A fascinating walking tour in Madrid

world youth day pilgrims from Barcelona arrive Hiking pilgrimage. Ferran Lord was fifteen years old when he first participated in the event, which was held in Compostela, Spain. This year WYD will be held in August in Madrid will be the ninth. Since then, as F. Lord was first attended WYD in Compostela in 1989, in his life there have been many changes. Siogodni Ferrand Lord is a priest in the Church of St. Theresa of the Child Jesus in Barcelona (Spain). Here he works with a wonderful group of young people, which in August will travel about 600 km from Barcelona to Madrid, going Hiking pilgrimage to attend the world Youth Day. When the father asked how we had the idea, he immediately answers: "it All started with a joke!"

In 2015 a group of pilgrims from his parish made the trip to world youth day in Sydney. "This trip required extraordinary effort, despite how far away and expensive it was, and we traveled for a month but did it!", - Says the father. When Pope Benedict XVI after the final mass in Sydney announced that the next WYD will be held in Madrid, the group just went for joy. For all was obvious: if they managed to overcome such a long distance to get to Sydney, it makes no doubt that they will take part in the festival, which will take place in Madrid. Because it is so much easier compared to the efforts, which required a pilgrimage to Australia.

it All started with a joke

Photo: Anastasia Misharin

Someone joked that the journey to WYD 2016 may not be too easy, if you go on foot from Barcelona to Madrid. This joke turned into a serious idea. The more the pilgrims discussed it, the more serious they perceived the opportunity to organize a walking pilgrimage to WYD 2016.

the plan was implemented in 2015, when they made a walking pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela from Oporto total distance of about 390 km. "We saw that youth is under the power; she had the stamina and strength to go on foot," says the father of the Lord.

Alberto Gaulle, one of the boys who committed walking pilgrimage, says that there will be times "when you think that you'll never take a step, but still you go and pilgrims around you slowly realize that you will still be able to do it."

In 2014, in Poland this group made a walking pilgrimage from krak?w to cz?stochowa. As in previous pilgrimages, the pilgrims chose the route that would pass through fewer towns. Their motto: "We bring Christ to the smallest parts," explains the father of the Lord. He adds: "We communicate with people in the cities, get acquainted with them and they with us, and through us they get to know Jesus Christ." The only criterion for the selection of small towns is the presence of the school gymnasium, which could serve the pilgrims kind of hotel.

Victor Morera, who also participated in the previous pilgrimages, shares: "When you get to your destination, you realize that everything, every moment of exhaustion worth it."

Walking pilgrimage to world youth day

This summer, July 23 youth group of 120 participants will be lacing up their Hiking boots to arrive on August 18 in Madrid. This pilgrimage has the following three objectives: "Our first goal is licnse spiritual development of these young people, the second we want to tell about Jesus Christ to our world, and finally the third purpose - social, at the same time we are raising funds for a specific project I want to help build a school in Burkina Faso," says the father of the Lord.

In Saragossa to the group of pilgrims will be joined by their parents. Together they spend the day.

"We want to show that world youth day concerns the whole family. Parents dedicate children much of his time to prepare them for the journey, the younger brothers and sisters see how their older brothers and sisters are prepared and sent on a pilgrimage to WYD. We want to congratulate the family and thank them for the sacrifice that they bring," says the father of the Lord.

Parents and children will meet again in Barajas, near Madrid and will be the last kilometers of the pilgrimage together.

materials: http://a-misharina.livejournal.com/

Translated by "Yandex.Translate": translate.yandex.ru.