YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK

YEAR 1
YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’
GUIDEBOOK – YEAR 1

Preparation Itinerary for the WYD Lisbon 2023

Nihil Obstat
November 1st, 2020, Solemnity of All Saints
D. Joaquim Mendes, Auxiliary Bishop of the Patriarchate of Lisbon

Biblical Texts
CEP, Bible, The Four Gospels and the Psalms, 2019
Liturgical edition of the biblical texts

Elaboration
Direction of Pastoral Care and Central Events
of World Youth Day Lisbon 2023

Illustrations
Mário Linhares

Photography
Vatican Media

Graphic Design
Douglas Azevedo
Leila Ferreira
Fundação Salesianos

Property
Fundação JMJ Lisboa 2023

Editorial team
Alice Neto (Alcochete Parish, Diocese of Setúbal); André Batista (Diocesan Priest and
Priest of the Secretary for Youth Ministry, Diocese of Leiria-Fatima); Bruno Dinis (Religious
Priest of the Passionist Missionaries); Carlota Cardoso (Julião do Tojal Parish, Lisbon
Patriarchate); Júlio Torres (Vialonga Parish, Patriarchate of Lisbon); Liliana Maia (Comboni
Lay Missionaries); Linda Vieira (Sister of the Congregation of The Daughters of Mary
Help of Christians); Luís Rafael Azevedo (Diocesan Priest and Priest of the Department of
Youth Ministry, Diocese of Lamego); Maria Lopes (Póvoa de Santa Iria Parish, Patriarchate
of Lisbon); Marta Mendes (Sister of Congregation of the Alliance of Holy Mary); Pedro
Feliciano (Youth Service, Patriarchate of Lisbon); Romana Esteves (Olhalvo Parish,
Patriarchate of Lisbon); Rui Lourenço Teixeira (National Scout Corps); Sandra Bartolomeu
(Sister of the Congregation of the Servants of Our Lady of Fatima); Tiago Neto (Priest of
the Patriarchate of Lisbon).

Theological review
Vitorino José Pereira Soares (Auxiliary Bishop of the Diocese of Porto)
Luís Miguel Figueiredo Rodrigues (Canon of the Archdiocese of Braga)
Mário José Rodrigues de Sousa (Priest of the Diocese of Algarve)

Translation
Brittany Culver (Diocese of Sacramento, CA, and Sister of the Congregation of the
Alliance of Holy Mary)
Alice Cardoso (Diocese of Coimbra)
Ana Campos (Patriarchate of Lisbon)
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK 3

A MEETING THAT HURRIES YOU

I praise these preparatory catecheses for WYD 2023, those who created and propose
them, those who will carry them out as catechists or catechizers. In one way or another,
everyone will participate in the movement of Mary, from the Annunciation to the Visitation.
Everyone will rise up and go with haste.

Because it is all about rising up. From the little house in Nazareth, Mary went through
the mountain of Judea to the house of Elizabeth. She was carrying Jesus, who was carry-
ing her. Jesus, who does not let those who continue receiving Him stop, like the seed that
rises up from the ground and grows to bear fruit for all.

From WYD to WYD, a multitude of youth have also risen, carrying out the Jesus they received
there to many. They participated in the rising up of Mary, who is the model of the Church
always, as she receives and carries Jesus, over all the mountains of this world. Beyond
there are always those who wait.

These catecheses are also dynamic because by participating on them the youth both
receive and become prepared to go out. And to go out with haste because Jesus responds
and urges. The catechesis proves itself in this way: whoever encounters Jesus finds a path
to follow – with haste, but not anxiously, as Pope Francis was keen to remind us, because
we already have Jesus. And the hurry is to share Him, so that we and others may have
Him even more.

This is how St. Paul summed up his journey, from his encounter with the Risen One on
the road to Damascus, to the road he never stopped walking to proclaim Him to all and
to reach Him more in others: “I only press on, in hope of winning the mastery, as Christ
Jesus has won the mastery over me.” (Letter to the Philippians, 3:12).

And first of all, there is Mary, the Mother that Christ wanted to share with us. In these two
millennia there have been many signs of how she maternally accompanies us all, and also
without delay. The Seers of Fatima, who will be so close to our WYD, can witness to that!

I repeat – the catechesis proves itself through mission. The very word “catechesis” has to
do with the “echo” of what is heard and transmitted. And the echo of these catecheses will
surely resound with haste through the hills and valleys of this world, through the height
and depth of so many other hearts.

+ Manuel Clemente,
Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon
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INTRODUCTION
The “Rise Up” itinerary: general aspects
Rise up! is the name of the itinerary directed to youth for them to prepare spiritually for
WYD Lisbon 2023. It proposes a path for deepening and rediscovering the Christian faith
based on the verb “to rise”. Suggesting a great harmony between the itinerary for WYD in
Lisbon and the post-synodal path, Pope Francis challenges youth not to ignore the voice
of God, who urges them to rise up and follow the paths He has prepared for each one.
Commenting on the theme chosen for WYD 2023, “Mary arose and went with haste” (Lk
1:39), the Pope invites youth to be like Mary, and along with her, bearers of God’s joy and
love. At the 11th International Youth Forum, dedicated to the Synod and the Apostolic
Exhortation Christ is Alive, he announced the themes chosen for World Youth Day 2020:
“Young man, I say to you, arise!” (Lk 7: 14) and 2021: “Stand up. I appoint you a witness of
what you have seen” (Acts 26:16).

The catechetical itinerary follows the themes proposed by the Holy Father for the prepa-
ration of WYD Lisbon 2023, journeying through the writings of St. Luke, his Gospel and
the Book of the Acts of the Apostles. It analyses the most significant passages of the Bible
with the verb “rise up” as used to describe the action of standing up – as a sign of the salv-
ific intervention of God in Jesus Christ – or of becoming a witness and announcer of his
Word. Underlying Luke’s project is the journey of the Word – from Galilee to Jerusalem
(the Gospel) and from Jerusalem to the ends of the Earth (the Acts). This journey high-
lights the central idea of a Church that is always going forth on mission.

Evangelization was in fact the Pope’s response to the Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon, when
asked about the content of the World Youth Day in Lisbon in 2023. “He said one word and
he said it slowly – Evangelization,” Bishop Manuel Clemente told the youth. The Holy Father
hopes the WYD in Lisbon to be one of “active and missionary evangelization on the part
of youth, who will recognize and witness the presence of the living Christ”.

This itinerary is for all youth who see the WYD as an opportunity to rediscover the joy and
beauty of believing in Jesus, to be friends with Him, to recognize Him in their Church and
to proclaim Him to those who do not know Him or have withdrawn themselves from Him.

Besides implementing the catecheses for the preparation of the WYD Lisbon 2023, some
meetings should be set aside to read and study the Pope’s messages for each year. This
itinerary has the following objectives:

• To be in contact with the path of Jesus in the Gospel and of the evangelizing Church.
• To discovery the great proclamation of salvation as an experience of “rising up”.
• To have a personal confrontation with the Word of God, by analyzing one’s life and
real situations.
• To live the new life of the Risen Jesus, by committing to human and spiritual growth
(human virtues and practice of Christian life) and by personally committing to live
among the community of the Church, to transform service in the world, and to mis-
sionary spirit.
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Considering the episode of the disciples on the road to Emmaus (Lk 24:13-35), the inten-
tion is that each youth should experience the same attitude in the Church that Jesus had
with these two disciples.

“Jesus walks with the two disciples who, unable to understand the meaning of
what had happened to Him, withdraw from Jerusalem and the community. To be
in their company, He walks the road with them. He questions them and listens
patiently to their version of events, to help them understand what they are expe-
riencing. Then, with affection and energy, he proclaims the Word to them, leading
them to interpret the events they have lived through in the light of the Scriptures.
He accepts their invitation to stay with them in the evening: he enters their night.
While they listen to him, their hearts burn and their minds are enlightened; in the
15th Ordinary Assembly of the breaking of the bread, their eyes without delay, to return to the community and
Synod of Bishops, Final Doc. 4 share the experience of encountering the Risen One.

Accompanying the youth

The story of the disciples of Emmaus is presented as an example for mentoring the youth.
The entire Christian community, including families, youth group leaders, priests and reli-
gious, contributes for the mentoring. During the Synod, it was the youth themselves who
indicated the characteristics they wished for spiritual mentor:

“The qualities of such a mentor include: being a faithful Christian who engages
with the Church and the world; someone who constantly seeks holiness; some-
one who is a confidant without judging. Similarly, someone who actively listens to
the needs of youth and responds in kind; someone deeply loving and self-aware;
someone who recognizes his or her limits and knows the joys and sorrows of the
spiritual journey. An especially important quality in mentors is the acknowledge-
ment of their own humanity – the fact that they are human beings who make mis-
takes: not perfect people but forgiven sinners. Sometimes mentors are put on a
pedestal, and when they fall, it may have a devastating impact on youth’s ability
to continue to engage with the Church. Mentors should not lead youth as pas-
sive followers, but walk alongside them, allowing them to be active participants in
the journey. They should respect the freedom that comes with a young person’s
process of discernment and equip them with tools to do so well. A mentor should
believe wholeheartedly in a young person’s ability to participate in the life of the
Pope Francis, Church. A mentor should therefore nurture the seeds of faith in youth, without
Christus Vivit, 246 expecting to immediately see the fruits of the work of the Holy Spirit.”

The mentor must master the art of listening, while helping the youth to grow in freedom
and responsibility, to discern the path of their life. This art assumes that the mentor is
sensitive to the person, to discernment, and to listening to what drives the person for-
ward (CV 291-294).

Paying attention to the person “(…) is a matter of listening to someone who is sharing
his very self in what he says. A sign of this willingness to listen is the time we are ready to
spare for others. More than the amount of time we spend, it is about making others feel
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that my time is their time, that they have all the time they need to say everything they want.
The other person must sense that I am listening unconditionally, without being offended
or shocked, tired or bored” (CV 292).

Paying attention to discernment. “It tries to grasp exactly where grace or temptation is
present (…). This kind of listening seeks to discern the salutary promptings of the good
Spirit who proposes to us the Lord’s truth, but also the traps laid by the evil spirit – his
empty works and promises. It takes courage, warmth and tact to help others distinguish
the truth from illusions or excuses” (CV 293).

Paying attention to what drives the person forward. “This calls for a deeper kind of listen-
ing, one able to discern the direction in which that person truly wants to move (...) This
kind of listening seeks to discern their ultimate intention, the intention that definitively
decides the meaning of their life. Jesus knows and appreciates this ultimate intention of
the heart. He is always there, ready to help each of us to recognize it. We need but say to
him: ‘Lord, save me! Have mercy on me!’” (CV 294).

Following a project as a method

The recent Synod of Bishops on Youth emphasized the need to develop “complete pas-
toral processes that lead to adulthood and insertion into the Christian community” (Final
Document 16). As Pope Francis recommends, following a project for a method aims to
“raise up and accompany processes, not impose paths” as to “create projects that do not
isolate youth from the family and the world, but that strengthen them, accompany them,
and launch them toward others in generous service and mission.” (CV 30 & 297).

Based on the itinerary of each catechesis, the youth are invited to develop projects that
may continuously make them missionary disciples. Hence the project can be integrated
into each youth’s living context and position towards the world (having a group life, belong-
ing to the Christian community, serving the poorest, promoting the common good and
the integral ecology, explicitly proclaiming the kerygma and cultural dialogue). Based on
what they see and recognize, the youth are invited to discern and interpret their expe-
rience as being friends with Jesus and to make personal and group choices that make
them agents of change.

The projects aim to help each youth learn by doing. The interpretation of what they live,
and experience is decisive to the steps that they are called to take forward. The projects
also educate the youth for an integral ecology, since they connect the fundamental rela-
tionships of human existence, the relationship with oneself, with others, with God, and
with the Earth. They develop teamwork, stimulate creative ability, encourage the develop-
ment of skills, help to grow and to discern one’s own vocation. They put the youth in a per-
manent state of mission towards the peripheries of the World (FD 127). The project peda-
gogy foresees the elaboration of service and evangelization projects that are articulated
in six steps (RIICDC): 1) Recognize; 2) Interpret; 3) Imagine; 4) Choose; 5) Do; 6) Celebrate.

Considering the current pandemic situation, that may hinder group service activities, in this
first year the personal life project suggests that the youth seek, discern, and find God’s will.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK 7

A generative and transformative itinerary

By welcoming the invitation to a missionary transformation of its actions, the Portuguese
Church, already making its way to the WYD 2023, proposes a generative and transform-
ative itinerary for all youth. The project aims to make WYD an opportunity to undertake
paths of pastoral renewal among the younger generations. Following the theme for the
WYD 2023 – “Mary arose and went with haste” –, this itinerary will make youth the protag-
onists of a strong spiritual practice and of missionary experiences of service to others.

The generative dimension of this itinerary aims to create the right environment for new
youth groups to be born in our Christian communities. Regarding this point of view, the
community is then called to go out to seek for the youth, and to create the best condi-
tions for the groups to exist, by providing them with a welcoming and familiar atmosphere.
Youth have a special role to play in this process of calling other youth.

The youth groups are to be created as open Christian communities with a pilgrimage
spirit, and shall develop three essential dimensions of Christian life, around the figure of
the missionary disciple, always based on the itinerary:

• To become a disciple and build the vocational and relational dimension of Christian
life, with God and with others (Year 1).
• To be a disciple for others and found oneself as called to the missionary service to
others (Year 2).
• To be a missionary disciple and welcome the call to witness faith (Year 3).

The transforming dimension aims for the youth a) to be aware that they are disciples, by
becoming very close to the Lord and paying attention to their will (Year 1); b) to take action
in the transformation of the world by being aware of the several human contexts and by
serving others (mystagogy) (Year 2), and c) to evangelize other youth through the annun-
ciation of the Gospel (kerygma) (Year 3).

In this matter it is highlighted the relevance of art in youth’s evangelization method. The
interpretation of classical works or contemporary canvases that illustrate biblical texts
“can help to experience an encounter with God through the contemplation of His beauty.
They are, in fact, images that bring to those who contemplate them the gaze of an invisi-
ble Other, giving access to the reality of the spiritual and eschatological world.” (DC 209)

The structure for each meeting

Each meeting in the Rise Up itinerary is made up of nine moments that intend to offer an
encounter with Jesus Himself through His word. The meetings follow the classic method-
ology of spiritual discernment in group – that is recognize, interpret, and choose. And the
starting point for each meeting is the experience of personal and community life that is
illuminated through listening, welcoming and praying of God’s Word. This life experience
demands the transformation of one’s own existence and of the world. The nine moments
for each catechesis are:

Get ready: The meeting begins with this moment, which objective is to introduce
them to the spirit of the meeting. This is intended to be a moment to welcome
each individual and the group, and must be accompanied, whenever possible, with
group dynamics that promotes interaction among participants.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK 8

Listen: Listening to God’s Word immediately follows the previous moment. This is
the core the entire meeting. It is Jesus Himself who speaks to us and offers Himself
as the Word of Salvation. The proclamation and listening to the Word of God should
be anticipated, as much as possible, by a moment of silence. I must be made sure
that the reading is carefully done. After the reading, the leader must contextualize
the text with the information provided in the guide, so that the youth can reread
the text in silence and deepen their understanding by searching for the main mes-
sage. The next step of the meeting suggests the youth to relate the message found
in the text to our days.

Receive: This is the moment when the youth are challenged to confront what they
heard in the Word of God with their own lives. This confrontation is supported by
a testimony of a young person who shares, in a video, his experience and leaves
them with some questions.

Ask yourself: The youth are called to respond to the challenges launched in the
previous moment. The youth must be given a time for silence and pondering so
that they can question their own lives through the Word of God.

Share: After this moment the youth are challenged to share in group. Everyone is
invited to share some aspects of their prayer and pondering.

Pray: The experience of communion continues when the group is invited to pray
together.

Rise Up: The meeting finishes with a challenge for each youth or for the group
where they must commit to something transforming. Rise up! The invitation to live
standing up is the great proposal of the itinerary of preparation for the World Youth
Day. Therefore, this is a moment that must have a lot of motivation and especially
mentored by the leader

Keep going: This moment holds a proposal for deepening the faith experienced
individually or in group.

Yes, I believe! is a brief note from the Catechism of the Catholic Church that sums
up what was proposed by the meeting. It gives strength to what was experienced
in the light of the faith of the Church that youth are called to profess.

At the end of each meeting, there is a step for creating a “personal life project” that
requires proper accompaniment by the leaders. s.

Information for the leaders

• The youth group leaders are the first recipients of the Rise Up catechesis. Before
preparing each meeting, they must read and meditate on the respective biblical text
and try to accept the challenges it presents. To enter more deeply into the dynamics
of the proposed theme, the leaders must read the content of the meeting before-
hand, translating it as much as possible into the reality of their group. The meet-
ing must take place in a fraternal and welcoming atmosphere of prayer, recollection,
and silence.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK 9

• If possible, the leaders must prepare the meetings in group. If the youth themselves
prepare the meetings, they will feel more confident with the generous and friendly
mentoring of the leaders.
• One of the central elements of the catecheses is the Bible. Youth are encouraged to
bring it with them. Although the biblical texts are in the script, they are proclaimed
from the Bible (this guide is supported by the New Advent translation version).
• For each catechesis, there is a drawing that illustrates the biblical text and intro-
duces the dynamics of rising up through a game with small strips of paper. The
strips arise and move to another place, introducing the logic of moving and ques-
tioning. Each drawing is supported by a video that must be used when the leader
finds most appropriate. There is a video and a document that explain the meaning
of all this, and they are both entitled “A drawing that arises”.
• It is relevant to articulate the rhythm of each group with the dynamics of the respec-
tive parish and diocese.
• In this journey, the youth must feel like missionaries to other youth, inviting them to
participate in this itinerary.
• The catecheses are planned to take place monthly from November 2021 to July
2022. Each catechesis can also be divided into several meetings, depending on the
rhythm of each group.
• These meetings were designed to take place in a face-to-face setting, so in case this
is not possible, the leaders must find a way to adapt anything using available digital
platforms and resources.
• The youth’s Rise Up journal is in editable format, so the youth can write directly into
the document.
• Handout materials will be available on the WYD Lisbon 2023 website.
• For further information and clarifications, please contact the Catechesis Sub-
Directorate through the following e-mail: catequeses@lisboa2023.org
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK 10

PRESENTING LUKE
Luke, a passionate evangelizer
Mary arose and went with haste (Lk 1:39)

This attitude marks the beginning of the pilgrimage of the Son of God in the world of
men: having welcomed Jesus, Mary does not stay at home; she arises and leaves, taking
the Savior with Her.

Luke writes his story in two parts (the Gospel and the Book of Acts) and presents the atti-
tude of the Mother of the Lord to the addressee of the story: Theophilus (Lk 1:3; Acts 1:1).
This is a Greek name that means “friend of God”.

This way, those who consider themselves “friends of God” – that is those who have received
Jesus as a Savior (Lk 1:4; cf. 2:11) – shall face the fundamental attitude that characterizes
a disciple – to rise and go. And to do so like Mary – taking Jesus, not as mere matter, but
as experienced salvation.

The verb to “rise” is very dear to Luke and has a deep meaning, since it is used (in the
passive voice) to speak of the resurrection. To rise implies, therefore, to be “resurrected”
by God to a new life, and at the same time be inwardly ready to depart from the previous
existential situation to follow the path of God’s salvific project.

The theme of the way is fundamental in the work of Luke. John the Baptist is there announced
and he even presents himself as the one who comes to “prepare the way of the Lord” (Lk
1:76; 7:27; 3:4ff); Mary, the model of a believer, goes out “with haste”(Lk 1:39); Jesus, who
came to “guide our steps towards a path of peace” (Lk 1:79; 20:21) opens this path, which
is the path of God (Lk 20:21), with his own life, going through it himself (4:30, 32; 7:6; 8:1;
9:51, 53, 56, 57; 10:38; 13:22, 33; 17:11; 19:28, 36; 22:22) until the fullness of life in the
resurrection (Acts 1:10ff; 2:28). After the resurrection, Jesus, “who has made known to us
the ways of life” (Acts 2:28) continues journeying with His disciples (Lk 24:32) and is the
protagonist of the Church’s journey. The theme of the path summarizes the entire work
and reason for being of the Church (Acts 9:2; 19:9,23; 22:4; 24:14,22) that is called to live
and announce Him as the path to salvation (Acts 16:17; cf. 18:26). No one can interrupt
this journey because it is led by the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:33-30; 13:10; 16:7).

It is the journey of the Word, the Gospel of salvation: from Galilee to Jerusalem (described
in the first part, the Gospel), and from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth (Acts), which we
can present schematically as follows:

Prologue (Lk 1:1–4)

Introduction: From Heaven to Earth (Lk 1:5-4,13)
A. Galilee (Lk. 4:14 - 9:50)
B. Journey to Jerusalem through Samaria and Judea (Lk 9:51 - 19:40)
C. Jerusalem (Lk 19:41 - 24:49)
D. Ascension (Lk 24:50-51)
D1 Ascension (Acts 1:4-11) CENTER
C1 Jerusalem (Acts 1:12 - 8:1a) 
B1 Judea and Samaria (Acts 8:1b - 11:18) 
A1 “To the ends of the earth” (Acts 11:19 - 28:31) 
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In the Gospel, Luke narrates how the way was prepared in the OT and begun, lived and
fulfilled in Jesus’ earthly mission, which, although ending in the ascension, will only reach
its fullness at his last coming. Meanwhile, as described in the book of Acts (which begins
precisely where the Gospel ends, with the ascension), the glorious Lord continues his
action through the mission of the Church, the witness which, under the guidance of the
Holy Spirit, it is sent to give to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:1-11; cf. Lk 24:47-49). The mis-
sion given by Jesus, then, is not only to proclaim the good news, but to be witnesses (Lk
24:48; Acts 1:8) of the Gospel received and personally lived as salvation.

This is what Luke calls evangelizing – it is the purpose of rising and going. The mission
of every disciple of Jesus remains the same as it was in the first hour, when the Lord sent
the first 72 “to go ahead of Him, to every city and place where He was about to go” (Lk
10:1). Thus, rising up and get going is the same as putting oneself on Jesus’ saving and,
consequently, evangelizing path. That is why the Book of Acts presents us with the early
Church, particularly Peter and the Apostles who strongly committed to doing what Jesus
commanded them to do. Luke tells us in a succession of episodes about the power of
God’s Word that cannot suffocate even in adversity. On the contrary, the setbacks are
transformed, by the action of the Holy Spirit, into new opportunities for the journey of
salvation to move forward. The persecution moved by the Jerusalem authorities against
the disciples forces them to flee, becomes a favorable opportunity to spread the Gospel
even further (Acts 8:4; 11:20). Among them is the deacon Philip, who evangelizes Samaria
(Acts 8:11,25) and then the coastal area until Caesarea. Finally, we find Paul, “the chosen
instrument” to carry the name of the Lord Jesus “to the pagans, kings, and the children
of Israel” (Acts 9:15; 22:21).

By ending his work with the arrival of Paul in Rome, imprisoned for spreading the Word,
Luke challenges the reader – today’s Theophilus (friend of God) – to receive the wit-
ness from the hands of the Apostle and to continue the mission that the Lord Jesus has
entrusted His Church with, to extend the way of salvation to the ends of the earth (Acts
1:8; cf. Lk 24:47). Jesus does not want to have admirers, nor fans, but disciples and friends,
to whom, just like He did to Paul, He keeps saying: “Stand up! I appoint you as a witness
of what you have seen!” (Acts 26:16).

Rev. Mário Sousa, biblical scholar

Diocese of Algarve
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MEETING #0
Rise up and get on your way
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To motivate youth to spiritually prepare themselves for WYD Lisbon.

• To present the catechetical itinerary of preparation for WYD Lisbon.
• To recognize oneself as the heir of St. Luke’s writings.

Information for the leader:

The purpose of this initial meeting is to introduce the youth to the itinerary they will fol-
low until World Youth Day Lisbon 2023. The content addressed in this meeting can be
the basis of future approaches in case more youth join the groups. The symbol that
accompanies the meeting is the Marian icon that the group is invited to build and
welcome.

Necessary material:

• Pieces of papers with typical phrases of the nations where WYD has already taken
place.
• Papers with cities and year of WYD.
• Video about WYD.
• Ribbons for writing names.
• Icon of Our Lady Salus Populi Romani.
• Pieces of paper with the cities that received WYDs with year.

GET READY
Ready to get going
• The meeting begins with a game for the youth to introduce themselves or simply to
work as a “ice-breaker”.
• The group is divided into two parts:
– One part is given a piece of paper with a typical phrase of a country where the
WYD has already taken place (for example, “oi cara” for Brazil, “mamma mia” for
Italy).
– The other part is given a piece of paper with the city and year of each WYD (for
example, Rio de Janeiro 2013, Rome 2000).
• Each youth must find the person who has the piece of paper with the matching typical
phrase or city and year.
• In pairs, the youth must introduce themselves and/or try to discover the WYD theme
to which their pieces of paper refer, and must share their expectations about partici-
pating in the WYD Lisbon 2023.
• The leader must propose the building a “concept map”, preferably using a digital
resource, in which the youth will use a word to define their idea of participating in the
WYD.
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World Youth Day in Portugal

(check Rise Up Pilgrim’s Journal, page 8)

• When the youth have introduced themselves, the leader must explain them the rea-
son for the meeting, indicating that the Pope invites them to prepare to experience
the WYD Lisbon 2023.
• The leader must explain that youth from all over the world began a pilgrimage
around the world more than four decades ago. It started with Pope Saint John Paul
II, continued with Pope Benedict XVI, and is being done with Pope Francis. The pur-
pose is to bring hope to the world. The youth are heralds and witnesses of hope.
They are called to commit themselves to building a civilization of love.
• For the youth to better understand what the World Youth Day is, the leader must
show a video about WYD.
• After the video, the leader must allow the youth to express their opinion on what
they have seen. The leader must mention that the time has come for Portugal to
welcome this event, to which all youth are invited.

LISTEN
Rise up
The leader must explain that the expression “Rise up” is the central element of the prepa-
ration itinerary for WYD Lisbon. The Pope has chosen three themes with the verb “rise
up” (you can see them on the back cover of the Pilgrim’s Journal).

The leader must also indicate that all these themes are taken from the two texts written
by St. Luke. The leader can ask the youth if they know St. Luke’s writings (Gospel and Acts
of the Apostles).

Make a brief presentation of St. Luke based on the text “Luke, a passionate evangelizer.”
Then one of the youth reads:

The Gospel according to Saint Luke (Lk 1:1-4)

1
Many have been at pains to set forth the history of what time has brought to ful-
filment among us, 2following the tradition of those first eye-witnesses who gave
themselves up to the service of the word. 3And I too, most noble Theophilus, have
resolved to put the story in writing for thee as it befell, having first traced it carefully
from its beginnings, 4that thou mayst understand the instruction thou hast already
received, in all its certainty.

The leader must briefly comment the text and highlight the following aspects:

• The three moments of the writing of the Gospels: events (facts), their oral transmis-
sion, and the redaction of the texts.
• The research work that Luke has carried out, based on previous texts and a serious
investigation.
• The addressee of the Gospel – Theophilus. He is someone already educated on
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #0 14

faith, but must make it grow by reading the Gospel. In Greek, his name means “the
friend of God”.
• The purpose of the Gospel – to recognize the soundness of the doctrine in which
Theophilus has been educated. Like Theophilus, each of us is called to recognize the
truth of the faith in which we have been instructed and to grow the friendship with
the Lord.

RECEIVE
We are pilgrims
The leader must invite the youth to read an excerpt from the Pope’s message for the
World Youth Day 2020, in which he invites them to start the pilgrimage to the WYD Lisbon.

“In October 2018, with the Synod of Bishops on Youth, the Faith and Vocational
Discernment, the Church undertook a process of reflection on your place in today’s
world, your search for meaning and purpose in life, and your relationship with God.
In January 2019, I met with hundreds of thousands of your contemporaries from
throughout the world assembled in Panama for World Youth Day. Events of this
type – the Synod and World Youth Day – are an expression of a fundamental dimen-
sion of the Church: the fact that we ‘journey together’. In this journey, every time
we reach an important milestone, we are challenged by God and by life to make a
new beginning. As youth, you are experts in this! You like to take trips, to discover
new places and people, and to have new experiences. That is why I have chosen
Pope Francis the city of Lisbon, the capital of Portugal, as the goal of our next intercontinental
Message for the 25th pilgrimage, to take place in 2022. From Lisbon, in the fifteenth and sixteenth cen-
World Youth Day, turies, great numbers of youth, including many missionaries, set out for unknown
April 5, 2020 lands, to share their experience of Jesus with other peoples and nations.”

ASK YOURSELF
Ready to get going?
In this part, the youth are invited to think about what they need to prepare a pilgrimage,
using the following symbols:

Backpack: Inside it we carry what we need most. It is also where we keep our expe-
riences that result from the way and that become part of our physical and spiritual
baggage.

What are you carrying in the “backpack of your life” at the beginning of this journey?
What is the great motivation for making this pilgrimage towards WYD Lisbon 2023?

Staff: It is an instrument of support for the hardest parts of a walk and of protection
against the unforeseen. The companions along the way are the help that allows us to
keep moving forward.

Who do you want to count on during this pilgrimage? Who are your companions on the
journey?
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Cross: The cross tells us that the pilgrim is someone who chooses paths. The path of
the Christian is to follow Jesus to the end, giving their life for Him.

What truths do you believe in? What is the great conviction that gives you strength to
walk?

Bible: Pilgrims pay attention to the signs of what is going on around them and guide
themselves by it. God’s word is the great compass on the path you now begin.

You too have been taught the truth of our faith. Recall a teaching of Jesus that has par-
ticularly touched your life. Share it with your group.

Pilgrim’s Journal: To be a pilgrim is to be able to tell how each day went, each stage
of the pilgrimage. At the end of each day, writing a little journal means writing a story.
The Pilgrim’s Journal is your journal for the way.

SHARE
Set Out Together
The youth are invited to share the pondering made in the previous moment.

RISE UP
With Mary, our mother
• The leader must previously prepare an icon with the image of Our Lady, Salus Populi
Romani, with the possibility of attaching ribbons with names.
• The leader must present the icon, referring to it as one of the symbols of the WYD.
They must mention the centrality of Mary in WYD 2023.
• The leader must mention that this icon will accompany the group during this walk. If
possible, the youth can take the symbol home from time to time.
• The leader must now give each youth a ribbon to write their name on.
• Each youth must attach their ribbon to the icon.

KEEP GOING
In this moment, the leader is meant to discuss with the youth some practical aspects
concerning the organization of the meetings.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #1 16

MEETING #1
Rise up and say “Yes” Lk 1:26-39
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To discover the reasons why Mary arose and set out in haste.
• To deepen the vocational dimension of existence.
• To recall the marks of God in one’s personal history

Information for the leader:

• This meeting follows the initial meeting, in which the youth had an introduction to
the Rise Up itinerary. It will work on the biblical text concerning the Annunciation of
the birth of Jesus to Mary, which is the central theme of WYD in Lisbon. Therefore, it
will be necessary to revisit this text many times.
• This meeting requires the use of an icon of the Annunciation. (In case the parish
has a painting or icon of the Annunciation, this is the right moment to mention it.)
Attention must be paid to preparing the atmosphere for the proclamation of the
Gospel – the icon must be given special emphasis during the reading.

Necessary material:

• Phrase: “Let it be done to me according to Your word”.

• Printed icon of the Annunciation.
• Background music.

GET READY
From Panama to Lisbon: the centrality of Mary
The meeting must begin with the display of the video with the announcement of WYD
Lisbon (in WYD Panama 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dDzOSL4X7-Q

After this, the leader must introduce the theme of the WYD Panama, indicating why it is
related with the WYD Lisbon. Mary says “YES” to God’s plan and leaves with haste to visit
her cousin Elizabeth.

After watching the video, it must be mentioned that only those who say “YES” to God can
leave with haste.

If we want to be like Mary, we have to listen to God’s voice and say “YES” to Him. We begin
our journey of preparation for the World Youth Day Lisbon 2023 with the joy of a song!
Do you know the hymn of the World Youth Day, Panama 2019? Listen to it and think of
what it means to say YES!
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #1 17

Behold the handmaid of the Lord! Hymn of WYD Panama 2019

As your pilgrim people we are gathered here today
From every continent and city
Longing to be true servants of the Lord
Proclaiming your word to every nation
Teach us to say yes as Mary did that day
That your will be done here as in Heaven
Fills our hearts with songs of joy and gladness
Let all the earth stand up and praise you

Here I am, the Servant of the Lord!

Speak your word in me and let Your will be done.

Your chosen ones we are

Sent out to do your will
Your sons and daughters we are
To be like your Mother surrendered to your will
A pilgrim church called and anointed
As your young disciples, we’ll witness to the world
With joy and faith live our vocation

Do not be afraid
No do not fear
The Father’s arms are open
Like Mary who said ‘yes’ and served the Lord
Let now His will be done in you

LISTEN
The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 1:26-39)
26
When the sixth month came, God sent the angel Gabriel to a city of Galilee called Nazareth,
27
where a virgin dwelt, betrothed to a man of David’s lineage; his name was Joseph, and
the virgin’s name was Mary. 28Into her presence the angel came, and said, Hail, thou who
art full of grace; the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women. 29She was much
perplexed at hearing him speak so, and cast about in her mind, what she was to make
of such a greeting. 30Then the angel said to her, Mary, do not be afraid; thou hast found
favour in the sight of God. 31And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and shalt bear
a son, and shalt call him Jesus. 32He shall be great, and men will know him for the Son of
the most High; the Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he shall reign
over the house of Jacob eternally; 33his kingdom shall never have an end. 34But Mary said to
the angel, How can that be, since I have no knowledge of man? 35And the angel answered
her, The Holy Spirit will come upon thee, and the power of the most High will overshadow
thee. Thus this holy offspring of thine shall be known for the Son of God. 36See, moreover,
how it fares with thy cousin Elizabeth; she is old, yet she too has conceived a son; she who
was reproached with barrenness is now in her sixth month, 37to prove that nothing can be
impossible with God. 38And Mary said, Behold the handmaid of the Lord; let it be unto me
according to thy word. And with that the angel left her. 39In the days that followed, Mary
rose up and went with all haste to a town of Juda, in the hill country 40where Zachary dwelt;
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #1 18

and there entering in she gave Elizabeth greeting.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After the reading, the leader invites the youth to contemplate the icon of the Annunciation,
asking them to identify the present characters and elements. Then the leader talks about
the imagery of the different elements of the icon. The youth then subtitle the image of
the Pilgrim’s Journal, registering what seems most relevant to them about each element.

• Mary: Mary is referred to for the first time in the text of the Annunciation of the
birth of Jesus in Luke’s Gospel. The Angel Gabriel is sent by God to Nazareth to com-
municate the Good News to Mary.
– Mary is on her knees, with a body expression of prayerful attitude.
– She is dressed in blue, a color that expresses her virginity.
– She is surprised by the Angel’s announcement.
– She shows joy and happiness because God is with her.
– She says “YES” to God’s project.

• The Angel: The name Gabriel means literally “God’s stronghold”. In the Bible he
shows up to announce the fulfilment of God’s promises.
– The Angel is dressed as a deacon to express his service to God.
– He holds a lily in his hand, symbolizing the purity of Mary’s heart.
– He is the one who takes the word and makes the action unfold.
– He is the herald of God’s will for Mary

• The White Dove: It represents the Holy Spirit descending above Mary.
– The dove appears in other biblical texts to express the presence of the Holy
Spirit (Baptism of Jesus) and the recreation of humanity (Genesis).
– The Spirit comes to fertilize Mary’s womb, allowing God’s entrance into the
world (new creation).
– The dove refers to the power of the Highest, mentioned in the text, in the icon
symbolized by the cloud. Both are symbols of God’s presence.

• The Door: By saying “YES” to the message she heard, Mary opens the door through
which God enters the world.

• The Green Pavement: It represents hope that opens up for those who listen to
God’s voice and say “YES” to Him.

• The Table with Dishes (pots, plates and pitchers): It represents our material life,
our daily work, with its urgencies and worries, that so often make it difficult for us to
hear God’s voice.

• Empty Space in the Middle (horizontal): The empty space between the angel and
the Virgin signifies the path that the divine Word takes until it reaches each one of
us. It refers to the interior availability necessary to listen to God in freedom.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #1 19

RECEIVE
The “Yes” of Mary
After deepening the symbolic elements of the picture, the youth are invited to deepen the
biblical message through the individual reading of the following text:

«We are always struck by the strength of that young woman’s “yes”, the power of
those words “be it done” that she spoke to the angel. This was not a merely passive or
resigned acceptance. It was different to a faint “yes”, as if to say, “well, let’s give it a try,
and see what happens”. Mary did not know that expression: let’s see what happens.
She was determined, she knew what was at stake and said “yes”, getting straight to the
point. It was something more, something different. It was the “yes” of someone pre-
pared to be committed, someone willing to take a risk, ready to stake everything she
had, with no more security than the certainty of knowing that she was the bearer of a
promise. And I ask each one of you: do you see yourselves as bearers of a promise?
What promise is there within my heart to take forward? Mary’s mission would undoubt-
edly be a difficult one, but the challenges that lay ahead were no reason to say “no”.
Pope Francis Things would get complicated, of course, but not in the same way as happens when
Address at the Vigil cowardice paralyzes us because things are not clear or sure in advance. Mary did not
of the 34th World take out an insurance policy! Mary took the risk and for this reason she is strong, for
Youth Day, Panama, this reason she is an “influencer”, the “influencer” of God! The “yes” and the desire to
January 26, 2019 serve were stronger than any doubts and difficulties.».

ASK YOURSELF
Personal confrontation with God’s word
The youth are now invited to watch a short video with the testimony of a young man
who participated in WYD in Panama 2019. The young man will share his experience and
how he welcomed the challenges issued by the Pope. He comments the biblical text of
the Annunciation, and he launches some challenges to the youth.

He will highlight the following points, in the form of a question:

Concerning your own story:

• What touched you the most in this text?

• How strong is your yes?

Concerning your daily life:

• Do you live with haste just like Mary?

• Is Mary an influencer for you?

Concerning the “now”:

• At this moment in life, is it important for you to listen to this Word?

• Do you feel like the bearer of a promise?
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #1 20

After presenting the questions there is a moment of silence to think about them.

SHARE
This moment is integrated in the next moment of the meeting.

PRAY
The story of my vocation
Each youth is invited to write the story of their vocation:

• In the first part, the youth must elaborate the historical chronology of their life - the
“path of life”, where they shall identify some of the most outstanding moments of
their a) personal life (e.g., birth); b) social life (e.g., going to school for the first time);
c) religious life (e.g., baptism, etc.).
• Then, the youth must mark the moments when they felt God’s presence the most.
• Finally, the youth must identify God’s “calls” their life – to what God has called them.

In groups, the youth must share specific examples of when they felt God calling them, during
their journey, and how they responded to that call. At the end, everyone prays the Magnificat
out loud, giving thanks alongside Mary for what God is doing in each one’s life.

“My soul magnifies the Lord,

and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior,
for he has looked on the humble estate of his servant.
For behold, from now on all generations will call me blessed;
for he who is mighty has done great things for me,
and holy is his name.
And his mercy is for those who fear him
from generation to generation.
He has shown strength with his arm;
he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts;
he has brought down the mighty from their thrones
and exalted those of humble estate;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent away empty.
He has helped his servant Israel,
in remembrance of his mercy,
as he spoke to our fathers,
to Abraham and to his offspring forever.”
Amen
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #1 21

RISE UP
To rise is to seek God’s will
In this first meeting, the youth are invited to learn how to identify God’s will in their daily lives
through the personal prayer and with the help of the following clues:

We can identify God’s will through what is possible, what is the best, and what is the smartest.

What does the will of God consist of? First of all, it consists of the Path of Good that God
reveals to us through His commandments and the teachings of the Church: do not
kill, do not steal, honor your parents, forgive those who offend you, etc. These command-
ments are universal, that is, they are valid for everyone.

Besides this, God has a particular desire for each person. For example, that one accepts a
certain job or mission; that one corrects a certain aspect of their life; that one draws closer
to a certain person or make peace, etc.

Basically, everything that God wants is for us to become more and more human and happy
as children of God.

There are 3 important characteristics of God’s will that must be perceived:

It is always POSSIBLE. God never asks the impossible from us. If something were totally
impossible, then it certainly would not be God’s will. But be aware that there are many things
that seem impossible to us in our own strength alone, but are possible with God’s grace.

It is always THE BEST for us and for others around us, even when it does not seem like
it. God would never ask for something that is not meant to make us happy. But sometimes
this things are hard, because we imagine our happiness in a different way, and it is hard
for us to trust God.
National Secretariat of
the Apostleship of Prayer, Doing God’s Will will always be the MOST INTELLIGENT choice. God knows better than
GPS for Christian Life, Braga, us how our lives and talents can yield the most for our good and for the good of others
Apostleship of Prayer, around us. Doing His will is not a favor we do to God, but to ourselves. He is the one doing
2011, pp. 29-30 us a “favor” in showing us His will!

KEEP GOING
In this last moment of the meeting, the date of the next meeting shall be announced. Also
the daily commitment to praying shall be reminded with the reading of the following text:

The Advent Angel

Let your angel open these doors again
to the announcement of pure and sudden life
that elevates even our dullest days
up to the promise

Let your angel come to reinstate the censored alphabet

to rehearse the dance ignored by the movements
Let him come to point out the fair day, only by the clear blue
to make get rid of the ashes of discouragement and sleep
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #1 22

to guide us beyond the borders

Let your angel come to name what we bring

and take from one day to another always postponed
Let him come to retell the unfinished body
Cardinal José Tolentino This reticent mode of dwelling
Mendonça still waiting for his true birth.

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church
God’s Providence

313. “We know that in everything God works for good for those who love him.” The con-
stant witness of the saints confirms this truth:

(…) St. Thomas More, shortly before his martyrdom, consoled his daughter: “Nothing can
come but that that God wills. And I make me very sure that whatsoever be, seem it never
so bad in sight, it shall indeed be best.”

314. We firmly believe that God is the master of the world and of its history. But the ways
of His providence are often unknown to us. Only at one end, when our partial knowl-
edge ceases, when we see God “face to face”, will we fully know the ways by which – even
through the dramas of evil and sin – God has guided His creation to that definitive sab-
bath rest for which He created heaven and earth.”

PERSONAL PROJECT
#1 Step: Learn to know God’s will
“How will this be...” (Lk 1:34)

Take the first step to build your project. Follow the example of Mary who walked with us in
the first catechesis of this journey, ask questions, not only to yourself, but also to God. Trust
that He has the right answers and wants your true happiness.

To reflect upon:

• What motivations guide my days, my decisions?

• What gives me courage? What deep desires do I carry in my heart? What makes me
happy?
• How might God be speaking to me through these deep desires that I discover
within me?
• What might be God’s will for me? Have my motivations helped me live God’s will?
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #2 23

MEETING #2
Rise up and receive the Holy Spirit (Lk 4:14-22a)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To welcome the presence of the Holy Spirit in light of Jesus’ experience.

• To become aware of the Holy Spirit speaking to us through the Scriptures.
• To feel called to live each day as a Child of God.

Information for the leader:

• This meeting introduces a text that marks the beginning of Jesus’ public life and
presents the fundamental characteristics of His mission. Saying yes to God’s plan
is also the aim of Jesus’ life. As seen in the previous text, the Holy Spirit appears as
the main protagonist; it is the same Spirit who fertilizes the womb of Mary and fuels
Jesus in His messianic mission.
• Particular attention should be paid to the moment of prayer in which a journey
through various passages of the Bible is foreseen. It is expected that this moment
be of reading and personal work. The leader should be the first to commit himself
to this prayerful reading of the text.
• The proposed sharing on each person’s prayer should be guided by the leader, to
ensure that everyone feels free to share some aspect of their pondering, but at the
same time that no one feels forced to do so.

Necessary material:

• Video: Hymn for the WYD Sydney, Receive the Power

• Background music.

GET READY
Sidney 2008, the power of the Holy Spirit
The leader begins by making a reference to the previous meeting, highlighting the impor-
tance of the verb to “rise up” in Luke’s Gospel, now referred to Jesus in a text that recounts a
scene set in the Synagogue of Nazareth. The Holy Spirit, who appeared in the Annunciation
narrative of Jesus’ birth, is always present in Him. St. Luke reinforces this idea by present-
ing Jesus as someone led by the Spirit.

The leader invites each youth to ask themselves if they are aware of the presence of
the Holy Spirit in their existence and if they have let Him act in their life. The leader also
remembers that each Christian is inhabited by this same Spirit since the baptism. This is
the Spirit who also wants to lead us to God.

The leader reinforces the idea that WYD is a providential event, an event provided by the
Holy Spirit. To participate in a WYD is also a response given to God with the power of the
Spirit. This response was felt particularly by the youth at the WYD Sydney 2008 which
theme was “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you will
be my witnesses” (Acts 1:8). In this WYD the youth were able to experience the Holy Spirit
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #2 24

renewing the life of every person and the whole world.

The youth are now invited to listen to the WYD Sydney 2008 Hymn and, through it, ask
God to fill them with His Spirit at the beginning of this meeting.

Receive the Strength - Sydney World Youth Day Hymn 2008

Every nation, every tribe,
come together to worship You.
In Your presence we delight,
we will follow to the ends of the earth.

Alleluia! Alleluia!
Receive the Power, from the Holy Spirit!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Receive the Power to be a light unto the world!

As Your Spirit calls to rise

we will answer and do Your Will.
We’ll forever testify
of Your mercy and unfailing love.

Lamb of God, we worship You,

Holy One, we worship You,
Bread of Life, we worship You,
Emmanuel, we worship You.
Lamb of God, we worship You,
Holy One, we worship You,
Bread of Life, we worship You,
Emmanuel, we will sing forever.

LISTEN
Reading God’s Word in the Spirit: what does the text say?
While the youth are still in recollection, the leader invites them to prolong the invocation
to the Holy Spirit, so that the Word they will hear can be read and meditated upon in the
same Spirit with which it was written.

As Jesus was led by the Spirit to the place of the Word, and read and interpreted it in that
same Spirit, we will also be able to read and interpret this word in the Spirit that inspired it.

A song of invocation to the Holy Spirit is sung:

Veni Sancte Spiritus, kindle in us the fire of your love,

Tui amoris ignem accende. Holy Spirit come to us,
Veni Sancte Spiritus, Holy Spirit come to us. (Taizé)
Veni Sancte Spiritus.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #2 25

Next, the biblical text is proclaimed.

The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 4:14-22a)

14
And Jesus came back to Galilee with the power of the Spirit upon him; word of him
went round through all the neighbouring country, 15and he began to preach in their syn-
agogues, so that his praise was on all men’s lips. 16Then he came to Nazareth, where he
had been brought up; and he went into the synagogue there, as his custom was, on the
sabbath day, and stood up to read. 17The book given to him was the book of the prophet
Isaias; so he opened it, and found the place where the words ran: 18The Spirit of the Lord
is upon me; he has anointed me, and sent me out to preach the gospel to the poor, to
restore the broken-hearted; 19to bid the prisoners go free, and the blind have sight; to set
the oppressed at liberty, to proclaim a year when men may find acceptance with the Lord,
a day of retribution. 20Then he shut the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat
down. All those who were in the synagogue fixed their eyes on him, 21and thus he began
speaking to them, This scripture which I have read in your hearing is to-day fulfilled. 22All
bore testimony to him, and were astonished at the gracious words which came from his
mouth; Why, they said, is not this the son of Joseph?

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After the proclamation of the text, the leader mentions that the first step for reading a
text in the Spirit is to recognize it as being written by the Spirit. The first question to ask
the text is: what are you saying?

To help the youth understand what is written in the text, the leader uses their own words
to expose some of the following elements:

• This passage narrates the first preaching of Jesus. The narrator wants to inaugurate
Jesus’ public ministry with a discourse that manifests the meaning of His mission
through a reference to the book of Isaiah (Isaiah 61:1-2).
• The text shows that Jesus had already spoken before and had been successful (Luke
4:14-15).
• During a Jewish liturgical celebration on a Sabbath day, Jesus read the text and then
commented it. He applied the passage of the prophet He had just read to Himself.
He manifests Himself as being God’s Anointed One, the Messiah, the Christ awaited
since ancient times. The imagery of anointing with oil represents the Holy Spirit. In
Christian initiation, it is the sacramental sign of confirmation.
• To understand the full force of the Holy Spirit, we must go back to the first anoint-
ing performed by the Holy Spirit – the anointing of Jesus. Christ (Messiah in Hebrew)
means being anointed by the Spirit of God. In the old Covenant (Ex 30:22-32), there
were people who were anointed by the Lord, especially King David (1Sam 16:13).
• But Jesus is the one uniquely anointed by God. The humanity that the Son assumes
is totally “anointed by the Holy Spirit”. Jesus is constituted Christ by the Holy Spirit (Lk
4:18-19; Is 61:1), which is the Spirit by whom He was conceived in Mary’s womb and
whose power is emanated in His acts of healing and salvation. Finally, God raises
Jesus from the dead through his Spirit (Rom 1:4; 8:11). When Jesus is fully consti-
tuted “Christ” in his death-conquering humanity (Acts 2:36), He abundantly infuses
us with the Holy Spirit.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #2 26

RECEIVE
What does the text tell me?
Following the previous part, the leader must mention that the second question to ask the
text is: what does it say to me?

The leader must motivate the youth to listen to a short video commenting the proclaimed
Word, in which a youth presents the following challenges:

• Jesus is led by the Spirit. I am also led by the Spirit, as a young Christian, from the
day of my baptism and in a special way from the day of my confirmation.
• “It is [the Holy Spirit] who prepares and opens hearts to receive this proclamation,
it is He who keeps this experience of salvation alive, it is He who will help you grow
in this joy if you let Him act. The Holy Spirit fills your heart with the risen Christ and
from there, like a fountain, pours Himself into your life. And when you receive him,
the Holy Spirit makes you enter more and more into the heart of Christ, so that you
will fill yourself ever more with his love, his light, and his strength” (CV 130).
• Jesus returns to his homeland! I am called to be a prophet as well, the voice of God
in my daily life, next to my friends and family.
• Belonging to Christ in the Spirit gives me the grace of being an instrument of God’s
salvation for others, like He was.
• I am a witness in the way I try to perform God’s mission next to those with whom I
live, work, or study.
• (As a way of launching a challenge to the youth) What about you? Are you aware
that the Holy Spirit is within you? Do you ask him to help you in the small and big
issues of your daily life? How are you letting God reach others through you?

ASK YOURSELF
The text challenges me
The leader must suggest a time for reflection upon and confrontation with the Word of
God, based on the questions launched by the video.

Some instrumental music can be played in the background to favor an environment of

silence and recollection.

Questions to personally reflect upon:

• How do I strengthen my relationship with God? (Through personal prayer, reading

of the Word, explicit request for his Spirit or sacramental life).
• What changes in my life when I stop and recognize that I am a child of God? Do I
believe that He loves me and always takes care of me, even in the midst of difficul-
ties and sufferings?
• Am I aware that the Holy Spirit is in me? Do I ask Him to help me in the small and
big issues of everyday life?
• How am I letting God reach others through me?
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #2 27

PRAY
Journey through the Scriptures
Still in a prayerful environment and with music in the background, a moment of prayer
with the word of God itself is proposed. Like Jesus each one of us is called to be guided
by the Word of God, in which the Spirit acts and speaks with us. The goal is to get in touch
with excerpts from Scripture where the Spirit of God is mentioned.

In the Pilgrim’s Journal there are several biblical passages. The initial passage is read
together, and each youth is invited to make a journey through the Word of God.

One must begin by filling in the box that says, “I pray this”. Inside that box one must write
something that came up from the passage read (a question, a feeling, a word, an idea, a
person, a prayer, a misunderstanding, an episode from one’s own life, etc.).

Then the “tree” must be climbed up from the root to the fruit. Each youth must search for
a biblical passage at a time. After finding it, the youth must read it and write the phrase or
word that most caught their attention in the blank space where the bible quote is found.

Then fill in the box that says, “I pray this” according to the criteria presented above.

Biblical texts:

• Lk 4:14-22a
• Mt 3:16-17
• Is 61:1-2
• Is 11:1-4
• Gal 5:16-26
• Jn 14:15-21
• Lk 24:49-53
• Acts 2:1-24

SHARE
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because...
In small groups, the youth share

• their journey made through reading and praying the Word of God.
• the answers, worries, thoughts, misunderstandings, motivations before the ques-
tions posed in the previous moment (“Ask yourself”).
• how the passages of the Sacred Scripture relate to their answers.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #2 28

RISE UP
The Spirit of the Lord has anointed me to announce
The leader must finish this meeting by pointing out that Jesus let Himself be led by the
Spirit throughout His life until the end. In this way, He always fulfilled the will of His Father.

The leader asks the youth if they want to rise up like Jesus and, impelled by the Spirit, ful-
fil the Word they have heard?

In the light of the answers, the leader launches some challenges to help the youth get up
to read and listen to the Word of God:

• To devote 5 min a day to read the Word of God (taking up some of the texts prayed
in this meeting).
• To invoke the Holy Spirit daily (learn a prayer by heart)

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your believers and kindle them with the fire of your
love. O Lord send forth Thy Spirit, and all shall be created. And You shall renew the face
of the Earth.

O Lord, by the light of the Holy Spirit, You have taught the hearts of Your believers. Let us
rightfully appreciate all things and always rejoice in your consolation. We ask this through
Christ our Lord. Amen.

KEEP GOING
In order to each and everyone can know more about the issue:

Invoking the Holy Spirit

Ask the Holy Spirit each day to help you experience new great news. Why not? You have
nothing to lose, and he can change your life, fill it with light and lead it along a better path.
He takes nothing away from you, but instead helps you to find all that you need, and in
the best possible way. Do you need love? You will not find it in dissipation, using other
people, or trying to be possessive or domineering. You will find it in a way that will make
you genuinely happy. Are you seeking powerful emotions? You will not experience them
by accumulating material objects, spending money, chasing desperately after the things
of this world. They will come, and in a much more beautiful and meaningful way, if you let
yourself be prompted by the Holy Spirit. (Pope Francis, Christus Vivit 131)

Get to know better the Gospel according to St. Luke through this video
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #2 29

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church
I believe in the Holy Spirit

683. “No one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit.” [1 Cor 12:3] “God has sent
the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!”’ [Gal 4:6] This knowledge of faith
is only possible through the Holy Spirit. To be in touch with Christ, we must firstly have
been touched by the Holy Spirit. He comes to meet us and kindle faith in us. It is through
our Baptism, the first sacrament of the faith, that Life is offered to us by the Son, having
its source on the Father and being transmitted personally by the Holy Spirit.

The Baptism “gives us the grace of a new birth in God the Father, through his Son, in the
Holy Spirit. For those who bear God’s Spirit are led to the Word, that is, to the Son, and
the Son presents them to the Father, and the Father confers incorruptibility on them. And
it is impossible to see God’s Son without the Spirit, and no one can approach the Father
without the Son, for the knowledge of the Father is the Son, and the knowledge of God’s
Son is obtained through the Holy Spirit”.

PERSONAL PROJECT
#2 step - Listen and pray God’s Word 
“…He rose up to read, and the scroll of Isaiah was handed to Him” (Lk 4: 16-17a.)

In this second step of the pilgrimage, the youth are invited to train themselves to listen to
the Word of God! Through it, God wants to speak to them! They must learn to listen to Him
and welcome the clues He wants to give them, so they know their path and start walking it!

To reflect upon:

• Begin to read the Gospel according to St. Luke.

• Luke is a passionate evangelizer who tried to faithfully transmit the great announce-
ment of salvation that Jesus brought.
• Nowadays, you are Theophilus, the friend of God, to whom he writes. Accept his
challenge to walk with Jesus.
• Write down each day a word/phrase that has remained in your heart.
• Choose a word from God that guides your project.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #3 30

MEETING #3
Rise up and let yourself be healed… (Lk 4: 38-44)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To reflect upon personal experience of illness and healing.

• To explore the relationship between physical healing and spiritual healing.
• To celebrate the closeness of God in the experience of His mercy.

Information for the leader:

• For the initial dynamics, an ample space with good circulation is needed, as well as
sufficient materials.
• This meeting presupposes some complementary actions, thought up and developed
by the youth, namely the celebration of the sacrament of Reconciliation which, in
case it cannot take place as a group, can be done by each one on their own initiative
by making an appointment with the priest. However, if possible, a community cele-
bration of the sacrament of Reconciliation should be scheduled.
• The celebration of the Anointing of the Sick can be accompanied and followed by
other forms of closeness to the sick, such as visits or other ways of socializing. Could
it be possible, a project could be created for each young person to adopt an elderly
or sick person from the Christian community and show more continuous signs of
closeness. For example, through weekly home visits, phone calls, help with small
tasks, shopping, etc.

Necessary material:

• Blindfolds.
• Individual cards with illnesses and their respective cures.
• Photographs from previous editions of WYD, referring to the Mercy spaces and the
confessionals.
• Small pieces of paper.
• Candle, oil of the sick.

GET READY
Illnesses and cures
When welcoming the youth, the leader must ask them about their commitment to the
previous meeting. In a brief sharing, the youth must talk about their experience of prayer
around listening to the Word of God and invoking the Holy Spirit, about something that
has particularly challenged or touched them.

Following this moment, the leader must introduce the theme of this meeting with the fol-
lowing dynamics:

• Everyone blindfolds their eyes.

• The group is divided into two parts.
• One part of the group is given cards with diseases on them.
• The other part receives cards with the respective cures.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #3 31

• The person that has a card with a disease must find the person with the cure.
• The main idea is that the sick person finds the person who can save him (e.g., the
“fever” card corresponds to the “I cure the fever” card).

At the end, the leader explains that the experience of illness makes us search for a cure.
And this happens in many ways in our lives. Each person can recall personal experiences,
or the experiences of someone they know, in which illness calls for the search for heal-
ing. You can give an example that you yourself know about.

The effort of the human being in search of a cure is manifested in the multiple technolog-
ical findings carried out by scientific research for a better life quality. The leader can men-
tion the findings achieved in the search of a cure for some global disease.

We also realize also we can be a cause of healing for others, through our presence and
friendship. Even if we can’t cure a disease, we can make a difference in someone’s life,
through our actions, by giving them back their health and well-being.

Healing also has a strong spiritual meaning. In the Gospels, physical healings are always
an expression of the inner sickness we call sin. We can only be a healing presence to oth-
ers if we are reconciled with God.

An important element of a WYD is the journey of renewal of life itself that many youth
experience by celebrating the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The Campi Misericordiae are
places for listening and welcoming where youth can feel healed and accompanied.

The theme for the WYD 2016, in the Year of Mercy, was, “Blessed are the merciful for they
shall obtain mercy.” There the youth were able to experience the power of God’s love that
heals and saves. At some WYDs, confessionals were built by inmates.

LISTEN
Healing and service
The group leader introduces the biblical text of this meeting, inviting all to listen to it

The Gospel according to Saint Luke (4:38-44).

38
So he rose up and left the synagogue, and went into Simon’s house. The mother
of Simon’s wife was in the grip of a violent fever, and they entreated his aid for her.
39
He stood over her, and checked the fever, so that it left her; all at once she rose,
and ministered to them. 40And when the sun was going down, all those who had
friends afflicted with diseases of any kind brought them to him: and he laid his
hands upon each one of them, and healed them. 41Many, too, had devils cast out of
them, which cried aloud, Thou art the Son of God; but he rebuked them and would
not have them speak, because they knew that he was the Christ. 42Then, when day
came, he went out and retired to a desert place. The multitude, who had set out
in search of him and caught him up, would have kept him there, and not let him
leave them. 43But he told them, I must preach the gospel of God’s kingdom to the
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #3 32

other cities too; it is for this that I was sent. 44And so he went on preaching in the
synagogues of Galilee.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After the proclamation of the text, the leader must invite the youth to underline the actions
present in the text and to transcribe them to the board next to the text in their infinitive
verbal form (Pilgrim’s Journal).

After this, the leader must suggest them to write down a brainstorm concerning the mean-
ing of each verb. The youth can register the meanings of the verbs in the Pilgrim’s Diary.
The leader can turn to the following list:

Intercede - To ask for another person, to intervene on someone’s behalf. The people in
Simon’s house are interceding on his behalf next to Jesus.

To bend down - to lean over someone. In this case, it expresses Jesus’ care for this sick
woman. 

Rebuke - To rebuke, to admonish with energy. Jesus reacts strongly against the cause of
the illness, thus demonstrating his superiority over the illness.

Leave - To go away, inaugurating a new state, a transformation, a new beginning.

Get up - To rise up. The central verb of the text. An action that expresses the transfor-
mation wrought by Jesus, as opposed to the immobile and prostrate position of the sick
person. It expresses the salvific work of Jesus who came to raise us from death and sin.

Serving - Being at someone’s beck and call, at someone’s service, at someone’s disposal.
It expresses the fundamental attitude of Jesus who came to serve (Lk 22:27). 

Laying on of hands - A typical gesture of blessing and healing. In Scripture it expresses

God’s action in favor of someone. This gesture is present in the sacraments, most nota-
bly in the Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders.

To heal - To restore health to the sick.

Shout - To speak louder, so that one can be heard. It also expresses something we want
everyone to know, something we can’t keep a secret of. The demons know that Jesus is
the Son of God, so they shout.

Leaving - To abandon a place. This example where the demons are cast out means that
the person is delivered from evil, hence a new state of being.

Announce - To spread the news, to communicate it. Jesus takes it as His mission to
announce the Good News of the Kingdom of God.

Proclaim - To publicly announce a message. It expresses the attitude of Jesus in wanting

the Gospel to reach everyone. 
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #3 33

RECEIVE
Healing and service today
As a way of actualizing this text, it is proposed that the leader invites someone to give a
short testimony, where they compare their experience to the biblical text. That person
must be connected to healthcare services or must have already experienced illness (e.g.,
informal caregiver, volunteer, nurse, doctor, patient).

ASK YOURSELF
The healed and the healers
The leader must mention Pope Francis’ words written in the Pilgrim’s Journal:

• “Jesus shows a particular predilection for those who are wounded in body and in spirit:
the poor, the sinners, the possessed, the sick, the marginalized”. (Angelus, February 8th,
2015).

Then the leader must invite the youth to read the texts of Pope Francis and to respond
individually to the questions posed.

• “Youth also experience setbacks, disappointments and profoundly painful memo-

ries. Often, they feel “the hurt of past failures, frustrated desires, experiences of dis-
crimination and injustice, of feeling unloved and unaccepted”. Then too “there are
moral wounds, the burden of past errors, a sense of guilt for having made mis-
takes”.[38] Jesus makes his presence felt amid these crosses borne by youth; he
offers them his friendship, his consolation and his healing companionship. The
Church wants to be his instrument on this path to interior healing and peace of
heart”. (Pope Francis, Christus Vivit 83).

• I see clearly that the thing the Church needs most today is the ability to heal
wounds and warm the hearts of the faithful, closeness, companionship. I see the
Church as a campaign hospital after a battle. (...) You have to heal your wounds.
(...) Heal wounds, care for wounds. (Pope Francis, interview with Civiltà Catolica
magazine).

• How do I react to my sufferings and my illnesses? Do I become afraid, am I too

mushy or do I victimize myself?

• What are my wounds and diseases? How do I feel Jesus approaching me to heal me?
Have I felt the joy of being forgiven in the sacrament of Reconciliation?

• How do I feel about seeing the sufferings of others? How have I helped them heal?
How have I become present in the lives of others by bringing them the good news
of Jesus who can heal them?
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #3 34

• Think of a person you know who suffers from a difficult situation or who is sick. How
can you specifically take care of their wounds?

SHARE
The youth must share in small groups their thoughts with each other, highlighting one
aspect that touched them the most.

PRAY
The Lord heals our infirmities
Still in small groups, the leader must invite each youth to remember a difficult moment
that they, or someone close to them, is going through.

Afterwards the youth must write a prayer of supplication or thanksgiving regarding the
difficult moment in the Pilgrim’s Journal. Also, on a small piece of paper, the youth must
write the name of the person for whom they feel it is necessary to pray.

In the middle of the group, a candle and oil of the sick must be placed next to the Bible.
The leader must point out that the oil is used in the sacrament of the anointing of the sick.
It is present in the meeting as a sign of God’s healing power that the Church is called to
make present in the world. After this the pieces of paper with the names of the sick are
placed next to the oil of the sick.

Each youth is free to share their personal prayer. This is followed by a joint recitation of
Psalm 103:1-5:

1
“Praise the Lord, my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2
Praise the Lord, my soul,
and forget not all his benefits—
3
who forgives all your sins,
and heals all your diseases,
4
who redeems your life from the pit.
and crowns you with love and compassion,
5
who satisfies your desires with good things
so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.”
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #3 35

At the end, each youth gets a piece of paper from those next to the oil of the sick, com-
mitting to pray for that person.

RISE UP
Let yourself be healed
To accept the invitation to “Let yourself be healed”, it is proposed that each youth group
creates teams to prepare a Penitential Celebration. The Penitential Celebration will be
directed to the youth themselves and aims to help them in their process of inner healing
through the experience of encountering the mercy of God.

KEEP GOING
This moment suggests the watching of a movie related to the theme of this meeting, such
as Hacksaw Ridge, or reading the book The Life of St. Benedict Menni.

YES, I BELIEVE!
From the Catechism of the Catholic Church
The healing sacraments

1421. The Lord Jesus Christ, physician of our souls and bodies, who forgave the sins of
the paralytic and restored him to bodily health, [Cf. Mk 2:1-12] has willed that his Church
continue, in the power of the Holy Spirit, his work of healing and salvation, even among
her own members. This is the purpose of the two sacraments of healing: the sacrament
of Penance and the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #3 36

PERSONAL PROJECT
#3 Step – Celebrate Reconciliation
“…laying his hands on each of them, healing them”. (Lk 4:40)

Take a step closer to the construction of your personal project. This time you are invited
to review your life and identify your spiritual illnesses that must be healed.

To reflect upon:

• What attitudes, choices, situations in my life have not been according to God’s will?
• What do I want to ask God to heal in me so that I can be more like what He has
dreamed?
• I’m eager to take a Specific Conversion Step from the journey already made, some-
thing concrete to change, to grow!
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 37

MEETING #4
Rise up and journey (Lk 5:17-26)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To understand the ecclesial and community dimension of the WYD.

• To discover the value of an intercessory prayer.
• To recognize oneself as called to be an instrument of God’s salvation and mercy.

Information for the leader:

• To prepare for the meeting, the group leader must pray the biblical text (Lk 5:17-26)
individually, so that the prayer provides some practical outcome for personal life. As
a suggestion for meditating on the Word, the leader can use the traditional Lectio
Divina or parts of the proposed meeting. That is, the leader must do a prayerful
reading of the biblical text and answer the questions raised in the “Listen” and “Ask
Yourself” moments.
• The leader must also deepen their knowledge about the life of St. Jacinta Marto
(1910-1920) in order to present her to the group as a model of intercession, and an
instrument of God’s salvation and mercy. For that purpose, the following texts can
be read:
– Fatima in Lucia´s own words, with particular importance the 1st Memoir, p.33-64 
https://www.piercedhearts.org/hearts_jesus_mary/apparitions/fatima/
MemoriasI_en.pdf
– Spirituality of St. Jacinta Marto
https://www.papa2017.fatima.pt/en/pages/three-sheperds
– Life of the Seers
https://www.fatima.pt/en/pages/chronology-of-the-three-seers
• Several spaces of prayer should be provided for the meeting so that the youth can
pray individually during the “Listen” and “Ask Yourself” moments.
• It is also necessary to print and cut in half the sayings of St. Jacinta Marto. In case
there are more youth than pieces of paper, the sentences can be duplicated.
• Please note that this meeting was prepared by Sister Marta Mendes, of the
Congregation of the Alliance of Holy Mary, who died on May 17th 2020, at the age of
35, after a cerebral hemorrhage, which occurred on May 13th, during the Eucharistic
celebration. This happened while she was reading a text written by her, that ended
with the following verse of the Song of Songs: “Take me away with you—let us hurry!
Let the king bring me into his chambers.” (Song of Songs 1:4).

Necessary material:

• Jacinta’s sayings, previously cut out.

• Pictures of youth at WYD, from the WYD prayer vigils.
• Scenario elements (empty container that can carry the pieces of paper for the individ-
ual prayer, a piece of tile, and rope).
• Blank pieces of paper.
• Rosary (this can be a good opportunity to offer the rosary to each youth, if the condi-
tions allow, maybe even with the symbol alluding to WYD).
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 38

GET READY
The value of intercession
The meeting begins with the hymn of the WYD in Santiago de Compostela (1989). The
leader must highlight some elements of the hymn such as the idea of pilgrimage, the
youth walking together, etc.

We are the Youth of the 2000s - WYD Hymn Santiago de Compostela 1989
Among so much confusion,
among so much deception,
we seek today for a path
with a vision full of freedom.

We want no more stories,

instead we want the truth
To build a brand-new world
a brand-new humanity

We are the youth of the 2000s

we are pilgrims always in search of
the source of full freedom.
We follow the way of St. James
that leads all to Christ
the way, the truth and the life

The Apostle with his strong voice

calls us today to his city
he is telling us the real way
to conquering full freedom;
He will make us all heralds
witnesses of the Truth
to ignite love in all society.

The Pope talks to our hearts

as simple pilgrim
The Harvest is now mature
He is only waiting for our yes
From this small piece of the sky
to the world is sending us
To build a land without borders
whose destiny is happiness

After hearing the hymn, the youth must share their thoughts on the Penitential Celebration,
and other celebrations and visits to the diseased. The leader must recall the fact that each
youth has made a daily commitment to pray for a person and must point out the value of
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 39

intercession. Just as those in Peter’s home interceded on behalf of his mother-in-law who
was sick, we also intercede on behalf of these people.

The leader must mention that this meeting is about the value of intercession, taking Saint
Jacinta Marto as an example.

The leader must give each youth a piece of paper containing half of one of the following
sentences of Saint Jacinta Marto, regarding intercession:

• “Oh, Jesus it is for your | love and for the conversion of sinners.”
• “Our Lady came to see us and said that she is coming to take Francisco to Heaven
very soon. And she asked me if | I still wanted to convert more sinners. I told her I
wanted to.”
• “Don’t be afraid; you’re going to Heaven. Yes, I am, | but I wanted all those people to
go there too.
• “Jacinta, don’t come [to Mass]; you just can’t. Today isn’t | Sunday!” (…) “It doesn’t
matter. I’m going for the sinners who don’t even go on Sunday.”
• “Forgive them, my Jesus, and convert them. Surely | they don’t know that herewith
they are offending God.”
• “Such a shame, my Jesus! | I will pray for them.”
• “But don’t be afraid! In Heaven, I will pray much for you, for | the Holy Father, for
Portugal, so that the war does not come here, and for all the priests”.

After receiving half of the sentence, each youth should look for the corresponding pair.
Once the pairing has been done, each pair must answer the following questions:
• What theme does this sentence refer to?
• What is Jacinta’s attitude?
• What could this sentence have to do with me?

After the dialogue, the whole group must come together. The leader must invite some of
the youth to share their thoughts and answers.

The leader must emphasize the importance of intercession, by summarizing the various
answers and pointing out that the WYD has an important community dimension.

With the help of some pictures of youth in the WYD, the leader must highlight the fact
that in this event one can find many other unique youth from all over the world. It must
also be mentioned that each youth has a different gift, but all are united in the same body.

As St. Paul says, a body has all members united: if a member suffers, all suffer with it; if
one rejoices, all rejoice with it. In this way, the youth can have the experience of belong-
ing to the Church.

Once again with the help of some photos of the WYD prayer vigils, the leader must reinforce
the fact that at the WYD youth are united with the same spirit and in prayer, interceding for
the whole world. As Pope Francis writes in the Apostolic Exhortation Christus Vivit, youth
feel called “to light up stars in the night of other youth” (Pope Francis, Christus Vivit 33).
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 40

LISTEN
The paralytic is helped by others
Having in mind what the Pope said (“The Lord calls us to light up stars in the night of other
youth”), the leader must now introduce the biblical text.

The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 5:17-26)

17
It chanced one day that he was teaching, and that some Pharisees and teachers
of the law were sitting by, who had come from every village in Galilee, and Judaea,
and Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was there, to grant healing. 18Just then,
some men brought there on a bed one who was palsied, whom they tried to carry
in and set down in Jesus’ presence. 19But, finding no way of carrying him in, because
of the multitude, they went up on to the house-top, and let him down between the
tiles, bed and all, into the clear space in front of Jesus. 20And he, seeing their faith,
said, Man, thy sins are forgiven thee. 21Whereupon the Pharisees and scribes fell to
reasoning thus, Who can this be, that he talks so blasphemously? Who can forgive
sins but God and God only? 22Jesus knew of these secret thoughts of theirs, and said
to them openly, Why do you reason thus in your hearts? 23Which command is more
lightly given, to say, Thy sins are forgiven thee, or to say, Rise up and walk? 24And
now, to convince you that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins while he is on
earth (here he spoke to the palsied man), I tell thee, rise up, take thy bed with thee
and go home. 25And he rose up at once in full sight of them, took up his bedding,
and went home, giving praise to God. 26Astonishment came over them all, and they
praised God, full of awe; We have seen strange things, they said, to-day.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After proclaiming the text, the leader must invite each youth to read it again in silence.

The group is then arranged in such a way that everyone can watch and listen attentively
to the dramatization of the biblical text.

There are four previously chosen youth, each of whose embodies a character and tells
the story, in two minutes, according to their perspective, considering the following topics:

Character 1: Jesus

This character plays Jesus teaching.

They may play a scene in which Jesus hears a noise, notices what is happening, and stares.
Unexpectedly, He sees some men climbing up on the roof and bringing down someone
on a stretcher.

While describing the scene, they must refer to the faith of those men who were carrying
the paralytic without asking anything in return.

Then it represents Jesus’ closeness to the paralytic and the healing that takes place.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 41

Character 2: One of the men carrying the paralytic

• This character can describe the normal life of a man of that time, with work, with
family.
• He heard about Jesus of Nazareth, who healed the sick, who spoke like no one else,
who was different from any religious teacher. He explains that he has a friend who is
paralyzed. They both have the hope that Jesus can heal him.
• After mentioning that the man asks three other friends to help him carry the par-
alytic, the person playing the character must describe the scene as they arrive at
the place where Jesus was. They were carrying the paralytic on the stretcher, but
because of the crowd it was difficult to get him in. So, they climbed up to the roof
and lowered the paralytic down to Jesus.
• The character describes the miracle and the joy of seeing his friend healed.

Character 3: The paralytic

• He describes himself as someone who has always wanted to be healed. He had a

very negative self-image, was rejected by society, considered himself punished and
cursed by God.
• He mentions a friend and some acquaintances who said they could take him to
Jesus of Nazareth, who could certainly heal him. He hoped that this could happen.
• Then he describes the scene told in the gospel: the paralytic being carried by his
friends, waiting to see what was going to happen. He says that when he sees the
crowd, he feels discouraged and almost loses hope. However, the men who are car-
rying him do not give up and climb up with him to the roof, and from there they
lower him down to stand before Jesus.
• He witnesses the joy of seeing Jesus and being healed by Him.
• He shows attitudes of joy, gratitude and recognition and life change.

Character 4: A person from the crowd

• This is a person who, moved by curiosity, goes to the place where Jesus was to hear
and see Him. A person without much faith, but who is looking for meaning in their
life.
• The person describes the scene: four men trying to enter with a paralytic on a
stretcher. At the same time, the character does nothing to help them pass.
• The person describes the scene of the climbing to the roof with astonishment as an
outsider. The person tries to see what is happening inside and when they become
aware of Jesus’ miracle, they come to their senses and becomes aware of how indif-
ferent and selfish they have been to the paralytic’s pain.

The leader must conclude this moment pointing out the different ways of looking at the
event, inviting each one of the youth to situate themselves before the different positions.

ASK YOURSELF
Me and the text?
The leader must preface the moment for the individual prayer, inviting each youth to be
alone and to answer the following questions:
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 42

1. Which character do you most identify with?

2. The paralytic couldn’t get in because of the crowd. What do you think the crowd can
mean? In what situations might you see “the crowd” in society?
3. In what situations are you this “crowd”?
4. What is the attitude of the men carrying the paralytic?
5. What do I need to be like these men?

SHARE
What about us?
Depending on the size of the group, the leader must decide if it is pertinent to challenge
the youth to share the answers given in the “Ask Yourself” moment.

After the sharing moment, the leader must summarize the answers highlighting the most
relevant ones, and emphasizing that in heaven, the saints continually intercede on behalf
of us. Their prayer helps us reach Jesus.

RECEIVE
The world grows by praying for the righteous
The leader invites the youth to read the following text by the Pope (or watch the video that
can be found on the Internet) that summarizes the meaning of the prayer of intercession:

“The world lives and grows thanks to the power of God whom these servants attract
with their prayer. It is not at all a boisterous chain, and rarely makes headlines, yet it is
so important to restoring trust to the world! [...] Prayer is always a chain of life: many
men and women who pray sow life. [...] The journey of God in the history of God is
conveyed through them: it has passed through a ‘remainder’ of humanity that has
not conformed to the law of the fittest, but has asked God to perform his miracles,
and above all to transform our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh (Ez 36:26). And
this helps prayer: because prayer opens the door to God, turning our often-stony
Pope Francis hearts into a human heart. And this demands a lot of humanity, and with humanity
General Audience, 27.05.2020 one can pray well.”

Bridging the gap between the sharing and the text, the testimonial video about Sister
Marta Mendes must be shown. Sister Marta is certainly a great intercessor with God, on
behalf of the all youth so that they get to know and love Christ.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 43

PRAY
Feel the power of prayer
The leader arranges the space in such a way as to prepare it for contemplation. Some
simple decoration can be used (imitating the Taizé style, for example) to accompany the
necessary elements for the moment: 

• An empty container to place the pieces of paper where each youth will register their
prayer, flanked by a tile and a rope.
• The tile and the rope recall how the men brought the paralytic to Jesus: climbing up
to the ceiling (tile) and climbing down on the stretcher (rope).

The leader must distribute a blank piece of paper to each youth. Afterwards the leader
must briefly explain the moment, referring to the elements of the scenario, next to which
they will place their prayers. Individually, each youth writes on the paper a prayer to Jesus,
for Him to intercede on behalf of someone’s needs. Background music can be used.

Once the prayer is written, the pieces of paper are handed out using the following scheme:

• Calmly one youth at a time stands up and places their prayer in the empty con-
tainer. This must be repeated until everyone has delivered their prayer.
• During this moment the following song is sung:

Stay with us O Lord Jesus Christ, night will soon fall.

Then stay with us O Lord Jesus Christ, light in our darkness. (Taizé)

The leader must be sure that after the meeting the papers are burned.

RISE UP
Rising suddenly before them
The leader must refer to the Penitential Celebration and to how one rises as new person
by having all sins forgiven.

Living the new life through Baptism involves helping others reaching Jesus, as did the
men who carried the paralytic.

Like St. Jacinta who found prayer to be a source of intercession on behalf of sinners, also
youth can intercede on behalf of the “paralytics of today,” of those who need our prayer,
and make sacrifices for them.

Saint Jacinta also liked to pray for the Holy Father. If on the one hand the Christian is called
to be intimate with God, on the other hand they are called to lead through prayer their
brothers and sisters to the same God.

The leader can challenge the youth to prepare a moment of prayer of the Rosary for the
entire Christian community, keeping in mind the needs of the whole world.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #4 44

KEEP GOING
They brought the paralytic
The leader must now challenge the youth to reinforce their commitment to the members
of the community for whom they are responsible, that is, the elderly and the diseased. The
leader asks them to think of a way to make these people feel Jesus’ closeness.

The leader may also suggest watching and reflecting on the movie: “Beyond the Blackboard”
This film portrays a teacher who intercedes on behalf of her students to make them have
better living and learning conditions.

The group can address themes such as forgetting about oneself to think of others, the
attitude of getting out of the comfort zone and attending to the needs of others, inter-
ceding on their behalf.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uisj5rjCDb4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpM-Dqg0DG0

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church
The prayer of intercession

2634. Intercession is a prayer of petition which leads us to pray as Jesus did. He is the one
intercessor with the Father on behalf of all men, especially sinners. [Cf. Rom 8:34; 1 Jn 2:1;
1 Tim 2:5-8] He is “able for all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since
he always lives to make intercession for them.” [Heb 7:25] The Holy Spirit “himself inter-
cedes for us... and intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” [Rom 8:26-27]

2635. Since Abraham, intercession - asking on behalf of another has been characteristic
of a heart attuned to God’s mercy. In the age of the Church, Christian intercession partic-
ipates in Christ’s, as an expression of the communion of saints. In intercession, he who
prays looks “not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others,” even to the
point of praying for those who do him harm.

PERSONAL PROJECT
#4 Step - I pray and offer for others
“...some men, carrying a paralytic on a stretcher, sought ... to place him before
him” (Lk 5:18)

The fourth step of our journey reminds us that true joy is in the gift that we make of our-
selves to others.

To reflect upon:

• Who can I pray for during the next few days?

• How is my Concrete Conversion Step going? Evaluate it.
• Add to the Concrete Conversion Step a sacrifice I can offer for those who suffer.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 45

MEETING #5
Rise up and Follow Me (Lk 5:27-32)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To know Levi’s (Matthew) story of conversion and following Jesus.

• To discover that Jesus calls us in our daily life
• To deepen our own vocation.

Information for the leader:

• This meeting suggests a reading of the biblical text through art to be done, particu-
larly the painting of the vocation of Levi (or Matthew) by Caravaggio.
• For the explanation of the painting, we can use the presentation with the different
parts of the painting or the entire canvas.
• The entire painting must be projected during the moment of prayer (the room must
have a medium light – if it helps, background music can be used).

Necessary material:

• Objects: coins, a bag of money, pens, a computer, a photo of one of the world’s best
known stock exchanges, etc.
• Caravaggio’s painting in digital format.
• Background music.

GET READY
The Business World
The following objects must be set up in a visible-to-all area: coins, a bag of money, pens,
a computer, a photo of one of the best-known stock exchanges in the world, etc.

The leader must begin the meeting by inviting the youth to observe what they see and
to imagine what it is about. You can question the youth by helping them to decipher the
meaning of the symbols:

• What are we seeing? (coins, money bag, pens, computer, table, etc.)
• Where are we? (City, bank, company, tax office, etc.)
• What does it evoke in us? (Economic crisis/success, business race, dream, success,
stress, corruption, etc.)

After this initial dialogue, the leader must question the youth if the business world can be
a place where God passes by?

After listening to their responses, the leader must mention that cities and things that are
part of life like money can also be places where Jesus passes by and calls – these can be
places of encounter with Him.

Then the leader must mention the dialogue that must be established by a WYD between
the Church and society. A WYD is only possible if there is active participation by the States,
participation by enterprises and companies etc. Even the youth who participate will have
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 46

to provide with some monetary help. Our group is also already organizing ways to con-
tribute to the expenses of WYD so that as many youth as possible can participate.

There is an initiative in the WYD called “Days in the Dioceses” that occurs in the period
that precedes the WYD. This initiative is meant for the youth from other countries to get
to know the cities of the hosting country of the WYD. This is also an expression of dia-
logue between the Church and society. It makes the presence of Jesus sensitive and visi-
ble; He who passes through all places and calls all people.

Next the leader must show a short video about the days in the dioceses:

Video: “Days in Dioceses”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DZgFygyGE4.

After the video, the leader must introduce the biblical text is and refer that it talks about
someone who, amidst the hustle and bustle of the city, recognized Jesus passing by, heard
His voice, and decided to follow Him forever.

LISTEN
The calling of Levi
The leader must invite everyone to pay attention to the biblical text mentioning that the
name Levi refers to Matthew, a name we hear more often.

The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 5:27-32)

27
Then he went out, and caught sight of a publican, called Levi, sitting at work in the
customs house, and said to him, Follow me. 28And he rose up, and left all behind,
and followed him. 29Then Levi made a great feast for him in his house, and there
was a crowded company of publicans and others who were their fellow guests.
30
Whereupon the Pharisees and scribes complained to his disciples, How comes it
that you eat and drink with publicans and sinners? 31But Jesus answered them, It is
those who are sick, not those who are in health, that have need of the physician. 32I
have not come to call the just; I have come to call sinners to repentance.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After reading the text, the leader must project the painting “The Vocation of St. Matthew”
by Caravaggio onto a wall.

The leader must begin by asking if there is any relation between the painting and the
objects used at the beginning of the meeting.

Then, based on the PPT presentation, the leader must present the different details of the
painting, which can be complemented with the following ones:

The setting:

• The episode takes place in an empty, dimly lit space where the only furniture is a
table and some chairs. On the table is a bag and money being counted. It is the
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 47

place where tax debts are being collected.

• Galilee, the province where this takes place, was known as a land of Gentiles. It was
outside the heavily religious area of Judea, where Matthew was from. Galilee was an
intensely commercial area where the trade routes from Asia Minor passed through,
and where trade between various peoples took place in a protected manner, enrich-
ing the population and resulting in tax benefits for the Romans. The social context
was pluralist, secular, and flexible as to the observance of religious precepts, such as
the observance of the Sabbath rest. Religion was seen as a matter for the individual.
• On the wall there is a window, but no light comes in; it appears to be opaque and
has a shutter. It functions to mark the division between inner and outer space.
However, it raises a question: is the scene taking place in an interior or exterior
space, public or private? If it is interior, why doesn’t the window let in light and what
is the purpose of the shutter? If it is outside, why does the light seem to come in
through another window or gap? From the ambiguity of space, it can be inferred
that the master’s call surpasses space; there is no space where Jesus’ call cannot
reach.

The characters:

• It is the light and shadow in this painting that define the characters.
• Five men are seated around the table. In front of the five tax collectors, on the oppo-
site side of the composition, two other men are entering the room. One of them
is Jesus Christ who with outstretched arm points to Matthew, that is sitting at the
table. The other is St. Peter who makes a similar gesture to Jesus, but less obviously.
• Jesus points to the tax collector Levi (Matthew). Some authors argue that Matthew is
the bearded man in the center, overshadowed by the light that suddenly enters the
room, and seems to move backwards in a motion of astonishment. Pointing to him-
self with his left hand, he seems to be saying in response, “Who, me?”
• However, another explanation indicates that Matthew will instead be the man at the
head of the table still blindly counting the money. In this case, Jesus is looking at
him and pointing at him head-on. He doesn’t realize it yet, but the light is about to
illuminate his face. At any moment the light makes him raise his eyes realizing the
Master’s call.
• This interpretation, perhaps more actualized, suggests that the bearded man is
not actually pointing at himself, but at the young man who stands with his head
down, immersed in counting money, so that asking, “Who, him?” Other art critics
think that Caravaggio deliberately left the composition ambiguous, leaving it up to
the observer to choose. In any case, this uncertainty brings us back to the fact that
Jesus calls everyone (there are many “Matthews”); Jesus did not come to call only
the Jews (as was the case with Matthew). His call also extends to the Gentiles, to the
other publicans who related to him, to all men and women of all times, places, and
cultures.
• The other seated characters show different behaviors. The two young men with the
feathered beret are looking at the foreigners who have entered.
• The old man in the fur collar examines the young man’s count, bent over the table.

The composition

• The painting can be divided into two opposing parts: on the left, the group of five
men seated around the table forms a horizontal block; on the right, the figures of
Christ and St. Peter follow a vertical arrangement.
• The clothes also emphasize the counting position of the two groups. On one side,
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 48

Levi and the tax collectors are elegantly dressed, according to Caravaggio’s era.
• On the other side, with bare feet and dressed in old clothes, are Jesus and Peter.
The absence of shoes symbolizes the ideal of poverty that those who follow Jesus
should live. Their feet are directed to the door, as if to indicate that they are leaving.
• The two blocks are separated by an empty space in the center of the representation,
filled only by Jesus’ right hand, which creates a connection between them.
• Notice how Jesus’ hand reproduces Adam’s hand, painted in the Sistine Chapel by
Michelangelo in Creation of Adam. One author describes Caravaggio’s intention
thus: “Everything leads us to believe that Christ does to him or disposes himself to
have Matthew do what God did to Adam: Christ asks Matthew to create him, con-
cretely to biograph him. (...) Christ, erased, in the darkness covered up by Peter,
asks Matthew to create and “invent” him”. (When he became Apostle and evan-
gelist, Matthew biographies Christ, brings him to light for the people to whom he
preached the Good News).
• In Caravaggio’s painting, the biblical episode is realistically portrayed and adapted
to the historical times of the painter. The characters around the table are dressed in
contemporary clothing and are in an environment that observers of the time could
recognize as one of many meeting places, a Roman tavern in the 1600s.
• The artist’s intention was to express a religiosity within the reach of all social classes,
also of those who were considered to be sinners. Levi’s call becomes the representa-
tion of something that could happen to any man of that time and at any time.

The light

• As mentioned above, light does not enter through the window figured in the com-
position. There is a strong light beam that breaks through from the right side of
the composition, without us knowing its source. Caravaggio would precisely know
the place the painting would occupy in the Contarelli chapel to where it was com-
missioned. This light that enters over Christ’s head would come from a window in
the chapel. On the other hand, it symbolically alludes to God himself, the Trinity, a
source that extrapolates and transcends our perception and the limits of the world
(“God is light, and in him is no shadow of darkness” 1 Jn 1:5).
• There is also light coming from outside of the composition, coming from another
direction. Christ is Himself illuminated and the illumination of other characters
seems to indicate that there is a light coming from below. Caravaggio would have
known that below the place where the painting would be placed would be the altar
area, where Christ is present in the Eucharist. He who is the light of the world illumi-
nates the characters in this painting.
• The light in this painting by Caravaggio is therefore a symbolic light, not a physical
light. It represents the grace offered for the salvation of the soul. The salvation that
is received by those who look to Jesus and welcome His light. Those who remain in
the shadows, still live closed in themselves and with the limited things of the world.

Others

• In 1951 X-rays taken to the painting revealed that the figure of Peter was added
later to the first layer. Its insertion refers to the role of the Church in continuing to
call, just like Christ did. God never calls directly, but always through the Church, rep-
resented by Peter.
• The presence of spectacles is a demonstration of the scrupulous care Caravaggio
devotes to every detail of the painting. Symbolically, they may represent “myopia”
that results from being blinded by money.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 49

RECEIVE
Jesus calls you to follow Him
Based on the biblical text of the vocation of St. Matthew, a seminarian can be invited to
talk about his vocational story. The following aspects can be highlighted:

• How have you realized you were being called to follow Jesus?
• Jesus sees us and calls us in the places where we are.
• Jesus wants us and makes us his disciples: from amazement to membership, from
membership to the proclamation of the Kingdom of God.
• The discovery of our own vocation and its various concretizations are part of God’s
plan for us.
• Jesus calls you to be his disciple.

PRAY AND ASK YOURSELF

Contemplating myself in the painting
The leader must introduce the moment of prayer, mentioning that the time has come for
everyone to identify themselves with the painting of Levi’s vocation.

The leader must contextualize Levi’s vocation into the broader context of Luke’s Gospel
concerning the calling of the first disciples on Lake Gennesaret narrated in Lk 5:1-11.

Some background music can be played.

The leader must show the whole painting again and ask each youth to silently follow the
instructions in the Pilgrim’s Journal:

• Choose a position to pray.

• Focus your gaze on the painting and answer the questions presented.

Pilgrim’s Journal:

• Choose a comfortable, balanced, quiet place and body position.

• Keeping the Gospel episode in mind, focus your gaze on the painting, and let Jesus
lead you through this scene.
• Place yourself inside that dark space. What feelings, memories, smells come to you?
What does it tell you about what resides inside you and the world?
• The light breaking through from the right side shines on all the characters in the
painting. Each one reacts in a different way. Wear the shoes of one of those charac-
ters. Which one of them are you? Why is that so?
• You’re feeling Jesus’ gaze and His creative hand being directed towards you. How do
you want to respond to His invitation? Are you saying yes or no?
• Following Jesus involves walking with Him, doing as He does, and going where
He says. This is what means being His disciple. What does Jesus call you to do or
change in your life to be his disciple?
• In what other situations, is Jesus calling you to walk in His light? What do you think
you have to transform? What is it that you have to leave and abandon to follow
Jesus?
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 50

ASK YOURSELF
My vocation
Still in a prayerful atmosphere, the leader must invite the youth to read three of the fol-
lowing texts from the Exhortation Christus Vivit. The texts are meant to reflect on the voca-
tional meaning of Christian life, and respective personal response to the vocation that
God has for each person.

Text 1

It is true that the word “vocation” can be understood in a broad sense, as a call from God.
It includes the call to life, the call to friendship with Him, the call to holiness, etc. This is
valuable, because it places our whole life before the God who loves us Pope Francis and
allows us to understand that nothing is the fruit of meaningless chaos, but that everything
Pope Francis can Christus Vivit 248 be integrated into a path of response to the Lord, who has a pre-
Christus Vivit 248 cious plan for us.

Text 2

The fundamental thing is to discern and discover that what Jesus wants from every young
person is, first of all, his friendship. This is the fundamental discernment. In the Risen Lord’s
dialogue with his friend Simon Peter, the big question was, “Simon, son of John, do you
love me?” (Jn 21:16). That is to say, do you want me as a friend? The mission that Peter
Pope Francis receives Pope Francis to care for his sheep and lambs will always be linked to this gratu-
Christus Vivit 250 itous love, this Christus Vivit 250 love of friendship.

Text 3

To fulfil one’s vocation, it is necessary to develop oneself, to make everything one is sprout
and grow. It is not a matter of inventing oneself, of creating oneself out of nothing, but of
discovering oneself in the light of God and making one’s being flourish: “In the design of
God, every man is called to promote his own progress, because the life of every man is a
vocation.” Your vocation directs you to extract the best from yourself for the glory of God
and the good of others. The important thing is not just to do things, but to do them with
a meaning, with an orientation. In this regard, St. Albert Hurtado told youth that direc-
tion has to be taken very seriously: “In a boat, the pilot who gets distracted is fired with-
out appeal, because he is risking something too sacred. And in life, do we take care of our
course? What is your course? If it is necessary to develop this idea further, I ask each of
Pope Francis you to give it the utmost importance, because getting this right is simply getting it right,
Christus Vivit 257 and failing this is simply failing.”

Text 4

I want you to know that the Lord, when he thinks of someone, of what he would like to
give him as a gift, sees him as his personal friend. And if he has decided to give you a
grace, a charism that will make you live your life to the full by making you a useful person
to others, someone who leaves a mark on history, it will certainly be something that will
make you happy in the most intimate part of yourself and will excite you more than any-
thing else Pope Francis in this world. Not, because the gift granted is an extraordinary or
Pope Francis rare charisma, but Christus Vivit 288 because it is precisely to your measure, to the meas-
Christus Vivit 288 ure of your whole life.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 51

After reading the texts, each youth must answer the following questions:

• Do my life choices and style present signs of my will to correspond to the Lord’s call?
• Do I feel like I am getting closer and closer to the vocation to which God is calling
me?

At the end of this exercise, the following song is sung:

O God, keep me safe (Behüte mich Gott, Taizé)

O God keep me safe, for I trust in You
The pathway to life You teach me.
With you is peace and joy in all fullness.

Behüte mich Gott, ich vertraue dir

Du zeigst mir den Weg zum Leben
Bei dir ist Freude, Freude in Fülle

RISE UP AND SHARE

The leader must invite the youth to talk personally with them, with a priest or with another
person of reference in the Christian community about the questions worked upon in the
“Ask Yourself” moment.

KEEP GOING
Close to us
Until the next meeting, the youth are invited to read a book that presents a vocation story.
They will be able to confront themselves with God’s call in the life of a concrete person.

As suggestions: Guido Schäffer, St. Francis of Assisi, Frederick Ozanam.

RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #5 52

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church
Called to be disciples

520. Throughout his life, Jesus shows himself to be our model: He is “the perfect man”
who invites us to become his disciples and follow him; by his humiliation, he gives us an
example to imitate; by his prayer, he invites us to prayer; by his poverty, he stimulates us
to freely accept self-denial and persecution.

PERSONAL PROJECT
#5 Step – Talking about my vocation
“Rising up, he followed him.” (Lk 5:28)

In the fifth step of this pilgrimage, we challenge you to talk to someone about your voca-
tion. God calls you to happiness!

Pray, choose a person to talk to, and organize the ideas to share. Think about the vari-
ous vocations.

To reflect upon:

• What vocation speaks the most to me? What am I attracted to? What do I fear in
each options?
• I am the “now of God”! Who do I serve? What mission does God call me to?
• How is my Specific Conversion Step going? (Evaluate it.)
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #6 53

MEETING #6
Rise up and show yourself (Luke 6:6-11)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To understand the prophetic dimension of the WYD through the testimony of the youth.
• To remember the miracles of personal life in which Jesus invites us to rise up.
• To accept that God wants to use me as a protagonist in the building of his Kingdom.

Information for the leader:

The core of this meeting is the words of Jesus to the man whose atrophied hand was
healed. Jesus said to him, “Rise up and stand in front of everyone”. This is the challenge
that resides in the meeting – youth shall feel loved and healed by the Lord, and encour-
aged to “stand in front of everyone”, to share their faith with joy and enthusiasm, so that
others may believe. The meeting ends with a moment of prayer and a commitment is
made to be give a testimony of the joy of the encounter with Jesus for the community.

Necessary material:

• Toy building blocks (two blocks per participant).

• Pens to write on the building blocks.
• Icon of Our Lady WYD Salus populi romani;
• A space for pondering and sharing and another for praying.

GET READY
Testimony of trust, joy, and faith
In the meeting space there are several building blocks scattered all over the floor. The
leader must keep the block that has “stand up” written on it without the youth seeing it.

Then the leader must inform the youth that this meeting will talk about one of the char-
acteristics of the WYD – the testimony of trust, joy, and faith that the youth give to the
hosting city of the WYD. For this mark and presence to be credible during the WYD, it is
necessary that the youth not only assume it during WYD, but also from this moment on.

The leader now suggests a game to be done with the blocks, requesting each youth to
choose two blocks. One must be kept and the other is to be used in the following way:

• The leader must request each youth to think of:

– How do they imagine the environment of a WYD to be?
– What testimony do the youth leave in the hosting city of the WYD?
– What makes the WYD different from other youth gatherings?

• The leader must let the youth express themselves and share their ideas. If there are
any youth who have been to other WYDs, they can briefly share their experience.
• Then, each person places one block in a designated place to build a “city,” the city of
the WYD.
• The other piece is saved for another moment.
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LISTEN
Rise up and stand in front of everyone
The leader must introduce the proclamation of the biblical text, indicating that further on
there will be a moment of silence where the youth can share the results of their ponder-
ing and meditation based on this text and other provocations.

The proclamation of the biblical text follows.

The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 6:6-11)

6
And on another sabbath day it happened that he went into the synagogue to teach,
when there was a man there who had his right hand withered. 7The scribes and Pharisees
were watching him, to see whether he would restore health on the sabbath, so that they
might have a charge to bring against him. 8He knew their secret thoughts, and said to
the man who had his hand withered, Rise up, and come forward; whereupon he rose to
his feet. 9Then Jesus said to them, I have a question to ask you; which is right, to do good
on the sabbath day, or to do harm? To save life, or to make away with it? 10And he looked
round on them all, and said to him, Stretch out thy hand. And he did so, and his hand was
restored to him. 11And they were overcome with fury, debating with one another what
they could do to Jesus.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After a moment of silence in which everyone reads the text again, small groups are to
be created.

The leader must invite the youth to look at the floor plan of a synagogue drawn in the
Pilgrim’s Journal. The leader must mention that in one of the previous meetings, the group
talked about a text whose scene takes place in the Synagogue of Nazareth (cf. Luke 4:16-21).

The leader must explain the meaning of the text and highlight some of the following aspects:

• As Jesus performs miracles, many people follow Him with enthusiasm.

• But some people and groups also see Jesus as a threat, mistrusting His intentions, espe-
cially the doctors of the Law and the Pharisees.

Next, the leader must request each group to reflect on one of the synagogue’s captions.

Caption 1: Synagogue

Synagogue means “place of assembly.” In Jesus’ time, synagogues were the largest build-
ing in a town. It had a simple rectangular structure, with a gable roof and a mosaic floor.
Synagogues were usually oriented towards Jerusalem. On the east wall was a chest for
storing the scrolls of Scripture. They were the prayer place of the community that gath-
ered on Saturdays for the reading and commentary of some passage of Scripture. Those
who read the word of God sat on a raised platform, and the biblical commentary was usu-
ally in a seat reserved for the master (rabbi). The people sat on stone or wooden benches
along the walls or on mats on the floor. In the synagogue men and women gathered indis-
criminately, although separately and in different areas. Jewish sources place the origins
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of synagogues soon after the destruction of the first Temple by the Babylonians (6th cen-
tury BC). Even with the existence of the Temple, in Jesus’ time synagogues continued to
function in communities that had at least ten men. The reading of the Law was always
done in Hebrew by the rabbi, but the reading of the Prophets that followed, as well as the
Writings, which was also sometimes done, could be done in Aramaic, the language that
was spoken, and by any man from the age of thirteen (Lk 4:14-21).

Caption 2: Sabbath

The Sabbath is the seventh day of the week, the one that divides the weeks. It is a day on
which one rests after six days of work. However, its significance comes not simply from mark-
ing the rhythm of the weeks, but from the fact that it is the sanctified day, dedicated to God,
the day to celebrate God’s Covenant with his people. As a day of joy and a time of special
dedication to God, it is a day of rest, of prayer and teaching, on which it is forbidden to do
any kind of work, travel certain distances, cook, or eat certain foods. Jesus is criticized by the
Jewish authorities for performing miracles and healings on the Sabbath.

Caption 3: Doctors of the Law 

Men who devoted themselves to the study, interpretation, and teaching of the Law of
Moses (the Law, for the Jews, is a strong sign of God’s presence). They were a kind of the-
ologians, teachers, and guardians of the Law. In this text, they are observing Jesus to pres-
sure Him not to perform miracles on the Sabbath day. St. Luke reveals the fury of these
men at Jesus’ prophetic intervention.

Caption 4: Pharisees 

They were a kind of religious party whose thinking was based on taking care of purity,
the observance of legal prescriptions, and charitable works. They were the most promi-
nent group in society at the time of Jesus. Together with the Doctors of the Law, they were
Jesus’ adversaries. According to the Pharisees, medical interventions could only be done
on Saturday in the case of danger of death, which is not the case with the man with the
paralyzed hand. They are also furious that Jesus performs the healing.

Caption 5: Man with paralyzed hand  

This is an anonymous figure whose name we do not even know – only that his right hand
is paralyzed. Certainly, known to most of those present ones and to whom nothing can be
done anymore.

He is the object of Jesus’ salvation that frees him from his atrophy and paralysis. The right
hand is certainly the hand that this man needed the most for his daily life, to work and to
develop other activities.

However, this man’s healing is not only a personal benefit that was granted to him. By want-
ing that man to be an argument to show His strength and power as the Son of God, Jesus
calls him to Himself and commands Him, “Stand up”, as if to say to him: I need you, so that
through you and what I will do to you, others believe in the power of my love.

Jesus calls this man with a disability, marginalized, and exploited by the doctors of the Law, and
makes His healing become a sign of God’s mercy and power being accomplished to others.

After this, each group must explain to the rest of the youth the meaning of each caption,
particularly characterizing their symbolism in the text, that is, their relationship to Jesus.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #6 56

The leader must now describe the way Jesus is presented in the text, explaining the relation-
ship He establishes with the other figures and highlighting the following aspects:

• Jesus presents Himself as a pious Jew who fulfils the duty of praying in the syna-
gogue on the Sabbath. However, He presents Himself as a teacher and interpreter
of the Law and the Covenant while trying to restore a saving and liberating mean-
ing to the Sabbath. By His action Jesus demonstrates that the Sabbath is a day to
do good and to save lives. He shows that the Law’s purpose is for man to love more
and better, and not for good and love to be blocked and hindered.
• The text places Jesus’ action directly linked to the thoughts of the Doctors of the Law
and the Pharisees. Jesus appears with a provocative tone by showing His opposi-
tion to what these thought. By commanding the man who has a paralyzed hand to
“Stand up and stand in the middle,” Jesus wants to tell him that he shall not be afraid
or ashamed of anything, he can stand “upright” before the Doctors, because the
love of God that he has received is stronger than any law. And he stands there, in
the middle, showing himself and showing the strength of God’s love in Jesus.
• Jesus performs the miracle. Love is revealed in that man who serves as a witness, so
that others will believe in the power of love, good and life. For others to know how
to make the right choice, Jesus says, “I ask you, does the Sabbath allow you to do
good or to do evil, to save a life or to destroy it?”
• Pope Francis says that in this text Jesus does not appear only as a healer, but as
someone who “recreates existence.” Jesus comes to recreate and free the two kinds
of slavery present in the text – the one that resides in the man with “the paralyzed
hand, slave to his illness” and the one of “the Pharisees, the scribes, slaves to their
rigid, legalistic attitudes.” Jesus sets them all free. He first shows the rigid ones
that that is not the way to freedom, and then he heals the sick man. (Pope Francis,
Homily at Santa Marta, September 9, 2013).

The leader must conclude this moment by providing an analysis of the text according to
the lives of the youth:

• Through that man, Jesus showed the world His power to offer life, good, and joy.
Jesus wanted to need him so that he could be an example and a witness.
• The Lord also wants to need us. Jesus gives us the mission to reveal the wonders of
God’s love to others with our, so they may believe through our testimony.
• This is our mission as WYD pilgrims – to witness Jesus’ presence in Lisbon 2023,
here, and now in our daily lives.
• Our society needs youth who are able to “stand up,” to let themselves be healed,
transformed, and converted by Jesus, who will stand up in the middle of the world to
show others that same path.

RECEIVE
Recreate existence
Right now a testimony of the life of Chiara Petrillo must be presented.
Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_YuHx8Fjmx8

Either before or after the film, the leader must pose the following question: Did Chiara
Petrillo and her husband live as slaves, or did they know how to recreate existence? In
what way did they announce the wonders of God in their lives?
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ASK YOURSELF
Rise up, I need you
After the video, the leader must invite the youth to read the biblical text in silence and to
meditate, dialoguing with God about the following points:

Imagining the text

• I let myself be put in the place of the man who was healed. I let myself imagine what
his life would be like.
• I let myself contemplate his surprise and feelings at Jesus’ command (fear, trust,
etc.).
• I let myself thank the way his healing worked as moment to witness the power of
Jesus’ love in the face of oppressive forces.

Looking at my life

• I let myself remember situations in my life where I have felt God’s healing, His liber-
ation, His light.
• I let myself meditate on the example of Chiara Petrillo and ask what small steps are
possible in my life to stop living in paralysis?
• I let myself remember moments when I experienced Jesus doing “miracles”, wonder-
ful things, telling me: “Get up! I need you so that, through you and what I am going
to do in you, others will believe in the power of love, of forgiveness...!
• I let myself choose a word or drawing that expresses what I feel when Jesus makes
miracles in my life and tells me, “Get up, I need you. I write on the second construc-
tion piece”.
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SHARE
The leader must now reveal the block with the verb “Rise up” written on it.

Then the leader must request each young to freely share the meaning and the reason for
the word written on the play, that is, the moment when they felt Jesus was telling them,
“Get up!” and doing “miracles”, wonderful things in his life.

PRAY
A new construction
Standing in front of the icon of Our Lady, a short moment of prayer follows.

Song

The Kingdom of God is justice and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Come Lord and open in us the gates of your Kingdom. (Taizé)

• Moment of silence.
• Proclamation of Lk 6:6-11.
• Silence and singing.
• Prayer read by two youth alternately:

“Only God can... But you... “

1. Only God can create,

2. But you can give value what He created.

1. Only God can give life,

2. But you can transmit it and respect it.

1. Only God can make it grow,

2. But you can guide and orient it.

1. Only God can give faith,

2. But you can be a sign from God for your brother.

1. Only God can give love,

2. But you can learn to love your brother.

1. Only God can give strength,

2. But you can cheer the others up.

1. Only God can give hope,

2. But you can give your brother back confidence.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #6 59

1. Only God can give joy,

2. But you can always smile.

1. Only God is the way,

2. But you can teach the way to your brother.

1. Only God is light,

2. But you can make Him shine for your brother.

1. Only God can work miracles,

2. But you have to offer him your five loaves and two fish.

National Secretariat for 1. Only God can do the impossible,

the Prayer Apostolate , 2. But you have to do what you can.
GPS for Christian Life,
Braga, Prayer Apostolate, 1. Only God is enough to Himself,
2011, p. 123 2. But He wanted to need each of us.

In the end, the leader must invite each youth to go to the icon of Our Lady and place
their block on top of the “Rise Up” block. The leader must explain that this construction
symbolizes their commitment to build a different “city” around them, showing others the
graces received from the Lord.

The previous song can be sung during the activity.

Once the construction is finished, the group shall pray a Hail Mary, entrusting their mis-
sion and commitment to Our Lady.

RISE UP
Go to the middle
Recalling the initial moment of the meeting and alluding to the presence of youth in the
cities of the hosting country of each WYD, the leader must mention that the presence of
the youth in Lisbon will be as important for the city, as for each person living this challenge.

Before transforming Lisbon in 2023 with their testimony, the youth should feel called to
go to the middle of their cities, villages, towns. To the middle of their schools and univer-
sities, work, family, friends, parish… To the middle of where and with whom they live and
there show the power of Jesus.

The leader must invite the youth to choose a group commitment through which they
will show to others what they have recognized as God’s grace and miracle in their lives.

Considering what they have said in the sharing moment, the leader can help the youth
to realize their commitments.

At the end the leader must invite each youth to randomly collect one of the blocks placed
in the construction during the prayer and take it home. The youth must remember that in
order to bear witness to the love of Jesus, they need to rely on each other’s commitments.
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KEEP GOING
Besides the group commitment, it is suggested that the group watches the movie I’m not
ashamed (2016) discussing it later.

Until the next meeting, the youth must build a cross identical to the WYD cross.

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church 
One Body

790. Believers who respond to God’s word and become members of Christ’s Body, become
intimately united with him: “In that body the life of Christ is communicated to those who
believe, and who, through the sacraments, are united in a hidden and real way to Christ
in his Passion and glorification.”220. This is especially true of Baptism, which unites us to
Christ’s death and Resurrection, and the Eucharist, by which “really sharing in the body of
the Lord, we are taken up into communion with him and with one another.

PERSONAL PROJECT
#6 Step – I thank God
Rise up and stand in the middle (Lk 6:8)

In this step of the journey, you are invited to exercise gratitude. Gratitude is an attitude
that helps us recognize God’s goodness in our lives.

To reflect on:

• What do you want to be grateful for?

• Share your reasons for gratitude with the person you chose in the previous step.
Continue the conversation about your spiritual life and you will see how God will
give you light to walk by.
• Evaluate your Concrete Conversion Step one more time. How have you been living
it?
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MEETING #7
Rise up and live (Lk 7:11-17)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To deepen the Pope’s message regarding the World Youth Day 2020 (lived in the
dioceses).
• To experience how Jesus is present in the life and death situations of one’s own
existence.
• To be confronted with the real experience of their dreams and how they strive for
them.

Information for the leader:

• This meeting’s core is the message proffered by Pope Francis for WYD 2020. The
theme “Young man, I say to you, rise up!” (Lk 7:14) is the first to the journey of
preparation for WYD Lisbon. The message is adapted to each moment of the meet-
ing, particularly in the “Listen” and “Receive” moments.
• The centrality of prayer is also emphasized in this meeting and is present at the
beginning and at the part linked to the “Ask Yourself” moment.
• As there are several interventions by youth in this meeting, the “Share” moment is
not confined to a defined space.
• Considering the option of viewing or not the testimony by Bethany Hamilton, the
suggested work can be done in pairs, if needed.

Necessary material:

• Group cross (built after the last meeting).

• Video of Pope Francis’ meditation on the Way of the Cross at WYD in Rio de Janeiro:
https://youtu.be/qev8aOtP18A;
• Video about Bethany Hamilton: https://bethanyhamilton.com/ or
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgzR4oTB4e0;
• T-light candles.

GET READY
The WYD Cross
“My dear youth, at the conclusion of the Holy Year, I entrust to you the sign of this
Jubilee Year: the Cross of Christ! Carry it throughout the world as a symbol of Christ’s
Pope John Paul II’s love for humanity, and announce to everyone that only in the death and resurrec-
Homily, April 22nd 1984 tion of Christ we can find salvation and redemption.”

In the Holy Year of Redemption (1983-1984) John Paul II felt like a cross should be placed
near the main altar in St Peter’s Basilica, where it could be seen by all. A large wooden
cross, 3.8 meters high, was placed there according to the Pope’s wishes. At the end of the
Holy Year, after closing the Holy Door, the Pope entrusted this same Cross to the youth
from all over the world, that were represented by the youth of the Youth Centre of St.
Lawrence in Rome.
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One of the highest points of any WYD is the celebration of the Via Crucis (The Way of The
Cross), in which each person faces the mystery of the life, passion and resurrection of Jesus
Christ. Let us receive the Cross of our Savior as well with the hymn of the WYD Rome 2000.

The leader must choose two youth to bring the group’s cross in procession and place it
in a prominent place. While this is happening, the youth are invited to stand up to receive
the cross. During this moment a song can be sung.

Emmanuel - World Youth Day Hymn Rome 2000

A light has dawned in our horizon, telling us the story
Reminding us of how He won the dark years of our history
Illumined by His light we see that life is not worth living,
If we don’t seek the Truth that lives deep in our hearts

With faith we set our hearts to Rome from every road and city
We hear the echo of His word resounding from the Heavens
Today I lived a man that’s true, it’s Christ who stands between us
Together let us all proclaim He is with us!

We are here together under His light

Together under His cross
We sing His song with one voice:
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, Emmanuel
Emmanuel, Emmanuel, Emmanuel

This city which has been founded by our martyrs out of love
It has transformed the ancient world, will guide us on our way
With Peter and the saints, we follow Christ whose love renews us
And with His word alive in us we can declare

For God so loved the world He gave us Christ His only son
By His light we are renewed and gave us our salvation
A man that’s true, the Bread of Life, He’s God of all the nations
Once more He offers us Himself and we declare

The leader must invite the youth to contemplate the cross of Jesus as a sign of the life He
gave us. By overcoming death, He calls us to true life. The refrain of the song can be sung.

Next, the leader must mention that the cross is one of the most important symbols of the
WYD. The World Youth Day Cross was given by Pope Saint John Paul II to the youth at the
end of the celebrations for the Holy Year of Redemption in 1984. This cross has travelled
through all the hosting countries of the WYD.

The leader must refer that one of the highest points of a WYD is the celebration of the
Way of the Cross, in which we are confronted with this mystery of the life, passion, death,
and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The leader must then present the video with Pope Francis’ meditation on the Way of the
Cross at the WYD in Rio de Janeiro.
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LISTEN
Young man, I tell you: Rise up
The leader must introduce the proclamation of the biblical text, pointing out that this text
was the theme of Pope Francis’ message for WYD 2020.

The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 7:11-17)

11
And now it happened that he was going into a city called Naim, attended by
his disciples and by a great multitude of people. 12And just as he drew near the
gate of the city, a dead man was being carried out to his burial; the only son of
his mother, and she was a widow; and a crowd of folk from the city went with her.
13
When the Lord saw her, he had pity on her, and said, Do not weep. 14Then he
went up and put his hand on the bier; and those who were carrying it stood still.
And he said, Young man, I say to thee, rise up. 15And the dead man sat up, and
spoke; and Jesus gave him back to his mother. 16They were all overcome with awe,
and said, praising God, A great prophet has risen up among us; God has visited
his people. 17And this story of him was noised abroad throughout the whole of
Judaea and all the country round.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After the reading and based on the notes that the Pope makes for each part of the text,
the leader must ask the youth to individually highlight the gesture of Jesus that strikes
them the most.

The gestures of Jesus

In this text, we see that Jesus, after entering the town of Nain, in Galilee, comes across a
funeral cortege accompanying a young man, the only son of a widowed mother, to the
grave. Touched by the woman’s anguished suffering, Jesus performs the miracle of resur-
recting her son. However, the miracle takes place after a series of attitudes and gestures:
“When the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep. And
He came and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still” (Lk 7:13-14).

1. Seeing suffering and death

When Jesus entered the town of Nain in Galilee, He came upon a funeral cortege accom-
panying a young man, the only son of a widowed mother, to the grave.

Jesus looks attentively at the funeral procession. In the midst of the crowd, He sees the
face of a woman marked by extreme suffering. His gaze generates an encounter, a source
of new life. There is no need for many words.

2. To have compassion

Sacred Scripture often refers to the state of mind of one who is moved “to the core” by the
pain of others. Jesus’ emotion makes Him share the reality with the other. He takes upon
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #7 64

Himself the misery of the other. The pain of that mother becomes His pain. The death of
that son becomes His death.

3. Drawing near and “touching”

Jesus draws Himself near the funeral procession – He makes Himself close. Closeness
urges us to go beyond, making a courageous gesture so that the other may live. A pro-
phetic gesture is the touch of Jesus, the Living One, who transmits life. A touch that infuses
the Holy Spirit into the dead body of the young man and rekindles his vital functions. That
touch penetrates a reality of desolation and despair. It is the touch of the Divine, which also
passes through authentic human love and opens up unimaginable spaces of freedom, dig-
nity, hope, and new and full life. The efficacy of this gesture of Jesus is priceless. It reminds
us that a sign of closeness, even when it simple and true, can arouse resurrection forces.

Pope Francis,
4. “Young man, I say to you, rise up!”
Message for the
35th World Youth The Gospel does not mention the name of that young man raised by Jesus at Nain. This
Day, 2020 is an invitation to the reader, to identify themself with him.

In the end, the youth must briefly share what they highlighted in the text.

RECEIVE
A word from the Pope
Then, four groups are created. The leader must explain that each group will reflect on one
of the aspects of the Pope’s commentary on the text. At the end, each group presents to
the others the content of the point on which they reflected.

1. Seeing suffering and death

I think of so many negative situations experienced by your contemporaries. For example,

there are those who risk everything in the present moment with extreme experiences,
endangering their own lives. But there are other youth who are “dead”, because they have
lost hope. I heard a young woman say: “I see that among my friends the impetus to commit
oneself, the courage to stand up, has been lost. Unfortunately, among youth, depression
is also spreading, which can, in some cases, lead to the temptation to destroy one’s life.
There are so many situations where apathy reigns and the individual is lost in an abyss of
anguish and remorse. Countless youth cry, without anyone hearing the cry of their soul.
Often, all that is around them are distracted, indifferent glances, perhaps even those of
someone enjoying their happy moments, keeping their distance.

There are those who let their days go by in superficiality, considering themselves alive when
inside, in reality, they are dead (cf. Rev 3:1). It is possible to find oneself at twenty dragging
along a decadent life, not worthy of one’s dignity. Everything is reduced to “letting go,”
being content with any gratification: a little entertainment, a few crumbs of attention and
affection from others, etc. There is also a widespread digital narcissism, which influences
both youth and adults. Many live like this! Some of them may have breathed around them
the materialism of those who think only of making money and establishing themselves in
life, as if these were their only goals. In the long run, a deafening uneasiness, an apathy,
a boredom of life will inevitably appear, more and more distressing.
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Negative behaviors can also be provoked by personal failures, when something that we
had at heart and for which we had strived stops progressing or does not produce the
expected results. This can happen in the school field, or with sporting and artistic pre-
tensions, etc. The end of a “dream” can lead to feeling dead. But failures are part of every
human being’s life and can sometimes even prove to be a grace.

2. Have compassion

On many occasions, youth show that you know how to be compassionate. Just look at how
generously many of you give of yourselves when circumstances demand it. There is no
disaster, no earthquake, no flood that does not see groups of young volunteers come to
the rescue. Even the great mobilization of youth who want to defend creation bears wit-
ness to your ability to hear the cry of the earth.

Dear youth, do not let this sensitivity be robbed from you. May you always hear the groans
of those who suffer; may you be moved by those who weep and die in today’s world.
“Certain realities of life can only be seen with eyes cleansed by tears” (Christus vivit, 76).
If you know how to cry with those who cry, you will be truly happy. There are so many of
your contemporaries who are deprived of opportunities, suffer violence, persecution. Let
their wounds become yours, and you will be bearers of hope in this world. You will be
able to tell your brother, your sister “get up, you are not alone, you are not alone”, making
them experience that God the Father loves us and Jesus is his hand extended to lift us up.

3. Draw near and touch

You too, youth, can approach the realities of suffering and death that you encounter, you can
touch them and generate life like Jesus. This is possible, thanks to the Holy Spirit, if you are
first touched by his love, if your heart is touched by the experience of his goodness towards
you. Now, if you feel within you this passionate tenderness of God for every living creature,
especially for the brother who is hungry, thirsty, sick, naked, imprisoned, then you will be able
to approach like him, to touch like him, and to transmit his life to your friends who are dead
inside, who suffer or have lost faith and hope.

4. “Young man, I say to you, arise!”

We well know that we Christians, too, fall and we must always get up. Only he who does
not walk does not fall; but neither does he move forward. That is why we must welcome
Christ’s intervention and make an act of faith in God. The first step is to accept to get up.
The new life that He gives us will be good and worth living, because it will be sustained by
Someone who will accompany us also in the future without ever leaving us, helping us to
spend this existence of ours in a worthy and fruitful way.

It is truly a new creation, a new birth, and not mere psychological persuasion. Probably
in moments of difficulty many of you have repeatedly heard certain “magic” phrases that
are trendy today and are supposed to solve everything. Things like “you must believe in
Pope Francis, yourself”, “you must find the resources within you”, “you must become aware of your pos-
Message for the itive energy”, etc. But all of these are mere words, and for those who are truly dead inside,
35th World Youth they don’t work. The word of Christ has another filling. It is infinitely superior, it is a divine
Day, 2020 and creative word, the only one that can restore life to where it has been extinguished.

Based on what the groups shared, the leader must reinforce some of the aspects they
consider most important.
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PRAY AND ASK YOURSELF

Seeing myself in the light of the cross
To transition into a prayerful environment, the opening song can be sung. Another song
be used, such as:

Per crucem et passionem tuam.

Libera nos Domine, libera nos Domine, libera nos Domine, Domine.
Per crucem et passionem tuam.
Libera nos Domine, libera nos Domine, libera nos Domine, Domine.
Per sanctam resurrectionem tuam.
Libera nos Domine, libera nos Domine, libera nos Domine, Domine. (Taizé)

Then, to the sound of instrumentals, the youth are invited to see themselves in the light
of the love of Jesus presented in the text and which they can contemplate on the cross,
through the following aspects highlighted by the Pope in his message:

• What does my gaze look like? Am I look attentively to things and people, or am I
quickly looking just like I do with thousands of photos on my cell phone or social
media?
• What has caused “death” in me or in someone close to me, in the present or in the
past?
• The young man in the Gospel came back to life because he was looked on by
Someone who wanted him to live. Have you ever been looked at by someone like
that?
• All around me I encounter realities of death: physical, spiritual, emotional, social. Am
I aware of this, or am I just suffering the consequences of it? Is there anything I can
do to restore life to this realities?
• That young man died too soon. Surely, he had many dreams that remained unful-
filled. How do you react when your dreams do not come true?

After this time of individual meditation, we propose watching a documentary on the life
of Bethany Hamilton, a young woman who, dreaming of being a professional surfer, saw
her dream stolen by a shark that took her arm.

At the end, a moment of adoration of the Cross is proposed. One of the songs is sung
again, or another appropriate song is chosen.

Then, in silence, each participant lights a candle from the Paschal candle and places it next
to the cross. They must pray next to the cross with a gesture of adoration.

After the individual prayer, there is a community prayer based on the text from the Letter
to the Philippians 2:5-11:

Reader 1: In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:
Reader 2: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to
be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature
of a servant, being made in human likeness.
Everyone: Have the same mind among yourselves, which is in Christ Jesus.
Reader 3: Being made in human likeness, and being found in appearance as a man,
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #7 67

Reader 4: He humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, even death on a cross.

Everyone: Have the same mind among yourselves, which is in Christ Jesus. .
Reader 5: For this very reason God has exalted him above all things and given him a
name that is above every name,
Reader 6: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
Everyone: Have the same sentiments among yourselves, which are in Christ Jesus.
Reader 7: and let every tongue proclaim, “Jesus Christ is Lord!”, 
Reader 8: to the glory of God the Father.
Everyone: Have the same sentiments among you, which are in Christ Jesus.

RISE UP
The new life of the resurrected
With a prayerful atmosphere, the meeting ends with the choice and sharing of a personal
commitment based on what each one has reflected on and received from the Pope’s mes-
sage, particularly with the following texts.

The Gospel says that the young man “began to speak” (Lk 7:15). The first reaction
of a person who has been touched and restored to life by Christ is to express him-
self, to manifest without fear or complexes what he has inside: his personality, his
desires, his needs, his dreams.

To speak also means to enter into a relationship with others. When one is “dead”,
the individual closes in on himself: relationships break down or become superfi-
cial, false, hypocritical. When Jesus gives us back our life, he “gives us back” to oth-
ers (cf. Lk 7:15).

“Rise up” also means “dream”, “risk”, “strive to change the world”, rekindle your
desires, contemplate the sky, the stars, the world around you.

Pope Francis, Because if you give your life, someone welcomes it. And if a young man falls in
Message for the love with something, or rather with Someone, he finally gets up and starts doing
35th World Youth great things; and, from the dead that he was, he can become a witness of Christ
Day, 2020 and give his life for Him.

SHARE
This is followed by the sharing of personal commitments.

The group leader can launch the youth the challenge of identifying people who have lost
a family member and are now living alone. The youth can think of ways to accompany
these people.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #7 68

KEEP GOING
It is suggested to watch the movies: Soul Surfer or Bethany Hamilton: unstoppable.

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church 
The state of Christ’s resurrected humanity

646. Christ’s Resurrection was not a return to earthly life, as was the case with the risings
from the dead that he had performed before Easter: Jairus’ daughter, the young man of
Naim, Lazarus. These actions were miraculous events, but the persons miraculously raised
returned by Jesus’ power to ordinary earthly life. At some particular moment they would
die again. Christ’s Resurrection is essentially different. In His risen body He passes from
the state of death to another life beyond time and space. At Jesus’ Resurrection, His body
is filled with the power of the Holy Spirit: He shares the divine life in His glorious state, so
that St. Paul can say that Christ is “the man of heaven”

PERSONAL PROJECT
#7 Step – Receiving the cross
«Don’t cry» (Lk 7:13)

Suffering and death are realities that characterize our humanity, both on a physical and
spiritual level. In the seventh step of your path, pray and reflect on the “losses” that you
have experienced and that you still have to experience.

To reflect upon:

• What has caused “death” in me in the present, or in the past?

• How do I face loss and death (of people, of projects, of opinion...)?
• I look at the way Jesus welcomed the Cross. What can I learn from it?
• I evaluate my Specific Conversion Step.
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MEETING #8
Wake up and rise up (Lk 8:40-42, 49-56)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To meditate on the realities that emanate light and on those that emanate shadows
present in one’s own existence and in the world.
• To recognize faith as the light that illuminates one’s existence.
• To hear Jesus’ invitation to “wake up”.

Information for the leader:

• When approaching the biblical text, the leader must consider some aspects of the
Pope’s Message worked on in the previous meeting.
• The challenge of the “Keep going” section will be useful for the following meeting,
especially for the activity suggested by the “Get ready” moment.

Necessary material:

• Phrase: “If you are with us, the night will not come”.
• Pillow.
• Video accompanying the texts number 1,2,3, and 4 of the “Listen” moment
• Background music.
• Song: https://youtu.be/KAyqE33-xFs

GET READY
If you are with us, the night will not come
The meeting begins with the hymn of WYD Rome 1986, whose lyrics are in the Pilgrim’s Journal

Stay with us - WYD Hymn Rome 1986

Darkness is closing in, the nighttime air surrounds us
far beyond the horizon
drift away the memories of a day that will never end
of a day that will come again because
we have seen the dawning of a new world
and we’ve discovered a light that will always shine

Stay with us O Lord, the day is near its end

If you’re with us O Lord, the day will never end.
Stay with us O Lord, the day is near its end
If you’re with us O Lord, the day will never end.
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Your love is like the waves, the waves upon the ocean
they are guided by the wind
to the ends of the Earth, so that all people may live as one
so that we can see the sun shining
like a flame that turns into a blazing fire
in the same way your love will invade the world.

After listening to the hymn, the leader must briefly talk about it, highlighting the follow-
ing aspects:

• Ask the youth if they know this song.

– This song, composed by the musical group Gen Rosso, was sung at some youth
meetings held in Rome, particularly at the Jubilee of Youth on the occasion of
the Holy Year of Redemption in 1984. It was taken on as the hymn of the first
WYD in 1986 in the city of Rome.

• The leader must then explain that every WYD has a hymn. The leader must ask if
they know of one of the hymns, and which one, and lets them express themselves.
– The WYD hymn is one of the strongest marks of each edition. Youth around the
world try to learn the original version and also translate the lyrics into their own
languages. The hymn is inspired by the theme of each WYD. J.

The leader must continue the dialogue, inviting the youth to share some of the ideas
inserted in the hymn “Stay with us O Lord”. While summarizing the shared, the leader
should consider the following points:

• Reference to darkness: “darkness is closing in”, “the day is near its end”, “the night-
time air surrounds us”, etc.
• The presence of Jesus as light that illuminates the darkness: “If you’re with us O
Lord, the day will never end”.
• Darkness refers to the not so good moments that we go through: sadness, difficul-
ties, anguish, annoyances...
• A light also appears for us: Jesus! With Him “beside us”, everything becomes easier.

Then, the leader must relate the theme of the hymn to the previous meeting and intro-
duces the current meeting, highlighting the following aspects:

In the previous meeting we reflected on a biblical passage in which a mother experiences

the “night” of the death of her only child, a mother who is going through a very difficult
time, perhaps the darkest of her life. Jesus’ presence and actions towards her and her son
allow her to have light again in her life.

Today, we will also encounter this closeness of Jesus as a source of hope for a family. This
time it will be a father who will approach Jesus because his daughter is very ill.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #8 71

LISTEN
My child, rise up!
The leader must invite the youth to listen to the Bible passage.

The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 8:40-42, 49-56)

40
When Jesus returned, he found the multitude there to greet him; they had all
been awaiting him. 41And now a man named Jairus, who was a ruler of the syna-
gogue, came and fell at Jesus’ feet, imploring him to come to his house, 42for he
had an only daughter about twelve years old, who was dying. It happened that, as
he went, the multitude pressed about him closely. (…) 49While he was yet speaking,
a messenger came to the ruler of the synagogue, to say, Thy daughter is dead; do
not trouble the Master. 50Jesus heard it, and said to him openly, Do not be afraid;
thou hast only to believe, and she will recover. 51When he reached the house, he
would not let anyone come in with him, except Peter and James and John, and the
child’s father and mother. 52All were weeping and bewailing her; There is no need
to weep, he told them; she is not dead, she is asleep. 53And they laughed aloud
at him, well knowing that she was dead. 54But he took her by the hand, and called
aloud, Rise up, maiden; 55and she rose up there and then with life restored to her.
He ordered that she should be given something to eat, 56and warned her parents,
who were beside themselves with wonder, to let no one hear of what had befallen.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

After the proclamation, the leader must show the video commenting the text.

Texts for the video

Text 1

“(…) There was a twelve-year-old girl, dying, waiting for death... or for Jesus. Her father,
Jairus, is fighting for his little girl’s life, and has come to get Jesus to go to his house and
lay his hands of blessing, and thus of good and healing, on his little girl. However, as they
walk, his servants arrive, bringing the sad news that death has come to the girl’s home
before Jesus. The father was certainly heartbroken, as were the other relatives and neigh-
bors, who in such circumstances could only cry and lament, as was customary among the
Jews. And Jesus, who until Don Antonio Couto had merely accompanied Jairus here, with-
Bp. António Couto, out saying anything, now says to Jairus the first audible word: “Don’t be afraid; just have
When Jesus comes faith!” (Mk 5:36). Jesus never comes into our lives late. He is the Lord who lingers with us
into our lives along the way. (...).”
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #8 72

Text 2

“(...) On the Lord’s path everyone is admitted. No one should feel like an intruder, an illegal
person. From this we understand that on the Lord’s path everyone is admitted – no one
should feel like an intruder, an illegal person, or someone without rights. To gain access to
Pope Francis, his heart, to the Heart of Jesus, there is only one condition – to feel in need of healing and
Angelus, 01.08.2018 to trust him.”

Text 3

“(...) For Him no one is untraceable, no one is doomed forever, it is possible to start again
and become new. A hand shall lend you help, and in every dawn that hand will repeat
what it said to Jairus’ daughter, ‘Talità kum’ – ‘Girl, get up!’ – Young life, get up, rise, appear,
Ermes Ronchi, shine, take up the road and the fight again.”
Keepers of the wonder

Text 4

“In Jesus’ time, leaving childhood was a highly anticipated passage in life, one that was
celebrated and enjoyed greatly. That is, when Jesus gives life back to the “child” (Mk 5:39),
He is making her take a step forward, promoting her, turning her into a “child” (Mk 5:41).
Pope Francis At the same time, He tells her ‘Girl, get up!’ (talitá kum) – He made her more responsible
Christus Vivit , 136 for her life, opening the doors of youth to her.”

At the end, the leader must invite the youth to read the biblical text again and, in silence,
to imagine the scene. The leader must stress that they must observe how it all begins on
the street, in the midst of the crowd, but the healing takes place in the familiarity of home.

Then the leader must challenge them to put themselves in the shoes of some of the char-
acters and reflect on the following points:

In Jesus’ place, imagine yourself:

– Being greeted by a crowd.

– Listening to Jairus and, with compassion, granting his request.
– Comforting the girl’s father, even when others say she is “dead”.
– Being scorned by those who don’t believe what you say.
– Healing the girl, away from the “spotlight” of the crowd.

In Jairus’ place, imagine:

– Your role in society, being Head of the Synagogue.

– Your suffering, for the situation of your only daughter.
– What it is like to trust Jesus, especially in life’s most difficult situations.

In the place of Peter, John and James, imagine yourself:

– Accompanying Jesus, in the midst of a crowd;

– Going with Him into the privacy of Jairus’ house.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #8 73

In the little girl’s place, imagine:

– What it will have meant coming back to life.

ASK YOURSELF
What about you?
After imagining the scenes, the youth must individually confront themselves with the mes-
sage of the text, considering the following questions:

• How do you think that father felt when he learned that his daughter was sick?
• How do you think your parents feel when they know that you are not well?
• Jairus goes to Jesus, but he doesn’t ask him for anything for himself. He asks for the
healing of his daughter. What about you? Do you usually talk to Jesus and ask Him
to take care of other people? Do you talk to Him about the ones you love the most?
• Perhaps there has been already someone bringing you some very bad news. Have
you ever felt that you trusted in Jesus and there were people who tried to steal your
hope?
• Jesus wakes up the little girl. What about you? Do you need to be woken up?
• How are you becoming more responsible for your life?

RECEIVE
Don’t be afraid! Just believe...
At the end of the individual time of meditation and prayer, pairs are formed. The leader
must invite them to read the text presented.

Based on the interpretation of the biblical text and on Brother Roger’s reading of the text,
each pair tries to answer the question, “What is faith?”

Text: The nights of the soul are illuminated

We live in a world where light and darkness coexist.

Could it be that in aspiring for light we can be assailed by doubt? A Russian Christian,
Dostoyevsky, instead of worrying about this, wrote, “I am the son of doubt and
unbelief... What a great suffering this thirst for belief has endured and endures. It
becomes stronger the more I find in myself opposite arguments... It was through
the crucible of all doubts that my hosana passed.”

Yet Dostoyevsky continues, “There is nothing more beautiful, more profound, and
more perfect than Christ – not only is there nothing, but there can also be nothing.”

This man of God lets us sense that in him the unbeliever coexists with the believer,
and his great love for Christ is ultimately unaffected.

Happy is the one who walks from doubt to the clarity of humbly trusting in God! Just
as the morning mist is dissipated, the nights of the soul are illuminated. And it is
not an illusory trust, but a limpid trust, which leads to action in concrete situations,
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #8 74

which leads to understanding and love.

Several years ago, I lived for a while with some of my brothers in Calcutta, in a very
poor neighborhood. Mother Teresa sometimes asked me to accompany her in the
afternoon on visits to homes for terminally ill people, where there were lepers who
were waiting only for death. And every morning, with one of my brothers, who’s
a doctor, we’d treat the sickest children. It was an experience that marked me for
life. There were children who died in my arms. From day one, we were dealing with
a four-month-old girl. Her mother had died shortly after she was born. I was told
she probably wouldn’t live long. Mother Teresa put her in my arms and asked me
insistently to take her to Taizé so that she could receive proper treatment. I said to
myself, if this child realizes the restlessness I feel about her possible death, what
will happen to her?

She also said, let your restlessness become a trust of faith. As long as this child
lives, entrust it to God. By resting her against your heart in her short life, she may
at least have made the experience of happiness that brings confidence.

When we arrived in Taizé, the brothers gathered in my room to see the child. I
sat the girl, named Marie, on top of my bed and she, for the first time, began to
Brother Roger,, make sounds like a happy baby. Eventually she survived and grew up at my sister
God is Love alone, Geneviève’s house. She’s an adult today. I’m her godfather now and I love her as
Coimbra, 2004, 121-124 if I was her father.”

SHARE
Wake up
At the end of this activity, the youth must sit down still in pairs, and then share with the
rest of the group.

The leader must hold a cushion in their hands that is thrown to a pair at a time.

When a youth of one of the pairs throws the pillow at another youth, they say convinc-
ingly, “Wake up!”

The one who receives the pillow must share some of what they have reflected on in pairs
by answering the question, “What is faith?”

PRAY
The Lord touched your life...
After the sharing, a favorable atmosphere must created for prayer and, to the sound of
background music, two youth slowly read the following text:

Reader #1
The Lord touches your life... WAKE UP!
He does not want you to fall asleep, dizzy, anesthetized,
to look at your youth as if it were just a pastime.
Wake up for life! Trust Him!
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #8 75

You may say that you don’t know Him, but He knows you well. He knows your name,
your qualities, your frailties, your days, your nights, your history.
Wake up! Take the risk!

Moment of silence

Reader #2
Don’t be afraid of the darkness, don’t be afraid of the difficulties, don’t be afraid of
other people’s opinions!
Grab life by the horns and say, “I’m not alone.”
Give your hand to those around you and tell them, “I’m not alone.” Look at Jesus and
say to him, “I am not alone.” WAKE up and rise up...

At the end of the reading, the hymn of the WYD Rome 1986 is sung.

RISE UP
Accompany Jesus like the disciples

The leader must propose the youth to experience visiting the sick living in the parish,
remembering the mission of the Church to those who suffer most. This action could take
place by accompanying an extraordinary minister of communion in visiting a sick person.

KEEP GOING
Who is Jesus?
To prepare for the next meeting, the leader must invite each youth to ask at least 5 peo-
ple of different ages and conditions, “Who is Jesus for you?”
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #8 76

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church
The Kingdom of God is near

541. “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God,
and saying: ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent, and believe
in the gospel.’”246 “To carry out the will of the Father Christ inaugurated the kingdom of
heaven on earth.”247 Now the Father’s will is “to raise up men to share in his own divine
life”.248 He does this by gathering men around his Son Jesus Christ. This gathering is the
Church, “on earth the seed and beginning of that kingdom”

PERSONAL PROJECT
#8 Step – I wake up to life
“Don’t be afraid! Just believe, and she will be saved.” (Lk 8:50)

To live by paying attention to the people around us is a profoundly Christian attitude.

“Waking up to life” is an attitude that can manifest itself in caring for those who live near
us and need our presence, companionship, and action.

To reflect upon:

• Write down the names of some people in your surroundings who may need your
company or attention.
• In what way can your Specific Conversion Step contemplate specific gestures of
closeness to some of these people? (remake your Specific Conversion Step)
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MEETING #9
Rise up and follow the Risen Jesus (Lk 9:18-25)
The objectives of this meeting are:

• To discover who Jesus is for the world and for oneself.

• To deepen the criteria for following Jesus Christ.
• To witness in one’s life a personal faith in Jesus Christ.

Information for the leader:

• In this meeting the challenge launched in the previous meeting should be consid-
ered. Youth are invited to share the answers they have gotten from their friends and
family to the question, “Who is Jesus for you?”
• In practical terms the idea would be to divide this meeting into two moments:
– 1st moment: “Prepare”, “Listen” and “Receive” sections
– 2nd moment: “Ask yourself”, “Share”, “Pray” and “Get Up” sections
• According to the group’s own spiritual journey, the “Ask Yourself” moment can be
done in front of the Blessed Sacrament in an oratory, chapel, or outdoors.
• According to the spiritual journey and the size of the group, the “Share” moment can
be done in a large group or in smaller groups, so that the sharing can be an effec-
tive sharing of life.

Necessary material:

• Cross.
• Globe or world map.
• Video - Pope warns against ideological Christianity (May 7, 2020):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJvbaGObTTg

GET READY
Firm in the faith
The cross of Christ, the globe/map of the world, and the Bible should be placed in a prom-
inent place in the meeting room.

The leader must launch the initial challenge by recalling the different meanings of the
verb “to rise up” talked about in previous meetings. They must conclude by stating that
as Christians we are called to stand up, to live upright, resurrected, following Jesus Christ,
the Risen One.

Then the leader must propose the following exercise:

• Everyone stands up in pairs, and for two minutes they walk around and talk about
the answers they got about who Jesus Christ is, noting the similarities/differences.
• Then, they switch pairs and walk and talk about the same thing again, but this time
hopping.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #9 78

At the end, make a reflection about the lived experience, developing the following aspects:

In which of the modalities did you succeed and feel better talking?

• And if one foot were our humanity and the other our faith, what conclusions could
we draw from this exercise?

The leader must help the youth to become aware of how important it is to stand firm in
faith in order to make a life journey. If we don’t live firmly in it, the difficulties are greater,
and we put our own identity at risk.

Then the leader must motivate them to listen to the hymn of the WYD 2011 in Madrid:

Firm in the Faith - WYD 2011 Hymn in Madrid

Firmes en la fe, firmes en la fe!
We go forward in Christ, he’s our companion and he is Lord!
Glory be to him! Glory be to him!
We go forward in Christ, made stronger in our faith.

1. Your love, it builds us up and keeps us rooted,

Your cross, it gives us constant strength and courage,
Your flesh, it ever saves us and sustains us,
Your blood, it flows to cheer us and renew us.
Oh, Christ, you are our brother,
Oh, Christ, you are our friend, you are our Lord,
Make us firm in the faith, make us firm in the faith!

2. Your hands, they hold us when we have been wounded,

Your eyes, they purify the way we see things,
Your lips, they speak to us words of forgiveness,
Your feet, they guide our steps to find life’s fullness.
Oh, Christ, you are our brother,
Oh, Christ, you are our friend, you are our Lord,
!Make us firm in the faith, make us firm in the faith!

3. We are the young, and Mary journeys with us,

And like a joyful bride she sings your praises;
With her we too shall sing and praise your triumph,
Because already death has been defeated.
Oh, Christ, you are our brother,
Oh, Christ, you are our friend, you are our Lord,
!Make us firm in the faith, make us firm in the faith!
Firmes en la fe...
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LISTEN
Who do the crowds say that I am?
The leader must now introduce the proclamation of the biblical text, drawing attention to
the first two questions (Lk 9:18-25).

The Gospel according to St. Luke (Lk 9:18-25)

«18There was a time when he had gone apart to pray, and his disciples were with him; and
he asked them, Who do the multitude say that I am? 19They answered, John the Baptist;
others say Elias; others, that one of the old prophets has returned to life. 20Then he said to
them, But who do you say that I am? And Peter answered, Thou art the Christ whom God
has anointed. 21And he laid a strict charge upon them, bidding them tell no one of it; 22The
Son of Man, he said, is to be much ill-used, and rejected by the elders and chief priests and
scribes, and be put to death, and rise again on the third day. 23And he said to all alike, If any
man has a mind to come my way, let him renounce self, and take up his cross daily, and fol-
low me. 24He who tries to save his life will lose it; it is the man who loses his life for my sake,
that will save it. 25How is a man the better for gaining the whole world, if he loses himself,
if he pays the forfeit of himself?

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

In small groups, the youth must reflect on the following points:

• The two questions, “Who do the crowds say that I am? But who do you say that I
am?” are a distinction between how the crowds and the disciples see Jesus. What is
the reason for this difference?
• Some look at Jesus from the outside, others see Him from the inside, from the inti-
macy and relationship they have with Him. How do you relate these two levels to the
interviews you did?
• This is the first time that the verb “rise up” is applied to Jesus. To rise coincides here
with the verb to resurrect. What does this “rising up” of Jesus mean?
• In the text, what is said of Jesus’ identity? And of the identity of the disciple?

The leader must moderate a plenary for the groups, based on the following aspects:

• From the moment they were called, the disciples had already made a long journey
with Jesus. Recall some of the texts from the previous meetings that you consider
most important.
• The moment comes for Jesus to question them directly. There is what is seen from the
outside, what others say about Him, and what the disciples see from within. The disci-
ple cannot be satisfied with what he hears, but is called to take a deeper stand about
Jesus.
• The verb “to rise up” is identified with the resurrection of Jesus. He is the Christ of God,
the one who is chosen and anointed by the Father and who in his death and resurrec-
tion saves us.
• A personal response regarding the discovery of Jesus’ true identity is precisely what
the youth are expected to give, with the help of the following texts.
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #9 80

RECEIVE
Challenged to give an answer

Keeping the same groups, the leader must invite the youth to read one of the following
texts and answer the presented questions.

Text 1

Dear youth, Christ also addresses you today with the same question He asked the apostles:

“And you, who do you say that I am?” Answer Him with generosity and courage, as befits
a young heart like yours. Say to Him: “Jesus, I know that You are the Son of God, who gave
Your life for me. I want to follow you faithfully and let myself be guided by your word. You
know and love me. I trust in You and place my whole life in Your hands. I want you to be
the strength that sustains me, the joy that never abandons me. (...)

Dear youth, allow me, as the Successor of Peter, to invite you to strengthen this faith that
has been handed down to us since the Apostles, to place Christ, the Son of God, at the
center of your life.

But let me also remind you that to follow Jesus in faith is to walk with Him in the commun-
ion of the Church. One cannot follow Jesus alone. Whoever gives in to the temptation to
follow “on his own” or to live the faith according to the individualistic mentality that pre-
vails in society, runs the risk of never meeting Jesus Christ, or of ending up following a
false image of Him.

To have faith is to lean on the faith of your brothers and sisters, and to make your faith
serve as a support for the faith of others as well. I ask you, dear friends, to love the Church,
which has generated you in faith, which has helped you to know Christ better, which has
made you discover the beauty of His love. For the growth of your friendship with Christ
it is fundamental to recognize the importance of your happy insertion in the parishes,
communities and movements, as well as the participation in the Eucharist every Sunday,
the frequent reception of the sacrament of forgiveness and the cultivation of prayer and
meditation of the Word of God.

And from this friendship with Jesus will also be born the impulse to give witness to the faith
in the most diverse environments, including places where rejection or indifference pre-
vails. It is impossible to encounter Christ and not make Him known to others. Therefore,
do not keep Christ for yourselves.
Pope Benedict XVI,
26th World Youth Day, Communicate to others the joy of your faith. The world needs the witness of your faith;
Final Eucharist’s Homily, 2011 it certainly needs God.

Text 2

In the Gospel passage (...), the question (...) is re-presented: who is Jesus? But this time, it
is Jesus himself who asks it to the disciples, gradually helping them to face the question
of their identity. Before questioning the Twelve directly, Jesus wants to hear from them
what people think about him - and he knows well that the disciples are very sensitive to
RISE UP | YOUTH GROUP LEADERS’ GUIDEBOOK | MEETING #9 81

popularity of the Master! Therefore, he asks, “Who do men say that I am?” It stands out that
Jesus is considered by the people to be a great prophet. But, in reality, he is not interested
in the polls and the people’s gossip. He does not even accept that his disciples answer
his questions with ready-made formulas, quoting famous figures from Sacred Scripture,
because a faith that is reduced to formulas is a short-sighted faith.

The Lord wants his disciples of yesterday and today to establish a personal relationship
with him, and thus to welcome him into the center of their lives. For this reason, he encour-
ages them to place themselves in all truth before themselves, and asks, “And you, who do
you say that I am?” Today, Jesus makes this very direct and confidential request to each
of us: “You, who do you say that I am? You, who do you say that I am? Who am I for you?”
Each one is called to answer, in his own heart, letting himself be enlightened by the light
that the Father gives us in order to know his Son Jesus. And it can also happen that we, like
Peter, enthusiastically affirm: “You are the Christ”. However, when Jesus clearly communi-
cates to us what he told his disciples, that is, that his mission is fulfilled not on the broad
road to success, but on the arduous path of the Suffering Servant, humiliated, rejected
and crucified, then it can also happen to us as it did to Peter, to protest and rebel because
this contrasts with our expectations, with worldly expectations. (...)

Brothers and sisters, the profession of faith in Jesus Christ cannot be limited to words, but
demands to be authenticated with concrete choices and gestures, with a life character-
ized by the love of God, with a great life, with a life full of love for our neighbor.

Jesus tells us that to follow him, to be his disciples, we must deny ourselves, that is, deny
the pretensions of our own selfish pride, and carry our own cross. Then he gives every-
one a fundamental rule. And what is this rule? “Whoever wants to save his life will lose it.”
Many times, in life, for various reasons, we go astray, seeking happiness only in things or
in people we treat as things. But we find happiness only in love, the real one, finds us, sur-
prises us, changes us. Love changes everything! And love can also change us, each one
of us. The testimonies of the saints demonstrate this.

Pope Francis, May the Virgin Mary, who lived her faith faithfully following her Son Jesus, help us also to
Angelus, September 16, 2018 walk on his road, generously dedicating our lives to Him and to our brothers and sisters.

After reading one of the texts, the youth must answer the following questions:

• What main challenges are presented in the text?

• How do they introduce me to the true face of Jesus?
• How do these challenges invite me to achieve the theme of this meeting – get up
and follow Jesus?

The pondering is followed by a brief sharing of the answers. The leader must write on a
board some key words resulting from the youth’s presentations.

The leader must introduce the next moment, pointing out that the texts read challenge
us to cultivate a personal disciple-like relationship with Jesus.
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ASK YOURSELF AND PRAY

Who do you say I am?
The leader must prepare the youth for the time of prayer, suggesting that they give qual-
ity time to Jesus, letting Him speak to each one’s heart and help them see more deeply.
The meditation is based on the following questions:

• Who is Jesus for me?

• How relevant is He in my life, and in my decisions?
• Is my life different because I know and follow Jesus?
• Is my daily life different because I am a Christian?
• How do I live following the risen Jesus Christ, the one who “rose up”?

Then the leader must explain how each youth must manage their time for per-
sonal prayer:

• By choosing an appropriate place.

• By carefully reading the commentaries to the biblical text.
• By seeking, at last, a time of deep dialogue with Jesus.

I let myself choose the place for praying:

• I am placing myself before the Lord, and becoming aware of His presence here and
now.
• I am begging Him to provide me with the grace of being attentive to what He wants
to say to me and of being available for whatever He asks of me.

Clues for praying:

“And it happened that, while He was praying alone, the disciples were with Him. So, He asked them...”

• We often find Jesus praying, showing a close relationship with His Father. And this always
happens in significant moments of His life – in moments of making big decisions, of
choices to be made. I let myself be found by Him here and now. I am also immerging
myself into prayer, letting Him question me as He did to the disciples.
• What does His attitude of prayer say to my life?
• How and with whom do I make my decisions? In my day, what times and spaces do I use to
the be with Him?

“He said to them, “But who do you say that I am? Peter, answering, said, “The Christ of God.”

• Perhaps Jesus, too, needed to ask himself, “Who am I?” An existential question that
we too surely ask ourselves throughout our lives. A question never fully answered
about knowing oneself. But as disciples of Jesus, incorporated into Him in Baptism
and therefore with His same identity, the question that concerns us is also, “But who
do you say that I am?” Who is the Lord for me? It is the question that places us on
the path of following Him.
• With the example of Peter, the disciple who represents us, we know that it is pos-
sible to give a punctual answer, an answer that is formally correct, an answer that
says exactly what the identity of Jesus is. But we also know that this answer may not
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mean an expression of sincere faith, it may be pure rhetoric. That is why it is a ques-
tion that must always be reformulated so that the disciple’s life is always more in
conformity with the identity of the Lord.
• Who do I say today that the Lord Jesus is? What does it mean for me to be a disciple
of a Lord who is “the Christ of God”?

“It is necessary for the Son of Man to suffer much, to be rejected by the elders, the chief priests
and the teachers of the law, to be killed, and on the third day to rise again.”

• Jesus is clear in his message; He does not deceive us by showing an easy way to please
us. He knows well what life is made of – suffering, rejection, death, and resurrection!
• What is my experience of suffering in life? What is my experience of being rejected?
What is my experience of “turning around,” getting up and moving on through life? I let
myself talk with Jesus about these experiences.

And he was saying to everyone, “If anyone wants to come after me, let him deny himself, and
take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but who-
ever loses his life for my sake will save it.

• These are the three radical demands Jesus places on those who want to follow him –
deny yourself, take your cross with you each day, and lose your life. These are, in fact,
the aspects of the movement that He took upon Himself, while coming into the world,
to give us life. In reality He asks nothing of us that He has not lived first.
• To deny oneself means renouncing to a self-centered life, saving ourselves with our
own strength. The denial of the self that Jesus asks of us is abandoning ourselves with
all our heart and all our strength to His love, that is stronger than death. It is to live
the passage from being self-centered in our own interests to an ever-greater giving
of ourselves to others. And that means to firmly live faith, as a risen, and resurrected
person.
• To carry our daily cross is to learn to love with the simplicity of the daily life, to be
loyal to the values of the Gospel, to have the same attitudes as Jesus in the specific
presented situations. And that means to firmly live faith, as a risen, and resurrected
person.
• To lose the life of oneself means letting Him act in us and through us, until we can
repeat after St. Paul, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal 2:20).
And that is to firmly live faith, as a risen, and resurrected person.
• This path that Jesus proposes to us is truly a demanding one, but it is also deeply
liberating.
• How do I feel when I face these challenges that Jesus launches me?
• Which one of them do I experience as being personally addressed to me at this
moment?
• What difficulties, resistances and fears do I experience?

Conversation with the Lord

• I let myself talk to the Lord about His questions, about what challenges me the
most, about the desire for freedom that I carry in my heart...

Conclusion

• I let myself conclude this individual moment by writing a short prayer to share with
the rest of the group.
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PRAY
Jesus’s response
Still in a prayerful atmosphere, the youth gather again in a large group for a community
prayer.

Song: O Christe Domine Jesu, O Christe Domine Jesu! (Taizé)

Reader 1: Acreditar em Jesus, o Filho unigénito do Pai é viver firme na fé, levantado,
ressuscitado.
Reader 2: Ser discípulo de Jesus é viver firme na fé, levantado, ressuscitado.
Reader 3: Professar que Jesus é o Cristo é viver firme na fé, levantado, ressuscitado.
Reader 4: Negar-se a si mesmo é viver firme na fé, levantado, ressuscitado.
Reader 5: Tomar a cruz de cada dia é viver firme na fé, levantado, ressuscitado.
Reader 6: Perder a própria vida é viver firme na fé, levantado, ressuscitado.
Song: O Christe Domine Jesu, O Christe Domine Jesu!

SHARE
After the prayer there is a moment for sharing each youth’s prayers that can be inter-
twined with singing.

RISE UP
Profess your faith
It is suggested that in a celebration of the Christian community, the youth make a solemn
profession of faith that includes the testimony of the experience of this first year of the Rise
Up itinerary.
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KEEP GOING
Finish the preparation of the group life project.

YES, I BELIEVE!
† From the Catechism of the Catholic Church 
Faith is a grace

153. “When St. Peter confessed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus
declared to him that this revelation did not come “from flesh and blood”, but from “my
Father who is in heaven”. [Mt 16:17; cf. Gal 1:15; Mt 11:25.] Faith is a gift of God, a super-
natural virtue infused by him. “Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace
of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior helps of the Holy Spirit, who
moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and ‘makes it
easy for all to accept and believe the truth.”

PERSONAL PROJECT
#9 Step – I share my faith
“But who do you say that I am?” (Lk 9:20)

As we come to the end of a first stage of our journey, question yourself about the state of
your relationship with Jesus, the one you have been strengthening so far.

To reflect upon:

• Who is Jesus for me?

• Do I want to be like Him? In what way?
• How do I want to follow Him? What steps do I take to live more like Him?
• Final evaluation of the Specific Conversion Step.
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ANNEX 1
Penitential celebration for youth

The following readings are in- Adaptation of the proposal for a Penitential Celebration to be used in a youth context,
tended to motivate reflection with the theme RESTORATION OF LIFE ACCORDING TO THE CHRISTIAN VOCATION from
and one’s own examination of the book “Celebration of Penance”, Second Edition, that belongs to the Roman Ritual,
conscience. After each read- approved by the Portuguese Bishops’ Conference.
ing, there is a short pause,
While preparing for the Penitential Celebration, the youth should be invited as soon as
and the young person is in-
possible, so that they may choose or compose the texts and hymns, and choose the read-
vited to pray in silence and
ers and choir from among them. The celebration can be led by an ordained minister or
write on a note (on an individ-
a group leader.
ual piece of paper that is avail-
able to each person) the oc- Once the youth have gathered...
casions in their life when they
have found the treasure of
God’s presence in their life, The leader greets them, saying:
and the occasions when they
Leader: In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. 
have done evil that they did
(All make the sign of the cross and respond:)
not want to do.
All: Amen.

Leader: The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God, and the Communion of the
Holy Ghost, be with you all.

All: And with your spirit.

Leader: We have come together to do penance and to renew our lives. Doing penance
certainly has a difficult and painful aspect, but it is above all something happy. Renewing
life has to do with the past, but it has much more to do with the future. In fact, through
penance, God opens for us a new way, which leads us more and more to the perfect free-
dom of His children. Christ, by inviting us to conversion, shows us the way to the kingdom
of his Father. From the Holy Spirit we receive the strength to be able to abandon our past
life, and to live a new, but beautiful and true life.

Song

Simplicity (by Rend Collective)

Everyone prays in silence for a while.

Leader: Lord our God, you call us from darkness to Your light,
from lies to truth, and from death to life, give us the Holy Spirit,
who strengthens our hearts, and opens our ears
that we may be able to respond to Your call and to advance decisively
on the way of the truly Christian life.

All: Amen.
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Reading (Rom 7:18-25)

Reader: A Reading from the Epistle of the apostle St. Paul to the Romans

Of this I am certain, that no principle of good dwells in me, that is, in my natural self;
18

praiseworthy intentions are always ready to hand, but I cannot find my way to the per-
formance of them; 19it is not the good my will prefers, but the evil my will disapproves,
that I find myself doing. 20And if what I do is something I have not the will to do, it can-
not be I that bring it about, it must be the sinful principle that dwells in me. 21This, then,
is what I find about the law, that evil is close at my side, when my will is to do what is
praiseworthy. 22Inwardly, I applaud God’s disposition, 23but I observe another disposi-
tion in my lower self, which raises war against the disposition of my conscience, and so
I am handed over as a captive to that disposition towards sin which my lower self con-
tains. 24Pitiable creature that I am, who is to set me free from a nature thus doomed to
death? 25Nothing else than the grace of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord. If I am left
to myself, my conscience is at God’s disposition, but my natural powers are at the dispo-
sition of sin.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God

Responsorial Psalm 118 (119), 33 – 34; 76 – 77; 93 – 94.96 and 105

Can either be sung Refrain: Teach me, Lord, the way of your decrees
or recited.
to be faithful to the end.
Give me understanding to keep your law
and to do it with all my heart.

Console me in your goodness,

according to the promise made to your servant.
Let your mercies come down upon me,
and I shall live, for your law is my delight.
I will never forget your decrees
because in them you have given me life.
To you I belong, be my help,
because I have always wanted to follow your precepts.
In all perfect things I find limits,
but your law is great, without measure.
Your word is a beacon for my steps
and a light for my paths.
Instead of singing or reciting the Psalm, a moment of silence can also be made.

Gospel Acclamation (cf. Mt 11:25)

according to the time of the Liturgical Year

Grace to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth,

because you have hidden these things from the wise and learned,
and revealed them to little children.
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Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ according to Saint Mathew (Mt 13:44-46)

The Gospel ought to be read The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure hidden in a field; a man has found it and hid-
44

by an ordained minister, dea- den it again, and now, for the joy it gives him, is going home to sell all that he has and
con or priest. In their absence buy that field. 45Again, the kingdom of heaven is as if a trader were looking for rare
it can be read by one of the pearls: 46and now he has found one pearl of great cost, and has sold all that he had and
leader. bought it.

The word of the Lord.

All: Thanks be to God!

If there is an ordained minister there can be a short homily. Otherwise, the leader must give
a brief explanation of the nature of sin, which fights inside us against God, and the need to
abandon a sinful path to enter the kingdom of God, as well as the importance of the exami-
nation of conscience in order to grow in this path.

After the explanation of the Word of God, there must be silence and an individual exami-
nation of conscience, using or not the ideas written down on paper, and adding new ones.
For this moment it is appropriate to use the form of examination of conscience proposed in
“Meeting #3 – ‘Get up and let yourself be healed’” or another suitable form for youth.

After the examination of conscience, the group leader invites prayer:

Our Lord Jesus Christ has called sinners into the kingdom of his Father. Therefore, let
now each one make in their inmost heart, an act of contrition, with a firm purpose of
amendment.

After a short time of silence, all say together:

I confess to almighty God

and to you, my brothers, and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned,
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do,
through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.

A moment of sacramental reconciliation can be organized with one or more priests. For this,
it might be convenient to prepare several spaces for the priest and the penitent so that both
can be comfortable with the appropriate conditions of serenity and privacy.

In case of sacramental reconciliation not being possible at this moment, the invitation and
challenge to each one to experience this sacrament soon should be well expressed.
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After this moment, the youth are invited to place their unidentified notes and pieces of paper
correctly folded in the center. The pieces of paper must either be burned or dipped in water,
in the presence of all. Both symbols (fire and water) symbolize the divine mercy that embraces
everyone and changes all realities.

Leader: Lord our God, You know everything. You know that we have a sincere desire to
meet You and to serve You and our brothers and sisters better. Look at us and listen to
our prayers. Let us all say: 

All: Hear us, Lord. 

Reader: Give us the grace of a true conversion. 

All. Hear us, O Lord. 

Let the spirit of penance be born in us.

All. Hear us, Lord.

Forgive us our sins, and look not upon our faults.

All. Hear us, O Lord.

Fill us with confidence and give us a new and pure heart.

All. Hear us, Lord.

Forgive the violent acts we have committed and the hurtful words we have spoken.
All. Hear us, Lord.

Take no account of our pride, nor of our faults in prayer.

All. Hear us, Lord.

Make us faithful disciples and living members of the community.

All. Hear us, Lord.

Leader: And now, as Christ taught us, let us call upon the Lord our God, who does not
want the sinner to die, but to be converted and live, and let us beg him to accept the
confession of our sins and grant us his great mercy. 
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Our Father, who art in heaven,

hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come,
thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
And lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.

Leader:

The Blessing of Almighty God

Father and Son and Holy Spirit
Come upon us and remain with us forever

All: Ámen.

Final song of thanksgiving

Wonder (by Hillsong)

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ANNEX 2
Community celebration of the Solemn Profession of Faith
At the end of the first year of pilgrimage of this itinerary, the youth are called to solemnly
profess their faith. This step will be taken in the context of the Eucharist, in front of the
symbols of the World Youth Days (cross of Christ and icon of Our Lady), where they will
testimony (during the homily) and it will be proposed to the community to assume the
journey they have made. An entrance ceremony should be held to contextualize the cele-
bration, in which those who are being confirmed (and/or have been confirmed this year)
can participate as a form of integration into this formative journey towards the WYD. The
youth must be involved in the experience of the liturgy!

Testimony

1. During the homily, after a brief reflection on the Word of God, the priest can invite a
youth (or several) to give a testimony of the journey they have made.
2. While preparing this celebration, it is convenient to decide who will give the testimony,
promoting a better preparation for it.
3. We will now present some aspects that may be useful:
– To briefly present the general objective of the path taken (preparation for WYD).
– To explain the steps taken up to that point and some details of the itinerary (for
example, the general theme and its connection with the theme of WYD: “Rise Up”).
– To share some moments that have been remarkable for the youth or the group.
– To challenge other youth to join this project and motivate the community for the
WYD.
4. None of these aspects are mandatory. Over all, youth authenticity and the sharing
of personal experiences should be privileged.

Solemn Profession of Faith:

The proposal would be that each group makes its own solemn profession of faith. If you so
choose, you can use the following possibility involving the youth and with them the whole
community.

The youth approach the altar and make their solemn profession of faith:

Youth: I believe in God the Father, Creator and all-powerful in Love. I want to relate to
Him every day as a beloved son. 

All: So that it may be so, with you we firmly live faith, as risen, and resurrected ones!

Youth: I believe in Jesus Christ of whom I make myself a disciple every day, denying myself
and joyfully carrying my cross.

All: So that it may be so, with you we firmly live faith, as risen, and resurrected ones!

Youth: I believe in the Holy Spirit, from whom I receive all the gifts. Each day, I want to let
myself be guided by Him and announce to everyone that Jesus is the living and risen Christ. 

All: So that it may be so, with you we firmly live faith, as risen, and resurrected ones!

Youth: I believe in the Church, in which I want to continue growing in faith and, together
with everyone, put my life at the service of those most in need. 

All: So that it may be so, with you we firmly live faith, as risen, and resurrected ones!
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ANNEX 3
Rise Up and Pray the Rosary
Introduction on the message of Fatima

In 1917, from May until October, always on the 13th day of each month, Our Lady, Mary,
the mother of Jesus, appeared to three children in Fátima in the Center of Portugal. This
place became one of the main places of devotion to Mary in the whole world, having been
visited by several Popes. These three children were named Lúcia, the oldest one (10 years
old), Francisco (9 years old) and Jacinta, the youngest one (7 years old). Mary transmitted
to these children a message for all mankind, that there would be the promotion of peace
in the world, above all through personal conversion, prayer, and devotion to Mary, in union
with the Holy Father. Throughout this rosary prayer we will be inspired by the message
that Mary transmitted to these children.

1st Mystery – The Annunciation to Mary

From the Gospel of Luke

In the sixth month, the Angel Gabriel was sent from God to a town in Galilee called
Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the house of David; and the
virgin’s name was Mary. As she entered her home, the angel said to her, “‘Hail, thou who
art full of grace; the Lord is with thee; blessed art thou among women. Mary, do not be
afraid; thou hast found favour in the sight of God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy
womb, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call him Jesus. The Holy Spirit will come upon thee,
and the power of the most High will overshadow thee. Thus this holy offspring of thine
shall be known for the Son of God.’ And Mary said, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord; let
it be unto me according to thy word. And with that the angel left her’”.

At the Angel’s announcement, Mary heard the invitation to wholly give herself to God.
Her hidden but committed “yes” resulted in the greatest blessing of al – the Jesus’ salva-
tion of all humanity.

When Mary appeared at Fátima, she asked Jacinta, Francisco and Lúcia if they wanted to
offer themselves to God for the salvation of the lost. Like her companions, Jacinta (the
youngest of the three) also said “yes” with great determination. Already sick with the
Spanish flu, Jacinta told Lucia: “Our Lady came to see us and said that she was going to
take Francisco to Heaven very soon. And to me she asked if I wanted to convert even
more sinners. I told her yes.”

Intention: Let us ask Jesus to give us a generous heart that is always available to accept
his will. 
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2nd Mystery – The Visitation of Mary to Elizabeth

From the Gospel of Luke

“In the days that followed, Mary rose up and went with all haste to a town of Juda, in the hill
country where Zachary dwelt; and there entering in she gave Elizabeth greeting. No sooner
had Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, than the child leaped in her womb; and Elizabeth
herself was filled with the Holy Ghost; so that she cried out with a loud voice, Blessed art
thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb.” (Lk 1:39-42)

Mary got up, left her comfort zone, and went with haste to meet her cousin Elizabeth
who needed help.

In Fátima, when Lúcia learned that she would be interrogated and pressured to deny Our
Lady’s apparitions, Jacinta stood up and, along with Francisco, prayed that Lucia would
not weaken. Jacinta said to Lúcia, “I’ll get up at once and go and call Francisco. Let’s go to
your water well and pray. When you come back, go there.”

Intention: In this mystery of the rosary let us ask Jesus for a heart that worries of others,
attentive to those who need our presence and our prayer.

3rd Mystery – The birth of Jesus

From the Gospel of Luke

“It was while they were still there that the time came for her delivery. She brought forth
a son, her first-born, whom she wrapped in his swaddling-clothes, and laid in a manger,
because there was no room for them in the inn. When the angels had left them, and
gone back into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Come, let us make our way
to Bethlehem, and see for ourselves this happening which God has made known to us.’
And so they went with all haste, and found Mary and Joseph there, with the child lying in
the manger.” (Lk 2:6-7; 15-16)

Jesus was born for everyone in the poverty of Bethlehem. He became close to everyone.
Mary presents and takes Jesus to the small and poor people who visit the manger.

Little Jacinta also took Jesus to the who needed Him the most. One day in Fátima, a poor
woman came to Jacinta, crying, on her knees, asking Our Lady to cure her of a very seri-
ous illness. “When Jacinta saw a woman kneeling before her, she was distressed and took
her trembling hands to lift her up. But seeing that she was unable to do so, she also knelt
down and prayed three Hail Marys with the woman.” She prayed for her every day, until
one day she returned to give thanks for her cure.

Intention: By remembering the birth of Jesus for all, we affirm that we want to be the
presence of Jesus for those who need to feel His closeness.

4th Mystery – The Presentation of Jesus in the Temple

From the Gospel of Luke

“And when the time had come for purification according to the law of Moses, they brought
him up to Jerusalem, to present him before the Lord there. It is written in God’s law, that
whatever male offspring opens the womb is to be reckoned sacred to the Lord “ (Lk 2:22-23)
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Mary and Joseph went to the Temple to consecrate their son Jesus to God. To consecrate
has a meaning close to sacrifice. It means to dedicate to God’s service, to make some-
thing or someone sacred.

Starting from Our Lady’s request, Jacinta made a sacrifice of everything she could and
could remember to offer to God for others. And when she made a sacrifice, she would
say, “O my Jesus, it is for Your love, for the conversion of sinners, for the Holy Father, and
in reparation for the sins committed against the Immaculate Heart of Mary.”

Intention: We ask Jesus to give us a generous heart to do everything in our lives for the
love of God and others. 

5th Mystery – The loss and encounter of Jesus in the Temple

From the Gospel of Luke

“Every year, his parents used to go up to Jerusalem at the paschal feast (…) and completing
the days of its observance, they set about their return home. But the boy Jesus, unknown
to his parents, continued his stay in Jerusalem. (…) [I]t was only after three days that they
found him. He was sitting in the temple, in the midst of those who taught there, listen-
ing to them and asking them questions[.] (…) [H]e asked them, ‘What reason had you to
search for me? Could you not tell that I must needs be in the place which belongs to my
Father?’” (Lk 2:41, 43, 46, 49)

At the age of 12 Jesus goes with his parents to the Temple and, without Mary or Joseph
realizing it, He stays there, in HIs Father’s house. The temple is, par excellence, the place
of prayer and encounter with God. In prayer we become closer to God, and with Him we
intercede for others.

When she was already ill, Jacinta insisted on going to Mass on Sunday, even when she was
far away and already ill. Lucia narrates that she used to tell her, “Jacinta, don’t come [to
Mass]; you can’t. Today is not Sunday!” Jacinta answered her, “It doesn’t matter. I’m going
for the sinners who don’t even go on Sunday.”

Intention: When we enter a church, we ask Jesus to give us a sense of the sacred and of
the sublime experience of meeting Jesus while celebrating the Mass.
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Young man, I say to you, get up! (Luke 7, 14)

‘Now get up and stand on your feet. I have appeared to you to
appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen
and will see of me! (Acts 26, 16)
In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill
country. (Luke 1, 39)