All things must come to an end, and so did the World Youth Festival in Međugorje. On Friday night, there was a procession of Our Lady. Representatives from all the countries that took part in the festival walked in a procession after the statue of Our Lady. There were candles, flags and singing as she passed among us. The procession reminded us of her constant presence as a Mother to us all. After the procession, there was adoration again, followed by some musical theatre.
 Waiting at the foot of Cross Hill. | On the last day of the festival, Saturday August 5th, we got up early in the morning in order to pray the Way of Cross on Cross Hill. Father Gianni led the meditation at each Station of the Cross. After around 2 hours, we reached to the top. Father Gianni quoted a saying of St. Juan Calabria (a priest from Verona): Although we suffer to climb the mountain, we can see further after this suffering. So we thank God for this blessing, that we are here. |
| The day continued with more catechesis and testimonies. Even though the weather was extremely hot, we tried our best to keep up with the Festival program. After the evening Mass, there was adoration, which was followed by Mission. At the beginning, I had no idea what this Mission refered to. Later a local priest explained that it is the blessing that all the priests give us after the adoration. Each priest is a representative of Jesus in the world, so their blessings will encourage us to follow Jesus and to fulfil our missions around the world. |  |
 | After the blessings the parish in Međjugorje gave each participating country some local seeds and soil from Međugorje. The aim is that people will take the seeds and plant them around the world. It is a powerful metaphor of how we should spread the seeds of love from Međugorje and share it with the rest of the world! The festival ended with a cheerful singing farewell, and we end this stage of the trip full of joy and grace. |
But wait, our trip is not over! We stayed on in Međugorje and experienced more after the festival! I will write about that in my next post :)
Happy Feast of Assumption to you all!
About the Author
 | Yiran, or Maria Micaela. Born in China as a Protestant Christian but baptised in Spain (2015), being the only Catholic in the family. I came to Turku as an Erasmus exchange student and I stayed for my MSc studies. I'm also a participant of the Youth Weekends at Stella Maris. Cooking, running and photography are my hobbies. |
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