VATICAN CITY (CNS) — In building a world of peace and justice, the Catholic Church must listen to the ideas and hopes of young people and offer them educational opportunities that will strengthen their ability to work for the common good, the Vatican said.

As part of the Church’s efforts, Pope Benedict XVI has chosen “Educating Young People in Justice and Peace” to be the theme for the Church’s 2012 celebration of World Peace Day.

World Peace Day is Jan. 1 each year. A papal message on the theme is sent in December to heads of state around the world.

Announcing the theme May 19, the Vatican said the Pope wanted to highlight “an urgent need in the world today: to listen to and enhance the important role of new generations in the realization of the common good and in the affirmation of a just and peaceful social order where fundamental human rights can be fully expressed and realized.”

The duty to prepare future generations also includes a government obligation to ensure that young people have appropriate opportunities for personal growth, particularly through education and employment, the Vatican statement said.

“Young persons must labor for justice and peace in a complex and globalized world,” so preparing them for the future will require a real alliance among all those responsible for educating and forming the world’s future leaders, it said.