From the international team of Youth Ministry and as a “resonance movement” born from the II International Youth Meeting, seconding the invitation – urgency – encouragement of “COME! LET”S GO! We want to share how the participation of “Hijas de Jesus with Youth” in World Youth Day, WYD 2023 is taking place and will unfold.
We already know that there are many ways to “be present” in a place and accompany people in an experience. The first and foremost is prayer and we know that many Hijas de Jesus and lay people of the Mother Candida Family have signed up to pray for WYD.
There will be good participation both in person and virtually. It is possible that we do not know everything, so we apologize if we have missed anything.
It is beautiful and exciting to know the movement and Life that is happening and will happen to join, with Mary, to “get up and leave without delay”: (we are going through in alphabetical order of countries)
Argentina
Gathering of young people to experience WYD, particularly the vigil and in some cases also the Eucharist, in simultaneous connection with Lisbon. In some places we are joining the organization of the diocese of the place; this is the case of Cordoba, which joins the diocese on the morning of Saturday 5, and Villa Ocampo which will also participate in the vigil, inviting the youth of the local Church, gathering in one of the chapels of the parish of the place.
In other places, the Hijas de Jesus offer our house to the young people in order to invite them to live it together. In Cordoba, after the pilgrimage and the vigil with the diocese, we will continue the meeting of young people in our house, we will experience the Eucharist together and we will stay until Sunday morning; La Plata will open its doors for a face-to-face activity in the chapel of the College on Saturday at 5 in the afternoon till evening.
You can follow “snippets” of what is happening on Instagram.
Spain
From Spain, the “neighboring” country to the venue of WYD2023, there is all this movement: The Hijas de Jesus offers two MAG+S experiences: one in Vigo and the other in Salamanca. MAG+S is the Ignatian youth meeting that takes place prior to each WYD in order to unite and live the WYD together with all the others. In it, young Ignatian participants from all over the world are sent to different experiences, about 100 of them, which took place from July 24 to 29. In each of the experiences we offer, there is a group of Hijas de Jesus and lay people accompanying an international group of 25 young people who were sent to these experiences.
The one in Vigo is about music and the one in Salamanca is about solidarity and service. In MAG+S there are two young people and one companion. Directly to Lisbon, 89 FI Youth will go to WYD, including high school students, Alcor, former students of the Jesuitinas Educational Foundation… and lay chaperones and Hijas de Jesus.
On the Instagram of Jóvenes FI de España, you can follow everything they are sharing with us about these experiences.
Philippines
In the Philippines, to concretize the “missionary sending” that was made at the II International Youth Meeting, in the context of WYD, some of the young people who participated, will have an encounter and catechesis with indigenous people. All for the greater glory of God and for our dear young people. Go… Go!
Japan
There are some young people from Japan who are going to WYD in Lisbon. We accompany you!
TAIWAN
From Taiwan, Teresita Tsai FI participated with 17 young people in the “Welcome to the Paradise” of the Chemin Neuf community in Portimão. Then, they will go to the WYD in Lisbon, and on the third week of August, they will go to Salamanca, to make a retreat, rest and meet Mother Candida.
You can follow everything they share on their Instagram.
From the Commission for the II International Youth Meeting, we have the good fortune that Naike, Teresita Tsai, and Xi-Zhu are in Spain and Portugal participating in MAG+S and soon in WYD.
We continue to unite and in prayer for all these young people and for those who accompany them, so that it may be an experience that brings them closer to Jesus, and that they may live the joy and commitment of the Gospel, as a universal community that is the present and future of the Church.
International Youth Ministry Team.