World Youth Day Krakow 2016 - Details
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World Youth Day Krakow 2016
Details
Date Monday 20 July 2016 – Sunday 31 July 2016
Location Poland
Organiser St. Robert’s Catholic Church, Harrogate
Category Pilgrimage
Cost £695
Age range 16-35
Beds Host families and Student halls of residence
About the event
World Youth Day is an incredible, life-changing experience!
Nowhere else in the world is there an event where millions of young people, from
every corner of the planet, come together to celebrate their faith. It’s an event that
started 30 years ago by Saint John Paul II and has been a source for awakening
something exciting deep within the hearts of many pilgrims who go – a desire to know
the meaning of their lives, to know their purpose in life. Life is seen with new eyes,
illuminated by the light of God’s love!
It is for ages 16 to 35. It includes the
full two weeks, including the Mission
Week (Days in the Diocese) in one of
the Dioceses in Poland followed by the
World Youth Day week in Krakow.
Our Great Plan!
We start in one of the Dioceses in Poland!
Our World Youth Day pilgrimage presents
an opportunity for St. Robert’s Church,
Harrogate pilgrims to not only immerse
themselves in the spirit and dynamism of
the main Krakow week but to also spend
time and experience proper Polish culture
and hospitality. It is called “Days in the
Diocese”
We arrive in Poland and where we head
straight into a vibrant and busy
programme, beginning with gathering and
welcoming – our first opportunity to meet fellow young Catholics from all over the
world.
Each morning in the host Diocese, we will come together for Morning Prayer; a tangible
opportunity to bring some peace into our lives and give an enriching sense of context to
the day ahead.
Following this calm time, we all have the opportunity to enjoy the rich and varied
festival programme, which can include a visit to a local parishes or to deepen links with
other young people in the area or to be involved in many charity events. These events
include listening to a range of international speakers covering a multitude of topics and
many activity-based sessions.
During our “Days in the Diocese” we will be housed in families in the local parishes.
Activities in the Days in the Diocese include, Catechesis, sightseeing to places
connected with Polish history and culture, youth and sports festivals, cultural
evenings, pilgrimage to places connected with Polish saints, volunteering and charity
works, prayer, music evenings and concerts and BBQ with host families! What a
lovely thing to do!
On the Road to Krakow
On Monday 25 July we say goodbye
to our friends in our host Diocese
and head for Krakow. The journey
will take several hours; we’ll arrive
during the afternoon and in plenty
of time to get settled into our home
for World Youth Day week.
In Krakow, we will be
accommodated in student halls of
residence.
World Youth Day is breath taking and, unless you’ve experienced it before, you’ll be
totally unprepared for the noise, colour, movement, crowds and great joy that will
engulf you. It is relentless and you need your sleep and plenty of energy to sustain
yourself.
World Youth Day Week
Tuesday generally starts the
week in a relatively manageable
way with the simple matter of
the opening ceremony. Normally
it is the Archbishop of the host
city who presides; so we can
assume it’ll be the Archbishop of
Krakow, Stanisław Dziwisz.
Of course, this isn’t any ordinary
ceremony as probably well over
one million young people will
attend!
Flags from around the world come together for World Youth Day. There will be flags and
banners and huge TV screens and noise – very loud noise! But, as always, it will be
faithful, joyful and staggering.
From Wednesday to Friday, each morning we’ll journey as a group to a language-
specific session of catechesis, which are always inspiring. In Rio, one of the sessions was
led by Bishop John Sherrington. We’ll be mingling with Americans, Canadians, Aussies
and other English-speaking pilgrims – this is always great fun and an opportunity to
wave our British flags with gusto!
Most afternoons are an opportunity to visit a range of spiritual, cultural and musical
events scattered across the city and to witness our faith with brother and sister pilgrims
from across the globe.
The Pope arrives
On Thursday afternoon we
welcome Pope Francis.
The arrival of our Holy Father is
always an event in itself and
usually involves a helicopter,
growing anticipation and a
palpable rising of the volume
amongst all the gathering
millions!
The journey of the Pope is
traditionally broadcast live on large screens so we can watch him board the helicopter
and transfer to the pope mobile. The final leg brings Pope Francis to the sanctuary; by
then, everyone begins to realise what a truly awesome event World Youth Day really is.
Friday brings Stations of the Cross (Way of the Cross) and
this is on a scale that is truly hard to contemplate. A
wonderful experience for all of us and helps us
contemplate and reflect on our journey to this point.
As we head towards the weekend we become
increasingly aware that the very essence of World Youth
Day and our time with the Lord is very close at hand. The
Vigil on Saturday evening is a special time and it is the
very reason that we have journeyed hand-in-hand with
our fellow pilgrims from across the world.
We will make our way to the vigil site on foot from
dedicated start points across Krakow. Generally this is a
pilgrimage of around ten kilometres. Arriving at the vigil
site with our sleeping bags, we’ll witness the strength,
depth and diversity of our faith as many millions of young people begin to fill the area.
What you will see is staggering and almost impossible to articulate – when you’re there
you’ll realize what we mean.
The Vigil itself commences at dusk and this just adds to the atmosphere and reverence;
it is a truly wonderful time with our Holy Father.
We sleep in the open on Saturday night and it’s always wonderful to hear people
gradually falling to sleep and then a few hours later witness the rising sun, as everyone
slowly begins to wake up. Just very, very special!
On Sunday, we have the Final Mass with Pope Francis and hear his thoughts on the
World Youth Day coming to an end. The Pope will provide some vision for us to take
away and this is always empowering.
Sunday afternoon sees us start our journey home to our families, both charged up and
tired out – refreshed in spirit and set to ‘make disciples of all nations’!
Pilgrim pack
Free goodies for pilgrims who register
with Westminster!
Each pilgrim who registers with us
will receive their own St. Robert’s
Pilgrim Pack for the trip! This
pack will include free goodies like a t-
shirt, bag, books and much more!
Please keep an eye on upcoming events
and fundraising activities!!
For more details please contact Joy O’Brien
strobertsyouth.harrogate@gmail.com
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