Pope Francis makes a balance of his visit to Portugal for the WYD
Pope Francis said this Wednesday, in the general audience at the Vatican, that the World Youth Day (WYD) Lisbon 2023 showed that a world free of war is possible and that the meeting was “a gift from God”.
“While there are wars in Ukraine and other parts of the world, and while wars are being planned secretly, the WYD has shown to everyone that another world is possible: a world of brothers and sisters, where the flags of all countries fly together, side by side, without hating each other, without fear, without selfishness, without weapons!”, said the Holy Father during the balance of his visit to Portugal for celebrating the WYD Lisbon 2023.
Pope Francis also gave a message to all the leaders of the world, questioning whether the “quiet” message of young people had been heard. “We hope that the whole world has listened to this World Youth Day and sees the beauty of young people walking forward", he wished.
Regarding the meeting, the Holy Father revealed that everyone felt it as “a gift from God”, since it took place after the Pandemic, this was a turning point for young people who were affected by “social behaviors”. According to Pope Francis, with the WYD “God pushed in the opposite direction: the WYD marked a new beginning for a great pilgrimage of young people of all continents of the world, in the name of Jesus Christ”.
Continuing the WYD review, Pope Francis also emphasized that this event was not a “vacation” or just a “spiritual meeting”, but also an “encounter with Christ alive through the Church”. “Young people went to meet Christ. It is true that where there are young people there is joy, there is something of this! My visit to Portugal for the WYD was immerse into the festive atmosphere of this wave of young people”, he remarked.
It should be reinforced that the Pope Francis was in Portugal during the WYD Lisbon 2023, that took place between the 1st and 6th of August and which gathered together young people from all over the world, with around 1.5 million of registered pilgrims for the Missioning Mass.
