Caption Bishop Brendan Leahy and young adults from Limerick are in Rome this week, along with one-million fellow pilgrims, to celebrate the International Jubilee of Youth event (Catholic Communications Office archive)
- Bishop Leahy to concelebrate Mass with Pope Leo this Sunday, 3 August, at global young adult faith gathering in Rome
The Bishop of Limerick, Bishop Brendan Leahy, has said that young people across Limerick and Ireland have a search for spirituality that give the rest of us hope.
Speaking as a group of young adults from Limerick arrived in Rome this week for the International Jubilee of Youth – a high point of the Catholic Church’s ‘Year of Hope’ celebrations under the theme of ‘Pilgrims of Hope’ – Bishop Leahy said he was hugely encouraged to see the rise in faith among young people. Bishop Leahy also urged those who are searching for something deeper to “give faith a go”.
In all 70 young Limerick adults are in Rome for the special global youth gathering and they are part of the 600-plus Irish delegation celebrating their faith and meeting with other young adult pilgrims from across the world.
Bishop Leahy said, “Thank God we are seeing a rise in youth communities of faith across Ireland and also in Limerick. I am also happy to see how, in Limerick, groups of young Catholics are also beginning to network more. There is even an app (Beacon) that tells of youth faith events around the country. That is encouraging.”
With regard to those with a yearning for something to anchor them in their lives, Bishop Leahy said, “We hear a lot today about anxiety levels increasing in young people. We hear about the loneliness of young people despite being so connected through social media. We hear about their fears for the future of our world and our planet. Too often they are sold counterfeits of truth.
“The Gospel that is lived together in communities is the answer to what young people are searching for, and they get a taste of that experience during a large international faith event such as the one we are celebrating in Rome.
“I would appeal to those young adults who are searching to give faith a go. There are loads of online possibilities to explore the Catholic faith and to get to know it personally as an adult. The trouble often is that our religious education finished when people were young and they haven’t grown in their level of knowledge about faith and religion now that they are adults with adult questions.
“The Gospel message and teachings of the Church have so much to offer. It is liberating to get to know Jesus as a Person who can journey with you and inspire you in life. And it is worth remembering, too, that survey after survey tells us that religious attendance and belonging to religious communities is consistently correlated with higher levels of happiness and satisfaction in life,” Bishop Leahy said.
This week, some 500,000 young people from around the world are expected to arrive in Rome, with the number swelling to over one million for the concluding all-night Vigil on Saturday evening followed by the celebration of Mass by Pope Leo XIV on Sunday morning.
Bishop Leahy said that there is a strong tradition in the Diocese of Limerick of recognising the “young church” with nearly one hundred young people travelling on the Lourdes pilgrimage each year; over one hundred second level Transition-Year students taking part in the annual Anois programme each January; and, the very successful summer camp that the Diocese has been running for the past forty years for young adults in Brú Na Gráige house in the heart of the Corca Dhuibhne Gaeltacht. This year some 130 young adults took part at the summer camp.
This week in Rome many of the young adult Limerick group will be staying at the Pontifical Irish College where Limerick Diocesan priest Father Paul Finnerty serves as rector. As well as getting to see the historic sites of Rome, visit the four ‘Holy Doors’ of the four basilicas and taking part in various events and talks planned for the week, the Limerick group will be part of a national Irish Pilgrims’ gathering this Thursday, 31 July, at the Irish College. The group will also be taking part in the ‘Way of the Cross’ on Friday, 1 August, which will begin at the Irish College and conclude along with other international pilgrims at the Basilica of Santa Croce, home to relics of the True Cross.
Among the Limerick group is Jade McMahon, a teacher from Newcastle West. Jane said, “I have been looking forward to our visit to Rome from the faith perspective and to meet many young people from all over Ireland and all over the world. Hopefully we might get a glimpse of Pope Leo as well!”
Bishop Leahy said that he was particularly happy see such a large cohort from the Limerick Diocese travel out to Rome for the pilgrimage, “The Jubilee of Youth in Rome will offer a wonderful experience of the universality of the Catholic Church. It is so hope-filled to be in the company of young people from all over the world who are, on the one hand, so energetic and cheerful, singing their songs and waving their flags as they walk along but also, on the other hand, so attentive in the moments of prayer and so engaged in moments when faith is being explained and witnessed to.”
Noting how young people have big questions and are seeking answers, Bishop Leahy commented: “The Jubilee of Youth offers young people time and space to go deeper to get to know Jesus and understand the relevancy of His message, especially today with all that is going on in the world.”
Bishop Leahy said he is looking forward to concelebrating Mass with Pope Leo on what will be the new pope’s first large youth gathering since his election as Pontiff on 8 May.
At the same time as the Limerick Diocesan group are in Rome, there is another youth event taking place in Limerick that had been planned for some years before the announcement of the Jubilee of Youth. The European Redemptorist Youth Congress is coming to Limerick and hundreds of young adults from across Europe will attend for five days of music, workshops, and inspiring talks, hosted by the Redemptorist Order. Bishop Leahy said, “I am so sorry to be missing this event as I am in Rome with our Diocesan group, but I want to really wish the Redemptorists well. It is a great initiative which I congratulate the Redemptorists on. It is another of the green shoots that I see emerging in Limerick over the past few years in the area of young people and faith.”
ENDS