At the end of July, a group of young adults from London organised by the Assumptionist Father and the Religious of the Assumption set on a pilgrimage to take part in the Jubilee of Youth. The journey took us to Florence, where we joined the international Assumption group, and then to Rome, where we took part in a prayer vigil lead by Pope Leo on the Saturday evening, and the final mass celebrated by the Holy Father on the Sunday morning.
The Assumption group consisted in about 170 young people coming from all over the world from Japan to the US and from Lithuania to Tanzania. In the words of Annika, one of our London participants, “The moments of prayer and Mass were a reminder of our unity in Christ and our presence as God’s Church in the world.”
Every day started with prayer and reflection, lead by a father, sister, or oblate of the Assumption. Mass was celebrated daily, often in beautiful and ancient churches and the rest of the day was dedicated to cultural activities, personal time and sightseeing, and social activities for the whole group.
In Rome we passed through the Holy Doors and an afternoon was dedicated to the sacrament of reconciliation. Cardinal Tagle gave a conference on the theme of hope for our group and had lunch with us.
Annika says: “Attending the Youth Jubilee at Rome was a memorable experience. Coming with experiences of being at World Youth Day in Lisbon in 2023, I knew more or less what to expect. […] It was special to be in Rome and with a community as a Catholic for the first time. ”
About the pilgrimage itself, Annika comments: “There was a busy programme of events and I was grateful for the free time to take advantage of this. My cultural taste buds were satisfied by attendance at an opera on Charles Foucault, a play on love written by Pope John Paul II and a few worship concerts. Highlights of the Jubilee were many and include the prayer vigil, entering through the Holy Doors, paying our respects to Pope Francis at his tomb, mass with Cardinal Tagle, seeing Pope Leo and worshipping with many young people from all over the world.”
