My fourteen-year-old daughter and I recently discussed a distressing belief in the Church today: the idea that young people are incapable of embracing the Faith in a deeper way. Having served in ministry both professionally and as a volunteer, I know how easy it is to fall into pessimism and cynicism. We can start to believe that the lack of fruit in our ministries comes from an inability in others, especially the young, to receive the Faith. This is categorically false. The answer is often much more difficult.
When our efforts fail, it is often because programs have been watered down or focus on entertainment. Young people recognize counterfeits when they see them. They want true holiness and authenticity, not programs devoid of the rich, deep, and beautiful treasures of our Catholic Faith. They want to see us striving to live a life of holiness. They want to know they are loved and that we are willing to help them along the way. As Pope Paul VI stated in one of his Wednesday audiences: โModern man listens more willingly to witnesses than he does to teachers and if he listens to teachers, itโs because they are witnesses.โ Young people are no exception. My daughter wants to share an example from her own journey with Christ.
On Tuesday mornings, we always went to Mass at my Catholic school. I was eight years old, in the second grade. We had a substitute teacher that day, which always changed our schedule around and made things different. The substitute wasnโt Catholic and didnโt understand that Catholics are required to fast one hour before receiving Holy Communion. He told us to eat our snack a few minutes before Mass started. I told him we could not eat our snack or else we would break the fast, but even after asking some of the other teachers, he continued telling the kids to eat. As the kids in my class made fun of me for not eating my snack, I continued to sit there knowing that I would rather receive Holy Communion than not.
The point is not my part in the story, but the fact that as young as I was, I knew Christ is present in the Eucharist. My faith was so deeply rooted in me at that young of an age that I suffered the revilement of my other classmates for Jesus Christ.
Recently, I was told that young kids cannot be set on fire with the Faithโa statement I firmly and resolutely disagree with, which is why my mother and I are writing this article. Jesus said: โLet the children come to me, and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as theseโ (Mt. 19:14). Christ Himself told the disciples to bring the children to Him. If Jesus had such a high view of the young, then shouldnโt we do the same?
Where are all of the St. Carlo Acutises of the world? I know people say he was special, but if we are raising our children up to be saints, then there will be saints among them! The young are not dumb. On the contrary, young children are radically open to learning about the world. They are eager to observe and absorb the things around them. The purity of a child is beautiful and filled with untapped potential. A priest once said in a homily that โthere is nothing more pure than the laugh of a child.โ Christ wants the children to come to Him. Why are we preventing them?
Imagine if even just one child in every church was on fire with the Faith. That would lead to thousands upon thousands of saints! Every child has the capacity to be a saint. We cannot forget this truth, despite the monumental hurdles along the way. We should never think that a child isnโt smart enough to learn about our Catholic Faith or to be on fire with the love of Christ. In fact, if the Faith is not seeded in the young at an early age, then it is much harder to set them on fire when they are older. We see this constantly with teens receiving the Sacrament of Confirmation. God can work miracles to bring them back, but the painful reality is thatย far too many are leaving the Church when they turn eighteen.
We should be working to bring up the next generation of saints, not pretending children are not smart enough to retain the truths of the Faith. They may be young, but they have the ability to receive the love of Christ through the gift of Baptism. It is the mission of the Church to help all baptized members walk as disciples of the Lord. We should be dedicated to showing them the realities of Godโs love in a profound way, which could very well change their lives.
At its root, the mentality that young people cannot be set on fire with the love of Christ is a lack of faith. It is born of cynicism and doubt. It is true that for every one person who joins the Church, 8.4 who were raised in the Church leave, according to the 2023-2024 Pew Religious Landscape Study. We should be asking ourselves where we have failed to lead the young to Christ, both in our families and in our parishes. We should not assume that youth are incapable of receiving the gifts of Christ and the Church. The Lord pours out an abundance of graces upon each baptized person, which opens them to a holy life dedicated to Him. We are simply called to open those treasures wide to them with full trust and faith that Christ will lead souls to follow Him.
The realities of God and His pure, all-encompassing love are amazing, and yet many people donโt believe them. Children are innocent and will believe the greatest, most difficult truths because their purity allows them to embrace miracles and the supernatural more fully. It is adults who often miss the gifts Christ wants to give to us because of a lack of faith and purity of vision. The truth about God isnโt unbelievable to children because, for them, anything is possible. Oftentimes, the faith of adults is strengthened by the simplicity of a childโs faith. We block the way when we dumb things down and make them lukewarm.
The faith of a child truly is one of the most amazing gifts within the Mystical Body. We should be choosing to nurture this faith through authentically Catholic programs for the young, the evangelizing witness of parents, Eucharistic Adoration, the Sacraments, and exemplifying lives of prayer and service. By helping form the faith of one child, we could be changing the course of the world. One saint can impact countless lives.
Without helping children learn to live authentic lives of discipleship, we are setting them up to walk away from the Faith once they leave the home. Many kids are growing up in broken homes and without the love of Christ, which makes the world seem like a scary place. The teen years are hard. It is when the rubber meets the road, and the reality of life hits them hard. More and more young people have a hard time trusting others. They need to know how much God loves them and that they are not alone in this world. The Sacred Heart of Jesus beats every single second for love of them. His love will never end. He will always love them no matter what. The foundation of Christโs love must be established early in childhood, so they can weather the trials and temptations of the teen years and as an adult.
Faith is the most important thing in our lives. Jesus is, and always should be, the center of every second of our lives. Without Jesus, we are nothing. He is our one and all. Every child deserves to know the truth about their Creator and how much He loves them. Love is a powerful thing that can change the course of a life. Showing someone, especially a little child, how much God loves them is life changing. The very words โI love youโ are powerful. And Jesus Christ says those words to us every day.
Never underestimate the faith of a child, for it is very powerful. Children are not too young to know their Savior and His love for them. They deserve to know that, through our dedicated pursuits of holiness and trust in Him, Christ will provide. St. Paul exhorted Timothy to remain undeterred because of his youth when he said: โLet no one have contempt for your youth, but set an example for those who believe, in speech, conduct, love, faith, and purityโ (1 Tim. 4:12).
We must remain steadfast in our service to youth, devoid of doubt, contempt, cynicism, and lack of faithโthese do not come from God. There are countless souls the Lord desires to reach through us. There are young saints in the making in our pews. Let us do right by them.
Image from Wikimedia Commons
