Cotonou, 09 March, 2021 / 5:30 pm (ACI Africa).
The importance of young people demonstrating their Christian identity through selfless service to the Church and society has been underscored at a public catechesis, which the Archbishop of Benin’s Cotonou Archdiocese organized.
In the March 7 catechesis titled, “Young Christians, what is your dream? Christian identity and current challenges,” Archbishop Roger Houngbédji highlighted the value of young people saying they represent the backbone of the Church amid present day challenges.
“My dear young people, if I have chosen to address you in particular through this itinerant catechesis in the different areas of our Diocese, it is because you constitute both the present and the future of the Church,” Archbishop Houngbédji said during the catechesis at the Saint Anthony of Padua Parish in Abomey-Calavi, located in the Atlantique Department of Benin.
Addressing the close to 500 youth, the Beninese Archbishop said, “Your Christian identity as young people can only give its full measure in your commitment in the Church and in society, in your living environments.”
“It is important to move away from a conception of Christian identity as a status acquired once and for all,” the 57-year-old Archbishop said, describing Christian identity as “a dynamic relationship that commits us to God, to the Church, to our neighbor and to society.”
