“Hope is the unique quality of the Christian. To live in hope is not just to survive, but to flourish, prosper, and bear fruit with a heart oriented toward truth and a heart that beats to the rhythm of God’s mercy to the world. … This is stated by Sophia Kuby, Director of Strategic Relations and Training at ADF International (Organization that provides legal assistance to Christians prosecuted for their faith) took place on the second day of the annual Catholic Conference and Public Life, organized by the Catholic Propaganda Association and the San Pablo CEU University Foundation, and this year’s title is “You, Hope.”
In the face of “a chaotic, hostile, and irrational world where ideology creates more and more victims,” Kuby recalled, “we have a mission that we did not choose. It is not arbitrary, but part of the Christian essence of transforming society.” In this sense, he emphasized, “This is not a hope for my personal life, but a hope for the world.” “Christian hope is the confidence that God knows this world, this time, and this situation, no matter where I am, no matter my mood or situation,” he explained.
“There is no such thing as neutrality, we must end this myth.”
Speaking at a conference titled “Positive Hope: Transforming Public Life,” Kuby recalled:The more you turn a blind eye, the more fear will spread.“There is no such thing as neutrality and we must put an end to this myth” in a “busy and volatile” time of profound cultural change. “A temporary shift between the era known to previous generations and one that is not yet apparent but will produce multiple crises that may spread discouragement.”
Paraphrasing the pastoral constitution Gaudium et Spes, Kuby said, “The future of humanity lies in the hands of those strong enough to give the next generation a reason to live and hope.”
Kuby warned of the general anxiety about the future experienced by young people around the world. According to some recently collected data, 54% of young people The 18-year-old and 24-year-old suffer from mental illness. Depression, anxiety disorders, eating disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorders. 46% of Gen Z feel stressed or anxious. 86% of young people, with an average age of 14, feel depressed or hopeless. 72% of 16 to 25-year-olds feel lonely. And suicide is the third leading cause of death for 15- to 20-year-olds around the world.
Kuby criticized this moment in history for not having much to encourage us to think thoroughly. “The way we think about the world and our own existence is decisive. Our own way of thinking is our primary mission field. “What we do is a result of how we think,” he said.
ADF International’s Director of Strategic Relations and Training encouraged a call for hope while avoiding the twin traps of withdrawal and resentment. “We cannot accept that having a Christian worldview is illegitimate or that Christian values are being questioned.” Along these lines, he explained:If something is bad or unfair, it must be rejected and eliminatedpreferably. When something is broken, you have to fix it. And if something is missing, we must provide it.