Into the 21^st century, humanity lives in an info-tech society of rapid changes. Metropolitan cities are expected to deal with problems and opportunities brought forth with paradigm shifts in economy and communications. Hong Kong, an international city for long, is well situated in the centre of Asia, both geographically and in terms of social developments. Hence, our pastoral strategy should also reflect the perspective “Think Global, Act Local”! It is particularly important for the revision of our policy for youth ministry that we should take into account their formation in an informational culture that is at once interactive, individualistic, and multi-mediated. Obviously, youth are open to growth in all aspects, and, in particular, they grow up in a society of rapid and constant changes. Those who accompany them (family, pastors, educators, social workers) are bound to adopt a policy of wider flexibility in order to cope with a social environment of high acceleration.

　 We expected many difficulties in working out such a policy, and the very first we encountered was a precise definition for our subject matter, i.e. a definition for “youth”. Indeed, it has been an inconclusive issue. According to the practising law in Hong Kong SAR, there are obvious discrepancies in defining youth or young persons, e.g. in sections for “Juvenile Offences”, “Detention of Juveniles”, “Caution of Juvenile Offenders”, and “Care and Protection Order for Juvenile”. There have been even more diverse interpretations at executive and judicial level.

In education and social services, there are terms referring to different periods in personal growth, i.e. “children”, “adolescents & youth”, “adults”, and “senior citizens”. Of these, “adolescents and youth” cover a most varied range of referents. In reality, when taken both collectively and individually, adolescents and youth represent a transit-period in personal growth that shares neither a common check-in nor a common checkout point. The Charter For Youth, revised in 2000, states that “for the purpose of the Charter, youth means people between the ages of fifteen and twenty four although, where appropriate, the age range may be adjusted up to five years in either direction to cater for practical needs”. Thus, youth include people between 10 and 29 years of old, but other related LEGCO documents either do not fix the age-range or suggest a wider range of 13 to 30.

Therefore, apart from the range of ages, we propose to include other terms of reference in our definition. Hence, we agree that “youth” will refer to “people in between 13 and 40 years of age, in school and at work”. They will be dealt with subsequently in three categories, namely youth in parish, youth in secondary and higher education, and youth at work.

Compared to the law and social policy of the Hong Kong SAR Government, we have adopted an obvious prolonged period for youth. We believe it does reflect the reality today, envisaged both from a macro and a micro perspective. From a micro perspective, the psychological period of youth and adolescence has apparently been prolonged. Most children enter prematurely into adolescence, as they enjoy a comparatively earlier ownership of a private “domain”. Kids are fast to express their eagerness for autonomy, and eventually they demand for respect; they excel in technology and information, and they know how to use both; in fact, young professionals play vital roles in many sectors of the present informational society. Meanwhile, the average life of contemporary city dwellers has been comparatively prolonged, and, at the same time, youth have constant holdback for advancement into adulthood. Many people who are over thirty, struggle to remain youthful, at least psychologically. Schooling has also relatively prolonged, and the average age for initiation into society has increased. Consequently, the period of dependency (at least psychologically) has become longer than before.

As a result, the youth-period has been prolonged, taken both collectively and individually, physically and psychologically, and the youth population worldwide, particularly in the urban areas, has increased. Consequently, resources for youth services have become deficient. We find these phenomena highly significant for our future ministry.

Meanwhile, we have also studied a few negative implications. Youth and adolescents are inclined to demand an early admission into adulthood, and, at the same time, reject interventions from the grown-up. They expect guidance while refusing rules and regulations. Thus, other foreign “guides” are employed; these include general and blind pursuit of wealth, power, superstition, technology, fame, fans, and pleasure. Although these guides seem to be foreign and not binding, yet they turn out to be spontaneous enough to affect the whole life of our youth who make (or refuse to make) their lifelong decisions in accordance with this guidance.

The above phenomena can be interpreted from another viewpoint. Youth today reject a distinct and clear-cut boundaries in their growing-up, i.e. from childhood to adolescence, to adulthood, and to retirement - from dependency to independence, from school to society, from work to retirement, such boundaries have been de-marginalized and diffusing. Hence, our adolescents are given sufficient time and space for growing up, at the expense of an immediate “leap” into adulthood – a successful prevention of adulthood-phobia. Nevertheless, the prolongation of youth-hood leads to a general loss of confidence in adults. Their parents and superiors appear to be immature, at least as a group of unworthy models. In fact, many adolescents cannot procure a family of human warmth, care and communications; their parents tend to replace love with tangibles, and they are in no way qualified models for our youngsters. Often our youngsters are left in desperation, indifference, suspicion, rebellion, and despair – they are involved in series of controversial behaviour. For instance, youth, nowadays, are eager to be integrated into the parish community or the society at large, and they want to be accepted. However, they are equally afraid of commitment since they refuse to be engaged.

All in all, our youth are confronted with problems as well as opportunities. Despite being brought up in an entirely materialistic environment, they still yearn for interior richness as they soon find out the inadequacy of material wealth. Despite living in a virtual world of cyber culture, they still look for values – the real value of truth, goodness and beauty. Despite being alienated in human relationship, they still want to love and to be loved. The emergence of cyber culture today has resulted in many unconventional approaches to establishing human relationship. Virtual roles and characters in cyber culture have proved highly enticing to modern youth. The new culture, undoubtedly, has created new challenges as well as opportunities for our ministry.

Based on the descriptions above on modern youth and our corresponding studies, the report below will be divided into three parts, namely, (1) youth ministry in parish; (2) youth ministry in school; and (3) youth ministry among young workers. Each part will be introduced with a brief account on the current situation, followed by a descriptive account of the present difficulties for youth workers, and wind up with practical recommendations. Throughout our studies for a rejuvenated policy for youth ministry, we have tried to entertain a global vision and to design local actions accordingly. In addition, we are convinced that we ourselves, together with our next generation, should ensure a genuine spiritual life in order to complement our vision into “Think Global, Act Local, and Live Contemplative！”

Pope John Paul II talks about youth in Chapter 19 in Crossing the Threshold of Hope and the question ”What is youth?“ is raised. He thinks that youth is not only a period of life that corresponds to a certain number of years, it is also a time given by Providence to every person and given to him/her as a responsibility. During that time he/she searches, like the young man in the Gospel, for answers to basic questions; he/she searches not only for the meaning of life but also for a concrete way to go about living his/her life. This is the most fundamental characteristic of youth.

The Pope points out that, if at every stage of his life man desires to be his own person, to find love, during his youth he desires it even more strongly. The desire to be one’s own person, however, must not be understood as a license to do anything, without exception. The young do not want that at all – they are willing to be corrected, they want to be told yes or no. They need guides, and they want them close at hand.

Clearly, then, the fundamental problem of youth is profoundly personal. In life, youth is when we come to know ourselves. It is also a time of communion.

Finally, the Pope emphasizes that the young are searching for God, they are searching for the meaning of life, they are searching for definite answers: “What must I do to inherit eternal life? (Mk 10:25)”

“What must I do to inherit eternal life?” This is the question raised by the young man when he comes to Jesus. In 1985, the year of International Youth, the Pope’s Apostolic Letter “To the Youth of the World”, starting from the dialogue between the young man and Jesus, reveals the internal desire of the youth, and it points out to us: What kind of youth the Church expects. In fact, the speeches about the youth given by the Pope, for example, the speeches given for World Youth Day and the article mentioned, follow the same line of thought.

The Pope points out in the letter that, “the period of youth is the time of a particularly intense discovery of the human ‘I’ and of the properties and capacities connected with it. Before the inner gaze of the developing personality of the young man or woman, there is gradually and successively revealed that specific and in a sense unique and unrepeated potentiality of a concrete humanity, in which there is as it were inscribed the whole plan of future life. Life presents itself as the carrying-out of that plan: as ‘self-fulfilment’.”

“We have already heard what the young man had asked: ‘Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?’ How must I act so that my life will have meaning and value? We could translate his question into the language of our own times. In this context Christ’s answer means this: only God is the ultimate basis of all values; only he gives the definite meaning to our human existence.”

When Jesus talks about the commandments with the young man, the young man answers, “All these things I have observed from my youth”. The Apostolic Letter continues, “The Commandments determine the essential bases of behaviour, decide the moral value of human acts, and remain in organic relationship with man’s vocation to eternal life, with the establishment of God’s kingdom in people and among people.” These commandments, together with the commandment of love, become the solid foundation in the life of the youth.

“Christ asks you about the state of your moral awareness, and at the same time he questions you about the state of your conscience. This is a key question for man: it is the fundamental question of our youth, one that concerns the whole plan of life which must be formed precisely in youth.”

After declaring the personal fidelity to the commandments of the Decalogue, he then asks, “What do I still lack?” It shows that in the moral conscience of a person and more precisely of a young person who is forming the plan for his or her whole life, there is hidden an aspiring to ‘something more’.

Jesus’ asking the young man to ‘follow me,’ is a vocation, a vocation of life. Young people, entering into themselves and at the same time entering into conversation with Christ in prayer, desire as it were to read the eternal thought which God the Creator and Father has in their regard, and then construct their plans of life. The Pope reminds the young people that they must rethink – and very profoundly – the meaning of Baptism and Confirmation. For in these two sacraments is contained the fundamental deposit of Christian life and vocation. From these there begins the path towards the Eucharist, which contains the fullness of the sacramental gifts granted to the Christian. It is also necessary – and always in relationship with the Eucharist – to reflect on the Sacrament of Penance, which is of irreplaceable importance for the formation of the Christian personality. The Sacrament of Marriage and Vocation are the fulfillment of the plan of life and life vocation. Each of the Church’s sacraments has its own definite and specific reference to youth and to young people.

“The young are a living and active force in the Church, and are at the center of its interest and love; they are its hope. … the Church entrusts them to the preferential care of priests, … this type of pastoral work is a priority for the present and future of the Church. First of all, one should allow oneself to become involved in their exuberance, even at the cost of personal inconvenience, … They should try to see with the eyes of the young, and be prepared to give up a lot of time to them, sharing their interests and having friendly relations with them, engaging also in spiritual direction, which can have such an influence for good in the years of adolescence. Priests should bear in mind that the Church has a lot to say to the young, and the young has a lot to say to the Church.

It is also necessary to bring young people together in groups, of boys or girls or mixed, making the most of school structures, associations and movements, or encouraging the formation of spontaneous groups. … and train leaders of young people.

On the diocesan level, there should be an organization to promote pastoral work among youth, with priests trained for this type of work and appointed to lend their assistance to parish groups and others. (Pastoral Guides for Diocesan Priests in Churches Dependent on the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples #12)

“Young people must not be simply considered as an object of pastoral concern for the Church.” (Christifideles Laici #46)

“The Christian formation of young people in Asia should recognize that they are not only the object of the Church’s pastoral care but also ‘agents and co-workers in the Church’s mission in her various apostolic works of love and service.’” (Ecclesia in Asia #47)

“Young people are, and ought to be encouraged to be, active on behalf of the Church. They are called to take a leading role in evangelization …” (Christifideles Laici #46)

“The young should become the first apostles of the young, in direct contact with them, exercising the apostolate by themselves, taking account of their social environment.” (Decree on the Apostolate of Lay People #12)

“Priests should make use of young people in the work of evangelization. With reason one can speak of the apostolate of hope when the young are evangelized and themselves become protagonists in the evangelization of non-Christian youth.” (Pastoral Guides for Diocesan Priests in Churches Dependent on the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples #12)

In accordance with the basic principles and Church documents mentioned above, we believe our youth ministry should be orientated towards:

Traditional associations for catholic faithful are more popular in some parishes, whereas groups specifically established for youth are comparatively rare. So, our youth would be easily neglected if they do not find traditional associations appealing. In general, priests patronize youth groups. Very often, a group will flourish and become active if the priest remains free and active; otherwise, it slackens and possibly fades out.

Some Sunday school pupils are left outside any parish group after they receive the Sacrament of Confirmation. Eventually, they take up a less active role in the parish. In fact, very few parish activities seem appealing to adolescents. Youth usually play down spiritual life, since they prefer social activities rather than the Eucharist and other spiritual or evangelical activities. Besides, they may lose confidence in life.

Most parishes are poorly equipped with rooms and space for youth activities. Parishes are deficient in leader training, too. We need to train youth leaders for various services. At the same time, we are poorly organized in religious training to consolidate the religious life of our youth. We need time and resources badly. In most cases, we need a full-time minister who could dedicate him/herself entirely to our youth. Further, parents used to give foremost importance to academic performance, leaving religious formation in a more negligible position. Hence, youth ministry in parish has made very limited progress.

1. We need to work for an all-round formation for our youngsters; we should care for their physical, psychological, and spiritual development, including healthy social skills.
2. We have to guide our youth in a personal and healthy search for spiritual life. We should guide them to live an exemplary Christian life through active participation in prayer, retreat, youth mass, etc. The teaching and learning procedures should involve understanding and reflection, and should be adaptable to their interest and need. We have also to accompany our youngsters to respond to God’s call for life, particularly for a life of clerical and/or religious dedication.
3. In accordance with the Church’s teaching, we are responsible for their formation in social awareness. They should be led to care and to serve the community, to lead a social life of justice and righteousness. They are expected to show empathy with the poor and the neglected, to serve the needy, and, above all, to search for justice and peace. Meanwhile, we should guide them to proclaim the Good News to their peers through words and deeds.

1. We recommend the appointment of an Episcopal Delegate for youth ministry on the Diocese level. She/he will execute the related policy, and will act as the co-ordinator of various youth groups, so as to facilitate pastoral activities effectively and efficiently.
2. We recommend the establishment in each parish of a full-time Pastoral Assistant for youth services (PAYS). The post will be responsible for planning and execution of the pastoral works for youth in parish. The candidate needs to line up the whole team of volunteers to form a “work group for youth pastoral services”. The group should be integrated into the parish structure in order to survive. It is also vital that youth ministry should be closely connected with the parish ministry.
3. The work group should mobilize the adult parishioners to care and to lead the adolescents, whereas the adolescents in turn will lead the kids. The group will take care of the needs of all youth activities in the parish, and will secure for and administrate a proper venue for such activities. They will liaison with schools, catholic and non-catholic, in the district, in order to foster pastoral ministry in schools. Meanwhile, they will install basic groups for youth of different ages, students and workers.
4. We propose to set up a “youth corner” in each parish, providing regular space for various functions including meeting and gathering.
5. There should be a decent place for study and revision on top of other youth activities. Young members should be encouraged to participate in building “study cells” where elder brothers and sisters can help the younger breed. This fraternal service in fact is based on reciprocal care and help. The cells, obviously, constitute ideal space for building up Christian communities.
6. A healthy catholic family breeds healthy young catholics. The parish is expected to organise gatherings for catholic parents for sharing and learning.
7. Sunday school and class for the Sacrament of Confirmation play a vital role in youth ministry. The Diocese should decide upon the age for the reception of the sacrament, and emphasize its significance. In fact, this will facilitate the installation of a comprehensive strategy for youth ministry.
8. The Diocese should design training programs for young catholics on personal growth and on enhancing faith.
9. Parishes should install “Action Group for Vocation” to encourage young catholic to respond to God’s call.
10. The Diocese should organize leadership-training programs for youth to recruit suitable leaders for youth ministry at all levels.
11. Each parish should work out a pastoral plan for youth ministry; it should include reasonable financial supports for various activities. We recommend that the Diocese establish a youth foundation to which all groups can apply for subsidies in order to support various activities in the parish. We also recommend that the Diocese set up various prizes to encourage creative young talent in music, drama, dance, literature, and audio-visuals.

According to the latest statistics (Catholic Directory 2001), the catholic population in Hong Kong has amounted to 230,000, not including temporary domestic helpers, i.e. 3.5% of the entire population. It is expected that the catholic population in an ordinary catholic secondary school would be represented by the same percentage. Some educators have indicated that the number of catholic students in band-5 schools is reducing.

Current pastoral activities in schools include morning prayers, the Eucharist, and feast-day celebrations; academic program normally includes Religious Studies and Moral Studies, some schools offer Religious Studies for HKCE; Religious associations, youth groups, and Catholic Society (Kat So) are among the common extra-curricular activities. Human resources include priests, religious brothers and sisters, catholic teachers, and, for a few schools, pastoral assistants. Since the majority of this work force also serves the parish, they constitute an important link between schools and parishes.

Religious associations often attract more non-catholic rather than catholic students, not a few of the former go on to become catechumens and eventually be baptised.

Youth ministry in school has encountered many difficulties. Religious activities are generally unpopular. Many born-catholic students have been deprived of catholic family education, and they show no interest in religion. In many catholic schools, academic achievements and reputation are taken as top values, at the expense of Christian and spiritual formation. Also, pastoral ministry does not earn the support it deserves. Opportunities for pastoral-orientated lesson never materialize, and “tight scheduling” has often been the excuse. Some catholic teachers and administrators, including head-teachers, are ill prepared in Christian formation, and they are weak at pastoral work. The post of pastoral assistant is usually vacant due to the fact that teachers are over-loaded with academic duties. Inspiring and interesting resources for Religious Studies are extremely lacking.

Youth ministry must regain its prominent status in the vision statement of each catholic school in order to mobilize the entire staff and students to respect and carry out its Christian role. We should lead students to appreciate, acknowledge, and commit themselves to Christian values. In particular, we should offer Christian formation and spirituality to catholic teachers and students, so that they will lead lives in accordance with the the Divine Scriptures, the Commandments, and Catholic virtues. Thus, they will mature and proceed to spread the Good News.

1. That the Diocese should oblige the inclusion of catholic dimensions into the vision statement of each Catholic school, and emphasize the necessity of catholic education for a ‘holistic’ perspective in education, and should reinforce its implementation.
2. To implement the theory and practice of catholic education, administrators in catholic schools should have sufficient knowledge and formation in catholic doctrine. We recommend that relevant qualifications in the field should be duly considered in recruitment and promotion. Preference should be given to qualifications in theology and philosophy, religious studies, biblical studies, catechetics, liturgy, etc. received from catholic higher education institutes, local and overseas. School administration should also supplement such training for new recruits.
3. The Diocese and the school authorities should organise regular formation programs for head-teachers and catholic teachers.
4. The Board, the administration, and the teaching staff of each catholic school should consist of a due proportion of catholic members. The ratio should be fixed by the Bishop together with the Curia, and will be revised every five years.
5. Each catholic school, in addition to regular Religious Studies lessons, should have an extra class for catholic (for Christian formation) and non-catholic students (for spiritual formation). It serves to teach the practice of the Divine Word and the Commandments in daily life, to foster friendship among peers, and to create an amicable and exam-free atmosphere to discuss faith.
6. Schools should assign a Religious Day every week, where extra-curricular hours will be reserved only for religious activities. To foster the sense of evangelisation, students will be entrusted to design and run these activities.
7. Schools can work with other diocesan groups in training catholic student leaders.
8. There should be a pastoral assistant for each school to coordinate and execute religious activities.
9. Diocese should offer substantial supports for pastoral works in school. We recommend the Bishop or his delegate should visit each and every catholic secondary school at least once a year. The parish should maintain an amicable partnership with the catholic schools in its juridical territory; we recommend that the parish priest or his delegate should visit each of these schools at least once in each school term. Other mechanisms to promote pastoral care are recommendable, e.g. parish and related schools share the employment of pastoral assistants, the recruitment of volunteers, and the organisation of activities.
10. Schools are recommended to cooperate with diocesan organisations in youth formation program.

Hong Kong SAR Government has promised to increase significantly its investment in higher education in the next decade. In the end, a total of 60% of our school-leavers will be offered a place in higher education – the available placements will be double the present ones. Hence, we should be well alert and increase our resources in the related pastoral ministry.

Campus life in a university is distinctively different from secondary education, particularly in terms of learning mode and community life. It certainly applies to the religious ingredients. All the current eight universities are non-catholic, and no catholic element would be preferable in theory and practice, hence the respective “KatSo” (catholic society) are on an equal footing with any other extra-curricular activities. Catholic college students have to forget the privileges they once enjoyed in catholic secondary schools, and should be prepared to take the initiative for any religious and spiritual activity. And they are expected to be much more dedicated and self-orientated when they need to evangelise.

Tertiary institutes are basically non-catholic, where KatSo is on an equal footing with other groups and societies. The current Hong Kong Federation of Catholic Students (HKFCS) consists of 12 KatSo members, though a few of them are not active. Catholic students are free to join the KatSo, just as non-catholic are equally welcome to join. And non-catholic members are reportedly increasing.

All KatSo activities are self-orientated. Principal activities include cell group, pilgrimage, retreat, prayer group, preaching, orientation camp, and social activities; on top of these, HKFCS organizes yearly expedition to under-privileged areas abroad, participants claim that these experiences are remarkably significant despite the fact that admissions are highly competitive due to very limited resources.

Executive members and a chaplain serve at each KatSo. HKFCS has also employed two social workers to support member KatSo and their training programs.

It is fortunate to have a trustworthy group where students can share and live the Christian life, where they can support each other, and in return, each one can achieve spiritual maturity. Unfortunately, a good number of active members in secondary KatSo and in parish do not join KatSo in colleges and universities. Meanwhile, active KatSo members appear to be passive at parish level.

Executive members’ service lasts one year, but the service term is too short for serious endeavour. It is sad that fewer college students are willing to share the executive responsibility. Often, KatSo goes without an executive board.

Pastoral workers offer insufficient support to KatSo, and HKFCS lacks resources to employ more pastoral workers.

The Diocese has been unable to provide with a full-time chaplain to take up the pastoral services for college students. Apart from the two pastoral assistants who work for the HKFCS, college students do not see sufficient supports from the Church. Youth need formation, they also need support. In fact, the Diocese has rarely organized activities specifically for this group of students.

We need to reactivate our hope and responsibility towards our catholic youth in higher education. At the same time, let us call for a sense of mission, a dedication to evangelisation! We have to offer positive resources in training for faith and spirituality, so that the Divine Word, the Commandments, and the Catholic Ethics will be integrated into their life.

1. Parish members and secondary KatSo should be encouraged to join KatSo in colleges. Meanwhile, we should emphasize the importance of the parish as the base for lifelong spiritual formation.
2. We recommend the Diocese to appoint a full-time chaplain to take care of the youth ministry for higher education.
3. A network of information should be set up at the diocesan level to facilitate the organizing of activities by KatSo. We recommend that diocesan groups which provide youth services should take the initiative to liaison with KatSo to organize joint programs. This will certainly ease off the shortage of human resources.
4. Diocesan organizations including church and seminary are encouraged to offer rooms and space to KatSo members for various functions.
5. HKFCS and its KatSo members should be subsidized and offered more resources.
6. Diocesan groups are in a better position to organize youth expeditions for college students to visit under-privileged districts. Participants can use this exposure to consolidate their Christian belief. Elsewhere, in order to attract and to evangelise non-catholic students, diocesan groups are encouraged to join catholic youth groups in organizing interesting programs such as youth concerts.

Working youth should establish a sense of belonging to the Church; their faith should be fostered so as to achieve spiritual integration. They should be encouraged to an exemplary Christian life, sharing the mission of the Church.

1. to appoint at least one pastoral worker (priest, nun, or laity) for each deanery; he/she should be a full-time partner for young workers, thus establishing an official mechanism to support their cell groups;
2. to choose a proper place and set up a multi-function club for working youth, so that their needs will be met and their voices be heard;
3. to reinforce and promote the current services at the Diocesan Pastoral Centre for Workers and the Diocesan Youth Commission Office, e.g. expanding the services, reinforcing the public relations, increasing personnel, implementing the ideals of “Ministry” for working youth;
4. to provide a youth homepage to facilitate data flows and opinion exchanges, especially in creating a space for news concerning working youth;
5. to organise training programs specifically for working youth to reinforce their knowledge of, and their mission and loyalty to the Catholic Church;
6. to encourage our young workers to form all types of cell groups, including the basic Christian communities, and various servicing groups. These should be run by youth themselves, and can be divided according to job nature so that young workers can receive acknowledgements and supports from their work colleagues;
7. to notify graduates at any level (secondary, tertiary) of related youth activities that lead to a better understanding of work, and of how to work with faith, so that they will keep up with their faith once they are initiated into society.

1. Parish should provide the necessary rooms for activities.
2. In the annual budget and planning, parish council should include a plan for its working youth, a plan of formation in faith and spiritual life.
3. Gatherings for working youth should be more frequently organised to offer opportunity for sharing and reducing pressure.
4. In the recruitment of volunteers for summer vacation every year, the recruits should be trained in faith and spiritual life.
5. Each parish should install a Youth Ministry Group to lead and coordinate youth activities. It is highly recommended that youth themselves should be trained to guide and set examples for their juniors. They are expected to understand and to learn the value of being a genuine Catholic.