During the 29th July - 2nd August something special was happening at Marian and Catholic Cathedral College..............
They were hosting the weekend-long event to mark World Youth Day 2016 (WYD) that hosted 170 students from eleven Catholic Secondary Schools from across the South Island.
The event followed the usual World Youth Day programme with Catechesis, Masses, Reconciliation, Service, Pilgrimage and live streaming of the Papal Mass in Krakow, Poland.
On the opening night a Powhiri was held for visiting students along with a Polish cultural evening.
A Pilgrimage with an interfaith theme was held on Sunday, which was led by Fr. Rick Loughnan. The group of students took the Christchurch World Youth Cross from the Catholic Cathedral to the Transitional Cathedral for joint prayer. From here students broke off into smaller groups to key pilgrimage sites: Christchurch City Mission, Te Rangimarie, The Jewish Synagogue, Cathedral Square, Barbadoes Street Cemetery and the Russian Orthodox Church.
The Christchurch World Youth Day Cross was placed inside the perimeter of the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament site “to assure the people of Canterbury we are strong in our faith and we will rebuild.”
Following the Pilgrimage a joint Mass was celebrated in the Catholic Cathedral College Hall. This was a wonderful celebration which was attended by over 400 followers. In the evening, exactly to Polish time the Papal Mass in Krakow was live streamed.
Throughout the three days the Christchurch Diocese Mission team set up a Chapel on site and offered prayer services, reconciliation and adoration opportunities for students.
Organiser Abina Pope said WYD was “an opportunity for students of the same age to come together, share ideas and listen to various members of religious organisations”.
They were hosting the weekend-long event to mark World Youth Day 2016 (WYD) that hosted 170 students from eleven Catholic Secondary Schools from across the South Island.
The event followed the usual World Youth Day programme with Catechesis, Masses, Reconciliation, Service, Pilgrimage and live streaming of the Papal Mass in Krakow, Poland.
On the opening night a Powhiri was held for visiting students along with a Polish cultural evening.
Polish Cultural Evening
A Pilgrimage with an interfaith theme was held on Sunday, which was led by Fr. Rick Loughnan. The group of students took the Christchurch World Youth Cross from the Catholic Cathedral to the Transitional Cathedral for joint prayer. From here students broke off into smaller groups to key pilgrimage sites: Christchurch City Mission, Te Rangimarie, The Jewish Synagogue, Cathedral Square, Barbadoes Street Cemetery and the Russian Orthodox Church.
The Christchurch World Youth Day Cross was placed inside the perimeter of the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament site “to assure the people of Canterbury we are strong in our faith and we will rebuild.”
Transitional Cathedral
The journey begins
Te Rangimarie
Faith Bazaar
Following the Pilgrimage a joint Mass was celebrated in the Catholic Cathedral College Hall. This was a wonderful celebration which was attended by over 400 followers. In the evening, exactly to Polish time the Papal Mass in Krakow was live streamed.
Fantastic Volunteers with our Holy Father
Throughout the three days the Christchurch Diocese Mission team set up a Chapel on site and offered prayer services, reconciliation and adoration opportunities for students.
Organiser Abina Pope said WYD was “an opportunity for students of the same age to come together, share ideas and listen to various members of religious organisations”.
On Monday, students journeyed home, with a strengthened faith and a sense of Catholic community in Aotearoa, New Zealand and the world.
This event was driven by Abina Pope (Director of Religious Studies, Marian College), Antje Duda (Chaplain, Marian College) and Tony Shaw (Principal, Catholic Cathedral College). The commitment these three individuals had for this initiative and the opportunities it provided for the young people of this Diocese is inspiring. They are all wonderful leaders and role models for our young people.
Abina Pope
Antje Duda
Tony Shaw
Finally, thank you to the planning team who met on a regular basis to insure that they Year 12 & 13 students were supported in their spiritual journey to strengthen their faith for the future. Without you this event would not have been possible.
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