; respect for elders, respect for the underprivileged and love of family and community”, he said.
He urged the youths to promote the gospel and Christian values in the digital media, adding that Jesus Christ needs them to bring Him alive to the numerous social media platforms that they inhabit. Asking them to embrace and promote Church doctrine on Human Life, Family and Sexuality, Bishop Badejo condemned lobbies and ideologies all over the world to promote anti life and anti-family ideas and practices, including divorce, gay culture, transgenderism, cross dressing, which destroy the life and future of children and youths. He listed gambling and drug abuse as problems destroying the lives of young people from becoming what God wants them to be, as he added that honest work and discipline are still the surest way to prosperity.
The Bishop advised youths to willingly offer their services to support noble causes around them, even if it brings no monetary gain. He added that these include, helping-out at a charity/solidarity programme, working around the Church without expecting money and doing the chores of the aged or underprivileged. Calling on the youths to be prayerful, Bishop Badejo said the Catholic Church has a variety of prayers, namely; the Holy Mass, adoration, Rosary, among others, adding that they focus on the Lord’s Prayer, he said prayer is a tool that should be used more by young people especially.
According to the Bishop, the Catholic Youth Organization of Nigeria (CYON) began in the old Catholic Diocese of Oyo (now Oyo and Osogbo Dioceses) when its precursor, the Catholic Youth Association (CYA) was inaugurated by Bishop Julius Babatunde Adelakun in 1974. The visionary, barely a year old as bishop at the time, inaugurated the CYA to assist Catholic youths in growing their faith and spreading the good news of Christ among their peers, especially in the Church and society.
