July 22, 2016
 
PORTLAND---“I think the biggest thing for me is that I’m really excited to see so many cultures, so many different people who all celebrate the same faith and the same thing,” said 17-year-old Grady Connolly of Sanford. “All coming together as one family is really awesome.”
 
Grady and 34 other Maine young people and adults, including Bishop Robert P. Deeley, are on their way to Kraków, Poland, to participate  in the 2016 World Youth Day festivities. The ten-day journey offers an opportunity to experience the universality of the Church and to share the hope of many young people who want to commit themselves to Christ and each other.

A weeklong celebration starting on July 25, World Youth Day is a worldwide encounter with the Pope typically celebrated every three years in a different country. An estimated 2.5 million people from around the world are expected to attend the event.

“I really want to go to World Youth Day because I’m excited to experience this with so many different youth from all over the world, and getting to see the pope is going to be amazing,” said Ashley Pezanowski, 19, from St. Brendan the Navigator Parish, Camden.
Prior to their departure on Friday evening, July 22, the Maine delegation gathered for a special Mass celebrated by Bishop Deeley at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Portland on Friday morning.

During the Mass, the bishop blessed the pilgrims, asking God to "Bless your servants and remain with them throughout this holy pilgrimage. Guide their way in accord with your holy will, and help them to walk along the path of peace. Shelter them with your protection by day and give them the light of your grace by night. And, as their companion on this journey of faith, bring them to their destination in joy and safety."
In his homily, the bishop reminded the youth, parents, and chaperones in attendance that a pilgrimage is much more than just a trip.

“In going on a pilgrimage, the traveling, the journey itself, is part of the experience,” said Bishop Deeley. “What we do together, as we move from here to the bus and then on to Germany and Poland, is all part of our pilgrimage. As Pope Francis has told us, ‘Pilgrimage represents the journey each of us makes in life.’ We go on pilgrimage to think about our lives. ‘Life itself,’ the pope tells us, ‘is a pilgrimage and the human being is a traveler.’”


The bishop said a pilgrimage is not just about what is seen along the way but is about how the experiences change the travelers.

“For us, as Christians, life is a journey to make ourselves, through the grace of God, what God wants us to be and what Jesus sends us to be.  Pilgrimage is an opportunity to think more about the direction of my life,” said the bishop. “As I journey with these other people, what do I discover about myself and my own relationship with Jesus?”
Among the World Youth Day festivities that will be attended by the Maine delegation are the opening Mass on July 26, catechetical sessions with participating bishops on July 27-29, the official welcome of Pope Francis on July 28, Stations of the Cross with Pope Francis on July 29, and a closing Mass with the Holy Father on July 31.

“I think, probably, Mass with the pope will be one of the biggest, most inspirational parts. I’m really excited for that,” said 18-year-old Chelsea Hal from the Parish of the Resurrection of the Lord in Old Town.

“Mass with the pope is going to be phenomenal,” said Emilee Wermenchuk, 17, from Good Shepherd Parish in Saco. “Not many people can say they were at Mass celebrated by the pope.”

In addition to World Youth Day events, the Maine pilgrims will travel to several historical locations, including Warsaw; the Jasna Góra Monastery in Częstochowa, home of the shrine of the Black Madonna of Częstochowa; Auschwitz, to visit the site of the German concentration camp; Wadowice, the birthplace of Pope Saint John Paul II; and the Divine Mercy Sanctuary in Kraków, the resting place of Saint Faustina Kowalska. The delegation will return to Maine on August 1.

“Going to Auschwitz, I think, will really be an incredible experience. Everybody knows about the Holocaust, but to see part of it is going to be really heavy but really good,” said 16-year-old Anna Zmistowski, also from the Parish of the Resurrection of the Lord in Old Town.

The young people taking part say they are looking forward to being able to meet and celebrate their faith with youth from around the world and say they hope the experience helps them to both strengthen their own faith and to share it with others.

“I want to become closer to God than I have been in probably quite some time. I’m hoping to get that out of it and to make some new friends,” said Tim Dube of Lewiston.
“I’m looking forward for a new experience that I think will really challenge my faith and also propel me more towards Christ and show me, really, what Catholicism is in terms of being youthful,” said Eddy Gabriel Tchatat, who received the trip from his mother as a graduation and birthday present.

“I really just am seeking a bigger inspiration in my faith,” said Anna. “Have you ever met someone with an overwhelming spirit and love for Jesus Christ? That’s what I want.”