Montana Participates in World Youth Day in Poland

By John Pankratz

The sight was truly spectacular. Pilgrims as far as the eye could see in every direction and flags representing hundreds of nations waved in the Polish sky as 1.6 million young people gathered for World Youth Day this past July.

“Dear young people, you have come to Krakow to meet Jesus,” Pope Francis proclaimed in his Sunday homily as we listened to an English translation through our portable radios. Nearly one hundred pilgrims representing all parts of Montana journeyed for two weeks seeking to encounter Jesus, and encounter him we did! It happened in many different ways: through our Polish host families, through visiting many gorgeous shrines and churches, through interactions with others from around the world, through catechesis and adoration, and especially through frequent celebration of the sacraments.

While many of these things are the common ways to encounter Jesus, what made it uncommon was that we were not alone, we were literally on this journey with millions of our brothers and sisters representing every race and tongue. We were privileged to witness the Body of Christ in action and see the Universal Church on a massive scale while celebrating our common Catholic faith. We were greatly encouraged to meet so many other young people like us, who are passionately trying to follow Christ and seeking to build His Kingdom in their corners of the world just as we are here in Montana.

Pope Francis spoke often during the week about how this encounter with Jesus can change a young person’s life. He emphasized how encountering God’s merciful love is what transforms a person into an agent of mercy for others. There is no greater gift that a young person can receive than God’s mercy through the person of Jesus Christ and His Church. Our world is filled with many distractions, temptations, and wayward paths that many young people fall into. As the faithful of the Church it is our job to always pray for our young people and seek ways to pass on the gift of the Catholic faith to them, which is the best gift we could hope to give them. Let us commit to praying for all of the young people in our diocese, that they may encounter the merciful love of God and commit themselves to living for Jesus Christ by responding generously to His call in their lives.