Opus Dei leader: youngsters feel ‘crushed’

The new leader of Opus Dei has said that he would like to further the prelature’s programmes for young people.

Mgr Fernando Ocáriz Braña told the website Crux that in many places youngsters felt “crushed, without ideals” and lacked hope.

He also said he wanted the prelature to build on its work with families and other Christians.

Since the 1950s the prelature has had cooperators who are not Catholics or even Christians. “We shouldn’t be people of confrontation but builders of bridges,” he said.

Mgr Ocáriz takes on the leadership of Opus Dei, a personal prelature that aims to help ordinary people seek holiness in everyday life, following the death of the previous prelate, last month.