| A Baha'i, a Baptist, a Catholic: snapshots of youth faith |
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| Thursday, 10 July 2008 05:59 |
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The Transit Lounge Team
Unpack the issues...
Gemma McDonald, 30, is a Melbourne based Community Organiser (Youth) for Parliament of the World’s Religions, the biggest inter-religious event in the world, to be held in Melbourne in December 2009. She is also a member of the Baha’i faith. Having grown up in a Baha’i household, the religion is second nature to Gemma but that doesn’t mean she passively accepted the path. “I was born into a Baha’i family. Because Baha’is believe in all religions one of the highest principles of the faith is independent investigation of the truth,” she says. “We’re taught about all religions and when you turn 15 — Baha’is believe that’s the age of spiritual maturity — you decide if you want to become a Baha’i. Then you take on your own spiritual progress so there are particular spiritual obligations. “Baha’is fast from March 2nd to March 20th every year. We don’t eat anything between sunrise and sunset. We have prayers we have to say everyday. We have to read the Holy Writings morning and night. Baha’is don’t have any congregational presence so praying is done in private. I pray in my bedroom. Baha’is believe our relationship with God is between us and God, not anyone else. We don’t have any clergy. Baha’i is different because young people are given a lot of responsibility. “I’ve often struggled with letting people know I’m religious and have shied away from it. I tend to gravitate toward people who are spiritual. I think there are far more young people interested in exploring something spiritual or religious than older people give them credit for.”
“Being Aboriginal Australians we found a special place in the Aboriginal Catholic ministry. My understanding [of Catholicism] is following the life of Jesus Christ and living as a Christian.” For Tristan that means, advocacy for the poor, promoting common good and stewardship of the earth and God’s creation, which is particularly important as an Aboriginal man. “All humans have a duty to be stewards of the earth. That’s relevant to things like climate change for instance. They’re just general principles to live by.” “A lot of my work is promoting these principles in schools and parishes based around topical and social justice issues and a lot of it is based in the Aboriginal area, reconciliation and raising awareness among non-Aboriginal people about the issues my community are facing.” “I have made myself aware of the different values and beliefs in the different denominations but I’ve never felt inclined to look on the basis that I might discover something else — I’m very happy and grounded in my faith at the moment.” Nathan Hunter, 26, a Baptist, is studying for a Masters in Theology and is a Youth Pastor at his local Baptist Church in Melbourne. He too met Gemma through work at the Parliament when she approached him to be on the Youth Committee. If the definition of “Protestant” is any Christian faith other than Catholic, the Baptist faith has its own niche within it. “Belief in baptism is a central part of the Baptist identity,” explains Nathan, who goes on to say members of the Baptist Church often don’t get baptised until adulthood, though some get baptised as teenagers or in late childhood.” “It’s got to be a conscious and chosen, which is quite different from other denominations. Communion is regarded more as a symbolic action than the Lutheran or the Catholic traditions where communion is seen as taking part of the real body and blood of Jesus.” “A couple of years ago I realised I wasn’t involved enough in justice and seeing the area of justice as central to the Christian faith. I got involved in Baptist World Aid, which is an aid development organisation. I have a commitment to look at the world from the viewpoint of the people down the bottom rather than the people who have the wealth, like me — we’re among the top 5% wealthiest people in the world.” “It impacts every area of my life: I live at a Baptist college so conversations about faith are around me a lot. It’s part of my study and my work. As far as ritual or day to day activities not so much, it’s more an ongoing sense of the presence of God in my life informing decision and actions.” Unpack the issues...
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A common view is held that young people spurn religion. However, the many young people who are either exploring or committed to any number of faiths and spiritual paths disprove this view. Here three young people, one Baha’i, one Baptist, and one Catholic, share how their faiths shape their lives and influence their different lifestyles.
Tristan James Mungatopi, 22, knows Gemma through his work as a youth patron for the Parliament of World’s Religions. Raised a Roman Catholic Tristan says the biggest influence on his faith was his mother. 
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