Interview with Fr. De Guzman, SDB

By Our Own Correspondent

Manila, the Philippines, 29 November 2018 -- Interview with Fr Renato De Guzman, invited expert at the 2018 Synod on 'Faith-Youth-Vocational discernment'

What was your learning experience at the 2018 Synod?

1. The Synod showed me how the Church loves the youth: it begins with Pope Francis, the bishops, the laity and the youth who came together and spent time in listening, reflecting, praying and enjoying each other’s presence. The Synod made us experience the value of walking with youth as Church, God’s Family in communion and mission.
2. The Synod made me more convinced than ever that Don Bosco is a prophet of youth ministry. He left us a spiritual and pedagogical patrimony in relating with the young that was echoed in the Synod Hall in various ways, languages and stories, even by non-Salesians. At the same time in the Synod, I learned that Don Bosco’s educational patrimony is also enriched by the other disciplines, expertise and experiences with youth from non-Salesian tradition. This makes me humble and open to other movements of the Spirit in the Church for the good of the youth.
3. As fruit of the Synod for me, I have had the humbling awareness of my inadequate appreciation of Don Bosco’s patrimony of walking with the young. This has led me to ask myself: all these years as a Salesian have I been an entertainer for the youth or a technocrat of youth ministry or an authentic and exemplary youth missionary-minister?

What are the 3 most important fruits of the 2018 Synod?

The first is in the Final Document Art no. 118 that Fr Rosanno, one the Special Secretaries, mentioned in his interview. “The fruit of this Synod, the choice that the Spirit has inspired us through the process of listening and discernment is to walk with the youth in going out to all to give witness to the love of God.” The Synod came out with an awareness of being a synodal church for the young: that is, being present to them; listening with empathy; accompanying and helping the young to discern their purpose and mission in life.

The second fruit is the recognition that youth are “today,” they are not only the future but the present, hence they are God’s gift to the Church and to the world. The Synod affirms that the youth are protoganists of their life today and tomorrow. There is a need to help them face this life and journey through this life with a purpose, with a mission. Hence, the Synod strongly proposes that a culture of vocation be created in the local church and in every youth ministry setting.

The third lesson is that we recognise that youth ministry today has two essential characteristics: youthful and vocational: “Since the start of the synodal journey the need to qualify youth ministry and its vocational orientation has come out with force. In this way two indispensable characteristics of ministering to the youth of today have come up: “youthful” because its recipients belong to the age group called youth that is unique and not repeatable in life; and “vocational” because youth is a privileged stage of life that is open to life’s choices and to respond to the call of God.”

What do you suggest to the Salesians immersed in their busy apostolic life - how can they be inspired by this Synod?

I suggest the following steps that the FIN Province is taking as we join the Church in the Philippines in celebrating the Year of the Youth and we prepare for the Provincial Chapter that asks us “What kind of SDBS are we for the young today”.

1. Get to know and appreciate the Final Document of the Synod in one’s own language even though it may be an unofficial translation. We will better understand Pope Francis in his future Post Synodal Apostolic Exhortation if we study and reflect on the Final Document.
2. Draw out the “Salesian” features in the Final Document: a) those that are traceable in our Salesian tradition and b) those that are not “Salesian” but will enrich and enhance our current youth ministry.
3. Reflect and make those “synodal” features in the Final Document concrete in the provincial chapter and in actual youth ministry in the Province.

Listening to the young people was at the heart of the Synod. What does it mean for us Salesians?

It means that we Salesians have to go back to Don Bosco and learn from his spirit of listening. In his preventive system he taught us Salesians how to listen to the youth with all our senses and especially with the heart.

Many Salesians were present in the Synod Hall this time. What does it mean for the 14,500 SDBs around the world after the Synod?

I believe it means more humility for us Salesians to appreciate the presence of many other charisms for the good of the youth, to be open to many other ways of relating with the youth today, to experiment another way of walking with the youth: the synodal way, hoping that with our salesian tradition, this synodal walking with the youth will truly respond to their context today and will be effective in forming them into Don Bosco’s vision for the youth: to be good christians and honest citizens today.

• Related material: Full text of Fr. De Guzman interview (November 28)
• Related news article: Australasia 4873 (II) I sense a deep interest in the youth

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