Vatican City (AsiaNews) – The Vatican Press Office today released the message Pope Leo XIV wrote for next year’s World Youth Day. The text serves as preparation for the event that dioceses around the world will mark on Sunday, 22 November, the Solemnity of Christ the King.
In it, the pontiff notes that, “Many long for peace but encounter violence; many yearn for communion but experience loneliness.” Yet “Amid these contradictions, Christians are called to follow Christ in his gentle courage: the courage to show love when harshness seems easier and more effective; the courage to seek peace when confrontation appears more advantageous; and the courage to hold fast to hope when cynicism seems more convincing.”
The theme “Take courage! I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33) will guide the major gathering of young people with the pope, in Seoul on 3-7 August 2027.
Beyond the pressure of success
The very heart of Leo’s message lies with the words “courage” and “victory”. “I know well that, at times, instead of courage it is uncertainty or fear that can prevail in us, just as they did in the first disciples,” Leo writes.
“Many of you carry questions and concerns that weigh heavily on your hearts. Perhaps you are anxious about the future, feel pressured to succeed and appear perfect, or experience the stress of constantly comparing yourselves with others or with unattainable, manufactured ideals.
“Under the influence of carefully curated images on social media, you may find it difficult to recognize and accept who you truly are. Indeed, you are longing for genuine affection, since technology cannot replace authentic human closeness but can only imitate empathy.
“Some of you know what it means to experience loneliness, disappointment or the fear of not being good enough.”
It is the experience that the disciples had, on the boat at night in the rough waters of the Sea of Galilee. Yet the answer is also the same: the presence of Jesus, who “even before you begin to seek Christ, [. . .] is already seeking you, walking across the troubled waters of life.”
Leo warns that “Christian courage does not arise primarily from our own strength; it comes from his presence.”
Let “yourselves to be moved” by reality
This also indicates the type of “victory” that he brings.
“We know that, in this Gospel passage, the ‘world’ does not mean the universe created and loved by God and destined for salvation, but rather the ‘world of darkness’ (cf. Eph 6:12), which is that mysterious reality, present even in the human heart, that resists and opposes God.
“Jesus, and he alone, through his death and Resurrection, has overcome this darkness and reopened for humanity the path to God, to happiness, to justice, and to peace.”
It is indeed the courage that Christ gives us that enables us to look at reality with new eyes.
“Christ does not call you to flee from this world, but to see it through his eyes and touch it with his love, which heals all things. Allow yourselves to be moved and touched by the reality”.
Victory does not mean “being stronger than others, asserting ourselves or constantly having to prove our worth.” On the contrary, Jesus’s victory is that of free love, which “he has nothing to prove and nothing to secure for himself.
“In humbling himself, he does not lose his dignity; rather, he reveals the greatness and depth of his divine heart, capable of giving life to those who were dead. His victory is the victory of love that gives itself without counting the cost.”
For this reason, the pope urges young people to “have no need to impose yourselves, to constantly prove your worth, to appear perfect or to conceal your weaknesses, doubts and limitations.”
Instead, “Have the courage to be your true selves before God and others,” and the “courage of humility”.
Nowadays, “A certain way of thinking tells us that we must do everything on our own, constantly working to improve ourselves and to develop a stronger personality and character. Yet this can ultimately lead us to believe that we are our own saviors.”
In reality, “The Gospel shows us another path to growth: not saving ourselves, but allowing ourselves to be saved by Jesus Christ. This requires the courage to accept help from others, acknowledge our limitations, pause, listen and entrust our lives to God.”
When this happens “everything is made new, even in the ordinary circumstances of daily life: in your faithfulness to your friends, in your respect for those who think differently from you, in your attentiveness to those who are lonely, in your closeness to the most vulnerable, and even in the way you conduct yourselves in the digital world. Everything is transformed by love.”
What to take to Seoul
Finally, the pontiff offers young people some thoughts about their trip to Seoul next summer.
“Do not limit your preparations to the practical arrangements for your journey to Seoul: prepare your hearts!
“Bring to Christ your questions and your wounds, but also the wounds that tear apart your societies and set your countries against one another.
“Bring to him this creation that groans and suffers, the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor, which Pope Francis taught us to hear. Share with Jesus your joys and hopes.”
Leo XIV closes his message by citing John Paul II’s invitation: “Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors for Christ!”
“Do not wait until you are perfect before opening yourselves to him. He comes to meet you just as you are. Open your lives to Christ. Open your communities to Christ. Open the paths that lead to the hearts of the people you will meet.
“The risen Lord, who entered through locked doors, continues to come into our midst today. Therefore, do not settle for a life that falls short of the one to which Christ calls you. Allow yourselves to be united and transformed by his love.”
