By Ann Marie Foley - 14 November, 2015
World Youth Day launch Bishop Ray Browne, Ks Piotr Delimat (Polish Priest from Krakow), Fr Donal O’Connor, IT chaplain, Tomas Kenny, World Youth Day co-ordinator for Kerry and students from the IT.
Kerry diocese is the latest to launch its World Youth Day brochure.
Booking forms and invitations urging young people to be part of “something amazing” are being prepared for printing and launched by dioceses all over Ireland and further afield.
The popular youth event will be held in the Polish city of Krakow from 25 July to 1 August 2016.
The Diocese of Kerry has just launched its brochure and hopes to bring 31 young people and four leaders.
“The theme for World Youth Day 2016 is ‘Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy’ (Mt 5:7),” explained Tomás Kenny, post-primary diocesan advisor on religious education, who is coordinating Kerry’s participation in the event.
He said the theme is in tune with the Year of Mercy which will also happen next year.
“Really, the Pope is inviting young people to come and celebrate their faith at this event with him. There will be liturgies, catechesis, concerts, performances, with other religious communities from all over the world and religious movements.”
“It is really a faith festival for young people from all over the world. The event culminates in an all-night vigil and Mass with Pope Francis, ” he said.
The diocese of Kerry wants young adults aged 18 – 35 years to attend and while in Krakow they will stay at the Jagiellonian University.
They and other pilgrims will engage with the local Catholic communities and share their faith while experiencing life in Poland.
In Galway, young people are being invited to be part of “something amazing” and a “wonderful pilgrimage of faith, discovery and sheer enjoyment.”
Organisers say that World Youth Day is a Catholic celebration like no other and many of the millions of young people who have attended World Youth Days in the past continue to speak of the profound impact it has had on their lives.
World Youth Day 2016 will bring together young people from over 150 countries to learn more about their faith and to experience the diversity, vitality, relevance and joy of being young and Catholic.
At the moment in Poland preparations are well underway with many volunteers in situ and working hard to get ready.
Last week, the local organising committee in Krakow were visited by a delegation of 11 from the United States representing dioceses such as Bridgeport, Fort Wayne, Reno, Seattle, and St Petersburg.
They expect to come to WYD 2016 with around 3,000 pilgrims from 36 different dioceses in the US.
Their trip included not only the WYD host city, but also specific sites for spiritual formation including Czestochowa, one of the most visited pilgrimage sites in Europe, and other places such as Auschwitz and Warsaw.
The pilgrims range in age from 16-35, and in some of the dioceses, even over 35. The vast majority are new pilgrims, and they have never taken part in a WYD before.
To lend a hand with the preparations for WYD, they have been organising meetings, from logistical preparation presentations (what WYD is all about, what to pack, how to prepare, etc), to spiritual retreats and Masses to prepare spiritually for this event.
For more information in relation to the diocese of Kerry: contact your local parish or Tomás Kenny on 086-3683778/Email: tomaskenny@dioceseofkerry.ie Also see: www.dioceseofkerry.ie
Galway: youthministry@galwaydiocese.ie or contact Maura Garrihy on 091-565-066.
