It was obvious that Pope Francis was encouraging the Catholic world to put their faith into practice instead of having a faith of theory. He noted that knowledge of the faith is easily attainable through reading and learning various Catholic sources, but if the knowledge isn’t put into practice then it is not true faith.
I subscribe to this message and try to live a life of faith by putting my beliefs into practice. The world would benefit if both Catholics and non-Catholics took the Pope’s message to heart.
One particular way to live out our faith through action is to accept diversity. In the Book of Acts, the disciples spread the Word in all the world’s languages after the crucifixion. The early Church was diversified in language and practice.
Canadians live in one of the world’s most diverse societies with many different political, cultural and religious backgrounds; the least we can do is be accepting and respectful of one another. This is something my generation does extremely well. Young people, having grown up in this society view diversity as the norm and have no problem interacting with people of different backgrounds in everyday life. They can be leaders by example for other generations that struggle with tolerance.
It’s easy to encourage youth to do more to live a life of faith. I choose to focus on all the positive qualities my generation actively shows, such as inclusivity and tolerance amongst others.
Even though all religions are different, they share the common goal of guiding people to be the best possible versions of themselves. By striving for perfection, we develop qualities that are conducive to peace and equality which can benefit society as a whole. How to achieve this varies from religion to religion, but idealistically the end result is a population that can learn from their faith and grow as individuals as well as a religious community.
This requires a practical application of beliefs, but it’s worth it. And this serves as a bridge between different religious and spiritual backgrounds because people learn from each other with an open mind and through acceptance.
As the Catholic world celebrates the first year of Pope Francis, I am looking forward to the future. His commitment to bring faiths together through dialogue, as well as his humility, make him a great role model. His uncomplicated style, too, in comparison to predecessors is admirable. His papal vestments are plain, unornamented and he chooses to live in a guesthouse rather than the traditional papal apartments.
These are symbols of a simple and unorthodox approach to the papacy, which hasn’t gone unnoticed. I admire such an approach.
(Thies, 18, is a first-year political science student at Glendon College, York University, in Toronto.)