MISSIONARY YOUTH MOVEMENT HOLDS CANDLE LIGHT CEREMONY IN HONOUR OF THE LATE POPE FRANCIS
The Missionary Youth Movement (MYM), during their annual Mass celebration, held a candlelight ceremony at St. Mary’s Msongari grounds in honour of Pope Francis, who passed away on the morning of Easter Monday.
The ceremony was graced by Archbishop Philip Anyolo, Rev. Fr. Victor Mbuthia, Youth Chaplain, Rev. Fr. Dominic Mwangi, Assistant Youth Chaplain, and other youth chaplain priests from parishes across the archdiocese. His Grace encouraged the youth, emphasizing that true happiness and the proper use of their gifts require seeking the hand of God by serving Him and their neighbors.
During the short ceremony, the young people reflected on their calling in the Church, recalling the words of the late Pope Francis during his visit to Kenya in 2015. At the meeting held at Kasarani Stadium, Pope Francis addressed the youth on issues such as divisions, conflict, war, death, fanaticism, tribalism, corruption, and the destructiveness affecting young people. In response, he offered them words of comfort:
“Dear young friends, we don’t live in the clouds; we live in this world. And this world is full of problems, of temptations to go down the wrong path. But there is something which all of you have, something you will have for a while, and that is the ability to choose which path you want to take, which of these two things you want to choose. Will I let myself be overcome by problems, or will I turn my problems into new opportunities and win in the end?”
Speaking on forms of communication, especially in light of the rise of social media and its impact on society and relationships, Pope Francis remarked:
“The primary means of communication is the word, a gesture, a smile. The first gesture of communication is going up to someone, seeking their friendship. If you speak well of one another, if you laugh, if you draw close to one another as brothers and sisters—even though you belong to different tribes—if you are close to those in need, the poor, the lonely, the elderly whom no one visits… If you are close to them, those little signs of communication are more influential than any television network.”
Pope Francis remains a leader who persistently reminded young people to turn to Jesus in prayer. He encouraged them to:
“…ask the Lord to give you the strength to eliminate tribalism, and to be brothers and sisters to one another. Pray for the courage not to be corrupted, to want to treat one another as brothers and sisters with a smile, a good word, a gesture of help, by your closeness.”
