I want to share with you a series of articles useful for formators, based on my experience as a spiritual director, priest, and from psychological studies. This is especially for those who dedicate their valuable time to personal attention through spiritual direction, accompaniment, dialogue, and moral guidance. A Regnum Christi that does not personally accompany its members would be left with just the shell. We know that the person-to-person principle is essential for in-depth evangelization and for a genuine interest in the well-being of each individual. In the quiet and dedicated commitment of the spiritual director and the team leader, souls are shaped to become progressively Christified. Christ is the model for all personality and its unifying principle. Christ is the sculptor, and we are the chisel, allowing Him to work in each soul. Let us remember that for this reason, spiritual direction and dialogue always involve three: the sculptor, the spiritual director, and the person being guided, as I explained in other article.
The first thing that can help us is to better understand our youth. For some years now, statistical studies have shown us trends and behaviors different from millennials. Various scholars (Chun et al., 2017; Twenge, 2017) claim that we are already facing a new generation. A generation born after 1995 in the USA and perhaps 2 or 5 years later for Mexico. These are those young people who are currently between 25 and 20 years old and younger, we could say from university students to the youngest. They were born with the internet already widespread, they grew up with smartphones (the iPhone was born in 2007) and social networks (Facebook appeared in 2006 and spread in 2011).
This generation has several name proposals. Some want to call them Centennials to succeed Millennials. Others like to reuse the classification of Generation X (born in the 70s), Generation Y (Millennials), and call this generation Generation Z. But that seems like an unattractive name. Given that they spend an average of 8 hours a day in front of a screen, they have been nicknamed “screensters.” This prolonged exposure to screens is delaying their emotional maturity, and for this reason, they are also called eternal adolescents (teenagers) with the name “screenagers.” However, the name that seems to describe them best is one that begins with an “i.” The “iGeneration” is a highly individualistic generation (BarnaGroup & Worldvision, 2019; Twenge, 2017). The “i” that characterizes i-geners can be related to the internet, insecurity, irreligiousness, islands, indefinables, immaturity, independence, and inclusivity, but the facet that is omnipresent is the "i" for individualists.
These digital natives have great potential; they are much more visual than auditory. Is this good? It would be if they hopefully read books, but that's not why. It's because of the time spent in front of a screen. They are a generation capable of working with multiple electronic devices simultaneously and with 8 hours of social media interaction per day. A generation facing not only a generational shift but also an epochal change, which I will delve into further in another article (Pope Francis, 2015).
i-geners have great potential, they are very varied and flexible. They adapt to whatever comes and are not rigid with others. They are independent in their opinions, respecting diversity and promoting fraternity among all. They know how to tolerate that our world is not perfect and realistically accept imperfections. In fact, they are less narcissistic than millennials. They don't feel like superheroes. They know how to put themselves in their place and accept that they are limited and weak. They are good at collaborating virtually and can even multitask, switching from one task to another in just 19 seconds on average. They are the masters of multitasking!
What effects is spending more than half of your waking hours in front of a screen having? We'll find out in the next episode…
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References
BarnaGroup, & Worldvision. (2019). The connected generation. Retrieved from https://theconnectedgeneration.com/
Chun, C., Fujihara, S., Gerschenson, M., Burns, J. A., Kennedy, A., Koanui, B., & Stearns, J. (2017). Teaching Generation Z at the University of Hawaiʻi. Retrieved from www.iafor.org
Pope Francis. (2015). We Are Not Living an Era of Change but a Change of Era. Retrieved June 12, 2019, from https://aleteia.org/blogs/deacon-greg-kandra/pope-francis-we-are-not-living-an-era-of-change-but-a-change-of-era/
Twenge, J. M. (2017). iGen: Why Today's Super-Connected Kids Are Growing Up Less Rebellious, More Tolerant, Less Happy--and Completely Unprepared for Adulthood (and What This Means for the Rest of Us). New York, NY: ATRIA Books.
i-generation visual explanation:
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