New World Youth Day 2016 (WYD2016) logo unveiled with explanation and accompanying prayer

(VIS) – In a press conference held this morning the metropolitan archbishop of Krakow, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, presented the logo and official prayer for the 31st World Youth Day.

Three elements are combined in the symbolism of the logo: the place, the main protagonists , and the theme of the celebration. The logo of the 2016 World Youth Day, to be held in Krakow, illustrates the passage from the Gospel according to Matthew, 5.7: “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy”, chosen as the theme of the event. 

The image is composed of a geographical outline of Poland, in which there is a Cross, symbol of Christ Who is the soul of World Youth Day. The yellow circle marks the position of Krakow on the map of Poland and is also a symbol of youth. The flame of Divine Mercy emerges from the Cross, and its colors recall the image “Jesus, I trust in you”. The colors used in the logo – blue, red and yellow – are the official colors of Krakow and its coat of arms.

The logo was designed by Monika Rybczynska, a young woman aged 28 from Ostrzeszow, a small town in the mid-west of Poland, following the canonization of St. John Paul II.

The press conference also included the presentation of the official prayer of World Youth Day 2016, which entrusts humanity and the young to divine mercy, asks the Lord for the grace of a merciful heart, and asks the intercession of the Virgin Mary and St. John Paul II, patron of World Youth Day.

“God, merciful Father,in your Son, Jesus Christ, you have revealed your love and poured it out upon us in the Holy Spirit, the Comforter,We entrust to you today the destiny of the world and of every man and woman”.

We entrust to you in a special way young people of every language, people and nation:guide and protect them as they walk the complex paths of the world today and give them the grace to reap abundant fruits from their experience of the Krakow World Youth Day.

Heavenly Father,grant that we may bear witness to your mercy.Teach us how to convey the faith to those in doubt,hope to those who are discouraged,love to those who feel indifferent,forgiveness to those who have done wrong and joy to those who are unhappy.

Allow the spark of merciful love that you have enkindled within us become a fire that can transform hearts and renew the face of the earth. 

Mary, Mother of Mercy, pray for us. St. John Paul II, pray for us.

Short video: WYD '13 by the numbers

A short, day-by-day video showing footage of the crowds and the daily estimated total people present, including 7,800 priests.  Worth the watch.

1 pilgrim dead, 3 more critically injured in crash heading to WYD '13

(FFHL.blogspot.com)(News.va) With over 2 million pilgrims expected to participate in World Youth Day, it's one of those days when you wish the statistical likelihood of it happening would have been wrong, but it wasn't.  This morning, Pope Francis and the world learned of a tragic accident of pilgrims making their way through France to start the next leg of their trip to Brazil for WYD '13 in Rio.

The Vatican reports that Pope Francis was notified of the accident that happened today, Thursday, July 18th and that the Pope "assured all those involved in the accident of his prayers, and expressed his deepest sympathy for the victims, as well as for the rescue workers and all those around them." The Vatican also said that "Pope Francis sent a special Apostolic Blessing to all those affected by the tragedy."

This was sad news amidst the joyful cries of so many young pilgrims arriving in Rio amidst great celebration.  Apparently the "bus carrying young people to World Youth Day was hit head-on by a truck, leaving one young Parisian girl dead, and three other young people in critical condition."  The cause of the accident is still unknown. According to one French source (Expatica.com), out of the 23 pilgrims on the bus, there were initially five listed in critical condition.  (Click to read more...)

According to Expatica, the bishop of French Guiana announced that a special Mass would be held in the Saint-Sauveur Cathedral in the capital Cayenne next Wednesday evening.

Tekton Ministries expresses its deepest sympathies to the families of injured and killed and assures them of our prayers and sacrifices.

WYD '13 Rio healthcare will NOT be an issue, says the courts in Brazil

Some pilgrims or parents of pilgrims may be worried about certain tensions in Brazil. Linked is an article that clearly explains why some were worried about healthcare in Brazil during World Youth Day and why those worries should no longer continue. Read the full article about how the courts have said that the city of Rio must provide healthcare to any pilgrims in need, regardless of needing to use public funding to do so.

Here is a teaser for those who want to know the bottom line.  

The Judge stated that “the division between State and Church does not absolve the city of Rio from providing certain services to the event’s participants, despite the religious nature of the event.” “To deny health care assistance to pilgrims could cause uncertainty and discredit the country, not to mention the fact that it would put the health of thousands of people who will attend the event in Rio de Janeiro thinking they are guaranteed basic health care services, at risk," he said.

Click here to read the full story from Vatican Insider, written by ANDRES BELTRAMO ALVAREZ on July 12, 2013.

Email petitions to Pope with just a click for World Youth Day Mass

Pope Francis and the Shrine of Our Lady of Aparecida are making it easy for Catholics, and anyone for that matter, to send in petitions that will be placed in special books to be put at the altar where Pope Francis will celebrate Mass when he travels to Brazil for World Youth Day.  Our friends at CNA have created a direct link from their article reporting this story.  You can read the entire article here.  To go directly to the website collecting the petitions, click here.  Side note: You'll have to use google translate, an option usually provided for you at the top of the page browser in order to understand the instructions and required fields.

Young Tekton Pilgrims Headed to World Youth Day

Recently, The Catholic Moment, the diocesan newspaper for the Diocese of Lafayette-in-Indiana carried a story by Catholic News Service talking about Pope Francis' trip to Brazil in July.  Some may say, "Brazil?!? Why is he going to Brazil?"  Well, if you didn't know, you do now.  Three little words with a huge meaning- World.  Youth.  Day.

For those who may not have heard or seen anything about it in the news, and likely in the United States you didn't, these events, started by Blessed John Paul II, draw hundreds of thousands of youth.  No joke.  The largest-to-date was in the Philippines with over 5,000,000 young people.  5 mil!  In 2011, the event was hosted in Madrid and saw between 1.5-2 million pilgrims.  

What brave souls are taking young pilgrims from Indiana,Wisconsin and Missouri to this year's World Youth Day in Brazil?  Funny you ask.  Tekton Ministries is.  And we're honored to do so.  The faith of many young people these days inspire us just as it did the founder of World Youth Day.  

As a pilgrimage provider who's been around for a while, we tailor our pilgrimages to our priests and their pilgrims.  Whether it be Brazil with 2,000,00 youth or Ireland with 30 adult children of immigrant parents, Tekton works hard (and I mean really hard) to journey with you on your pilgrimage of faith.