Monrovia, 19 February, 2020 / 2:36 am (ACI Africa).
At the national gathering of young people organized by the Catholic Bishops Conference of Liberia (CABICOL) with the support of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), Pope Francis invited participants to be more generous in their response to the Gospel message as they discern God’s plans for their respective lives.
“His Holiness prays that this occasion will encourage the young people of the country to become more generous in their response to the Gospel and their discernment of God’s plan for their lives,” reads in part the Holy Father’s message addressed to the young people of Liberia following their five-day event in the country’s capital, Monrovia, that concluded Sunday, February 16.
Signed by the Secretary of State Pietro Cardinal Parolin, the Holy Father challenges young Liberians as he did the young Catholics at World Youth Day in Krakow, Poland saying, “the times we live in do not call for young “couch potatoes” but for young people with shoes, or better, boots laced … active players on the field ... There is no room for those who sit on the bench.”
The message was read out to the young people by the Secretary General of CABICOL, Fr. Dennis Cephas Nimene.
In the message, the Holy Father underlined the need for young people to be active saying, “In this way, through their faithful witness to the Gospel, they will contribute to the growth of God’s kingdom of reconciliation and peace in Liberia.”
