Nuns danced. Teenagers jumped up and down to the rhythm of Bongô. And thousands joined singers and bands that alternated their performances on the huge stage built last month in a Roman suburb for a youth festival that became known as the Catholic Woodstock.
“This is the Pope’s youth!” Many sang.
The song became even higher when Pope Leo XIV arrived from a helicopter on Saturday night (2) to a wake of prayer and readings. He will return to the place on Sunday for a morning mass.
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After crossing the crowd on an open papamobile, Leo carried a stairs up to an altar on stage. He chaired a ceremony that included answers to questions asked by young faithful, alternating between Spanish, Italian and English.
“My prayer for you is to persevere in faith, with joy and courage,” he said to applause.
The World Youth Day, as it is known, is held every two or three years in various places around the world. This year, he coincided with the Roman Catholic Jubilee – a holy year that usually occurs every 25 years – and began with a meeting of hundreds of most young people from 70 countries that promote their online faith.
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This reflects Vatican’s growing recognition of the importance of Catholic influencers on social media in their efforts to engage younger.
“It was fair for the Church to recognize and support this new type of evangelization”, said Nicola Campo, 19, a popular Italian influencer of Tiktok.
The events of the week also included an opening mass in St. Peter’s Square, Circo Máximo confessions, concerts and seminars, as well as prayers in churches and basilicas.
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For many young people, being Catholic is difficult in today’s world, with all their distractions, especially going to Mass and attending the church, Andrés Maria Rodriguez, 20, a student of Chiapas, said in Mexico, who participated in the festival. He said that being there was a positive energy discharge. “It was crazy, a unique experience in life,” he said.
The Church has long tried to expand its appeal to young people; For years, the Vatican has had a Pope’s account on social networks. In September, the Vatican will canonize the first Millennial Saint, Carlo Acutis, who died of leukemia in 2006 at the age of 15.
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