Pope Francis addressed the world’s youth in a letter presented to all Christian churches around the world by Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri and Bishop Fabio Fabene alongside university students Elvis Do Ceu Nicolaia Do Rosario and Federica Ceci.

The pope wrote to young people in preparation for the 15th Synod of Bishops, an assembly of the Vatican’s highest clergy members.

In 2018, they are set to discuss the theme of “Youth, faith and vocational discernment.” The letter is the first of several steps toward the theme, which will include a website allowing young people to express their thoughts and beliefs through questionnaires.

The pope spoke, referring to the teachings of Christianity: “Dear young people, have you noticed this look toward you? Have you heard this voice? Have you felt this urge to undertake this journey? I am sure that, despite the noise and confusion seemingly prevalent in the world, this call continues to resonate in the depths of your heart so as to open it to joy in its fullness.”

The letter itself breaks the discussion down into three main chapters. The first is “Young people in today’s world,” which will contextualize the different circumstances of young people around the world.

The second, “Faith, discernment, vocation,” will focus on recognizing and interpreting what happens in the world based on the passage of Evangelii Gaudium, 51 in Catholicism.

The third chapter, “Pastoral Action,” will highlight the importance of welcoming the joy of the gospel to young people, particularly in a modern society in “times of uncertainty, volatility and insecurity.”

The Catholic Church hopes that, through the Synod’s focus on young people, “a reflection will be promoted on the situation of youth in the contemporary world.”

They have also appealed to the world’s media outlets to cover young people more frequently and to “dedicate greater space to the world of the young, casting light on many of the positive aspects and not only the elements of weakness and turbulence.”

In the lead-up to the Synod next year, more attention is sure to be directed toward young people who will gradually receive greater recognition by the Vatican.