Portugal. On 7 and 8 October 2023, around a hundred young people from the Salesian Youth Movement from the various Houses of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians and the Salesians of Don Bosco from the north and south of Portugal who participated in the World Youth Day in Lisbon from 1 to 6 August 2023, left Alcobaça to reach the Sanctuary of Fatima on pilgrimage.
It was a spiritual journey with testimonies, insights and reflections, Eucharistic and penitential celebrations, meetings, sharing, group dynamics, and a lot of Salesian joy. Starting from the words of the Holy Father in Portugal, the young people retraced the beautiful moments experienced in those days and thanked for the gift that WYD was for everyone.
The pilgrimage was prepared by the young people of the SYM, accompanied by the SDB and FMA. The group had the presence of the Provincial of the Salesians, Fr. Tarcizio Morais, for the Mass on Saturday 7, the memorial day of Our Lady of the Rosary, and the special presence throughout the entire journey of the Provincial of Our Lady of Fatima Province (POR), Sister Deolinda Teixeira, who joined the young people on the pilgrimage with her simple testimony and close presence.
“We follow you without fear!” is the slogan that accompanied the journey, in the wake of the beautiful words of Pope Francis at the celebration of World Youth Day at Parque Tejo, on 6 August 2023:
Dear young people, I would like to look each of you in the eyes and tell you: do not be afraid, do not be afraid. Furthermore, I tell you something very beautiful. It is no longer me; it is Jesus Himself who looks at you now, looks at you. He knows you, knows the heart of each of you, knows the life of each of you, knows the joys, knows the sadness, the successes, and the failures. He knows your heart. And today He says to you, here in Lisbon, on this World Youth Day, “Do not fear, do not fear, courage, do not be afraid!”
With this pilgrimage, the young people of the SYM of Portugal, together with their companions, FMA, SDB, and lay people, have certainly strengthened their desire to be, as Pope Francis asks, an “outgoing Church”, disciples and missionaries in the style of Don Bosco.
