On Sunday last, 85-year-old Pope Francis was the first pilgrim to register for World Youth Day, which will take place in Lisbon on 1 to 6 August 2023 on the theme: ‘Carrying Christ to the World’. The previous World Youth Day was hosted in Panama, in 2019, and an estimated half a million young people attended.
In his tweet advising of this registration, Pope Francis invited young people around the world to register to attend “#lisboa2023 to rediscover the joy of the fraternal embrace between peoples.” You can register here: World Youth Day (wyd-reg.org)
To date, supporting faith formation in young people has been a key theme in the pontificate of Pope Francis. The Primate of All Ireland, Archbishop Eamon of Armagh, attended the Universal Synod on Youth that was hosted by the Pope in Rome during October 2018. Following this global gathering of Church leaders, Pope Francis published his reflection, known as an Apostolic Exaltation, drawing on “the myriad of voices of believers the world over who made their opinions known to the Synod.” Christus Vivit (Christ is Alive) was promulgated by the Holy Father on 25 March 2019, the Feast of the Annunciation of the Lord.
ENDS
