Group helping young men keep the faith
By Greg Van Dyk, Youth Speak News
VICTORIA - Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati is inspiring young men in a new way — through a Catholic apologetics and discussion group named in his honour.“I saw (him as) a real positive role model of masculinity,” said Mark Theobald, a teacher at St. Andrew’s Regional High School, who founded the group in March. “In our society, if we live our faith we are counter-cultural and he experienced that as well.”
Frassati’s Men’s Group meets monthly at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Victoria to discuss issues facing young Catholic men such as chastity, prayer and the relationship between faith and reason. It targets men ages 18 to 30, aiming to encourage the faith of Catholic men after high school. The group’s most recent meeting on May 13 discussed how promiscuity undermines masculinity.
Pier Giorgio Frassati was a social activist who devoted his life to helping the poor in his hometown of Turin in Italy. He died of polio in 1925 at the age of 24 and was beatified in 1990 by Blessed John Paul II.
“I had seen a picture of him in the cathedral and here’s this strapping young lad smoking a pipe,” said Theobald of Frassati. “I thought, ‘Wow. That looks like a good patron for young men.’ So I looked him up.”
Theobald was immediately impressed with Frassati’s balance between living an active life and dedicating an overwhelming amount of time to the poor in his community. “As a patron, he really has an understanding of where young men are in our society today,” said Theobald.
Many young men feel they lose their sense of Catholic community after coming out of high school, he said.
Theobald leads group discussions and hopes that through dialogue, he can equip the group’s members with answers to real-life questions.
“Young men were telling me that they were on campus and in the workplace and people were asking questions and they couldn’t provide answers,” said Theobald. “I saw a need for learning apologetics and doctrine to be able to offer an explanation for why we believe what we do.”
Relatively new, the group is still quite small — five men attended the most recent meeting. However, the men who have attended have gained plenty from the fellowship.
“It’s nice to be among a group of like-minded guys who can share your struggles and encourage you along the way,” said Attila Varszegi, 19, a second-year sciences student at the University of Victoria. “As a man, I feel that we look up to other men. It’s difficult sometimes to find people to look up to.”
The open and encouraging environment created by Theobald is beneficial, said Varszegi.
“It came up that I hadn’t been in church in a while, and he mentioned casually that I could come to church with him and his family. Through that he really got me going back to church.”
José Mendez, a second-year biochemistry student at the University of Victoria, also took part in the last session.
“Coming out of high school was tough,” said Mendez. “The group provides the kind of close fellowship that isn’t necessarily found in other places.”
Theobald hopes to achieve success through the ongoing dialogue and fellowship of the group.
“What I see in many of our young Catholics is that they are very under-catechized,” said Theobald.
“There is a real lack of knowledge. Young men have not been taught how to practise their faith.”
(Van Dyk, 19, is a second-year English student at the University of Victoria.)
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