Krakow, Poland, will be the site of the next World Youth Day, in 2016. Pope Francis made the announcement shortly after celebrating the final Mass of this year’s World Youth Day before a crowd of more than 3 million people on Copacabana beach.

Pope Francis spent the morning and early afternoon of July 26 with about two dozen young people from different countries and diverse backgrounds, in a range of encounters that illustrated his characteristic emphasis on inclusion and reconciliation.

The 76-year-old Pope Francis went to World Youth Day with grandparents, or at least society’s elders, on his mind, and he honored them in a special way July 26, the feast of Sts. Joachim and Anne and Grandparents Day in many countries.

One million people braved the rain to hear Pope Francis that evening on the beach for a World Youth Day welcoming ceremony. Despite problems with transport and loudspeakers, pilgrims stood patiently and cheered at the pope’s words.

Even at its stormiest, the Sea of Galilee doesn’t have waves like those pounding Copacabana beach, but Pope Francis asked young Catholics to imagine they were with Jesus on the seashore and he was asking them to follow him and share his love with others.

Medicare is broken, despite Rudd and Gillard health reforms, according to Catholic Health Australia (CHA).

The Manager of “God’s Farm” in Wilyabrup is excited by the prospect of promoting the private revelations of Italian mystic Mother Eugenia Ravasio at a Retreat Day on August 4.

The culminating events of World Youth Day have been moved from their planned location in Guaratiba, 30 miles outside the city, which three days of heavy rain has reduced to a field of mud.

Visiting one of this city’s notorious “favelas,” or slums, Pope Francis denounced corruption and a “culture of selfishness and individualism,” and called for a “culture of solidarity” in pursuit of social justice.

The streets surrounding the Metropolitan Cathedral of San Sebastian were filled with a sea of blue and white flags. The Argentines had come to town. All without exception said they were there for one reason only. “To see Pope Francis,” yelled Florencia Aldretes of the Archdiocese of Buenos Aires.