World Youth Day officially begins tomorrow but young people are already pouring into the city of Krakow, Poland even as officials race to complete final preparations for tomorrow’s kick-off.
Vatican Radio is reporting on the finishing touches being applied to many of the venues which will be used by young people from all over the world as they travel to Krakow to celebrate World Youth Day.
“All over Krakow we can already see that World Youth Day is approaching,” said Dorata Abdelmoula, the spokesperson for World Youth Day in Krakow.
Apart from the registrations they have already received, Abdelmoula is expecting the number of rise as last minute registrants converge on the city.
“Up to now we have got more than 560,000 registered pilgrims who have declared their presence,” she said. “For the opening Mass we expect about 500.000 pilgrims…and then the number will increase, we expect about 800,000 for the Way of the Cross on Friday, about 1 million pilgrims for the vigil of the Holy Father at Campus Misericordia and between 1.5 million and 1.8m pilgrims for the final Mass.”
Officials are finishing up the venue at Campus Misericordia where the pope will celebrate the final Mass, saying that the site is “not very sophisticated” because they are trying to maintain the simple spirituality of Pope Francis.
“It’s a pretty simple construction but I think a beautiful one,” she added.
Even though the “spiritual heart” of World Youth Day will be the Shrine of Divine Mercy, the city and its surrounding dioceses are also gearing up for the young pilgrims.
Security will be tight, especially after the recent killings in Nice and in Germany, which is why authorities are calling for vigilance at major events.
Security has been their top priority throughout the planning and vetting procedures have been very thorough.
“From the very beginning we are also preparing all the World Youth Day events as well in the diocese as here in Krakow with the great help of our government, of the local authorities of all the national and international security services,” she said.
The “spirit” of the event has not been dampened by the alarming increase in terrorist attacks around the world.
“After all those tragic events in Europe, not only the number of pilgrims didn’t decrease, but also we have felt more solidarity among young people,” she said. “We have received so many heartwarming declarations from all over the world that young people feel even more invited to gather to testify their faith…”
While in Krakow, plenty of volunteers will be on-hand to help pilgrims with any kind of assistance they need throughout the week-long event.
“Volunteers are eager to help and eager to give all the logistic and practical information,” says Dorata, and she adds that “almost every single diocese has got an account on social media but also a website. In Krakow itself there is an app available and there will be many information points throughout the city run by volunteers.”
World Youth Day runs from the July 26-31 and will be covered live by EWTN.
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