Looking ahead to Lisbon!
By Josh Low
Excitement is building among the youth of the Archdiocese as the sixteenth World Youth Day (WYD) approaches this August.
Tasmanian pilgrims will depart in late July to start their pilgrimage in Rome before flying to Lisbon for the WYD Week – held in the first week of August, followed by a post-WYD retreat in Fatima, Portugal.
Office of Youth Evangelisation Director, Sam Clear, said pilgrims from the Archdiocese have over the years travelled to participate in many international WYD events, including some of the most recent in Panama, Krakow, Rio de Janeiro and Madrid.
“This year, Tasmania will have 34 pilgrims travelling with Archbishop Porteous to Lisbon.
“This includes 15 pilgrims from Catholic Education, and 19 pilgrims from parishes across the Archdiocese of Hobart.
“We have pilgrims coming from Hobart, Kingston, Geeveston, Launceston, Devonport, Ulverstone, and Queenstown, and represent occupations as diverse as education, medicine, finance, hospitality, construction, fire department, and of course a few full-time students,” he said.
He added that World Youth Days have become a significant event in the life of the Church.
“Whether it is WYD on location, such as Lisbon this year, or celebrated in each diocese, the need is always there to both inspire and challenge youth to follow Christ in all aspects of life; to grow in faith, and then grow in trust.
“These pilgrimages are a wonderful platform for providing that opportunity,” he said.
Huon Valley parishioner, Nat Bradley, said he is very excited to be part of the group heading to WYD.
“My Parish Priest was the first to mention it to me, telling me it’s something I won’t ever forget or regret, and that got me,” he said.
“Events like this show that Catholicism is not dying, and that our faith isn’t something to be left for later in life but needed for young people to thrive.”
Intern doctor and Launceston parishioner, Dr Hui Ying Ng, is hoping to take part in this year’s WYD pilgrimage.
“I think of it as the ultimate youth camp but on an international scale,” she said.
“The Catholic Church is the only institution – to the best of my knowledge, that brings together millions of young people in a single event.
“As someone who has just started work and is trying to live out the faith in the workplace, it’s great to have World Youth Days as a reminder of how amazing the faith is and that it’s worth striving for holiness in all situations in life, even if the workplace doesn’t always create the best environment for it,” she said.
“I’m hoping to learn more about the faith, have access to different speakers from around the world whom I may not otherwise encounter, make friends from different places, and have the opportunity to journey with others from Tassie,” she said.
To help pilgrims with the cost of the pilgrimage, a state-wide Quiz Night will be held on Saturday 20 May in local areas, pitting parishes against each other.
For more information on the Quiz night, contact: youth@aohtas.org.au