TA people who work with youth in different places and countries held a meeting in mid-May to talk about a plan to have a course of preparation for World Youth Day (WYD). The event is scheduled to take place in Lisbon from 1 to 6 August.
Grateful for the wonderful diversity
We began the meeting, held virtually on Sunday 15 May, by familiarising ourselves with the places where the participants are working. We watched a presentation that was compiled with contributions that they had submitted earlier. We could see how much is being done and we felt grateful to see all that diversity.
Then, we had an opportunity to express how we feel about the journey towards WYD by using the colours and the symbolism of the logo. It was an image full of motivation and hope for what this journey can mean for our TA youth.
We came to the main purpose of our meeting with a presentation of our proposal so that it could be enriched by contributions from the participants and adapted to each local context.
Relevant aspects of the initial proposal
⇒A preparation itinerary will run from September 2022 to June 2023.
⇒It will involve experiences at the local level and encounters at the international level:
- at the local level there will be a journey of four steps based on the Gospel passage chosen to be the motto for WYD Lisbon 2023: Mary arose and went with haste (Luke 1:39).
- at the international level, there will be a continental forum (around December 2022) and an intercontinental forum (around April 2023).
- at WYD in Lisbon (from 1 to 6 August) there will be specific moments for TA youth to meet.
⇒It is important to be aware of what this process can contribute to forming an identity as Poveda Youth, and to see how it can connect with the centenary of the pontifical approval of the TA in 2024.
A good start
The meeting was was a great opportunity to connect with others who are involved in various ways with young people. They work in schools, youth movements, social projects, university residences, international projects and networks and with former students.
We are very aware of the fact that there are many more TA members working with young people than those who were able to participate in the meeting. However, we believe that it was a good start to reinforcing our network of links wherever the TA is present. We hope that it will expand.
All the participants’ comments and contributions are helping us to shape the proposal. Together with the whole TA, we can build this dream. We hope that it will be the beginning of many good things, of encounters, shared stories, new projects, etc. Above all, it should be an opportunity to talk about Jesus to young people and share with them the joy of the Gospel that our world needs so much. We will keep in touch and publish what the next steps will be.
If you need more information, please contact the commission by email: 
WYD Lisbon 2023 Committee 2023: C. Ortega, I. Carballo, A. Rodrigues, M. Alcalá y E. Paniagua.
TA Translators Team.
Published in WYD 2023