By Christine Urio
MONROE — Despite distance, faith is a staple bridging the gap and bringing people together.
Such an example is the recent “World Youth Day, Not a World Away,” hosted by the Parish Visitors of Mary Immaculate in Monroe, which coincided with World Youth Day. The group made the international event accessible for local youths to come together with others and celebrate their faith.
“The concept is to bring together young people so they can grow in their understanding of faith and be energized by the participation of other young people from all over,” said Sr. Mary Josita of Sacred Heart. “They are able to pray together and be with the Holy Father, which is an awesome experience to be in his presence.”
Mercy
World Youth Day drew huge crowds of people across the globe, with representatives from different countries traveling to where it was held.This year’s theme was “mercy,” a concept Saint John Paul II, who was canonized in Poland, endorsed. He also canonized Saint Maria Faustyna Kowalska of Poland.
“Saint Faustyna brought to the attention of the world how much God wanted to pour out His mercy, especially to the sinners,” Sr. Josita said. “She’s from Poland, so that’s why in the ‘Year of Mercy’ it made perfect sense to have it where she is from.”
World Youth Day, Not A World A Way was created because it’s farfetched to think everyone who wanted to participate in World Youth Day would be able to travel.
“The point is to bring young people together from all over just to celebrate their faith, grow in their understanding of faith, and be touched by God and His love and mercy for them,” said Sr. Josita.
'They come with questions'
The weekend was full of adoration and spiritual events.“These events help draw people back to an awareness of how much God loves them, and wants them to be in a friendship with Him,” Sr. Josita said. “So these sacramental opportunities are precious to those who take advantage of them.”
The majority of people who took part in World Youth Day events were high school kids and young adults. This is a group where questions begin to arise.
“They come with questions like: ‘Is this real?’ ‘Is this something I should be checking out?’” said Sr. Josita. “Many times they come away with more than they thought, and they come home inspired to do something with their lives that really help other people.”
One of the biggest takeaways was the ever-growing sense of community.
“People who travel experience a bond that is far deeper than they would have had staying home,” said Sr. Josita. “They bring back enthusiasm and a renewed sense of who they are to their local churches, and really spread that to other young people who may not have been able to go.”
'Pilgrimage' driveway
The event soon grew bigger than anticipated as basic elements of World Youth Day were put together by sisters who had previously attended.“In terms of space, we didn’t have enough room for everyone to sleep at Mary Crest, so Sacred Heart has been gracious to let the children and the chaperons stay with them,” Sr. Josita, who has been on the planning committee since 2000, said.
World Youth Day, Not A World Away has been successfully downscaled while providing the same effects of the parent event.
“Because we’re not traveling from one huge event to the next, we have a long driveway that we call our ‘Pilgrimage Walk,’ where we have pictures of our saints along the road, and talk about their acts of mercy as we go,” added Sr. Josita.