Pope FRANCIS, Robert Ellsberg (editor).  The Courage to be Happy, The Pope Speaks to the Youth of the World.  Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2018. Pp190.  $20.00 pb. ISBN 978-1-62698-272-7. Reviewed by Francis BERNA, La Salle University, Philadelphia, PA 19141.

Sometimes piety gets the best of me.  Whatever else would possess me to see the documentary “Pope Francis, A Man of His Word” over a holiday weekend?  The film offered little new knowledge for anyone who even casually follows the words of the Pope. Still, halfway through the movie something too often not felt these days came over me.  I felt proud to be Catholic.

Hearing the words of Pope Francis made concrete in his interaction with all kinds of people struck a chord with the values I find most important for the Church today.  His enthusiasm for life, his passion for the poor, and his call for missionary disciples comes through in each interview.

The Courage to be Happy can provide a similar experience.  In this collection of speeches and formal statements addressed to the youth of the world the reader encounters a pope who sees young people not only as the future of the church, but also as the present hope of the church.  Throughout he invites young people to a personal encounter with Jesus.

Young readers will appreciate the pope’s practical examples and engaging imagery.  For example, he illustrates Ignatius’ “two standards” from the Spiritual Exercises with the imagery of a football (soccer) match  He encourages young people to “make noise” as God calls them “to the future and never a museum.”

Several of the speeches, some spontaneous, make clear that Pope Francis begins by listening.  He shares the sorrows, the doubts and the fears of young people. Still he challenges that they should have “the courage to be happy,” finding in Gospel and church first not a “series of prohibitions that stifle our desire for happiness but rather a project for life capable of captivating our hearts.”

As the Synod for Youth approaches this coming October, this fine collection edited by Robert Ellsberg can serve as an excellent resource for youth ministers and those entrusted to their care.  Providing a reminder that the ultimate human vocation is to love makes the text fine spiritual reading for the young and the not so young. The words and deeds of Pope Francis can help one feel good about being Catholic.