Earlier this week, our local Catholic newspaper posted an article about a group of young people who came to Baltimore to explore opportunities for service among the needy of the city. The story is not that different than those that could be written about many groups of youths in our area who boarded buses and headed out to serve a work camps throughout the United States. However, these young people had come here - to us - to our city.
After an experience of work camp, such as the Catholic Heart Work Camp, our youth are clearly energized with a sense of their faith in action. The stories that they bring back remind us all of the power of our faith and its effect on our lives. But, when reading that story about our blessed visitors to Baltimore, I am reminded - as our young and not-as-young alike - that we have much work to do here as well. Our faith begins at home - with our neighbors, with ourselves.
Pope Paul VI famously advised that "If you want peace work for justice." Justice is about proper relationships - with God and with one another. The credibility of our faith does not come from how well we argue. It comes from how we live it.
Listen to your young people's experiences of putting their faith into action. Then, that faith makes perfect sense.
No comments:
Post a Comment