Document final — Les jeunes

When young people are admitted to houses of formation or seminaries, it is important to establish whether they are sufficiently rooted in a community, and whether they show stability in relations of friendship with peers, in commitment to study or work, and in contact with poverty and suffering. In spiritual accompaniment, it is crucial to begin with prayer and the interior world, learning discernment above all in their own lives, not least through forms of renunciation and asceticism. Celibacy for the Kingdom (cf. Mt 19:12) should be understood as a gift to be recognized and verified in freedom, joy, gratuitousness and humility, before admission to candidacy or first profession. The contribution of psychology is to be understood as an aid to affective maturation and integration of the personality, to be used in formation according to professional ethics and with respect for the effective freedom of those in formation. The figure of the rector or whoever is responsible for formation becomes ever more important for unifying the journey of formation, for arriving at a realistic discernment, consulting all those involved in formation, and for deciding whether or not to interrupt the journey of formation, guiding individuals onto a different vocational path. Once the initial phase of formation is concluded, there is a need for ongoing formation and accompaniment of priests and consecrated men and women, especially younger ones, who often have to face challenges and responsibilities that are quite out of proportion. The task of accompanying them falls not only upon those duly delegated, but must be personally exercised by bishops and superiors. Quality accompaniers