Rome: The Pontifical Council for Laity has recognized Jesus Youth, an India-based movement of Catholic young people, as an international private association of laypeople.
Jesus Youth is the first laity group in India and second in Asia to receive the Vatican recognition. The first Asian group is Couples of Christ that was started in Manila, the Philippines in 1981.
The Vatican council confirmed the news in an April 6 letter to C C Joseph, international coordinator of the Jesus Youth.
“It is my pleasure, therefore, to confirm the Dicastery’s readiness to issue a decree approving the statutes and granting recognition to Jesus Youth as an International Private Association of the Faithful, with juridical personality in Canon Law,” says the letter signed by council secretary Bishop Josef Clemens.
Jesus Youth international office based at Kochi, in Kerala, had submitted the movement’s draft statues to the council on March 28 and further amended it on April 4.
The council has asked the movement to suggest several dates in the next three months to hold a ceremony in the Vatican to hand over the recognition to a Jesus Youth delegation of some 50 people.
Jesus Youth is a missionary movement at the service of the Church. It began in Kerala in 1985, the International Youth Year, when hundreds of young people from different parts of the southern Indian state attended a three-day conference titled ‘Jesus Youth Conference.’
After the conference, the participants began to be identified as a ‘Jesus Youth.’ Five years later, Jesus Youth began to spread to other parts of India. Gradually, many members who traveled abroad for employment spread the movement in many other Asian countries including South East Asia and the Persian Gulf region.
By the time it celebrated its 30th year, the movement was also active in Australia, Germany, Italy, Ireland, New Zealand, United Kingdom, besides Canada and the United States. It is now active in nearly 25 different countries around the world.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India approved the movement in 2008 and appointed Archbishop Abraham Viruthakulangara of Nagpur as its ecclesiastical adviser. A year later, the movement began the process for the Vatican recognition as an ‘International Private Association of Christian Faithful of Pontifical Right.”
The strength of the movement is its special focus on a life centered on the Lord Jesus Christ: beginning with an experience of God nourished by prayer, the Word of God, the sacraments and fellowship, and sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ with others.
Though not an actual community, Jesus Youth is a network of small but vibrant groups of young people. In their own life situations, they strive to give time to the Lord, responding to the challenges of modern world in the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Jesus Youth international coordinator said the recognition is the fruit of 30 years of relentless efforts.
The Jesus Youth movement is known for its spirituality that promotes an active Catholic life style that is relevant to a young lay person facing the challenges of today. The Six “pillars of Spirituality” on which the Jesus Youth movement is based on are: personal prayer, Bible reading, Sacraments, fellowship, evangelization and service.
Spending ‘quiet time’ with the Lord is fundamental in the life of a Jesus Youth member. They set apart a regular time daily for meditative reading of the Scripture. They also attend daily Mass and go for frequent confession.
To foster Christian fellowship, the members set up cells, prayer groups, vocational groups, service teams and friendship circles. Jesus Youth engaged in social service especially among the poor and marginalized.