Scottish Catholic Observer

Scottish World Youth Day pilgrims have attracted national media attention in Brazil, as they prepare to celebrate and pray with Pope Francis and hundreds of thousands of young Faithful from around the world next week.

Young Catholics from Falkirk and other parishes in St Andrews and Edinburgh Archdiocese were the first pilgrims to arrive in Sao Paulo Archdiocese ahead of the 14th International World Youth Day (WYD) gathering—which will be celebrated in the Brazilian city of Rio de Janeiro, and will be attended by Pope Francis—from July 23-28.

On arrival in Brazil, the Scottish youngsters barely had the chance to open their Portuguese phrase books before a journalist and photographer from Sao Paulo’s Archdiocesan Catholic newspaper paid them a visit to find out more about their travels and their work in the archdiocese, where they are spending time assisting Scottish priest Fr Neil Crombie in his parish and taking part in a Mission Week before traveling to Rio.

The photo of the Scottish pilgrims, led by Fr Anthony Caruana, made its way onto the paper’s front page.

The national media in Brazil was quick to follow up on the story, with journalists from the country’s largest newspaper O Estado de Sao Paulo, writing an article about the Scottish pilgrims, while representatives of the national Catholic radio station, Rede Vida, were also interested to hear more about their journey.

Fr Caruana said that, in addition to the media attention, the youngsters have enjoyed the warmest of welcomes from Fr Crombie and his parishioners in Sao Paulo.

“As soon as we arrived we were quickly immersed in the culture as we attended a parish festa where we enjoyed the local food, music, dancing and games,” he said.

Following the completion of the Mission Week, which replaces the traditional World Youth Day: Days in the Diocese programme, the week-long WYD celebration will begin in Rio.

Pope Francis will be welcomed to Brazil by the country’s President, Dilma Rouseff. The Holy Father’s personal programme includes a visit to a favela (shanty town), an encounter with young prisoners and a visit to Brazil’s national shrine. He will also be leading a World Youth Day Via Crucis on Copacabana beach and celebrating a large open-air Mass for pilgrims.

During his visit to Brazil, the Pope will stay in a room at the Sumare House in Rio, where Blessed John Paul II also stayed in October, 1997. The late Holy Father traveled to Brazil for the Second World Meeting of Families.

At the end of the event’s second and final Mass on Sunday July 28, the Holy Father will—as has become customary—announce the venue and date for the next World Youth Day. Among the frontrunners to host the event, are believed to be Krakow, Poland; Seoul, South Korea; and London.

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—This story was published in full in the July 19 print edition of the SCO, available in parishes.