The 15th General Assembly of the Christian Conference of Asia (CCA) ended in early October. Before the general assembly, CCA coordinate several pre-conference events such as the Youth Assembly and Women’s Assembly, so I had more opportunities to engage in dialogue with youth representatives from various countries of Asia.

Despite our diverse backgrounds, we were surprised to discover how similar our situations were! We all faced the dirge of societal setbacks such as—democratic regression, economic injustice, prevailing patriarchal culture, human rights violations, and geopolitical conflicts.

Even within the walls of the church, things were not entirely well. Issues such as the plight of church politics, the gap between generations, monopolization of the voices, and challenges faced by ambitious youth is no different because these challenges have crossed national borders. For young Christians, these issues became even more concerning, as the church is supposed to be the prophet in society. However, when the church itself becomes a represent of imperialism, it may lead to distortions in the spirit and behavior of the community of faith, and then to a worrisome collapse.

Conversations with ecumenical partners often conclude with sighs and silence, but someone would break the pattern, expressing with confidence, “We are the youth, the future of the church, and the hope of the Lord remains.”

During the conference, several youth delegates noticed that the official schedule did not arrange a time slot for the declaration of the pre-assembly, so they strive hard to seize the opportunity to present the declaration aloud, which was finally approved by the moderator. With the youth delegates uniting, we read the entire statement aloud, standing together to express our stance. At that moment, young delegates stood scattered throughout the venue, creating a meaningful scene.

This made me reflect further, what about my home country Taiwan? Looking back on the “Taiwan Church Youth Fellowship” (TKC) in 1949, which facilitated the Presbyterian Church in the North and South were unified. While it’s essential to celebrate this significant historical event, it’s more worthwhile to contemplate the calling and mission of the youth, in this land and this generation.