Indian Catholics travelling to Poland for World Youth Day

Some 150 young Catholics from across India are travelling this week to the international celebration of the Catholic Church’s World Youth Day in Poland to join over a million of their counterparts from around the globe where they hope to deepen their faith and share their Indian Christian life.  "We will be meeting church officials and youth from different parts of the world," Shradha Kujur, who is part of the 151-member delegation, told UCANEWS.  Kujur said that the five-day cultural exchange program before the July 25-31 event in Krakow would help "broaden my horizons and learn about other cultures and rituals."   Pope Francis is also travelling to Krakow to participate in the meet July 27-31.

The youth will stay with Polish host families during the celebration and hope to promote Indian Christianity and culture to the global audience.  The 151-member Indian delegation come via the Youth Council of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India and consists of 100 youths, 50 coordinators and a bishop. They have been selected from different parishes across the country.

In April, the Polish embassy in New Delhi announced waiver of visa fees for Indian Catholics attending World Youth Day.  Saint Pope John Paul II initiated the World Youth Day gathering in 1985.

Monika Chylaszek, a spokesman for Krakow city hall, told AFP, "about 600,000 people have already registered, but we expect many more to show up in Krakow at the last minute, so all in all we expect up to 1.5 million people." World Youth Day is marked annually at the diocesan level worldwide on Palm Sunday, but is celebrated internationally every 3 years or so at a venue chosen by the Pope.   (Source: UCAN…)