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It all began with a little table for John Paul II…

July 28, 2012 by

How John Paul II was close to me in WYD 2002

We sow seeds, often unknowingly, which yield fruit and great meaning in the future. Sow generously, God gives the growth. This is the story of a little table that brought someone close to John Paul II.

In 2002, I was 16 years old and had just finished grade 10. That summer was to be my first time attending World Youth Day. My parents raised me Catholic and every Sunday we went diligently to mass. I remember often resisting going to mass, and just felt too bored by the whole experience of being Catholic. During those years of my life I had no interest in anything religious. Going to World Youth Day that summer was going to be more a trip to be with “friends” than an anticipated spiritual experience. I look back now, particularly with our celebration of World Youth Day Toronto’s 10th anniversary and recall to myself the seeds that were planted and the story that was to unexpectedly unfold.

My father is a carpenter, he works for a company that owns many apartment buildings throughout the Kitchener, Waterloo, Guelph and Cambridge area. The daughter of the owner of the company is married to Scott, who was responsible for sound system in Downsview Park. Leading up to the week of World Youth Day the Cardinal in charge of the main stage made it known that custom “furniture” was necessary for the Holy Father’s visit. Scott got wind of this need and contacted Frank, my father’s boss. My dad, known to be a Polish man who practiced his faith was asked: “Would you like to build a special table and podium for John Paul II?” [Read more...]

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Abba Ojcze – Czestochowa 1991

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Abba Ojcze, Abba, Father, Theme Song for WYD 1991, in Czestochowa, Poland.

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Somos los Jóvenes del 2000 – Santiago de Compostela 1989

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Somos los Jóvenes del 2000, we are the youth of the year 2000, Theme Song for the first WYD in Spain, held in Santiago de Compostela in 1991.

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WYD08: Final Statistics

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

The media office at WYD08 has published some final statistics from the historic WYD Down Under:

PILGRIMS & ATTENDANCE

  • 70,000 international pilgrims took part in Days of the Diocese throughout Australia during the week before WYD08
  • 150,000 attended the Opening Mass at Barangaroo and CBD sites
  • In excess of 400,000 people attended the Final Mass at Southern Cross Precinct
  • 500,000 people came out to welcome His Holiness on Thursday 17 July on the Boat-a-cade, Official Arrival at Barangaroo and Motorcade
  • 223,000 people registered for pilgrim services during WYD08 (110,000 international pilgrims + 113,000 local pilgrims)
  • Over 170 nations were represented at World Youth Day Sydney 2008
  • 168 international flags took part in the Procession of Flags at the WYD08 Opening Mass

AUDIENCE

  • WYD08 events were watched live by an estimated international TV audience of 500 million, with TV and internet audiences combined reaching 1 billion
  • XT3.com, the WYD08 official online social networking site, is expected to attract 225,000 pilgrims as a result of the event
  • The World Youth Day website received over 500,000 unique users from Saturday 12 July to Sunday 20th July with the biggest spike in hits occurring Thursday 17th July.
  • WYD08 online streaming received over 250,000 visits during the event period, watching events live all around the world
  • Top countries watching online streaming included USA, UK, Italy, Canada, Spain and Germany
  • There were 2,000 accredited media for WYD08

 

ACTIVITIES

  • 450 Youth Festival events took place during the week from Tuesday to Sunday in over 100 venues
  • 30 large national gatherings took place during WYD08
  • 134 international pilgrims from 58 countries were part of the International Liturgy Group (ILG), as well as a representative from each Australian State and Territory. The ILG undertook the main duties of the liturgies including readings, offertory procession, altar servers, testimonials, flag bearers.
  • In Terrey Hills, more than 350 cardinals and bishops from overseas enjoyed a lunch hosted by the Archbishop of Sydney, Cardinal George Pell.
  • An average of 2,500 pilgrims walked through the Vocations Expo every hour
  • Catechesis was delivered at 235 locations across Sydney in 29 different languages
  • The WYD08 Choir consisted of 300 members, the WYD08 Orchestra was an 80 piece orchestra
  • 1,000 priests heard confession during the WYD08 week

JOURNEY OF THE CROSS AND ICON

  • Once the Journey of the Cross and Icon reached Wollongong for the 15 Day walk, it had travelled nearly 80,000km around Australia
  • The Cross and Icon visited over 400 Australian communities during the 12 month pilgrimage around Australia
  • Nearly 400,000 people touched the Cross throughout Australia
  • The WYD Cross is 3.8m high and 1.75m wide, weighing some 40 kilograms
  • The WYD Icon is 118cm high and 79cm wide, weighing some 15 kilogram
  • 4,000 pilgrims took part in the final day of the Journey of the Cross and Icon on Monday 14th July when it travelled on a Manly Ferry before being walked through central Sydney

PILGRIM SERVICES

  • 6,000 blankets were donated by Qantas to pilgrims from across Oceania
  • 37 lucky Burmese pilgrims overcame VISA difficulties to finally make it to Sydney for WYD08
  • At the WYD Big Aussie BBQ, 220,000 slices of bread were consumed – if laid end to end, it would cover the Sydney Harbour Bridge 21 times
  • 100,000 pilgrims slept in 400 schools and parishes
  • Over 12,000 pilgrims stayed in Sydney Olympic Park throughout the week
  • 40,000 were billeted as part of the WYD08 HomeStay program

PAPAL FACTS

  • The Pope’s flight to Sydney took 19 hours and 45 minutes
  • The Pope’s flight home will take 21 hours
  • From Rome the flight travelled a total distance of 16,500 kilometres
  • The Pope will fly back to Rome on a Qantas flight, stopping off Darwin for a brief refuelling
  • The Pope sent six daily inspirational text messages
  • The Pope met six native Australian animals from Taronga Zoo when in Kenthurst – a wallaby, koala, python, lizard, baby crocodile and an echidna
  • 12 lucky young people lunched with the Pope on Friday 18 July. This included Australians Craig Ashby from Sydney and Teresa Wilson from Melbourne
  • 24 people were confirmed by the Pope at the Final Mass including 14 young Australians and 10 international young people
  • The Pope lunched with 50 current and retired Australian Bishops in St Mary’s Cathedral House
  • The Pope kissed four small children during his Motorcades

VOLUNTEERS

  • 8,000 WYD08 volunteers assisted during WYD08
  • His Holiness held a special event to specifically thank the volunteers at the Domain prior to his departure

CLERGY

  • There were 4,000 priests and deacons, 420 Bishops, 26 Cardinals and one Pope present at WYD08
  • 500 special WYD08 chasubles for the Bishops and Cardinals were made
  • 4,000 stoles were made for the priests
  • 1.1 million communion hosts were made for the WYD08 Masses

FOOD

  • 25 million food items were ordered for WYD08
  • 3.6 million meals were distributed across approximately 400 venues during the week
  • 215,000 meat pies, 360,000 lamingtons and 100,000 litres of Dairy Farmers Milk were consumed


SERVICES

  • 400,000 people attended the Final Mass at Randwick Racecourse and Centennial Park
  • 235,000 faithful attended the night time Vigil at Randwick Racecourse.
  • Over 200,000 pilgrims camped at Randwick Racecourse overnight in anticipation of the Final Mass
  • 232,000 candles were used during WYD08
  • 100 actors took part in the Stations of the Cross performance
  • 4000 toilets were in use at the Southern Cross Precinct

AMBASSADORS, PATRONS, SPONSORS

World Youth Day Ambassadors were:

  • Carla Zampatti – leading Australian fashion designer
  • Jared Crouch – Sydney Swans Footballer
  • The Delezio Family – Ron, Carolyn, Mitchell and Sophie
  • Matthew Hayden – Australian Cricketer
  • Amelia Farrugia – Australian Opera singer
  • Mark Bresciano – Australian Socceroo
  • Stephen Moore – Australian Wallaby
  • Jimmy Little – Indigenous Australian musician
  • Dr John Herron – Chairman of the Australian National Council on Drugs

WYD08 Corporate Affilliates included: Qantas, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Catholic Church Insurances Limited, Corrs Chambers Westgarth, Mercedes-Benz, Telstra, The Daily Telegraph and the Sunday Telegraph, Harvest Youth Tours, Arnotts, Tip Top, Coca-Cola Amatil and Accor Hospitality, Captain Cook Cruises BridgeClimb, Taronga Zoo, The Catholic Weekly, Avis, Cadbury, Cerebos Foods, Dairy Farmers, Mrs Mac’s, Sanitarium, Schenker, SACL, Safcol, Moore Stephens

There were 10 World Youth Day Patrons including: St Thérèse of Lisieux, St Faustina Kowalska, St Maria Goretti, St Peter Chanel, Blessed Peter To Rot, Blessed Mary MacKillop, Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, John Paul II, Our Lady of the Southern Cross.

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WYD08: Vigil for the Vigil

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Last night, my dear friend Chris Valka (soon to be Fr. Chris Valka) asked me what had been the highlight of my World Youth day so far. I had no answer. I guess not much had really happened yet and in truth, we’d spent most of our time working and not really had time to participate in the event.

One of my Toronto highlights was the Papal Welcome Ceremony, but I expected that the Vigil would be a highlight for me here in Sydney. Or the Mass. The Mass should be the highlight.

But today we received a message inviting us to film at the Eucharistic Procession at the Sister’s of Life-sponsored “Love and Lifesite”. It was scheduled for 8pm.

Of course, as it usually is with these kinds of things, in this TV business and compounded by the World-Youthness of this event, we were running late. Not super late (as in other days) but late. At 8:15pm we were still sending video files to Toronto for our daily ZOOM news broadcast.

At 8:30 we were just leaving the Media Centre. We still had a 20 minute walk. I was now sure we’d miss it. I almost didn’t go.

But we got separated from three of our colleagues. Mary Rose, Richard and Fr. Stefano were nowhere to be found and Wally and I figured it was best to move on to the Love and Life site in case they had gone ahead. At the very least, if we missed the procession, we’d be able to visit with some of the Sisters.

We arrived and the courtyard was empty. Clearly the procession was over. But, guess what? We got there and Sr. Elizabeth greeted us as we arrived and told us the procession was inside the church and had just begun. They were running late! And there began the highlight of my WYD08.

I have never seen or experienced what I did inside that church of St. Benedict, at the Love and Lifesite. The procession was not of the Blessed Sacrament. The procession was of pilgrims who “processed” on their knees up the centre aisle towards the altar, where the priest would bring the Blessed Sacrament in the Monstrance to them and bless them.

I remember a story my mother would always tell us about a non-Catholic friend of hers who always told her how she was sceptical about our belief in the Real Presence because if she believed that Jesus was truly present in the Eucharist, she would be on her knees from beginning to end.

And while I like that my relationship with Christ is that of a friend and brother, with whom I can be myself: A relaxed, casual relationship with someone with whom I can sit with, chat, laugh, joke around and be me, He is still my Lord and Saviour. He is still God, to whom all glory belongs.

I guess that’s one of the paradoxes of our Faith. And it all comes down to love. How we respond in love to the Lover of all, who loves us beyond reason. A love that moves us to our knees, to give our all, to give of ourselves completely and totally, and a love that demands us to be ourselves, to be genuine and to be free: free to respond in any way we want to – in any way we can.

It may be a bit premature to have had my WYD Vigil tonight, but maybe that’s what I needed.

And a bonus for me: Other than spending some quality time with my Lord, I also spent time with my sisters – thank God for the witness of the Sisters of Life. Thank God for Sr. Maria Kateri, Sr. Antoniana, Sr. Kathrine, Sr. Monica , Sr. Marie-Claire and for their 40 Sisters who came to World Youth Day to witness to the Friend who never lets us down. To witness in love and life, to Love and Life.

Now, I can go and do a bit of the same myself.

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Madrid: Helping visually impaired pilgrims get the full WYD experience

April 19, 2011 by 1 Comment

MADRID – Out of the nearly two million pilgrims expected to attend World Youth Day in Madrid in August, about five thousand of those pilgrims will have some sort of disability. The WYD organization has partnered with a Spanish organization to make sure those pilgrims will be able to get the full WYD experience just like everyone else.

The Organización Nacional de Ciegos, or ONCE, (pronounced: on-seh) is a national organization for the blind and visually impaired. While many countries have organizations for the blind, ONCE has taken things one step further, providing jobs for the visually impaired while maintaining a steady source of income.

Glass booths, not much larger than an old fashioned phone booth, can be found on streets throughout Spain. Inside the booths rows of tickets hang in the windows and an employee inside is ready to help customers. The tickets are lottery tickets and the employee inside the booth is a visually impaired member of the ONCE organization.

Antonio Mayor Villa, the director of communication for ONCE, said the lottery booths ensure that people with visual and other disabilities have access to regular employment just like anyone else and the same dignity and quality of life as person without any disabilities.

The ONCE lottery booths have provided regular employment for 23,000 men and women with visual impairments. Half of the revenue from ticket sales is set aside as potential prize money. The other half goes towards financing the organization’s services and training programs and towards solidarity grants for other similar organizations that help people with disabilities. Generally that means around 160 million Euros would go towards ONCE’s programs, and about 80 million Euros would be given to other disabled groups as a sign of solidarity.

When Madrid’s World Youth Day Organizing Committee needed help providing service for visually and physically disabled pilgrims the team turned to ONCE for help.

On January 25 WYD Madrid and ONCE announced a special partnership. ONCE will be evaluating the WYD website and provide guidance on how to make it more accessible to the visually impaired. ONCE will also be visiting the WYD venues and accommodation sites to ensure accessibility to the visually and physically impaired.

Although the organization normally does not work with a religious group, Yolanda Martin, the vice president of ONCE, said “the values of overcoming, solidarity, and integration which World Youth Day enacts, make the dreams of so many people possible and fit with our organization and our participation in this event.”

ONCE will also provide special training to WYD volunteers who will be staffing the main event venues and the accommodation sites so they can better attend to the needs of disabled WYD pilgrims.

To make sure everyone gets a souvenir of World Youth Day, ONCE will be selling special commemorative WYD 2011 lottery tickets from August 15th to 20th. Spaniards and visitors alike are eligible to buy tickets and win the jackpot. While the proceeds will still go to ONCE, lottery players will have a ticket worth framing, even if it’s not a jackpot winner.

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Photo: ONCE

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Why WYD? Part 5 of 6: Saints

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

In the year 2000 WYD returned to Rome for the Year of the Jubilee. On the Holy Father’s message to the youth of the world on the occasion of this World Youth Day, Pope John Paul II wrote “Young people of every continent, do not be afraid to be the saints of the new millennium.” We are created to be saints, JPII told us we can be, and to help us understand this, every WYD has Patron Saint. One of the Patron Saints for WYD2000 was Pier Giorgio Frassati. This is very exciting because Pier Giorgio was not a priest or a monk. Pier Giorgio was a regular young lay man, someone to whom I can relate.

When we think of Saints, normally we think of “holy” and religious Europeans who lived hundreds of years ago – people who levitated, or who had the stigmata; people like Saint Francis of Assisi. But there is little in common between St. Francis and me.

But Pier Giorgio lived from 1901 to 1924. His sister just died last year. He was a young man, went to university, fell in love – but he lived a good life and did a lot of good, in particular by helping the poor and marginalised, from whom he contracted the tuberculosis that killed him at age 24.

WYD Toronto’s Patron Saints and Blesseds were mostly young people from different countries, and most of them lived in the 20th century: Agnes of Rome, Andrew of Phu Yen, Pedro Calungsod, Saint Josephine Bakhita, St. Therese, St. Gianna Molla, Marcel Calo, Francisco Castelló y Aleu, Kateri Tekakwitha and again Pier Giorgio. Young Saints who the youth of today can imitate. I would suggest that you go and research the lives of these great people of the Church. For us, there are no greater models for life.

And this is the reason why we need Saints: we all need models to imitate. John Paul II knew this very well. It is no coincidence that more people were canonised and beatified during his 26 years of Pontificate than of all the other Popes put together.

And that brings us to 2002. It’s important to mention that a new aspect was introduced to WYD in Toronto in 2002: the service project. Why gather all these young people together, calling them to live as the saints that they are, and not give them an opportunity to serve – to serve the poorest of the poor, the marginalised and those left out? We had service projects with Habitat for Humanity, with the Canadian Organisation for Development and Peace, and with many local service agencies. After all, don’t we, as Catholics have a preferential option for the poor and are called to act with justice and charity? These service projects were repeated in Cologne and in Sidney.

And this is the most important aspect of WYD. The Pope invites us to go to WYD, but this is not an invitation to a party or just a celebration. The invitation is to go on a walk, under the Cross, together with Mary and the Saints, towards Jesus – in order to meet with the Church and to learn about our beliefs – and to go in a spirit of reconciliation, pilgrimage, worship and service. It’s an invitation to follow the teachings of Jesus Christ. It’s an invitation to live as Saints.

But it’s not an invitation to be something that we cannot be. John Paul II said to us, “do not be afraid to be the saints of the new millennium”. That means we can be. But it’s not an invitation to be saints if we feel like it, or if we’re in the mood. We are created to be saints. The invitation is to say yes to that for which we are created. For many (and for me too) this is very hard to realize – it’s something that scares us. But JPII kept telling us, and Pope Benedict has reminded us: “Do not be afraid.”

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Why WYD? Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

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Why WYD? Part 6 of 6: From Disciples to Apostles

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

In 2005 World Youth Day went back to Europe, to Cologne, Germany. This was Pope Benedict’s first World Youth Day. By now, WYDs are an establishment. For me Toronto was very much the WYD that brought it all together. The service component was the key ingredient, but something was missing.

In Toronto we also added something else. Traditionally the Saturday night Vigil was a celebration, a rally, an opportunity for the young people to be with the Holy Father. In Toronto we kept this idea, but made the core of the celebration Evening Prayer. I don’t know about you, but before this, I had never even heard of Evening Prayer. There is so much about our Faith that we don’t know. How many of us don’t know about these “prayers of the Church?” Why are these prayers not taught in Catholic Schools? But I digress…

In Cologne, they kept the Vigil as Evening Prayer, but added Adoration. Of course, this made sense because the theme for that WYD was “We have come to worship him” (Mt 2:2). But it also makes sense because that is the real reason why we gather: to adore. That’s why we go and do service: to adore. Worship is the reason why we respond to the call to being Saints.

wyd08pilgrimsAnd of course, Sydney 2008 was in many ways the WYD of WYDs. All these components came together beautifully. We travelled as pilgrims, together with Mary and the Saints, under the Cross, in a spirit of reconciliation and service to meet with the Holy Father, the institutional Church, to learn about our Faith, to connect with and celebrate our Faith and to worship. For Sydney, we literally went to “ends of the earth,” to the farthest reaches of the planet, to the Great South Land of the Holy Spirit to do so. And we are able to do so, be Saints because of the Holy Spirit.

Being a saint is not hard. Being a saint doesn’t mean that you don’t make mistakes or that you don’t sin. Being a saint simply means following Jesus, trying to get to heaven and helping others make it to heaven. Jesus already told us how to do that: feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give drink to those who are thirsty, visit the sick and those in prison. And pray. This is something that you and I can do very easily. And if we do, or try to live this way, we will realise that we are no longer just disciples who merely follow Jesus, but apostles whom Jesus sends.

This is what happens at WYD – one arrives as a disciple and having a personal encounter with Christ, we return home sent, as apostles – to share the experience with our families, our friends and all those whom we encounter on a daily basis.

But the good news is that we don’t have to go to a WYD to have a personal encounter with Christ. You didn’t need to go to Sydney in order to “receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you” and be Christ’s witnesses (Acts 1:8) . You don’t need to go to Madrid in 2011 to be “rooted and built up in Jesus Christ, firm in the faith” (cf Col 2:7). This is something that all of us can do right here at home.

You may not be able to go to WYD, but are you willing to let Jesus call you to be an apostle?

Are you willing to live as a saint?

Do not be afraid!

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Photos WYD08/Getty Images

Why WYD? Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5

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Why WYD? Part 4 of 6: Proclaim it from the Rooftops

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

stations2

In 1993 WYDs came to North America: Denver, Colorado, U.S.A. By now WYD is a week-long event, with three Catechesis days, incorporating all aspects of pilgrimage and reconciliation, particularly between the Church and the Native People of North America, and the Way of the Cross.

The Way of the Cross was popular in the first centuries of the Church, when people would make pilgrimages to Jerusalem in order to visit the different places of the passion of Christ. In the 15th century, Turks invaded the Holy Land preventing people from making pilgrimages to Jerusalem. And so, people started to pray the “Via Crucis” where they were. Throughout time, Catholic popular culture developed 14 “stations” representing the various stages of the passion of Christ.

In Denver, WYD pilgrims were gathered in a stadium while a group of actors moved from Station to Station, bringing them to life and helping the participants enter into the mystery of the Passion.

In Toronto we closed one of the city’s main avenues, University Avenue and “took over” the city in order to recreate these final moments of the life of Christ.

This is another important part of WYDs: it’s not to stick all the Catholics in one place where no one can see them, to “ghetto-ize” them, but to “make the avenues of the city resound with the joy and love of Christ.” In Toronto, Christ was condemned in front of City Hall, and took up his cross in front of the city’s courthouse. He fell for the first time in front of the U.S. Embassy and consoled the women of Jerusalem in front of Toronto General Hospital. He was crucified and died in front of the Provincial Parliament Buildings and was buried in front of the Royal Ontario Museum. Some 300,000 young pilgrims filled Toronto streets and hundreds of thousands others, watched on secular national television (and millions worldwide) while a group of actors moved from station to station. Hundreds of thousands prayed this beautiful Catholic devotion in the middle of a completely secular city. Who says that young people are not interested in Catholic traditions?

wyd-jpiivigilwavinghandsIn 1995 WYD travelled to the South Pacific to the Philippine Islands. The Closing Mass was the largest gathering of Catholics in history, perhaps followed in size only by the funeral of Pope John Paul II. It is interesting to note that it’s never the Papal Welcome Ceremony or the Saturday night Vigil, the most “fun” events, that attract the most people. It’s always the Closing Mass. Young people want to go to Mass. The youth want to celebrate the Sacrament of the Eucharist. That is why every WYD begins with a Mass and concludes with a Mass. Every Catechesis Session ends with a Mass. The Eucharist is the reason why Catholics gather.

In 2005, in Cologne, Germany, the Saturday Night Vigil was adapted to include a time of Exposition, Adoration and Benediction with the Blessed Sacrament. This was appropriate for that year’s event since the theme was “we have come to adore Him”. This is another reason why we gather for WYDs: to adore Him and we do so in His Real Presence. It’s clear to see that all those things that make us Catholic are the very core components of every WYD.

In 1997, in Paris, France, WYD introduced the Youth Festival. This is one component of WYD that allows young people to be co-producers of the event. In Paris, most of the Youth Festival events were organised by Lay Movements and Associations, and Religious Communities. In Toronto, many of the events were organised by individuals. There were events hosted by Eastern Rite communities, by Aboriginal People and for the disabled. There were more than 900 Youth Festival events: music, dance, theatre, cultural and religious gatherings, prayer meetings, discussion groups and a film festival. WYD is a celebration and the Youth Festival exemplifies this.

So what do we have so far? A pilgrimage together, under the cross, towards Christ, to meet with the Holy Father and the Church, with each other, to learn about, connect with and celebrate our Faith and we do so in a spirit of reconciliation and worship, along with Mary.

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Photos WYD08/Getty Images

Why WYD? Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

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Why WYD? Part 3 of 6: Pilgrims Together

April 19, 2011 by Leave a Comment

In 1987, Pope John Paul II invited youth to meet him in Buenos Aires, Argentina. This gathering lasted a couple of days and provided an opportunity for the youth to learn more about their Faith and encounter the Church. This is what the Catechesis Sessions are for. We all know priests. They are the face of the Church to the world. But, how many of us know Bishops? Bishops are supposed to be the shepherds of the Church, but frequently, these servants, are relegated to the role of administrators. The Catechesis Sessions give the Bishops the opportunity to be Shepherds and give the youth the opportunity to actively participate as “sheep.” During WYD 2002, 250 Bishops came from around the world and there were 387 Catechesis Sessions in 17 different languages. And these sessions were packed with youth. Attendance was incredible! Young people want to know about the Church and about the Faith. They want to learn the Catechism and participate in Church.

In 1989, JPII invited young people to make a pilgrimage with him to Santiago de Compostela, in Spain. In the Basilica of Santiago rest the supposed remains of the Apostle James. Hundreds of thousands of people make a pilgrimage every year on the Camino de Santiago (the road of St. James), from France and the north of Spain.

What is a pilgrimage? A trip, a journey… What is the difference between a tourist and a pilgrim? The tourist arrives with an empty suitcase, but returns home with a heavy one full of stuff. A pilgrim returns home with a much lighter load. The tourist may go through a lot of places, but pilgrims lets the places go through them.

WYD is a pilgrimage – a journey, but not a journey full of comforts and nice hotels. It is a journey done on foot, where you sleep on the floor… in Toronto, on the Saturday morning, everyone walked, from different places, towards Downsview Park – a walk that helped all of us enter into the mystery of what it means to be a pilgrim. The fact that for WYD most participants stay in schools and parishes and sleep on the floor is not just to save money. It’s because it’s a pilgrimage. And that’s why we go: as pilgrims, to meet the Church, under the Cross.

In 1991 we were invited to another pilgrimage. This time it was to the Shrine of the Black Madonna in Czestochowa, Poland, a place that JPII loved. This WYD was extraordinary because of the recent fall of the communist bloc in Eastern Europe. A few years before, such a gathering would not have been possible in an Eastern European nation. And JPII was instrumental in helping bring an end to communism. But the “east” represents much more. Most of us don’t know that as well as the Roman Rite (which most of us belong to), in the Catholic Church, there are 17 Eastern Rites. These include the Ukrainian, the Maronite, Melkite, and Syrian Rite, among others. They are all Catholic. They are all part of the same Faith. In Toronto, for the first time, all the Rites of the Church participated completely in the planning of the event.

In order to bring together these Rites, we need reconciliation, since reconciliation is an integral part of our Faith. Of course, it is also an integral part of WYDs. During WYD 2002, more than 100,000 youth celebrated the Sacrament of Reconciliation in “Duc In Altum” (set out into the deep”, Luke 5:4), Park, with hundreds of priests in dozens of languages. Who says that young people don’t go to Confession!

Czestochowa is also a Marian Shrine: Our Lady of Jasna Góra. It’s important to recall that Mary is our Mother. She is the Mother of all Saints – she is our advocate. At the foot of the cross, Jesus said to his beloved disciple John: “here is your mother… take her into your home.” Jesus asks us all to bring Mary home with us, because just as Christ came to the world through this woman, the world can also get to Christ, through His Mother, Mary.

In Czestochowa, the Young people presented the Holy Father with an Icon of Mary. Icons are part of the Eastern Catholic tradition and since 1991 every WYD has included an Icon of Mary. In Toronto, the Icon was of the presentation of the Wise Men: the Mother, the Son and those from other lands and cultures who have come to adore him, which was the theme of the following WYD, in 2005 in Cologne, Germany.

And so we have World Youth Days: Meetings with the Holy Father, with the Church, under the Cross, in pilgrimage with Mary, in the spirit of reconciliation.

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Photos WYD08/Getty Images

Why WYD? Part 1, Part 2

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