SHILLONG: With the ritual Valentine’s Day scheduled on Sunday, taking a different approach from the mundane celebrations, the catholic youth organizations in city, will take part in a special mass on Sunday evening to pray for the youths in the state.
This is another way of caring for the youth, the Archbishop of Shillong, Dominic Jala told The Shillong Times on the eve of the Valentine’s Day on Saturday.
He said that considering the Lenten season, a retreat to recollect the death and resurrection of Jesus, which started from February 10 to be culminated on March 27 with Easter, the occasion for the youths will be to understand the meaning of self less sacrifice in their lives beyond the external expressions of love.
There is a need on the part of the couples to sacrifice themselves even during hardships, the Archbishop said.
“When we think about the Valentine’s Day, it is considered more of a profane and earthly matter, but the young people should be aware that real love means courage to sacrifice, and self giving in adversities of life”, he said.
The statement of the Archbishop assumes significance in the context of rise in divorce cases giving rise to single mothers, lack of understanding among the couples and reluctance to adjust themselves to tide over the recurring misunderstanding among the couples. According to the Archbishop, conquering selfishness should be the motto when the couples celebrate the day.
