By Agenzia Fides
July 22 2020
KAOHSIUNG – “Christ is alive and wants you alive”, and he wants every young person to be ready to bear witness to their faith and hope in society: this was the focus of the gathering of the Vincentian Marian Youth, VMY, that hundreds of young people from the movement lived in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, from 16 to 19 July.
As Fr. Rindo Karippai, a Vincentian missionary in Taiwan, one of the accompanying persons of the young people – together with other priests, nuns and lay people – told Fides “the gathering was a process of catechumenate, which was intended to help young people grow in their faith”. “Inspired by the Word of God, young people are motivated to undertake a life of constant conversion and attachment to Christ”, said Father Karippai.
In the gathering, the Taiwanese Catholic youth experienced intense moments of faith formation, prayers and a series of group activities for the deepening and renewal of their spiritual life.
The VMY movement has a universal outreach. Born within the large charismatic family linked to St. Vincent de Paoli, its history is linked to the evolution of the Society of the Daughters of Charity and the Priests of the Congregation of the Mission (CM). It was born in France in 1835 and had pontifical approval in 1847, spreading to different parts of the world.
All members of the VMY movement contemplate in Mary the will of young people to imitate the characteristic virtues of the association: transparency (purity or simplicity), collaboration (humility) in search of God’s will (obedience), sensitivity towards the poor (charity).
The Marian consecration proposed to young people strengthens the baptismal consecration and the path of growth in one’s faith, according to the motto: “To Jesus through Mary”. Today the youth movement is present in 40 countries with over 200,000 members. “With Mary as our guide and St. Vincent de Paoli as our source of inspiration – say the young people – we take to heart the message of Jesus in Luke’s Gospel: Here I am, send me”. (SD) (Agenzia Fides, 21/7/2020)
