No, the cafeteria doesn’t have over $40 million worth of renovations, but I see compar i sons between the bishop and my peers. More and mor e youth of my generation are succumbing to the temptation of materialism. I see students with expensive jackets, phones and accessories everywhere I turn, and it causes me to reflect on the youth culture of which I am a part. Why do we need these items in the first place? There seems to be a sense that we need these possessions because they have a cultural value. We use them to judge ourselves and assess where we fit into the social standing.

In my past high school experiences, as well as in university, I’ve seen my peers wear ridiculously expensive brands that are popular. These items are constantly being marketed towards youth and, more often than not, this creates a school environment that is consumerist in nature.

It’s evident that among many youth there is an unhealthy need to possess such goods. Many of us flock to buy the new iPhone as soon as it comes out whether we need one or not. It’s as if we assume that we get an improvement of social status included “free” inside every Apple product.

From the beginning of high school until now (my first year in university), my peers have been buying objects excessively to try to improve their social status. When I ask them why they do it, a popular response is that it makes them feel happy. I also tend to indulge sometimes and it makes me feel the same way — happy.

However this isn’t real happiness and it lies on a weak foundation.

Many Bible passages point out that happiness should come from within — not from without. Knowing God is the root of happiness. We shouldn’t rely on material items to make us feel good. When we die, none of our worldly possessions accompany us into the afterlife, so should we really be concerned with the accumulation of such goods?

I’m making a conscious effort to try and reduce my acquisition of material goods, and I urge other youth to do the same. Our schools don’t have to be littered with brand names and flashy clothes. We can focus on discovering what really matters in life and spend less time in pursuit of items that don’t.

“And he said to them ‘Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one’s life doesn’t consist in the abundance of his possessions,’ ” (Luke 12:15).

(Thies, 18, is a first-year political science student at Glendon College, York University, in Toronto.)