BRIDGEPORT—Bishop Caggiano is calling youth and young adults ages 18 and older to join him from January 21-28, 2019 to travel on pilgrimage to Panama for World Youth Day 2019, extending Pope Francis’ invitation to all young people of the Church to attend.
World Youth Day provides an opportunity for Catholic youth and young adults from all over the world to come together in Christ’s name in prayer and celebration of the Catholic Faith.
“I can promise you that World Youth Day will be an incredible, life changing week, and one that you will never forget,” said the Bishop in his Facebook post announcing the event. “I know I speak for many of our pilgrims when I say that the opportunity to encounter hundreds of thousands of fellow Catholics from around the world, including the Holy Father, is truly awe inspiring! “
The theme for World Youth Day Panama focuses on Mary’s fiat from the Gospel of Luke: “I am the servant of the Lord. Let it be done to me according to your word” (Luke 1:38).
“Millions of young people from all over the world attend…and the most beautiful thing is that we all speak one language: the language of the love of Jesus Christ that lives within us,” said Juliana Lima, on the World Youth Day website.
Participants will get to tour the beauty of Panama, as well as participate in World Youth Day activities, some of which include: Catechetical sessions from bishops from all over the world, multiple opportunities to hear Pope Francis address the gathered, celebration of Mass and Stations of the Cross, an overnight Vigil with Eucharistic Adoration, and a Farewell Dinner Cruise on the Panama Canal.
“We have said the phrase ‘on Earth as it is in heaven’ a thousand times. And I am sure that this very phrase sums up what one experiences at World Youth Day,” said from Martin Valverde Rojas, a World Youth Day pilgrim.
Planning for the diocesan participation in World Youth Day 2018 is being coordinated by the Office of Faith Formation of the Diocese of Bridgeport.
It is not too late to join Bishop Frank and youth from around the world on this transformative and powerful spiritual journey. Registration for World Youth Day Panama 2019 is still open! Scholarships are available to help defray the costs. You can register at https://conncatholics.org/.
