Editor’s note: The following is a reflection by Julia Gasarowski of St. Robert Bellarmine Co-Cathedral, Freehold. The parish’s youth ministry LIFT Team (Living In Faith Together), of which Gasarowski is a member, hosted members of the Garden State MOSAIC Nov. 11 in the church. MOSAIC is a multi-faith educational program that brings teens together to learn about one another’s beliefs.
Story by Julia Gasarowski | Special Contributor
Throughout history, society has been quick to judge Catholics due to the negative portrayal of the religion.
Nowadays with media being more popular than ever, religion seems to have lost its credibility. With everyone being given a platform, it has become more difficult to filter out false news from among what is true. However, media has the ability to make more of an impression than it ever did in the past.
Much of my generation and the one after us use social media daily. Due to the fact that we are so young, we are vulnerable enough to believe the majority of the fake news being spread. So when Catholicism is being criticized, it has become hard not to believe what is being said when people portray it in such a negative light. Even I have been guilty of questioning the values of the Church because media has such a strong impact on my life.
Recently, I was lucky enough to participate in a presentation of the seven core social teachings within the Catholic Church led by my youth group to members of the interfaith organization MOSAIC. I was truly enlightened by the presentation.
The presentation first began with how Catholics believe in the dignity and rights of workers; as a community we believe that everyone has the right to a job and equal pay. Workers are the backbone of economic prosperity, and it is necessary for them to be treated with the utmost respect.
The group then touched upon the fact that as a religion, we believe in the care of God’s creation – not just including people, but the earth upon which we live. With climate change being more prominent than ever, it is essential that as a Church we treat our environment with respect. Everything that God has created is a blessing, therefore it would be wrong to intentionally hurt it.
Furthermore, one of the presenters focused on how important it is to give back to the community. God calls upon us to help out those less fortunate than us, thus we cannot ignore the prevailing issues of poverty and starvation throughout the world and within our community. As part of the youth group, we participate in many charitable events such as the Crop Walk and Rise Against Hunger, but I never really made the connection between our giving back to the community and God’s teachings.
Learning about the social teachings within the Church allowed me to realize how Catholicism is so different from how it is portrayed. As a community, all we truly want is to treat God’s creation with the utmost respect, whether that is people or the environment. The basis of the Church is that everyone has dignity, and it is sad to see Catholicism shown under such a negative light.
Once the presentation came to an end, the members of MOSAIC and St. Robert’s youth group gathered in the parish hall. There, everyone participated in ice breakers and ate dinner together.
Being a part of this made me realize that Catholicism is centered on a shared core belief of many other religions – treat your neighbor as you would want to be treated.
Julia Gasarowski is a junior in Freehold Township High School.