The World Youth Day pilgrims from the Archdiocese of Washington departed from Dulles Airport on Friday July 22 to make their way to Kraków, Poland, where they will meet millions of youth from around the world to journey together in faith. The theme of this year’s World Youth Day is “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy”, and on Sunday, July 24, the pilgrims began to explore all of the connections between the city of Kraków and the Year of Mercy.
The pilgrims’ tour around the city included Wawel Cathedral, where St. John Paul II, the pope who instituted Divine Mercy Sunday, celebrated his first Mass as a priest and was later ordained a bishop. They also visited Wawel Castle and St. Florian's Church, where St. John Paul II lived and served from March 1949 until September 1951.
Here some some of the 550 @WashArchdiocese young people on pilgrimage at @wyd_en. #USApilgrim #WYDUSA #Krakow2016 pic.twitter.com/zbbaemGx2h — Catholic Standard (@CathStandard) July 24, 2016
Washington Auxiliary Bishop Martin Holley celebrated a Mass for the pilgrims at Holy Trinity Basilica. While at the basilica, they also had the opportunity to venerate the relics of Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, a patron saint of young adult Catholics and of World Youth Day. The Italian, who died in 1925 at the age of 24, was known for his life of prayer, service to the poor and social activism, and was an avid mountain climber.
By coincidence, Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati’s niece, Wanda Gawronska, was also visiting the basilica then. Gawronska recalled that it was in this same church that St. John Paul II named Frassati “man of the beatitudes” while he was the archbishop of Kraków. When St. John Paul II became pope, he beatified Frassati in 1990.
Watch as Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati's niece shares the connection between her uncle and @wyd_en! #USApilgrim pic.twitter.com/cjvAVxAhHo — Catholic Standard (@CathStandard) July 24, 2016
Gawronska said it was a nice surprise that the theme of this year’s World Youth Day was a beatitude about mercy, since she said her uncle “was a young man with mercy, there is no doubt.” She said that whenever people asked her uncle how he could go into such dirty places to serve the poor, he responded by turning to Jesus in the Eucharist.
“Jesus comes to me in the Holy Communion every morning and I repay him by going and seeing him, meeting him in the poor,” Gawronska said, quoting her uncle. “His mercy was charity.”
What fueled @wyd_en patron, Pier Giorgio's service? His niece says it was the Eucharist! #USApilgrim #Krakow2016 pic.twitter.com/nZB05YZJnE — DC Archdiocese (@WashArchdiocese) July 24, 2016
At the end of the day, the pilgrims gathered in the main square of Kraków for a praise and worship concert, before resting in preparation to continue their pilgrimage.
To follow the activities of the pilgrims from the Archdiocese of Washington throughout the week, visit http://wyddc.org/live/ , follow @WashArchdiocese on Twitter and look for social media posts using#USApilgrim.
