The Vice Provincial Superior, Fr Michael Emerue, CSsR with his Council (the Vicar of the Vice Province, Fr Noel Eshikenah, CSsR, the Second Consultor of the Vice Province, Fr Godwin Abbah, CSsR) had an interactive session with the members of Redemptorist Youth Vocation Ministry (RYVM) in Catholic Archdiocese of Lagos on 11th of January in Our Mother of Perpetual Help Catholic Church, Amuwo Odofin, Lagos. The theme of the interactive session is “RYVM AS MISSIONARIES OF HOPE IN A CHANGING WORLD”.
After the opening prayer, the Parish Priest of Our Mother of Perpetual Help, Amuwo Odofin, Fr Fidel Okpanachi, CSsR, and the Superior of the Community, Fr Kingsley Ebodaghe, CSsR, welcomed the members of RYVM. The members of RYVM took turns introducing themselves.
After the introduction, Fr. Viceprovincial gave the opening remark, during which he emphasized the place of the young in the apostolic mandate of the General Government as incarnated in the pastoral plan of the Vice Province. In furtherance, he stated that the General Government and the Vice Province are intentional about forming the RYVM, who will, in turn, serve as animators in the formation of other youths in the Church. He reminded them of their vocation as missionaries of hope in a changing world.
The National Chaplain of RYVM, Fr. Benedict Adu, CSsR, explained that the gathering’s purpose was to create an atmosphere of sharing and interaction on the duties of RYVM members as missionaries of hope in a changing world.
The Vice Provincial Superior, Fr Michael Emerue, introduced the conversation bothering on the theme: RYVM AS MISSIONARIES OF HOPE IN A CHANGING WORLD. He pointed out that RYVM was foundationally formed to respond to the general neglect of youths and to mentor youths who will, in turn, mentor others. In his presentation, he posited that the youth, though full of energy and life, struggle for purpose as a result of the secularization of Christianity, mindless materialism cum consumerism and loss of value system, which are characteristic of post-modernism. Following the rapid change occasioned by development in science and technology, particularly in the area of ICT, there is a flood of new yet contradicting ideologies and experiences that have made long-term commitment among the youths near impossibility.
Akin to the above, God and everything related to Him, human relationships, the sanctity of life and family values have all been sacrificed and replaced with the enthronement of the self, the replacement of God-given intelligence with AI (Artificial Intelligence paradoxically created by natural intelligence), FOMO (Fear of Missing Out), strained human relationship. These negative voices drowned our capacity for silence, which is golden and sacred as our best decisions are mostly made in silence, and our capacity for self-discovery is enhanced by reflective silence.
To fill this void created by the absence of God and chaotic human relationships, gadgets have become LOML (love of my life), thus sustaining individualism to a dangerous dimension. Similarly, many run to Social Media ‘working’ for ‘likes’ and ‘number of views’ as a means to block off this emptiness and confusion, which further exposes them to the dangers of mind-control tactics prevalent in the media world through intentional adulteration of time tested values like: detty December, school/adulthood na scam (school and adulthood are a scam), hook-up (prostitution) and other soothing yet inherently mind controlling expressions.
After the presentation by the Viceprovine Superior, the members of RYVM were divided into five groups for group discussion on the following questions:
Are these challenges real?
How do you, as RYVM, respond to this critical era?
What are your expectations from the Congregation towards you to be equipped to face this era?
How do you, as RYVM, help the ‘other youths’ you are sent to assist?
After the discussion, the groups reported that the challenges were real. Enthronement of God, reviving family values and mental awakening are some of the ways to respond to the challenges of our time. The groups also said that they expect the Congregation to continue with the ongoing formation of the members of RYVM. Finally, they agreed that one of the ways they can help other youths is by being good ambassadors of Christ the Redeemer. At the end of the group discussion, the Second Consultor, Fr. Godwin Abbah, gave the closing remarks, and the Vicar, Fr. Noel Eshikena. Benediction given by the Vice Provincial Superior, Fr Michael Emerue, closed the fruitful meeting.
Submitted by Fr Onyeno, Peter Chijioke, CSsR
