Shrines of Europe was present and visible during World Youth Days in Portugal.
In Fatima, at the local tourist information point, a place dedicated to young pilgrims coming here from all over the world has been located. We called it "Welcome Center".
The point was located in Fatima near the sanctuary. A team of our representatives welcomed people from all over the world who came to this unique place to get to know each other better, have fun, explore the area and, above all, pray together while waiting for the meeting with Pope Francis.
Young pilgrims could count on kindness, help and information from our representatives at the Welcome Center. They also received our brochures, in which we present all our cities and reusable bottles, which certainly came in handy during the Portuguese heat and we hope will inspire young people to make pilgrimages to all the cities of Shrines of Europe.
The most important event for all participants of the World Youth Days in Fatima was the meeting with the Holy Father.
On the fourth day of his stay in Portugal, on Saturday, August 5, Pope Francis came to Fatima to pray together with a crowd of about 200,000 people. It was his second pilgrimage as the Holy Father to this unique place of the apparitions of the Virgin Mary on the map of Europe and the world.
After his visit to Fatima, the Pope returned to the Portuguese capital, where he presided over the Holy Mass on Sunday. Ending the World Youth Day celebrations, he announced that the next World Youth Day will be held in 2027 in Seoul, the capital of South Korea. Who knows, maybe Shrines of Europe will be there as well? ;)
We cordially greet all the pilgrims we met in Fatima! Thank you for visiting our Welcome Center. Thank you for every smile, kind words, songs and even dancing! We hope that you returned to your countries in a wonderful mood, full of impressions, with a sense of faith and unity.
We look forward to seeing you in more Shrines cities. See you on the pilgrimage trail!
