New Europe

11. The Working Document has already presented an outline of the European situation, regarding the problem of vocations, which is strongly marked by elements of newness. Here we shall summarise them, according to the analysis which the Congress itself has made of them, seeking to grasp the most significant ones which are destined, in the long run, to condition the mentality and sensibilities of young people, and also therefore pastoral praxis and vocational strategies.

a) A Europe which is diversified and complex

Firstly, one fact is already taken for granted: at the level of young people and their condition and the inevitable vocational reflections, it is practically impossible to define the European situation, in a univocal and static way. We are faced with a diversified Europe, made so by various historical-political events (see the difference between East and West), but also by the plurality of traditions and cultures (Greco-Latin, Anglo-Saxon and Slav).

These are also its richness and make experiences and choices more significant in different contexts. Accordingly, if in the countries of the East the problem of how to conserve their newly refound freedom is highlighted, in those of the West they are questioning themselves on how to live an authentic freedom.

Such difference is also confirmed by the progress of vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life, not only because of the marked difference between the vocational flowering of Eastern Europe and the general crisis which pervades the West, but because, within this crisis, there are also signs of a vocational upturn, particularly in those Churches where constant post-Conciliar work has traced a deep and effective furrow.(⁵)

If therefore in the East it is necessary to begin a truly organic pastoral programme at the service of vocations promotion, from first contact to formation of vocations, then in the West a different approach is necessary. There we must examine the real theological content and the applicational coherence of certain vocational projects, the concept of vocation which is at the base of it, and the type of vocations which derive from it. At the Congress the following question came up again and again: "Why do certain theologies or pastoral practises not «produce» vocations, while others do?"(⁶)

Another aspect characterises the present socio-cultural situation of Europe: the surplus of possibilities, occasions, requests, in the face of the lack of focalisation, proposal, planning. This is like an ulterior contrast that increases the complexity of this historical season, with a negative impact at the level of vocations. Like ancient Rome, modern Europe seems similar to a pantheon or great temple in which all the "divinities" are present, or in which every "value" has its place and its niche.

Different and contrasting "values" are represented and exist together, without any precise gradation; completely dissimilar codes of reading and evaluation, of orientation and behaviour.

In such a context it is difficult to have a unitary conception or vision of the world, and in consequence, the ability even to plan one's life is weakened. In fact, when a culture no longer defines the supreme possibilities of meaning, or does not manage to converge around certain values as particularly capable of giving meaning to life, but places everything on the same level, every possibility of projectual choice falls and everything becomes indifferent and flat.

b) Young people and Europe

Young Europeans live in this culture which is pluralist and ambivalent, "polytheist" and neutral. On the one hand, they are passionately searching for authenticity, affection, personal relationships, wider horizons, while on the other they are fundamentally alone, "wounded" by well-being, deluded by ideologies, confused by ethical disorientation.

Even more: "from many parts of the world of young people we note a clear sympathy for life understood as a value which is absolute and sacred...",(⁷) but often and in many parts of Europe such openness to life is betrayed by politics which does not respect the very right to life, especially for the weakest. Politics which risks making the "old continent" even older. And so, if on one part, these young people are a substantial capital for modern Europe, on which it invests considerably to build its future, on the other, young people's expectations are not always welcomed in a coherent way by adults or those responsible for civil society.

Two aspects, however, seem to us to be central for understanding the attitude of young people nowadays: the claim of subjectivity and the desire for freedom. These two requests are worthy of attention and typically human. Often, however, in a weak and complex culture like today's, they give rise — when they meet — to combinations which change their meaning: subjectivity then becomes subjectivism, while freedom degenerates into whim.

In this context the relationship which young Europeans have with the Church merits particular attention. With courage and realism the Congress highlighted in one of its concluding Propositions: "Often, young people do not see in the Church the object of their search or the place where their questions are answered and their expectations fulfilled. God is not the problem, the Church is. The Church is aware of the difficulty of communicating with young people, of the lack of real pastoral plans..., of the theological-anthropological weakness of certain catechesis. On the part of many young people the fear remains that an experience in the Church limits their freedom",(⁸) while for many others the Church remains, or is becoming, the most authoritative point of reference.

c) "Man without vocation"

This game of contrasts is reflected inevitably at the level of future planning, which is seen — on the part of young people — at a second glance, as limited to their own horizons, as strictly personal (self-realisation).

This logic reduces the future to a choice of profession, to economic organisation, or to sentimental-emotional satisfaction, within horizons which, effectively, reduce the desire for freedom and the subject's possibilities to limited projects, with the illusion of being free.

These are chosen with no reference to the mystery or the transcendent, and perhaps, too, with little responsibility in relation to life, one's own and that of others, of life received as a gift to be generated in others. This is, in other words, a sensitivity and a mentality which risks producing a type of antivocational culture. As if to say that in a Europe which is culturally complex and deprived of fixed points of reference, similar to a great pantheon, the prevalent anthropological model seems to be the "man without vocation".

A possible description of this: "A pluralistic and complex culture tends to produce young people possessing an incomplete and weak identity with consequent chronic indecision in the face of vocational choices. In addition, many young people do not possess the 'elementary grammar' of existence, they are nomads: they move around without stopping either at the geographical, affective, cultural, or religious level; they are "trying out"! In the midst of such a great quantity and diversity of information, but with so little formation, they appear lost, with few points of reference. Accordingly they are afraid of their future, they experience anxiety in the face of definitive commitments and they question themselves about their being. If on the one hand they are looking for autonomy and independence at all costs, on the other, as a refuge, they tend to be very dependent on the socio-cultural context, and to seek immediate gratification of the senses: on what 'I like', on what 'makes me feel good' in an emotional world which is made to measure".(⁹)

It is a great sadness to meet young people, even intelligent and talented, who have no will to live, to believe in something, to work towards great ends, to hope in a world which can become better even thanks to their own efforts. They feel themselves superfluous to the game or drama of life, as if they have resigned in the face of it, been wounded along the broken paths which have been reduced to the minimum level of tension in life. Without vocation, but also without a future, or with a future which, at the most, will be a photocopy of the present.

d) The vocation of Europe

Nevertheless, this Europe of many souls and a weakened culture (which nevertheless exerts a strong influence) possesses unsuspected energies, it is as lively as ever and is called to play an important role on the world stage.

Never before has the old continent shown forth so strongly the call to unity, even although it still displays the wounds of recent, sometimes violent, conflicts. A unity which is yet to be built up, even although certain walls have fallen, and which must be extended to the whole of Europe and to all those who seek hospitality and welcome there. A unity which can not only be of a political or economic nature, but also, and firstly, a spiritual and moral unity. A unity which yet must overcome ancient grudges and old suspicions, and which could find once again, in its ancient Christian roots, a motive for convergence and a guarantee of understanding. A unity which, in particular, will touch the present generation of young people to make it stronger and more complete, from the East to the West, the North to the South, defending it from every contrary temptation of isolation and reliance and concern only for one's own interests, and proposing it to the whole world as an example of harmonious living together in the midst of diversity.

Will these young people be capable of assuming such responsibility?

If it is true that the young person of today runs the risk of being disorientated and finding himself without a precise point of reference, the "new Europe" which is being born could become a goal and provide an adequate stimulus to young people who, in reality, "are searching for freedom and truth, spirituality, authenticity, their own personal originality and transparency, who together desire friendship and reciprocity", who are seeking "companionship" and want "to build a new society, founded on values such as peace, justice, respect for the environment, attention to diversity, solidarity, voluntary work and the equal dignity of woman".(¹⁰)

In the final analysis, the most recent research describes the young people of Europe as wounded, but not in desperation; influenced by ethical relativism, but also wishing to live a "good life"; aware of their need of salvation, even without knowing where to look for it.

Their most serious problem is probably the ethically neutral society in which they happen to live, but their resources are not exhausted. Especially in a time of transition towards new goals, such as our own. This can be seen from the many young people inspired by a sincere search for spirituality and courageously committed to social involvement, trusting in themselves and in others, spreading hope and optimism.

We believe that these young people, notwithstanding the contradictions and the "weight" of a certain cultural environment, could build this new Europe. Their own vocation is alluded to in the vocation of their mother-land.