From St Peter’s Square: A Final Tribute to Pope Francis

Reflection written by Kate Wilkinson, CEO of Million Minutes

Today, as I sit in St Peter’s Square, surrounded by people from every corner of the world and to my delight a huge amount of young people, I find myself reflecting on the extraordinary life and pontificate of Pope Francis. The weight of this moment is hard to put into words. 

We have lost a pastor, a teacher and for us at Million Minutes: a guiding light. The atmosphere here is quite solemn, but there is a huge feeling of gratitude. That gratitude was shown so beautifully to me in the many rounds of applause that echoed around St Peter’s square as the Pope’s mortal remains were processed into the square at the beginning of the funeral mass and at the end as he made his final journey to his resting place. The crowds of young people, originally here for the Jubilee of Teenagers sum up for me the incredible legacy of Pope Francis. 200,000 of them are here, with flags and banners thanking Pope Francis for all he has done for them and the Church. Speaking to some of them, they see Pope Francis as someone who created space for them in the Church, a place where they could belong and be themselves. Many speak of how he has inspired them to strive to make the world a better place and stand up for the rights of others and against injustice. Many speak of his witness and the love that he showed to others, particularly the poor and the marginalized. I can’t help but feel that it is absolute providence that the Pope’s death and funeral coincided with this Jubilee of Teenagers, it showed the true reach of his pontificate and example. The crowd gathered for this funeral Mass shows the diversity of the Church and the diversity of all those deeply affected by his life and example. The presence of the young people in St Peter’s square this morning brought a hopeful atmosphere; although a sad and solemn occasion, the young people wanted to celebrate the life of this wonderful man, and their witness to the resurrection hope and joy was felt by everyone gathered.  

From the moment Pope Francis stepped onto the balcony in 2013, he made it clear that his mission would be one of simplicity, humility and radical closeness to people, especially the young, the poor and the excluded. He didn’t just talk about young people; he listened to them. He made space for them. He believed in them. For all of us who work with young people, that belief is something more than comforting, it was a challenge to do better, a call to action. His words in Christus Vivit still echo in my mind today. He reminded the Church, and the world, that young people are not ‘the future’, they are the present. They have dreams, voices and ideas that are needed here and now, and our job is to walk beside them. That belief has shaped the work of Million Minutes in many ways. It gave us permission to think bigger about what young people could do, and it reminded us that the Church should always be a place where they are seen, heard and celebrated.  

Pope Francis spoke often of accompaniment, about walking with people on the adventure of their life. That’s what we strive to do in every conversation, every project and every partnership. His example of leadership, a leadership rooted in mercy, compassion and deep listening, set a standard we will continue to aspire to.  

Today, as I sit here after his funeral, I know we haven’t just lost a pope. We’ve lost a friend to the young, a voice of the voiceless, and a leader who truly believed the Church could be better, braver and more loving if we let young people help to shape its future. Pope Francis’s final gift to us is the ongoing challenge to build that kind of world. His legacy lives on every time a young person is given space to lead, every time their voices are heard and every time the Church opens its doors wider than before.  

On behalf of everyone at Million Minutes and the many young people whose lives have been touched by his words and witness, thank you Pope Francis. You walked with us. You believed in us, and we will carry your vision forward.  

May you rest in peace, good and faithful servant.  

Preparing the Future: How young people can answer the Pope’s call

‘Many people want to return to normality…Today we have an opportunity to build something different.’  Pope Francis, General Audience, 19th August 2020

Million Minutes, working with a group of youth ministers and youth workers across England and Wales, have put together a new twelve-unit resource which provides a guide to empower young people to process their Covid-19 experiences and discern what kind of society they want to see, helping to give young people a voice in shaping the future

Events of 2020 have exposed deep-rooted and systemic inequalities in our society – inequalities that seem to hit the youngest hardest. It is time for healing and transformation, to build a fairer, more equal, and sustainable world so that we may look ahead to a more hopeful future, not least because it is the young who are the primary inheritors of that future.

Pope Francis calls us to ‘prepare the future’, and not just passively prepare for the future. By this he is calling all Catholic communities to build back better for our communities, for families, for creation, for sustainability, and for our own spirituality. Now is the time to face what is broken in our society and work together to make a better world for us all.

In coalition with the Columbans and youth workers and chaplains across the Dioceses of Plymouth, Leeds, Northampton, Southwark and Arundel and Brighton, we have convened a group to create a twelve-part resource series called Prepare the Future. Aimed at young people and young adults (aged 13 to 18), this resource includes liturgies and reflections that teachers, chaplains, and youth workers can adapt and use with young people to collectively reflect on what has happened and what lies ahead.

Anna Fraine (author and collator of material) says: ‘I hope the resource enables young people to believe that they can make change, in their own lives, and in the lives of others. Perhaps more than any other generation, today’s young people have to be resilient despite how powerless it can feel living in a world beset by consumerism, wastefulness and war. We believe that in the face of such challenges, faith can play a pivotal role. These units explore the benefits of daily spiritual practice, such as prayer, silence, and meditation, as a means for young people to discern what is right for them, their community, their own culture and life. There is no one-size-fits-all solution to the problems we now face. The challenges our world faces are multifaceted and complex – but young people offer our world a hopeful future where they are engaged and active. For this reason, I feel we can be ambitious and prophetic –as we rediscover the Gospel and follow the example of Jesus.’

Kevin Mendes (School Chaplain at St Peters Catholic School, Guildford) adds: ‘As a School Chaplain I found this opportunity to gather with like-minded people valuable. The contributions that we had from various speakers (over lockdown) allowed us to explore different themes and topics which are relevant to young people today. This has helped me to enhance my knowledge and skills which will be beneficial to the work I do with young people. I look forward to future opportunities to gather and share experiences of youth ministry and to explore relevant themes to working with young people.”

Daisy Srblin, Director of Million Minutes, says: ‘We all know that it is young people who suffer the most at the hands of our unequal world, and will undoubtedly struggle most when it comes to the legacy of Covid-19. It is the younger generation who will carry the greatest burden, when it comes to an economic recession, the climate emergency, paying for Covid-19, and so much more. Million Minutes is proud to have laid the foundations for this important resource, which we hope will enable young people from around the country to process the trauma they have experienced, to explore the role of faith in that journey, and to build the sort of future they deserve. Thank you especially to Anna and the Columbans, but also to all those from Dioceses around the country, who have helped make this resource possible’.

The first six units are available to download today at: millionminutes.org/future.