Zambia: Young people and the Synod – A Church for all

By Martha Mvula - Lusaka

In the spirit of Synod on Synodality, young people should be active participants in the mission and ministry of the Church. These were hopes expressed by the National Youth Coordinator for the Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops (ZCCB).

Fr. Christopher Kunda, who also serves as Youth Coordinator for the Salesians of Don Bosco in Zambia, spoke to Vatican News about synodality and how it can have an impact on the lives of young people.

Dialogue and implementing Synodality with the youth

Fr. Kunda hopes that even if the Synod on Synodality sessions has concluded in the Vatican, the inspiration and new approaches enkindled will continue to inspire young people to be engaged in Church matters and ministry.

He also had a word for excluded young people, such as migrants and those who are less privileged, in prisoned, or who find themselves in difficult personal situations.

“As a Salesian working with young people, I hope that in the spirit of the Synod on Synodality, young people will be prioritised and inspired to become active participants in the Church’s mission and ministry. With encouragement, young people can preach and minister to their peers and let the Gospel be heard worldwide,” said Fr. Kunda.

The Synod as a challenge to young people

According to the national youth Coordinator, synodality means the Church does not speak in only one direction. Young people also need to play their part by embracing their responsibilities in the Church. What they do with their lives and how they live means that they, too, have a responsibility to care for themselves and others.

“Co-responsibility is that together with other young people, we can create this big movement that looks after the less privileged and cares for the earth, our common home,” he said.

“In the Synodal Church, everyone has responsibility for what the Church is and what it is to become. This means that, by implication, we must all own up to what kind of Christian community we wish to create,” Fr. Kunda emphasized. “No one group of Christians can claim to own the Church or have exclusive rights over it. The Synod reminds all of us that every member is essential. We all have different roles to play in the Church.”

Fr. Christopher Kunda

Collaborative ministry at the service of youth 

Fr. Kunda emphasizes collaboration and the call to responsibility in his interactions with Zambian young people. “Collaborative youth ministry means the process of bringing people on board because the mission is supposed to be a shared mission,” he noted.

Young people, Fr. Kunda emphasized, should also receive support as they navigate their journey in life.

“The Synodal process is exactly this, that we walk with young people in their journey of faith, fears, dreams and anxieties,” he explained.

He added that the Synod on Synodality is thus a welcome breath of fresh air that is bringing concepts such as those of inclusivity, especially for those considered less privileged and who are often marginalized. Some youth fall in this category, he noted.

It is also important for young people to be at the table where decision-making takes place and must be engaged at all levels of the Church. The onus is also on them, said Fr. Kunda. “Young people should learn new ways of being youth in a Synodal Church,” he remarked.

In conclusion, Fr. Kunda urged young people to embrace Synodality in their lives as a way of living and of being Church.

“Pope Francis has shown us that the Synodal Church is a listening Church,” said the Salesian priest. “Young people are called to cultivate the virtues of listening and dialogue. They must be active participants and cannot afford to be left watching from the sidelines. They need to fold their sleeves and not wait to be invited into the Church. The Church needs their creativity in constructing a true Synodal Church that has inclusivity at its heart.”