was hosted by Rosarito

By Delia Ruelas

Catholic youth from different states of the Mexican Republic arrived in Baja California to engage in a week of various activities and congresses related to their religious doctrine, with Rosarito the venue for the Youth Promotion Encounter Movement.

The purpose of the gathering is to recognize strengths, acknowledge weaknesses, and continue growing the Catholic faith among young people, expressed local representative Zuleika Godinez.

“For us, it is very important to motivate young people to know their faith, to feel that coming to church is not just about praying,” he said.

“We want to break that paradigm of serving in the church because we do many other activities to discover the vocation to which we have been called.”

Many young people have lost interest in serving in the church and participating in these encounters, a decline in participation that has been noticed since the pandemic.

However, various strategies are being used to motivate them because these activities also promote personal and professional development.

“Rosarito has many young people, but few are interested in coming to mass or experiencing an encounter. They put up a big barrier, and sometimes they don’t even allow us to provide information because they’re not interested.

“Additionally, one of our requirements is not living in a free union or being parents, and young people aged 18 to 28 often already have that lifestyle. The percentage that meets the profile to experience an encounter is not interested.”

Participants in the encounter came from Guadalajara, Zapopan, Zihuatanejo, Mérida, La Paz, and various municipalities in Baja California, such as Tijuana and Mexicali. They will leave to replicate what they have learned on the last Sunday of July.