FOCUS • YOUTH CONFERENCE

Created in the Image of Love

Many young people struggle with issues of identity, direction in life and a sense of security and being loved. A Youth Conference organized between Koinonia John the Baptist and the Theology of the Body Institute recently celebrated in Durban tried to give responses to these challenges faced by the youth of today

BY Sr Naomi Giuggioloni | Koinonia, Cullinan, Gauteng
Jill Williams, Candidate Landscape Architect | Pretoria

BY Sr Yadira Román Rodriguez | PHOTOS

KOINONIA JOHN the Baptist is a community which was founded in 1979 by Fr Ricardo Argañaraz, an Argentinian priest, in Camparmó in Northern Italy. Koinonia John the Baptist community—present in South Africa since 2010 and in the Diocese of Pretoria since 2017—has been working with the youth since 2021, sharing testimonies and bringing them closer to Jesus. John the Baptist, the main inspiring figure for Koinonia, shouted aloud the name of Jesus, saying that He was the Lamb of God, the One who takes away the sins of the world. The members of Koinonia community follow this path today and point the youth to Jesus, through prayer, meetings as well as workshops. Through these interactions, Koinonia connects with lay people and those who are far from the Lord.

Durban Conference on Identity

A great opportunity for presenting the Lamb of God to the Youth arose recently. A Conference was held in Durban from the 28th until the 30th of April. This event was a collaboration between Koinonia John the Baptist and the Theology of the Body Institute. So, there were lay members, from both, the community of Koinonia and the Institute joining forces to give talks to the youth. The main theme of the Conference was “Identity”. Questions which are often asked by the Youth, such as “Who am I?” “Do I matter?” and “Am I lovable?” were unpacked. The theme was based on St John Paul II’s Theology of the Body.

Koinonia connects with lay people and those who are far from the Lord

St John Paull II had a special affinity with young people and the challenges faced by them. Theology of the Body (Pope John Paul II and Waldstein, 2006), contributed greatly to theological thinking about Identity and our relations with God, ourselves and with others. In the Theology of the Body, one’s eyes are opened to the multifaceted nature of God, and His having created us in this same manner. Talking about one’s Identity, be it sexual, spiritual, familiar or otherwise, is especially important because of the confusion that Youths face during their teenage years, which often leads them to partake in risky activities that can negatively influence themselves and those around them.

Many young people came to the conference from different areas in and around South Africa, such as Durban, the parish of St Eugene de Mazenod in Refilwe, Cullinan (Archdiocese of Pretoria), from the diocese of Umzimkulu as well as from the missions around this diocese. Even Pentecostal churches joined the event, so this meeting became open for all the young people that wanted to attend. Some of the items on the programme included praise and worship, games, talks, and group sharing based on some questions related to the main topic. The first session was “Created for love”. The second dealt with, “What is love?” speaking about love and dignity. The third session focused on, “Truth, freedom, hope and redemption”. The fourth delved into the “Language of the body”. The fifth session was “My vocation, love and living it out,” which was followed by the closing Mass.

Meaning of Love

Identity was mainly looked at through the lens of love. Love is a big word. Many of these young people have never experienced concretely how great the love of God, of our Father is and how much He paid for us through giving His only Son, Jesus Christ. Through all these topics, touching on different characteristics of love, young people were aided to understand that this is the love that God wants us to share with others. It is called Agape, the Father’s unconditional love. This love can give up everything for the sake of others, as Jesus did on the Cross for us. Giving us freedom, giving us redemption. It’s a love that is not egoistic, nor selfish.

Further exploration of the theme was done through the subtopic of sexuality. Issues such as the importance of waiting until marriage to have a sexual relationship with a partner were looked at. Youths are encouraged to not just do things because they want to follow lustful desires. Jesus already paid the price for our sins. Through the question-and-answer sessions and moments of sharing, youth were helped to understand how much the world is influencing them, giving bad examples about sex and sexuality, and they were made aware that what is presented to them is not always real. The love that is presented through movies, reality shows, and social media is not always real. After this, there was a sharing about abuse which we may inflict and receive in our relations with others. This helped them to finally face their own reality, creating an opportunity to speak about it, aloud, and not allowing it to be a burden on their shoulders anymore. There were many moments of prayer and even a moment where sisters, brothers and priests prayed specifically for the young people. Through this prayer, many received healing and experienced concretely how much God loves them.

Vocations

Various vocations were then presented: marriage and consecrated life. God knows us, and He knows what the best way is for every one of us. Young people were helped to get better acquainted with the various vocations through sharing of testimonies on marriage and consecrated life, to understand what they are about and to try to question themselves and think about which vocation is theirs. Are they called to become a husband, a wife, a sister, a brother, or to become a priest at the service of others?

After the conference, many testimonies were received from the young people. One of them was from a young person from Pretoria:

“The experience was life-changing. It’s been so long since I felt so free and loved. The people just made me feel good about myself. I thank every sister and brother, and even the Father, for the prayers and the testimony, and for the life lessons they taught us. I thank Jesus for making sure I came to the Conference, and I thank all the young people that came for the experience. We met a lot of people that had similar problems and managed to relate and share everything together. I personally felt touched, because, after a long time of keeping things to myself, and not praying as much, this conference allowed me to start praying again.”

The love that is presented through movies, reality shows, and social media is not always real

All the young people went back home with this experience of love and were equipped with the knowledge of their Identity, that God created us for love, and to give this love to others. As He gave us this precious gift, He wants us to share it, wanting the good for others and sharing our love for them.