We met some of the young people who had come to Rome for the Youth Jubilee.  (July 28 – August 3).

The underground, streets, buses, and bars are overrun with the flags, T-shirts, bandanas, and colourful hats of various countries, accompanied by the soundtrack of their voices, guitars, and drums.

The Eternal City welcomes them with open arms. The Youth Jubilee is changing the face of Rome. Naturally, this colourful caravan of young people gathers and congregates around St. Peter’s Square.

We approach a group of young Argentinians: “Today, once again, I am filled with hope for this encounter in the Church, a Church that has always welcomed me. I am happy to be on the same ship as all these young people,” confides Luca, who is from Córdoba. “We feel like a symbol of identity to be shared with the whole world,” echoes Alejandro.

Luigi, a 21-year-old Italian, expects these days to be a hot topic of discussion: ecology, the environment, hope, peace, and conflict resolution in the Middle East and the rest of the world. “We want a Church that takes a stand and fights for peace. Because, as Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati said, ‘we don’t just want to get by, we want to live.'”

We see a group of young Brazilians with the green and yellow flag. They come from Belém and are led by the bishop of Macapá, Monsignor Antonio de Assis Ribeiro.

“What our young people, from the suburbs of Belém, Manicoré, and Macapá, are doing will be an incredible experience of human, ethical, spiritual, and cultural formation, especially in view of the upcoming COP30, which will be held in Belém,” the bishop tells us.

Walking along Via Della Conciliazione, we meet Marta, wrapped in the Ukrainian flag. She arrived with her friends from different regions of that war-torn country: Donetsk, Kyiv, and Irpin. “Being here allows us to share our life stories, our experiences, and the strength we have to love, pray, and fight for what we believe in.”

“Living in Kyiv means spending every night in bomb shelters: it’s difficult to live and work there.” Tanya, 17, is from Kharkiv, but her family lives in Zolochiv, near the border with the Russian Federation. “Our city is almost always under attack,” she says. “My parents live there, and I’m very worried about them. But that’s our home, and we want to stay there. I pray for them and for peace.”

George is Syrian. “The very fact of being here and representing Syria is a source of pride. It’s an indescribable feeling. We’re truly happy. And we pray that, one day, there will be peace in every country in the world.” Josephine echoed his sentiments, explaining how their presence is important not only for Syria but for the entire Middle East. “There are so many wonderful young Christians there with tremendous faith. We pray here in their place. Above all, so that the Lord may one day give them the opportunity to live this experience too.”

We meet Francis, who is from Lebanon, along with 45 other people. At the gazebo set up by the Dicastery for Evangelization to welcome pilgrims, wooden crosses are being distributed to the accredited faithful. He tells us: “I am in Rome for the first time to be close to God. It is wonderful to see people from all over the world gathered here for Christ. We must all pray for peace, not only in Lebanon, but throughout the world. This is why we are all here. We hope that the Pope can visit our country soon and we hope to be able to welcome him to a Middle East that is finally at peace.”

The next day we are at the Circus Maximus. On the occasion of the Jubilee of Youth, a penitential day is being held, offering young people the opportunity to approach the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Rachele, a 26-year-old French woman, has just been to confession: “It’s a very intense moment. I didn’t think I’d feel God’s embrace and the comfort of the priest’s words so intensely, among all these people and in a place that’s not exactly silent. I feel much lighter. I haven’t experienced such a profound spiritual confession in a long time. It was worth it.”

Luigi comes from a parish in Southern Italy. “I felt it was an encounter with a God who doesn’t scold or give lessons, but who ‘kindles questions and calls us to search within ourselves.'”

Vittorio, an Italian, says that confession is, ultimately, an opportunity to reflect on oneself and one’s existence, a moment of inner exploration. An encounter with God, but also with oneself, with one’s confusion, one’s desires, and one’s fears. It’s a moment of sincerity in which all pretences and masks fall away and in which each person reveals themselves for who they are and who they would like to be.

Leo XIV arrives early at Tor Vergata. It’s not even eight o’clock on Sunday morning when, disembarking from the helicopter, he climbs into the open white jeep and slowly tours the various sectors. The thousands of young men and women who spent the night in sleeping bags and makeshift beds welcome him with uncontainable joy, raising their arms, shouting his name, waving flags, banners, hats, and anything else that might indicate their presence. Over a million people, according to authorities, gathered in the eastern suburbs of Rome for the closing mass of the Jubilee of Youth.

“You are the sign that a different world is possible: a world of fraternity and friendship, where conflicts are resolved not with weapons, but with dialogue.” This is the message that Leo XIV entrusts to young people, inviting them to friendship as a “path of peace” that “can change the world.” He concludes: “Aspire to great things, to holiness, wherever you are. Do not settle for less, because only in this way will each person’s existence be constantly regenerated in giving and in love.”

Finally, the Pontiff invites us to Seoul, where World Youth Day will take place from August 3 to 8, 2027.

Together with thousands of young people, we set out on our return journey. Ahead of us, a group of Roman boys and girls are talking among themselves. Lucia says: “I will always remember these days, I will carry them with me throughout my life, even when I grow up and then get older, because they are special days when I felt that God is close to all of us, protecting us and loving us. No, I will never forget this feeling.” (Open Photo. Young People at Tor Vergata –  File swm)

Robert  Mutesa