The Synod of Bishops on young people began in a difficult and apparently unfavorable context for the Church, amid tensions, disbelief, decline in vocations and open challenges to the Church's teachings on important issues such as the right to life and the role of the Christian faith in the social fabric and in human rights. On the other hand, despite the complex circumstances surrounding this event, a sign of communion and hope is the presence of two continental Chinese bishops who "for the first time" can participate in a Synod.

Young people today live in a globalized world, a network of interconnections and relationships. Goods, information, electronic images, songs, entertainment and fads spread almost instantly throughout the planet. Social networks have become their natural habitat and it is through them that the surrounding world is known. The Salesian Ariel Fresia presents an original point of view on the understanding of these hyperconnected natives.

A few days ago I saw a group of young people in St. Peter's Square in Rome with the flag of one of our Salesian schools. I was struck by the affectionate and cheerful relationship of the children with their teachers and, on the contrary, by the coldness with which they treated the Salesian who was with them: they did not talk to him, they did not approach him ... The Salesian walked alone. For them, he did not exist, he was a ghost.