Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
La Serena (Agenzia Fides) - “Let us all open our hearts. You, especially young people, open your hearts to Jesus. Do it, do not be afraid, because the Lord needs you today, he needs all of us today”. With these words, the Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of La Serena, Henry Joseph Balzán, addressed the young people gathered for the first National Youth Day in Chile. The Prelate invited the young people to reflect on who the excluded of today are and to become instruments of inclusion and support, following the example of Jesus.
“The Lord wants your heart to be ready to help the excluded of today, to seek them, to include them and to extend a hand to them. Jesus has called you, he wants to act through you. Do not say no to him”, said Bishop Balzán.
The opening event, attended by thousands of young people, took place on January 22nd and marked the beginning of a series of almost a week of meetings, dialogues of hope, solidarity actions and artistic and cultural events that will take place in the cities of La Serena and Coquimbo until Sunday, January 26th.
The opening Mass, presided over by the Auxiliary Bishop of La Serena and con-celebrated by about twenty bishops and as many priests from various dioceses, was accompanied by musical performances. "The musical accompaniment is intended to make the Mass an experience that will remain etched in the hearts of thousands of young people from all over Chile who will come together from Arica to Tierra del Fuego to celebrate faith, fraternity and hope together," the organizers said in a statement sent to Fides.
Bishop Balzán, member of the National Commission for the Day, in his welcoming speech emphasized the fact that the beginning of the day was celebrated on the feast of the young Blessed Laura Vicuña, born in Santiago de Chile, a student at the Institute of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, who at the age of thirteen offered her life to God for the conversion of her mother. She was beatified by John Paul II on September 3, 1988. Bishop Balzán, a member of the Youth Day Organizing Committee, stressed in his welcoming speech that this event of the Catholic Church in Chile takes place in the context of the beginning of the Jubilee proclaimed by Pope Francis, whose motto is part of the Youth Day: "National Youth Day 2025: Young Pilgrims of Hope".
After the opening on January 22, the meetings on January 23 focused on the theme "Jesus is our hope". Today, January 24, has the theme "Witnesses of Hope", in reference to the solidarity missions carried out by the young people in the midst of the different realities of the parish areas that have welcomed them. Saturday, January 25, has the theme "You are the light on our path", with the young people gathering for the last Eucharistic celebrations in their parishes before moving to the Lighthouse of La Serena, where the common Eucharistic adoration vigil will be celebrated. Finally, on Sunday 26 May, there will be a day of "celebration and thanksgiving" which will end with a solemn closing mass. (AP) (Agenzia Fides, 25/1/2025)
