Pope Francis asks young people to have courage, creativity and listen to elders

Pope Francis addressed a message to the young people of the Archdiocese of Madrid gathered this weekend in which he invited them to have courage, be creative, listen to the elders and not lose their sense of humor.

“I want to be close to you. I want to accompany you in your work. But do not forget that a young man who does not create movement, a young man who is still, is a dead old man. Have courage, go forward, move,” the Pontiff begins by saying in his video message.

True to his style, he reiterated his call to “make a mess, make a fuss,” clarifying that it is the “constructive hubbub that is born from ideals,” a recommendation that he makes even though it is, in his opinion, “a thing that “Some people don’t like it.”

Pope Francis also invited us to “dialogue with everyone,” especially “with the elderly, please, who are the wisdom of a people. Listen to them and let them listen to you.” In this sense, he invited them not to break “the roots of the people. “A tree that cuts its roots no longer has sap.”

“Stick to your roots, but with creativity. A young man who is not creative has no life. He is a living dead,” the Pontiff insisted.

“Go ahead, girls, boys. Have courage and do not lose your joy. May the Lord fill you with joy. Don’t lose your sense of humor. May the Lord fill you with humor and grace.

“May God bless you. I give you my blessing. And you, please, don’t forget to pray for me. In favor, it is understood,” he concluded.

Cardinal Cobo: “Do not be afraid of the night”

He Madrid Live Meeting It is an event organized by the Youth Delegation of the Archdiocese of Madrid in which young people meet for a day at the Conciliar Seminary of Madrid. They celebrate the Eucharist in the Almudena Cathedral and organize an evening of celebration and praise on the esplanade adjacent to the temple, in what they call Hope Night.

During the homily, the Archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal José Cobo, preached that hope “is not an idea or a rush of a moment, it is not a feeling,” but rather it means “letting Jesus open our eyes and transform us into disciples, his friends to make us happy and incorporate us into a project that is the source of complete happiness.”

Likewise, the cardinal expressed that moments of difficulty are necessary to walk in hope. For this reason, he invited them to bravely face the vital nights: “Do not be afraid of the night, because the night is the prelude to hope. It should not be hidden, evaded or silenced. Remember that Jesus gives us the Supper at night, he cries in Gethsemane at night, he dies at night and in the darkness and remember that the resurrection always comes at dawn.”

The cardinal invited the young people to discover hope in courtship, in the trust of the seminarian or the consecrated person, or in friendship and made three requests: dare to ask the Lord about their vocation, help the Church to be synodal and live with pride the fact of being Christians.