World Youth Day 2023: Lisbon, Portugal

Where?  Lisbon, Portugal.

When?   August 2023

Theme?  ‘Mary Set Out in Haste’

 WYD is open to all young people 18 – 35 who want to take part in a festive encounter centred on Jesus Christ together with their peers. This event is an opportunity to personally experience the universality of the Catholic Church, and to share with the whole world the hope of many young people who are committing their lives to Christ and His Church.

World Youth Day is a unique way to deepen your faith and grow closer to Christ, through prayer and the sacraments, together with hundreds of thousands of other young people who share your interests and ambition

World Youth Day (WYD) is a worldwide encounter with the Pope which is typically celebrated every three years in a different country. The most recent WYD were celebrated in Krakow, Poland from July 26th to 31st, 2016 and Panama City, Panama from January 22nd to 27th 2019.

The theme chosen by Pope Francis for WYD in Portugal is “Mary rose and left in haste,” from the Gospel of Luke’s description of how Mary went quickly to her cousin Elizabeth, upon hearing from the angel that Elizabeth was expecting a baby.

ABOUT the WYD LOGO

The Logo reflects the theme the pope has chosen:

‘Mary set out in haste.’

The logo was revealed on October 16, the anniversary of the election of Pope John Paul II, the creator of World Youth Days.

The Logo’s features are explained by the WYD organisers. The logo features the colours of the Portuguese flag and elements of the country’s spiritual culture.

A cross dominates the new logo, a road runs over it, “where the Holy Spirit rises,” an invitation to young people “not to stand idly by.” The image is an invitation to “be the protagonists of the construction of a more just and fraternal world.”

This path reflects the road Mary took to visit Elizabeth. “Mary was ready to live according to the will of God, available to serve Elizabeth.”

The rosary represents the spirituality of the Portuguese people and their devotion to Our Lady of Fatima. This is placed on the path to recall the experience of pilgrimage that is so important in Portugal.

Fatima is less than 70 miles from Lisbon, and it is anticipated that great numbers of the youth will visit the place of Mary’s apparition to Lucia, Francisco and Jacinta, during the days of WYD.

Finally, the figure of Mary is present. “The drawing expresses the youth of her years, characteristic of one who is not yet a mother but who carries the light of the world within her.”

Behind this work which will accompany the hundreds of thousands of participants in WYD hides Beatriz Roque Antunez, a 24-year-old Portuguese artist. She studied design in London and currently works in a communication agency in Lisbon. She hopes her work will encourage young people to take charge, not to remain inactive, and to build the world of tomorrow.