Holy Land: 120 young Palestinian Christians preparing to attend WYD Rio

One hundred and twentyyoung people from the Holy Land are registered to attend World Youth Day (WYD) which will be held this summer in July and will be accompanied by Bishop William Shomali, Auxiliary Bishop of Jerusalem. During the past several weeks, the group has been in preparation for this unique event with the Holy Father.

Every Sunday for more than a month, the youth of Palestine (from Jerusalem and Ramallah) have been gathering in Ramallah to prepare spiritually and logistically for WYD; those from the Galilee region are being prepared by the Neocatechumenal Way. These meetings allow participants to reflect on the missionary theme of World Youth Day this year: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19) and how to live this mission. It is also a way for everyone to get to know each other before leaving for this unique adventure.

The 120 young people will depart from the Holy Land on 13 July and will be accompanied by Bishop William Shomali, Auxiliary Bishop of Jerusalem, Father Firas Hijazeen, the Parish Priest of Jerusalem and Father Aziz Halaweh, Spiritual Director of JEC (Christian Youth Group). After spending a week in the diocese of Niteroi (in the state of Rio de Janeiro), the group will travel to Rio to join the millions of other young people from around the world in their meeting with the Holy Father. Speaking about the importance of these events Bishop Shomali said, “young people can feel the universality and catholic nature of the Church, especially when they are in the midst of approximately three million other young people expected to attend the closing Mass.”

At the event, in addition to 120 young people, the Holy Land will be well represented. The official anthem of World Youth Day in Arabic, formally adopted by the Central Committee, has been translated, performed and recorded by youth in the Holy Land. In addition, Bishop Giacinto-Boulos Marcuzzo, Patriarchal Vicar in Nazareth, has been invited by the Pontifical Council for the Laity in Rome to give preparatory catechesis before the meeting with the Pope Francis.

“May these days”, said Bishop Shomali, “increase the faith of young people. A faith that is rooted in a personal relationship with Christ. It is our goal and the goal of WYD.”

Source: Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem