In joy and thanksgiving, young people head to World Youth Day in Portugal
By John Shaughnessy
When Caroline Bell travels to Portugal to experience World Youth Day with Pope Francis and more than a million young Catholics in early August, the 18-year-old will do so with the thought of thanking God for being with her through her cancer diagnosis and recovery.
Making that same journey, 20-year-old Luke Hornbach views it as a sign of his gratitude to God for leading him from a time of feeling lost to finding a career that will let him serve and even save people.
As for 20-year-old Amori Curiel, she laughs when she recalls her initial response to the opportunity to travel to World Youth Day.
“I’m not going to lie, my first reaction was, ‘Oh! I get to go to Europe!’ But it became so much more than that once we started meeting and I got to know the other people who are going. I realized the importance of fellowship with people who are as involved with having a relationship with God as I am. That’s what really sold it for me.”
These three young people are among the group of 188 pilgrims from across the archdiocese who will be attending World Youth Day from Aug. 1-6. Drawing so many young people from around the globe, it’s considered the biggest event for the Church, with this year’s World Youth Day featuring a journey to the shrine of Our Lady of Fatima and a closing Mass with Pope Francis in Lisbon.
Archbishop Charles C. Thompson is looking forward to leading the pilgrims from central and southern Indiana to World Youth Day.
“This is an incredible opportunity for young people to experience the universality of the Catholic faith by encountering the rich fabric of ethnicities, cultures, languages and customs in our Church,” says Archbishop Thompson, one of 59 bishops and 26,000 people from the United States expected to join the pilgrimage to Portugal.
“These young people will have an opportunity to deepen their personal encounter with Jesus Christ through special opportunities of prayer, catechesis, dialogue and sacramental celebrations.”
That’s the hope of Bell, Hornbach and Curiel.
‘I could really feel God’s presence’
When Bell was diagnosed with thyroid cancer in January, the 2023 graduate of Bishop Chatard High School in Indianapolis was in the thick of leading the girls’ varsity basketball team toward an eventual deep run in the state tournament. It was a time when her family, friends, teammates, coaches and teachers rallied around her. And they did the same when she chose to keep her surgery date to remove her thyroid, which meant she missed a semi-state game.
“Especially during that, I could really feel God’s presence,” says Bell, whose cancer is now in remission. “When I went through my cancer, it helped me really rely on my faith in God and to trust in him through all circumstances, big or small. I feel like ever since then, I’ve really had more of an appreciation for the faith and more of a yearning for knowledge to learn about it.”
So Bell embraced the opportunity to attend World Youth Day when a last-moment spot to be part of the pilgrimage opened at her parish, St. Malachy in Brownsburg.
“Another girl who was planning on going wasn’t able to go so they offered me a spot,” she says. “I don’t think I could really pass up that opportunity to be in that kind of place with millions of people who believe the same thing as you, who want to get further in their relationship with God, and also to be in community. All of it sounded really, really wonderful. I’m really excited.”
The pilgrimage will take place shortly before she heads to St. Louis University to study neuroscience, for a possible career researching cures for brain diseases. She views World Youth Day as paving the path for her future.
“I want to grow in my relationship with God and find that in others. Because a lot of time, I feel I’m extremely busy, and I don’t set aside time for that even though I go to church every Sunday. But taking time out for World Youth Day, which is like a whole week, hopefully I can choose to build my life around that.
“I want to follow God’s will in my life. I want to grow closer to him, so hopefully wherever he leads me I will be able to listen and follow with whatever I end up doing.”
‘Getting to meet people from all over the world who have the faith’
At 20, Luke Hornbach has relied on following God’s direction in his life, especially in the past two years when he’s tried to find a career path that would let him serve others.
After he graduated from East Central High School in St. Leon in 2021, the member of All Saints Parish in Dearborn County entered Bishop Simon Bruté College Seminary in Indianapolis, considering the priesthood.
“A lot of my exploring the last few years has been a real discernment journey,” he says. “I prayed about going into the seminary. Finally, God was like, ‘Hey, this is what I want you to do. I want you to give it a shot, whether it works out or not.’
“When I discerned out [after a semester]—I was praying the whole time whether he wanted me to stay or not—I heard him calling me in a different direction. Even after that, being a little lost, I turned to the Lord and asked, ‘What’s the next step in my life?’ ”
Hornbach believes he has finally found his footing for the road ahead as he’s amid intensive training to become a firefighter and an emergency medical technician.
“A big part of me is helping other people—especially in the faith aspect. Being able to save people physically and spiritually.
“I really don’t think that I’d be where I am right now without my faith. Thinking of World Youth Day—where there’s going to be more than a million people there and getting to meet people from all over the world who have the faith—it was just something I couldn’t pass up.”
Amori Curiel couldn’t either.
‘I feel there’s so much peace in my life because of my relationship with God’
A 2021 graduate of Father Thomas Scecina Memorial High School in Indianapolis, Curiel is especially looking forward to the last night of World Youth Day, when all the pilgrims from across the world will be together in Lisbon, awaiting the closing Mass with Pope Francis.
“You get to camp out in a field, and you wake up for Mass. I think that’s super cool because you’re all experiencing God’s love at once in one place,” says Curiel, who works as an interpreter for the Spanish-speaking clients of a law firm.
“And even just being in close proximity to Pope Francis will be amazing. Just to hear his reflection on what brought us all into the Church and why we’re here will be eye-opening. I think it opens our hearts to just inviting God into our lives.”
That’s what Curiel is ultimately seeking from her World Youth Day experience.
“Being there will help me be more intentional with my time and the way I choose to apply myself in the aspects of praying and reading the Bible,” says the member of Holy Spirit Parish in Indianapolis.
“To make it a habit to actively participate in my relationship with God—not seeing it as a checklist but actually being more present and intentional with my time. World Youth Day will really help with that in so many ways, especially with the importance of fellowship.”
She has already seen the difference that trying to deepen her relationship with God has made.
“Because of God, I’m just more full of joy in life and learning to be present in every moment. If I could describe my relationship with God in one word, it would be ‘peace.’ I feel there’s so much peace in my life because of my relationship with God.”
Curiel’s feeling dovetails with the hope that Archbishop Thompson has for all young people.
“The ultimate purpose of World Youth Day is to deepen our personal relationship as individuals and communities of faith with Jesus,” the archbishop says. “At the heart of World Youth Day is the proclamation of the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as Savior of the world.
“Hopefully, those participating will not only experience a spiritual renewal and reinvigoration of their own Catholic faith, but they’ll also be empowered to return to their families, parishes, schools, workplaces and communities as missionary disciples in witness to the joy of the Gospel.” †
Related: Tips for pilgrims to make World Youth Day environmentally friendly
