Lay missionary, Natalie Marytsch, with lnterreligious Dialogue Coordinator, Mauricio Silva, and faith in action volunteers in Britain. - Photo:St Columbans Mission Society
Boric garnered 56 percent of the popular vote in a two-horse run off, defeating a candidate from what The Economist described as the far right wing of the political spectrum, José Antonio Kast. Almost immediately, images of Boric and Patricio Aylwin, who took office in 1990 as the first democratically elected head of state after the horrific 16-year dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, were posted on social media together with their respective cabinets.
Commentators highlighted the stark contrast in dress and age. Aylwin’s soberly clad, dark suited men seemed stiff and distant, while Boric’s majority female collection, some even accompanied by their children, come across as relaxed, colourful and approachable. Commentators also pointed to the average age of the ministers, with the new cabinet mostly populated with 30-somethings, compared with Aylwin’s 50 plus brigade.
The comparisons prompted me to reflect on how age affects decision-making. In The Joy of the Gospel, Pope Francis speaks about the young people of today. He reminds us that while the sagacity acquired over long years of life has its place, “Young people call us to renewed and expansive hope, for they represent new directions for humanity and open us to the future, lest we cling to a nostalgia for structures and customs which are no longer life-giving in today’s world.”
I understand the new government of Chile in this context and see real hope that this youthful band can affect a definitive conclusion to Pinochet’s neoliberal legacy of poverty, division and exclusion that has plagued Chile over past decades.
I find hope in this new generation of leaders in my home country and believe they will serve all Chileans, rather than just the minority elite. However, it does leave me wondering about the lack of youthful participation in the papal push for synodality within the Church that should involve people of all ages.
As a missionary from Chile working with young faith in action volunteers in Britain, I feel blessed and humbled by their contribution to mission. Their faith, energy, new ideas and new ways of doing things, which at times are alien to me, give birth to the new and expansive hope that the pope talks about.
In today’s world, I think there is a need to let go of conventional ways and be open to where the Spirit may be leading us. We are invited to trust in the younger generations, trust their ideas to be of value, and that what is being sown and nurtured will ripen and bear fruit.
It is important to be willing to accompany them, walk with them and learn their codes. Everyone will make mistakes, but at this moment, young people need support, not condemnation.
May we, as people of faith, listen and welcome the spring of new life, both in the Church and in society, praying the energy of youth will receive nurture and encouragement from their elders.
Columban lay missionary, Nathalie Marytsch, from Chile, lives and works in Britain.
Listen to "Spring of youth gives birth to new life"
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- Read more from The Far East - June 2022
