I must admit that even today it still seems to me to be a miracle that this project finally succeeded.
We
met for a week three or four times a year and vigorously discussed the
different individual sections that had taken shape in between meetings.
First, of course, we had to determine the structure of the book. It had
to be simple so that the individual groups of authors that we
established would have a clear task and would not have to force their
work into a complicated system. It is the same structure you will find
in this book. It is simply taken from centuries of catechetical
experience: What we believe—How we should celebrate the Christian
mysteries—How we have life in Christ—How we should pray. I will not
describe now how we slowly made our way through so many and varied
questions until finally a book came from it all. One can, of course,
criticize some things or even many things in such a work: Everything
that man makes is inadequate and can be improved. Still it is a
marvelous book: a witness to unity in diversity. We were able to form a
single choir from many voices because we had the same score, the faith
that the Church has borne through the centuries from the apostles
onward.
Why am I telling you all this?
We realized at the time we were working on the book that not only are
the continents and cultures diverse, but that even within individual
communities there are again diverse “continents”: The worker thinks
differently from the farmer; a physicist differently from a philologist;
an executive differently from a journalist; a young man differently
from an old man. So we had to find a way of thinking and speaking that
was in some way above all these differences, a common space, so to
speak, between different worlds of thought. In doing this it became ever
more apparent to us that the text needed to be “translated” for
different cultural worlds in order to reach people in those worlds in
ways that correspond to their own questions and ways of thinking.
In
the World Youth Days since the introduction of the Catechism of the
Catholic Church—Rome, Toronto, Cologne, Sydney—young people from all
over the world have come together, young people who want to believe, who
are seeking God, who love Christ, and who want fellowship on their
journey. In this context the question arose: Should we not attempt to
translate the Catechism of the Catholic Church into the language of
young people? Should we not bring its great riches into the world of
today’s youth? Of course, there are many differences even among the
youth of today’s world. And so now, under the capable direction of the
Archbishop of Vienna, Christoph Cardinal Schönborn, YOUCAT has been
produced for young people. I hope that many young people will let
themselves be fascinated by this book.
Many people say to me: The
youth of today are not interested in this. I disagree, and I am certain
that I am right. The youth of today are not as superficial as some
think. They want to know what life is really all about. A detective
story is exciting because it draws us into the destiny of other men, a
destiny that could be ours. This book is exciting because it speaks of
our own destiny and so deeply engages every one of us.
So I invite you: Study this Catechism! That is my heartfelt desire.
This Catechism was not written to please you. It will not make life
easy for you, because it demands of you a new life. It places before you
the Gospel message as the “pearl of great value” (Mt 13:46) for which
you must give everything. So I beg you: Study this Catechism with
passion and perseverance. Make a sacrifice of your time for it! Study it
in the quiet of your room; read it with a friend; form study groups and
networks; share with each other on the Internet. By all means continue
to talk with each other about your faith.
You need to know what
you believe. You need to know your faith with that same precision with
which an IT specialist knows the inner workings of a computer. You need
to understand it like a good musician knows the piece he is playing.
Yes, you need to be more deeply rooted in the faith than the generation
of your parents so that you can engage the challenges and temptations of
this time with strength and determination. You need God’s help if your
faith is not going to dry up like a dewdrop in the sun, if you want to
resist the blandishments of consumerism, if your love is not to drown in
pornography, if you are not going to betray the weak and leave the
vulnerable helpless.
If you are now going to apply yourselves
zealously to the study of the Catechism, I want to give you one last
thing to accompany you: You all know how deeply the community of faith
has been wounded recently through the attacks of the evil one, through
the penetration of sin itself into the interior, yes, into the heart of
the Church. Do not make that an excuse to flee from the face of God! You
yourselves are the Body of Christ, the Church! Bring the undiminished
fire of your love into this Church whose countenance has so often been
disfigured by man. “Never flag in zeal, be aglow with the Spirit, serve
the Lord!” (Rom 12:11). When Israel was at the lowest point in her
history, God called for help, not from the great and honored ones of
Israel, but from a young man by the name of Jeremiah. Jeremiah felt
overwhelmed: “Ah, Lord God! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am
only a youth” (Jer 1:6). But God was not to be deterred : “Do not say,
‘I am only a youth’; for to all to whom I send you you shall go, and
whatever I command you you shall speak” (Jer 1:7).
I bless you and pray each day for all of you.
Benedictus P.P. XVI
By:Peter, 85
