Fr. Matthew and St. Isidore youth traveled to Rome last summer to immerse themselves in holy places, become friends with the saints, and grow deeper in faith alongside a million young Catholics from around the world.
During my first year in high school, I noticed that people my age had stopped going to church or practicing their faith overall. I didn’t think much of it at first, but then doubt crept in and I started to question, “Was Catholicism leaving this generation?”
Fast forward to Rome, at the Jubilee of Young People, where we were standing in a vast field among a sea of people. The pope arrived by helicopter and landed on the field. Music filled the air with a choir singing joyously in multiple languages. Flags started to rise, representing nations from every corner of the world — even countries where Catholicism is a minority like India and Lebanon or countries that are torn by conflict such as Palestine and Ukraine.
Hundreds of thousands of Catholics were present not for themselves, but to glorify God. And it wasn’t just anyone — it was the youth, the next generation, my peers. This struck me like a lightning bolt.
It is easy to lose hope when you look at things on a small scale. But when I opened up my horizons, I realized that there is an incredible number of servants of Christ across the globe.
How can we continue this hope forward? How can we be vessels for God? We live it. We show it. We become the first Bible that people read. Let our actions tell the story of God’s abundant love for us. Let our words reflect His Good News. Even if they haven’t flipped a page in the Bible, they will know what it means to follow Him, because they see it in you, a child of God.
We become the first Bible that people read.
—Elena, high school sophomore
Every year, parishioners at St. Isidore take their own path toward the Catholic faith. Read more journeys, or take the first step in yours.
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