By Dr Francesco Piccolo. Edited by Ali Biddiscombe
Catholic Youth from all over the globe came together in Lisbon, Portugal to celebrate International World Youth Day with resounding love and enthusiasm to the theme chosen by Pope Francis (Lk1:39).
Joining the 1.5 million youth were 104 pilgrims from the Neocatechumenal communities of the Archdiocese of Perth who attended the vigil and closing Mass during their 14-day pilgrimage; a time which will remain a memorial for many of the young people for the rest of their lives.
Formally recognised as a post-baptismal itinerary of Christian formation to adult faith, communities of the Neocatechumenal Way, are present in Perth at the parishes of Mirrabooka, St Mary’s Cathedral, Baldivis, Midland, Osborne Park, Cottesloe, Kelmscott and Embleton.
Led by Dr Francesco Piccolo and his wife Lisa, from Mirrabooka parish, a group representing these parishes, arrived in Barcelona and travelled by bus via Zaragoza to Madrid and then onwards through Segovia to Santiago de Compostela. From there they travelled through Tui and Fatima, finally reaching Lisbon.
“In Lisbon we spent six days as guests of parishioners of a local Parish (Church of St Therese of the Infant Jesus). It was beautiful to experience such free hospitality and to be treated with care and love by strangers who were our brother and sister in Christ,” Dr Piccolo said.
“Our young people were touched by the lives of the Saints that can often seem distant from their own lives,” he continued.
“Their holy presence was palpable as their catechists spoke to them of St Anthony in Lisbon; St John of God in Toledo; St John of the Cross and St Theresa in Segovia; St James in Zaragoza (where Mary appeared to James) and Santiago de Compostela; and the three young shepherds in Fatima.”
Dr Piccolo said hearing about the saints’ lives and their humanity allowed the WA pilgrims to see that these were ordinary, real people they could relate to.
Understanding how these individuals felt loved, Dr Piccolo said, and in turn fell in love with Christ – who revealed to them their vocation, transforming their lives and the lives of those around them – was inspirational.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines vocation as, ‘The calling or destiny we have in this life and hereafter.’ Vocation is really a way of life – a living in communion with God now that prepares us for eternal communion. It prepares a Christian to live in a community, and to participate actively in the life and mission of the Church. Christian community does not spontaneously happen. It comes about through the careful education of its members.
Dr Piccolo also said the Perth pilgrims received catechesis on the vocation to a holy life that all Christians are called to by discussing the truth of human and divine love in the context of the Theology of the Body.
He said the young people were, at all times, eager for a word of truth and encouragement which was revealed during their journey.
The Pope’s meeting was a real miracle, he added.
After an arduous long walk, in the unrelenting European heat wave, together with another 1.5 million people, in an astounding silence, so many knelt during the vigil to pray before the Blessed Sacrament which was at least 1km away from our designated sector.
“The Sunday Eucharist was magnificent. The young people were really touched by the words of our Holy Father.
“Without hiding his frailty, his assurances were like the gentle breeze of Elijah. It was as if the Holy Father spoke directly to our pilgrims, who have clearly experienced that “nothing is free in life, everything has to be paid for” with many having voiced the sufferings and real difficulties in their lives,” Dr Piccolo said.
Several spoke of the comfort that Pope Francis’ words have given: “Only one thing is free: the Love of Jesus!”.
“When visiting Tui, the birthplace of Rosendo Salvado who was a missionary to WA in 1850s, our Perth pilgrims discovered a connection to their own Western Australia and the message that faith has no bounds,” Dr Piccolo said.
“The visit to the Sanctuary of Fatima in Ourém, Portugal also provided an opportunity to pray at the feet of Mary, something the young pilgrims took very seriously.
“Here, Mary reached out to three of our young people, asking them to pray with real purpose; to bring peace to the world; something still very relevant in today’s world,” Dr Piccolo said.
