Pope Francis Tells Youth “work for the growth of peace, harmony, justice, human rights and mercy, and thus for the extension of God’s kingdom in this world” FULL TEXT

ADDRESS OF THE HOLY FATHER FRANCIS
TO THE INTERNATIONAL MOVEMENT OF CATHOLIC STUDENTS (IMCS)
PAX ROMANA

Consistory Hall - Friday, 20 September 2024
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Dear Friends, good morning!

I offer a warm greeting to all of you, the members of the International Movement of Catholic Students Pax Romana, together with your friends and families, and I thank you for your presence today. I very much appreciate your commitment to promoting social justice and integral human development inspired by your Catholic faith and its vision of a world ever more conformed to God’s loving plan for our human family.

Following the reflections of the Church’s 2018 Synod on Young People, I urged the young in particular to be “protagonists of the revolution of charity and service” (Christus Vivit, 174). Your presence and activity – whether in academic settings, workplaces or city streets – serve this end by working to sculpt a more compassionate, harmonious and fraternal world. I think, for example, of the work of education and leadership training carried out in your various centres in France, Thailand and Kenya, grounded in witness to the Gospel and commitment to the Church’s social doctrine. By fostering a sense of global citizenship and encouraging action at the local level, your Movement enables young people not only to deepen their understanding of the pressing social issues of our time, but also empowers them to promote impactful changes within their communities, thus serving as an authentic leaven of the Gospel.

In these days, as we move forward with the current Synod on Synodality, I would like to encourage you, as individuals and collectively, to take an active part in the entire Church’s synodal journey of “walking together”, listening, participating and engaging in open and discerning dialogue, so as to be attentive to the quiet voice of the Holy Spirit. I also encourage you to welcome the forthcoming celebration of the Holy Year 2025 as a privileged opportunity for personal renewal and spiritual enrichment in union with the entire Church. The eloquent symbol of the Holy Door through which the faithful pass here in Rome reminds us that we are all pilgrims on a journey, called together to deeper union with the Lord Jesus and openness to the power of his grace to transform our lives and the world in which we live.

Dear young friends, it is my hope that your presence in Rome, and our meeting today, will be a source of renewed inspiration for your efforts to “work for the growth of peace, harmony, justice, human rights and mercy, and thus for the extension of God’s kingdom in this world” (Christus Vivit, 168). Commending all of you to the prayers of Mary, Queen of Peace, and Blessed Giorgio Frassati, whom I hope to enroll among the saints in the coming Holy Year, I invoke upon all of you the Lord’s blessings of wisdom, joy and abiding peace.