Update on World Youth Day Lisbon 2023

Thursday, December 15 2022

In 1984, during the Holy Year of Redemption, Pope Saint John Paul II invited young people from around the world to join him in St. Peter’s Square on Palm Sunday. This event inspired what is now known as World Youth Day.   Since 1986, there have been fifteen World Youth Days where young people gathered in countries around the world to meet with others to share faith, encounter Christ and reflect on the call to live as witnesses to a life of Christian virtue. Canada hosted WYD in 2002 in Toronto.

As the world emerges from the COVID-19 pandemic, the excitement for World Youth Day in Lisbon, 1-6 August 2023, is building. Many Canadian young people will be accompanied by youth ministers, bishops,  priests and religious as they make their way to Portugal. The recommended minimum age for participation at WYD is 18 years old.

Those planning to attend WYD are invited to register for the “City of Joy – Vocational Exhibition”, where WYD participants can live the synodal and fraternal encounter with different movements, associations, communities, religious orders and initiatives of the Church. The deadline for registration is 31 March 2023. For more information on how to register, click here.

The Youth Festival that will take place from 1-6 August 2023 will allow youth to express and share their faith through cultural, artistic, sports and religious events. The recommended deadline for registration is 31 December 2022. To learn more about participating in this activity, please visit this link.

Information regarding visas for travel to Portugal for WYD Lisbon can be accessed here.

For more information, please email Ms. Isabel Correa, National WYD Coordinator (wyd@cccb.ca).