The challenge of today’s youth

WITH the holding of the National Youth Day celebration

here in Cebu this week, we are again given a chance to take a long and

serious look at the situation of today’s youth not only in our country

but also all over the world. And let’s see what we can do with the

pluses and minuses, the lights and shadows that such consideration

would give us.

            It is obvious that today’s youth are way different from

those in the previous generations in so many respects, like in terms

of mentality, behavior and lifestyle, attitude, culture and manners,

etc. It should come as no surprise since today’s youth are exposed to

a lot more things than those of the past. While every generation is

different from the others, the present one seems to be more sharply

different.

            Today’s youth, in general, seem to know and to use a lot

more things in terms of technologies. Aside from the wealth of

knowledge that has been accumulated through the ages worldwide and now

made more accessible due to the new technologies, they are now freely

riding the wave of the many new developments in the areas of the

sciences, the arts, and of the course the technologies. They are the

digital natives.

            These new things, of course, can have double effects. They

can be good and bad, depending on how we understand and use them.

While we can see a lot of today’s youth empowered greatly because of

these new things, we can also see many of them sinking in all forms of

anomalies and disorders.

            There are those who manage to make good use of the many

possibilities the new things offer them, but there also those who are

simply confused and lost, trapped in their own self-indulgence. And

between the two, I am afraid the latter is far more plenty than the

former.

            It’s the latter case that we should be more concerned

about. They are the ones who seem to mature late when, in fact, the

challenges and complications of the times call for them to mature

early.

            How can we help them? What measures should we use? I am

sure we can come out with many ideas and initiatives. But initially

these are what come to my mind.

            We have to intensify our efforts to give effective

accompaniment to our youth. How this can be done is something that

should be the object of constant reflection, study, research and

consultation.

            In spite of difficulties arising from the sharp

differences between the young and the old of today, we have to find a

way of how these two sectors can go together in the journey of life.

We have to find a way of putting together for the benefit of today’s

youth the old and the new things in our life, the traditions and the

innovations, etc.

            What is also needed is that we have to be clear about what

would comprise as objectively good for all of us, especially the

young, what criteria and standard we can use to measure the maturity

of a person, etc.

            We cannot deny that the strengthening and deepening of

people’s faith in God is crucial in this concern. We also have to work

out the development of a genuine spiritual life in the young, because

without this, we may be doing a lot of things but would still miss the

real thing in life. “What does it profit a man if he gains the whole

world…,” we are already amply warned.

            Some practical pieces of advice are also very much in

order. Like, we have to remind the young ones to go slow in their

pursuit for the new things today, and to avoid a multi-tasking work

style especially if they do not yet have a proper sense of priority

about the different human needs.

            Am sure a lot more can be said.