Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines

Episcopal Commission on Youth

“Mary arose
and went with haste”

National Youth Day 2022

Formation Program
 Table of Contents

National Youth Day..……………………………………………………. 03

National Youth Day 2022……………………………………………. 06
World Youth Day 2022.………………………………………………. 06
NYD2022 Formation Program……………………………………. 10

WYD2022-2023 Message of Pope Francis..………………….. 14

NYD2022
Preparatory Formation (for November 20, WYD2022) 19
Opening Session……..……………………………………………… 25
Session 1……………………….……….………………………………. 28
Session 2……………………….……….………………………………. 33
Session 3 and Conclusion...……………………………………. 41

Appendices……..………………………………………………………..…. 47
The Church in the Philippines celebrating her young people
NATIONAL YOUTH DAY
The National Youth Day (NYD) is an event where
the Philippine Church expresses, in very concrete
ways, her great love for the young. This love,
expressed by the 2nd Plenary Council of the
Philippines, “As we in this Council have declared our
evangelical love of preference for the poor, so it would
appear to us now to declare a preferential apostolate
for children and youth” (PCP II, no. 385), resounds in
youth ministries present in dioceses and parishes, in
youth organizations and other settings, as well as in
other Youth Days such as Diocesan Youth Days,
Parish Youth Days, and the like.
The NYD is an occasion offered by the Church for
young people to celebrate and deepen their faith,
and a special moment of coming together as one
ecclesial body with the young, united in a journey
with Christ as Head.
RATIONALE
The Catholic Church in the Philippines observes the
NYD as a special day for her great treasure--the
youth. Traditionally set every December 16, this is
an occasion which highlights the Church’s
preferential ministry for the youth. The youth
ministries in the particular churches (archdioceses,
dioceses, prelatures, apostolic vicariates and the
Military Ordinariate) as well as ecclesial
organizations spearhead the programs and
undertakings on this date (or on any date near it),
including the setting aside of the Mass collections
during this day for youth ministry.
ORIGINS
In 1986, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the
Philippines (CBCP), as a way of concretizing its
preferential apostolate for the youth, approved the
annual celebration of the NYD every December 16,
the first day of the Aguinaldo Masses or Simbang
Gabi.
"Mary arose and went with haste."
Since 2000, the NYD celebration is centered on the
theme offered by the Holy Father for the yearly
celebration of the World Youth Day (WYD).
Together with youth ministers from its Network,
the Episcopal Commission on Youth (ECY)
prepares the NYD Formation Program, which
contains directions and proposals for its
celebration. Adaptation of the program to suit the
local context depends largely on the creativity and
possibilities of each particular church or
organization.
The NYD is also celebrated through a national
gathering. It is usually on a date near December 16,
and lasts for around three days. When celebrated
this way, the local host of the celebration
collaborates with the ECY in the planning and
execution of the NYD events.
Whether in a national gathering or for a local
celebration, the NYD program prepared by the
CBCP-ECY is both formative and festive—mainly
with elements of catechesis, fellowship and worship.
It is also adaptable for use not only at the level of
dioceses, but also for other settings, e.g.
organizations, parishes, schools and other settings.
The NYD2022 takes as its theme the WYD2022
theme proposed by His Holiness Pope FRANCIS:
“Mary arose
and went with haste”
(Lk 1:39). This theme will be the center of our
reflection from this year until 2023, when the next
international celebration of the WYD will be after
more than two years of the COVID19 pandemic.
Page 3
 “And behold, Elizabeth, your relative, has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.
During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town of Judah,
where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her womb,
and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit, cried out in a loud voice and said,
“Most blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb.
And how does this happen to me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?
For at the moment the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the infant in my womb leaped for joy.
Blessed are you who believed that what was spoken to you by the Lord would be fulfilled.”

And Mary said: “My soul proclaims the greatness of the Lord;
my spirit rejoices in God my savior.
For he has looked upon his handmaid’s lowliness;
behold, from now on will all ages call me blessed.
The Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name…”

Mary remained with her about three months and then returned to her home.
Lk 1: 36-49, 56, NABRE
Iti saan a mabayag, nagrubbuat ni Maria ket nagdardaras
a napan iti maysa nga ili iti kabambantayan ti Judea

E melambat, ginayak ya i Maria at mamalagua yang minta

king metung a balen king kabundukan na ning Judea

Pakalihis nin nagkapirang aldaw, nag-andam si Maria

asin hidaling nagduman sa sarong banwaan sa kabubuldan nin Juda

Makalipas ang ilang araw, gumayak si Maria

at nagmamadaling pumunta sa isang bayang bulubundukin sa Judea

Unya nangandam si Maria ug midali pag-adto

sa usa ka lungsod sa kabukiran sa Judea

Sa tapos sadto si Maria nanghimos kag nagdalidali sa pagkadto

sa isa ka banwa sa kabakuloran sang Judea

Waray pag-iha, nag-andam hi Maria ngan nagdagmit

hin pagkadto ha usa nga bungto ha sagkahon nga tuna han Judea

Nuay tarda si Maria ya prepara para anda na uno

del pueblo na Judea donde bien magulut.
“Mary arose and went with haste” [Lk 1:39]

NATIONAL YOUTH DAY 2022

OBJECTIVES
MODE OF CELEBRATION
The NYD2022 celebration aims to become an
occasion for the young participants to learn from Target date of implementing this program is 2022
the example of Mary, our Mother, as they: December 16, or on a date/s near it. Target setting
 Make prayer an essential part of their for implementation is the local level, i.e. diocese,
spiritual life vicariate, parish, school, unit of a youth
 Reawaken their relationship with one organization, and BEC.
another as one body of Christ, in the spirit
of synodality The program may also be adapted in the celebration
 Respond to the call of mission in a specific of other youth events, such as Diocesan Youth Day.
situation or need in one’s community In this case, it may be necessary to orient the
participants about the NYD.
This NYD2022 Formation Program, prepared by
the ECY in collaboration with youth ministers from PRE-NYD
member-organizations of the Federation of National
Youth Organizations (FNYO), hopes to lead young November 20
people to a meaningful celebration of our faith,
enkindling in their hearts the spirit of active service 37th World Youth Day
and participation in the mission as a synodal
Church, with our Blessed Mother as our example In the Eucharistic celebration for the Solemnity of
and guide. Christ the King in 2020, Pope Francis called for a
renewal of the celebration of WYD in the particular
TIME ELEMENT Churches and transferred the date: from Palm
Sunday to Christ the King Sunday, beginning
November 2021.
The full program is designed for a full day.
However, the different sessions and/or elements
The Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life (DLFL)
may be adjusted or modified, according to what will
published, with the approval of Pope Francis, the
be most applicable to the context of the youth
“Pastoral Guidelines for the Celebration of World
ministry organizing the local celebration.
Youth Day in the Particular Churches”. This
Church document is “intended to be a resource
While the COVID19 health restrictions are now
that presents the ideal motivations and possible
easing, youth ministers are highly encouraged to still
practical implementations that will allow a diocesan/
observe proper health and safety protocols, so as to
eparchial WYD to be an opportunity to bring out
ensure the wellness of everyone who will take part
the potential for good that is in each young person,
in this celebration.
with their generosity, thirst for authentic values and
great ideals.”
As December 16 is also the first day of the
Aguinaldo Masses, it is hoped that elements of the
The CBCP-ECY echoes the emphasis of the DLFL
observance of the NYD celebration is highlighted in
on “the importance of particular Churches devoting
the liturgical celebration. This Formation Program
special attention to the celebration of the diocesan/
has a proposal when to celebrate the Holy Mass,
eparchial Youth Day, so that it may be properly
but organizers can choose when to have their
utilised and appreciated.”
Eucharistic Celebration as part of the NYD
celebration.

Page 6 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

Moving the date of the annual WYD celebration in
each diocese to the Solemnity of Christ the King
conveys this significant message to young people,
which must be at the heart of every local WYD
celebration: “Receive Christ! Welcome Him as King
into your lives! He is a King who came to save!”

Thus, youth ministries, especially of the dioceses,

are encouraged to observe the annual local
celebration of the WYD, as a meaningful occasion
to nourish and strengthen the faith and relationship
“And as we prepare for
of our youth with our Lord and King, Jesus Christ.
the next intercontinental edition of WYD,
Furthermore, the WYD celebration on Christ the I would also like to
King Sunday can usher youth to look forward to the renew its celebration in the local Churches.
NYD on December 16. Thirty-five years after the establishment of WYD,
after listening to various opinions and
As our very own NYD takes the WYD theme for consulting the Dicastery for the Laity, the Family
its own, these two ecclesial occasions are indeed and Life, which is responsible for youth ministry,
closely linked. When prepared and celebrated I have decided, beginning next year,
meaningfully by the entire ecclesial community with
the leadership of the Bishop and his diocesan youth to transfer
ministry, the WYD and the NYD affirm the youth the diocesan celebration of WYD
and their significant presence and contribution to
the life and mission of the Church, and promote from Palm Sunday
youth ministry. to Christ the King Sunday.
The centre of the celebration remains
Thus, the ECY offers a Preparatory Formation
program that youth ministers can implement, not the Mystery of Jesus Christ the
only to prepare their youth for the NYD, but also Redeemer of Man,
as a way of observing locally the WYD, as proposed as Saint John Paul II, the initiator
by the universal Church. Youth ministers are and patron of WYD, always emphasized.”
encouraged to do the NYD2022 Preparatory
Formation on November 20, the Solemnity of Pope Francis, at the conclusion of Holy Mass for the Solemnity of
Christ the King and WYD. our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, 2020 November 20

To invest in young people

is to invest in the future of the Church.
Aside from the Preparatory Formation offered by
It is about encouraging vocations, the ECY, youth ministries can also come up with
and it effectively means the initiation other ways to prepare their youth towards coming
of remote preparation for the families together for the NYD2022 celebration come
December 16. This can include providing weekly
of tomorrow. [The World Youth Day] reflection on the WYD2022 Message of Pope
is, therefore, a vital task Francis, countdown to the NYD2022, among other
for every local Church creative ways.
and not simply one more activity.”
From the conclusion of the Pastoral Guidelines
for the Celebration of WYD in the Particular Churches
"Mary arose and went with haste." Page 7
December 09-15
Youth Ministry Week
(YM Week)
The week preceding the NYD, i.e. December 09-15,
is celebrated as YOUTH MINISTRY WEEK [cf.
Resolution of the National Youth Coordinating
Council (NYCC) 2003; title modified in the
NYCC2017].
The animation of this weeklong celebration is
entrusted to the Regional Youth Coordinating
Councils (RYCCs).
ORGANIZERS
This Formation Program is ideally run by an
Organizing Team, i.e. a team of youth ministers and
leaders who take on the mission of implementing
the NYD2022 Formation Program together.
Whether implementing the program physically or
through other means, the Organizing Team works
by partners or in smaller teams to prepare the
event, e.g. facilitator training and accompaniment;
liturgy; animation (icebreakers); preparation of
materials; registration; etc., while also working
together in a coordinated way.
The following are specific roles or smaller teams:
1. Program Facilitator: A youth minister who
spearheads the implementation of the entire
program, and oversees the coordination of the
entire Organizing Team towards providing the
participants a meaningful experience of the
NYD2022. For example, for the celebration in
a diocese, the Diocesan Youth Director is
suitable for this role.
2. Emcees: Youth ministers or leaders with ample
facilitating skills who will guide the participants
during sessions, including those parts of the
program which are outside the modules, e.g.
assembling, welcoming, time management, etc.
3. Group Facilitators: Youth ministers and leaders
with ample facilitating skills who, as needed, take
charge of sessions in small groups.
Page 8
Notes in Selecting Facilitators
When choosing facilitators, consider basic skills
important for this crucial role, such as:
 Good communication (verbal and non-verbal),
which include the ability to give clear
instructions to participants;
 Comprehension, which enables a clear grasp of
the program in order to contextualize it to the
participants and to make it flow in a logical way;
 Group management and leadership, which
include engaging the group members to full and
active participation in the activities; and
 Ability to open oneself to and follow the leading
of the Holy Spirit in this mission.
The above basic skills are essential for a facilitator
to fulfill his/her task of leading the small group.
Below are key actions for a facilitator:
 Listen: To be welcoming and attentive as each
participant shares in the group, making sure that
everyone is being listened to, and that the group
empathizes with the person speaking.
 Discern: Listening to each group member and
armed with prayer, to assess who among them
might need further help and assistance
concerning what was shared, and to do this in
confidentiality and trust.
 Guide: With the help of the Organizing Team,
to refer these concerned participants to further
accompaniment and assistance that they might
need, e.g. counseling, school assistance,
livelihood/ employment, etc.
4. Technical Team: If the Organizers will do a
“blended” way of celebrating the NYD, it will be
good to form a specialized team who will take
charge of the technical needs for online
participants. This includes specific tasks like
setting up the online meeting room, admitting
participants into the meeting room,
livestreaming the program on social media
platforms, managing the breakout rooms, and
other tasks related to the smooth running of
the online sessions.
In the case of a physical celebration, this
Technical Team covers the technical
requirements of the program.
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
Aside from the roles and teams identified, the
Organizing Team is also encouraged to tap other
people or groups who can assist them in
accompanying the participants in their NYD
journey, e.g. confessors, volunteer counselors,
educators, catechists, parents, etc. They are
requested to be present and available during the
NYD, so as to respond to those who might need
additional spiritual/ psychological assistance. This
also enables wider participation in preparing the
NYD, which is an event of the whole faith
community and not only of the youth ministry.
Notes for the Organizing Team
Though the roles in the Organizing Team are varied
and distinct, it is important that each one in the
Team has a full and firm grasp of the program.
Following are concrete proposals to assume these
critical roles in the program:
a. Read and reflect on the WYD2022 Message of
Pope Francis by heart, and make it your own.
It is important and beneficial to read the Holy
Father’s Message, and consider it personally
addressed to you. Keep it present in your mind and
heart at all times, which will surely lead you to
effectively carry out your role/s in this program.
b. Go through the whole process of each session
over and over again.
Have a good grasp of the session objectives and the
flow by which the session aims to achieve them.
Practice what you are going to say. Write down
your thoughts, or consult if necessary.
c. Be fully and constantly present.
As you would notice, there are sessions or
moments in a session where you may not have a
direct task. However, it is helpful to be fully and
constantly present, whether by participating in the
activities, or in the case of a hybrid set-up, paying
attention to those present online. By your active
presence, you show a good example of focused and
active participation to the participants.
Be open to assist your teammates as needed, e.g. in
"Mary arose and went with haste."
distributing handouts, managing the attendees
present whether in person or online, animating, etc.
d. Pray.
It is God’s grace that you are able to partake in this
NYD2022 celebration, so always remain connected
to Him. Pray to the Holy Spirit to guide you, the
rest of the Organizing Team, and the participants,
along a meaningful NYD2022 journey.
The Sacraments of Confession
and Eucharist in the NYD
Pope Francis tells us, in his apostolic
exhortation Christus Vivit,
“…there are gifts of God that never grow
old, for they contain a power transcending
all times and places. There is the word of
the Lord, ever living and effective, the
nourishing presence of Christ in the
Eucharist, and the sacrament of
Reconciliation, which brings us freedom
and strength” (ChV, 229).
Thus, it is also important to make available
the Sacrament of Reconciliation during the
NYD celebration (in the case of a physical
gathering), or encourage the participants to
receive confession before the NYD as part of
their spiritual preparations.
On the actual occasion of the NYD2022,
young people are encouraged to participate in
the Aguinaldo Mass, whether physically or
through live streaming, to celebrate as a
community with the rest of the Church—since
the NYD is an ecclesial event for the whole
People of God!— and to offer to the Lord their
commitment to stand up and witness to
Christ, heeding the Holy Father’s challenge:
“Now is the time to arise!
Like Mary, let us ‘arise and go in haste’.
Let us carry Jesus within our hearts,
and bring him to all those whom we meet!”
Page 9
“Mary arose and went with haste” [Lk 1:39]
NATIONAL YOUTH DAY 2022
FORMATION PROGRAM (PROGRAM FOR CELEBRATION)
PREPARING FOR THE GATHERING
As health protocols are now easing out, a physical
celebration of the NYD2022 is now more possible.
However, the minimum health requirements (i.e.
wearing facemask, sanitizing, etc.) should still be
observed in order to ensure the safety and wellness
of everyone taking part in the NYD celebration.
This Formation Program is designed for a physical
celebration of the NYD. However, each Organizing
Team can adjust the sessions/ elements in the
program to make it applicable for their preferred
way of celebrating this occasion - whether physically
or in a blended program set-up.
The following serve as general pointers or
suggestions that the Organizing Team will do well
to consider as they implement the NYD2022
Formation Program in their own context:
Physical Gathering
Depending on the level of celebration (diocesan,
parish, etc.) of the NYD2022, organizers may
implement the program in batches or
simultaneously in multiple venues, in case those
who are confirmed to join the NYD exceed the
maximum number allowed in a venue for a physical
gathering. This is in order to accommodate all
those who committed to join the event.
Thus, it is essential for the venue of the physical
celebration to—
 be spacious and well-ventilated
 have hand washing stations
 have temperature check situated at the entrance
 have a first-aid station staffed by a medical team
—along with other requirements in compliance
with local health protocols.
Deciding on a physical gathering should be
discerned well by the organizers, in close
coordination with the relevant authorities, i.e. the
diocesan Bishop, the local government/s, etc.
Page 10
Should this be pursued, organizers can invite
resource persons for the live giving of the plenary
talk or testimony, or have their talk or testimony
pre-recorded for the participants to watch during
the live session.
Blended Program Set-Up
The blended program set-up is another way for the
Organizing Team to offer the NYD celebration,
accommodating those who prefer to participate
online. For this, the organizers should take into
account the minimum technical requirements for
this kind of set-up:
 Stable internet connection
 Free/ paid subscription to an online meeting
platform (Zoom, Google Meet, etc.)
 PC/ Laptop
 Webcam, microphone, earphones/speakers
It is important that a technical run is also done prior
to the NYD celebration, to make sure that the set-
up will run smoothly during the actual event,
according to the needs of the program.
Utilizing Other Forms of Media
(i.e. Diocesan Radio or TV/ Cable Channel, etc.)
The sessions may be pre-recorded or facilitated live
by the organizers, and then communicated to local
TV and/ or radio stations, which will then broadcast
it at a suitable schedule. Organizers then use all
possible platforms (newspaper, TV, radio, social
media, mass announcements) to spread news about
the schedule of the airing of the program.
Aside from the logistics elaborated in the foregoing
section regarding online/ blended mode of
celebration, other materials needed are indicated in
each session module.
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
PARTICIPANTS
Saving the best for last, here is the most important
part: the participation of young people. Young
people are welcome to participate; this is for them!
However, depending on the means or set-up to be
employed in implementing the NYD2022 Formation
Program, organizers should see to it that the
number of participants will be manageable.
In organizing a physical gathering, it will be best to
check and coordinate with the LGU and/or local
IATF for the latest guidelines concerning this.
Participants should be instructed to follow the
required health protocols:
 Wear face mask
 Bring and use individual alcohol/ hand sanitizer,
dry/ wet tissue
 Bring personal eating utensils and tumbler
 Observe proper physical distancing during the
event
Encourage young people to bring their personal
Bible, rosary and writing materials (journal and pen)
to this gathering. It will be helpful to begin/ support
the culture of bringing these basic aids in our faith
to faith-related events such as an NYD celebration.
Registration and Grouping of Participants
It is highly recommended that registration be done
prior to the event, as a way for the organizers to
assess the number of youth joining the NYD2022
celebration, and to facilitate contact-tracing, as
needed.
This registration should gather basic information
about participants, i.e. full name, origin, age, sex and
current occupation (studying or working).
Alongside the registration, those who confirm to
attend the event will be assigned into small groups,
as the groupings are essential for sharing of insights
and realizations during the sessions. A Small Group
Facilitator will be designated to these small groups
who will accompany them in each session.
"Mary arose and went with haste."
TIMETABLE OF ACTIVITIES
To guide the organizers in their planning and
preparation, here is a projected timetable of
activities leading to or related to the NYD2022
(underlined activities are care of the CBCP-ECY;
other dates of significance are included for
awareness or consideration):
By October 17
Registration of NYD2022 Formation Program
Reference Person/s per diocese/ organization for
the October 29 Online Orientation
October 21
NYD2022 Formation Program dissemination to the
ECY Network
October 22 to 28
Youth Council (diocese/ organization)
 Form its NYD2022 Organizing Team: Identify
and invite collaborators for this
 Do an initial Organizing Team meeting
 Hold WYD2022 Message reading and reflection
 Study the NYD2022 Formation Program
together
 Undertake delineation of tasks in view of both
the WYD and NYD celebration
 Identify resource persons/ guests
 Plan about the December 16 Mass collection
October 23
World Mission Sunday
October 29
Online Orientation on the NYD2022 Formation
Program
08:30 AM – 12:00 PM
Target participants: Reference Person/s per Youth
Council within the ECY Network
Facilitators: ECY and FNYO
Page 11
 October 30 December 04
Prison Awareness Sunday 2nd Sunday of Advent
November 01 National AIDS Sunday
Solemnity of All Saints December 08
November 02 Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception,
Commemoration of All Faithful Departed Principal Patroness of the Philippines

November 03 to 13 December 09 to 15
Organizing Team in each youth ministry setting YOUTH MINISTRY WEEK
 Hold meetings to plan and prepare for the  Refer to one’s RYCC for directions in
WYD and NYD celebrations celebrating this within/ for one’s region
 Organize preparations and work in teams December 11
(program, liturgy, registration, technical, etc.) 3rd Sunday of Advent
 Invite resource persons for the sessions
 Promote the event and send invitations, December 16
including information for registration NATIONAL YOUTH DAY
Aguinaldo Mass (Simbang Gabi)
November 13
World Day of the Poor December 17 onwards
Organizing Team in the youth ministry settings
November 20, Solemnity of Christ the King  Undertake evaluation and thanksgiving
WORLD YOUTH DAY  Finalize documentation
 Lead the local celebration of the WYD using the  Accomplish NYD2022 Report Form
NYD2022 Formation Program—Preparatory
Formation December 18
 Promote the coming NYD celebration 4th Sunday of Advent
 Start the countdown leading to the NYD December 25
SOLEMNITY OF THE BIRTH OF OUR LORD
November 21 to December 15 CHRISTMAS DAY
 (Daily) Countdown to NYD
 Provide points for reflection on the WYD2022 December 26 to January 01
Message Christmas Octave
 Build excitement about the NYD January 01
 Hold meetings to finalize plans Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God
 Continue work in teams World Day of Peace
 Align observance of Youth Ministry Week with
directives from one’s RYCC January 20
 Organize online program technical run Deadline for submitting the accomplished NYD2022
 Communicate with participants about Report Form
immediate preparations

By November 27
1st Sunday of Advent
 Follow up and confirm invited resource persons Note: In the next pages, quotes from the Message
 Promote and follow up registration of Pope Francis for the WYD2022-2023 are in dark
orange, italicized font, like the text in the next
Until December 03 page—
 Finalize registration and list of participants
 Start communicating with participants about
preparations

Page 12 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

  notes

“The Mother of the Lord is

a model for young people on the move,
who refuse to stand in front of a mirror
to contemplate themselves or to get caught up in the “net”.
Mary’s focus is always directed outwards.
She is the woman of Easter,
in a permanent state of exodus,
going forth from herself towards that great Other who is God
and towards others, her brothers and sisters,
especially those in greatest need, like her cousin Elizabeth.”

"Mary arose and went with haste." Page 13

 Message of His Holiness
POPE FRANCIS for the
37TH WORLD YOUTH DAY
2022-2023
“Mary arose and went
with haste"
[Lk 1:39]
Dear Young People!
The theme of the Panama World Youth Day
was, “I am the servant of the Lord. May it be
done to me according to your word” (Lk
1:38). After that event, we resumed our
journey towards a new destination – Lisbon
2023 – with hearts afire with God’s urgent
summons to arise. In 2020, we meditated on
Jesus's words: “Young man, I say to you,
arise!” (Lk 7:14). Last year too, we were
inspired by the figure of the Apostle Paul, to
whom the Risen Lord said: “Arise! I appoint
you as a witness of what you have seen” (cf.
Acts 26:16). Along the route we still need to
travel before arriving in Lisbon, we will have
at our side the Virgin of Nazareth who,
immediately after the Annunciation, “arose
and went with haste” (Lk 1:39). Common to
these three themes is the word: “arise!” It is a
word that also – let us remember – speaks to
us of getting up from our slumber, waking up
to the life all around us.
In these troubling times, when our human
family, already tested by the trauma of the
pandemic, is racked by the tragedy of war,
Mary shows to all of us, and especially to
you, young people like herself, the path of
proximity and encounter. I hope and I firmly
believe that the experience many of you will
have in Lisbon next August will represent a
new beginning for you, the young, and –
with you – for humanity as a whole.
Page 14
Image from https://www.kilmorediocese.ie/popes-message-for-world-youth-day-2020-an-invitation-to-youth-to-take-a-risk-and-change-the-world/
Mary arose
After the Annunciation, Mary could have
focused on herself and her own worries and
fears about her new condition. Instead, she
entrusted herself completely to God. Her
thoughts turned to Elizabeth. She got up and
went forth, into the world of life and
movement. Even though the astonishing
message of the angel had caused a seismic
shift in her plans, the young Mary did not
remain paralyzed, for within her was Jesus,
the power of resurrection and new life.
Within herself, Mary already bore the Lamb
that was slain and yet lives. She arises and
sets out, for she is certain that God’s plan is
the best plan for her life. Mary becomes a
temple of God, an image of the pilgrim
Church, a Church that goes forth for service,
a Church that brings the good news to all!
To experience the presence of the risen
Christ in our own lives, to encounter him
“alive”, is the greatest spiritual joy, an
explosion of light that can leave no one
untouched. Mary sets out immediately,
anxious to bring the news to others, to bear
witness to the joy of this encounter. This too
is what caused the haste of the first disciples
following the resurrection: “[the women] left
the tomb quickly with fear and great joy, and
ran to tell his disciples” (Mt 28:8).
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
In the accounts of the resurrection, we often
encounter two words: “awake” and “arise”.
With them, the Lord pushes us to go out
towards the light, to let him lead us across
the threshold of all of our closed doors. “This
image has great meaning for the Church. We
too, as disciples of the Lord and the Christian
community, are called to get up quickly, to
enter into the mystery of the resurrection,
and to let the Lord guide us along the paths
that he wishes to point out to us” (Homily for
the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, 29
June 2022).
The Mother of the Lord is a model for young
people on the move, who refuse to stand in
front of a mirror to contemplate themselves
or to get caught up in the “net”. Mary’s focus
is always directed outwards. She is the
woman of Easter, in a permanent state of
exodus, going forth from herself towards that
great Other who is God and towards others,
her brothers and sisters, especially those in
greatest need, like her cousin Elizabeth.
… and went with haste
Saint Ambrose of Milan, in his commentary
on the Gospel of Luke, writes that Mary set
out in haste towards the hills, “because she
rejoiced in the promise and sought to serve
others with the enthusiasm born of her joy.
Full of God, where else could she have gone
if not towards the heights? The grace of the
Holy Spirit permits no delay”. Mary’s haste
is thus a sign of her desire to serve, to
proclaim her joy, to respond without
hesitation to the grace of the Holy Spirit.
Mary was motivated by the needs of her
elderly cousin. She did not hold back, or
remain indifferent. She thought more of
others than of herself. And this gave
enthusiasm and direction to her life. Each of
you can ask: “How do I react to the needs
"Mary arose and went with haste."
that I see all around me? Do I think
immediately of some reason not to get
involved? Or do I show interest and
willingness to help?” To be sure, you cannot
resolve all the problems of the world. Yet
you can begin with the problems of those
closest to you, with the needs of your own
community. Someone once told Mother
Teresa: “What you are doing is a mere drop
in the ocean”. And she replied: “But if I
didn’t do it, that ocean would have one drop
less”.
When faced with concrete and urgent needs,
we need to act quickly. How many people in
our world look forward to a visit from
someone who is concerned about them! How
many of the elderly, the sick, the imprisoned
and refugees have need of a look of
sympathy, a visit from a brother or sister who
scales the walls of indifference!
What kinds of “haste” do you have, dear
young people? What leads you to feel a need
to get up and go, lest you end up standing
still? Many people – in the wake of realities
like the pandemic, war, forced migration,
poverty, violence and climate disasters – are
asking themselves: Why is this happening to
me? Why me? And why now? But the real
question in life is instead: for whom am I
living? (cf. Christus Vivit, 286).
The haste of the young woman of Nazareth is
the haste of those who have received
extraordinary gifts from the Lord and feel
compelled to share them, to let the immense
Page 15
grace that they have experienced be poured
out upon others. It is the haste of those
capable of putting other people’s needs
above their own. Mary is an example of a
young person who wastes no time on seeking
attention or the approval of others – as often
happens when we depend on our “likes” on
social media. She sets out to find the most
genuine of all “connections”: the one that
comes from encounter, sharing, love and
service.
Starting with the Annunciation, when she
first set out to visit her cousin, Mary has
never stopped bridging time and space to
visit those of her sons and daughters who
need her loving help. Our own journey, if
“inhabited” by God, can lead us straight into
the heart of every one of our brothers and
sisters. How many testimonies have we
heard from people who were “visited” by
Mary, the Mother of Jesus and our Mother!
In how many far-off places of the earth, in
every age – through apparitions and special
graces – has Mary visited her people! There
is practically no place on earth that she has
not visited. The Mother of God moves in the
midst of her people by tender and loving
care; she makes her own their anxieties and
troubles. And wherever there is a shrine, a
church or a chapel dedicated to Our Lady,
there her children flock in great numbers.
Think of all those expressions of popular
piety! Pilgrimages, festivities, prayers, the
enthronement of images in houses and so
many other acts of devotion are concrete
examples of a vital relationship between the
Mother of the Lord and her people, who visit
one another in turn!
Healthy haste drives us always upwards
and towards others
A healthy haste drives us always upwards
and towards others. Yet there is also an
Page 16
unhealthy haste, which can drive us to live
superficially and to take everything lightly.
Without commitment or concern, without
investing ourselves in what we do. It is the
haste of those who live, study, work and
socialize without any real personal
investment. This can happen in interpersonal
relationships. In families, when we never
stop to listen and spend time with others. In
friendships, when we expect our friends to
keep us entertained and fulfil our needs, but
immediately look the other way if we see
that they are troubled and need our time and
help. Even among couples in love, few have
the patience to really get to know and
understand each other. We can have the same
attitude in school, at work and in other areas
of our daily lives. When things are done in
haste, they tend not to be fruitful. They risk
remaining barren and lifeless. As we read in
the book of Proverbs: “the plans of the
diligent lead surely to abundance, but
everyone who is hasty comes only to
want” (21:5).
When Mary arrives at the home of Zechariah
and Elizabeth, a marvellous encounter takes
place! Elizabeth herself had experienced
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
miraculous intervention from God, who gave
her a child in her old age. She would have
had every reason to begin by talking about
herself, yet she was not “full of herself”, but
anxious to welcome her young cousin and
the fruit of her womb. As soon as she heard
Mary’s greeting, Elizabeth was filled with
the Holy Spirit. Such surprises and
outpourings of the Spirit come about when
we show true hospitality, when we put
others, not ourselves, at the centre. We see
this too in the story of Zacchaeus. In the
Gospel of Luke we read that “when Jesus
came to the place [where Zacchaeus was], he
looked up and said to him, ‘Zacchaeus, hurry
and come down; for I must stay at your
house today’. So he hurried down and was
happy to welcome him” (19:5-6).
Many of us have had the unexpected
experience of meeting Jesus and for the first
time having a sense of closeness and respect,
a lack of prejudice and disapproval, a loving
gaze that we never encountered in any other.
Not only that. We have also realized that, for
Jesus, it was not enough to glimpse us from
afar; he wanted to be with us and to share his
life with us. The joy of this experience made
us hasten to welcome him, to feel the need to
be with him and to get to know him better.
Elizabeth and Zechariah welcomed Mary and
Jesus into their home. Let us learn from these
two elderly persons the meaning of
hospitality! Ask your parents and
grandparents, and the oldest members of
your communities, what it meant for them to
have welcomed God and others into their
lives. You will benefit from hearing the
experiences of those who have gone before
you.
Dear young people, now is the time to set out
in haste towards concrete encounters,
towards genuine acceptance of those
different from ourselves. This was the case
"Mary arose and went with haste."
with the young Mary and the elderly
Elizabeth. Only thus will we bridge
distances – between generations, social
classes, ethnic and other groups – and even
put an end to wars. Young people always
represent the hope for new unity within our
fragmented and divided human family. But
only if they can preserve memory, only if
they can hear the dramas and dreams of the
elderly. “It is no coincidence that war is
returning to Europe at a time when the
generation that experienced it in the last
century is dying out” (Message for the 2022
World Day for Grandparents and the
Elderly). We need the covenant between
young and old, lest we forget the lessons of
history; we need to overcome all the forms of
polarization and extremism present in today’s
world.
Saint Paul, writing to the Ephesians,
announced that, “now in Christ Jesus, you
who once were far off have been brought
near by the blood of Christ. For he is our
peace; in his flesh he has made both groups
into one and has broken down the dividing
wall, that is, the hostility between us” (2:13-
14). Jesus is God’s response to the challenges
facing humanity in every age. Mary carries
that response within her when she goes to
visit Elizabeth. The greatest gift that Mary
brings to her elderly kinswoman is that of
Jesus himself. Certainly, the concrete
assistance she offered was most valuable. Yet
nothing could have filled the house of
Zechariah with such great joy and
satisfaction as the presence of Jesus in the
womb of the Virgin, now a tabernacle of the
living God. In that mountain village, Jesus,
by his mere presence and without uttering a
word, preached his first “Sermon on the
Mount”. He silently proclaimed the beatitude
of the poor and the meek who trust in God’s
mercy.
Page 17
My message for you, dear young people, the
great message entrusted to the Church, is
Jesus! Yes, Jesus himself, in his infinite love
for each of us, his salvation and the new life
he has bestowed upon us. Mary is our model;
she shows us how to welcome this immense
gift into our lives, to share it with others, and
thus to bring Christ, his compassionate love
and his generous service to our deeply
wounded humanity.
All together to Lisbon!
Mary was a young woman, like many of you.
She was one of us. An Italian Bishop, Don
Tonino Bello, addressed this prayer to her:
“Holy Mary…, we know very well that you
were destined to sail the ocean deep. If we
beg you to hug the coast, it is not because we
want to hold you back, but because, seeing
your closeness to the shores of our
discouragement, we come to see that we too
are called to venture out, as you did, upon
the high seas of freedom” (Maria, donna dei
nostri giorni, Cinisello Balsamo, 2012, 12-
13).
It was from Portugal, as I mentioned in the
first Message of this trilogy, that in the
fifteenth and sixteenth centuries great
numbers of young people – including many
missionaries – set out for worlds unknown,
not least to share their experience of Jesus
with other peoples and nations (cf. Message
for the 2020 World Youth Day). To that land,
at the dawn of the twentieth century, Mary
chose to make a special visit. From Fatima,
she addressed to people of all ages the
powerful and magnificent message of God’s
love, which summons us to conversion and
Page 18
to true freedom. Once more, I invite each of
you to take part in the great intercontinental
pilgrimage of young people that will
culminate in the celebration of World Youth
Day in Lisbon next August. I also want to
remind you that next 20 November, the
Solemnity of Christ the King, we will
celebrate World Youth Day in local Churches
throughout the world. In this regard, the
recent document of the Dicastery for the
Laity, the Family and Life – Pastoral
Guidelines for the Celebration of World
Youth Day in the Particular Churches – can
be of great help to all those engaged in the
pastoral care of young people.
Dear young people, it is my dream that at
World Youth Day you will be able to
experience anew the joy of encountering God
and our brothers and sisters. After a long
period of social distancing and isolation, we
will all rediscover in Lisbon – with God’s
help – the joy of a fraternal embrace between
peoples and generations, an embrace of
reconciliation and peace, an embrace of new
missionary fraternity! May the Holy Spirit
kindle in your hearts a desire to “arise” and
the joy of journeying together, in synodal
fashion, leaving behind all false frontiers.
Now is the time to arise! Like Mary, let us
“arise and go in haste”. Let us carry Jesus
within our hearts, and bring him to all those
whom we meet! In this beautiful season of
your lives, press ahead and do not postpone
all the good that the Holy Spirit can
accomplish in you! With affection, I bless
your dreams and every step of your journey.
Rome, Saint John Lateran, 15 August 2022,
Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary
© Copyright - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
 NYD2022
Preparatory Formation
(ideally on November 20, WYD2022)
Objective:
This preparatory formation for the NYD2022 aims
for the participants to:
 Recall the experiences and learnings from the
National Youth Day 2020 and 2021, and
 Be excited and prepared in mind, heart and spirit
for the NYD2022, with Mary as model and guide.
Time frame: Half-day
Materials needed:
 Logistics: Venue, sound system, projector/ screen,
microphones
 Altar: Candles, flowers, cloth decorations, etc.
 Marian image (preferably of the title venerated in
the diocese/ community)
 Music: Animation songs
 Music: “Hail Mary” or any Marian song
 Slides: Opening Prayer
 Slides: Getting-to-know activity (as needed)
 Slides: Overview of the Program
 Slides: Orientation on the NYD
 Slides: Introduction of the NYD2022 Theme
 Video: What is the NYD?
 Slides: Animation/Ice breaker (as needed)
 Slides: Session - Hail, Full of Grace!
 Slides: NYD2022 Communal Prayer
 Handout: NYD2022 Prayer
Per participant
 Bible and rosary
 Writing materials/ journal
 Health protocols paraphernalia
"Mary arose and went with haste."
30 minutes Arrival/ Registration/ Animation
Joyful animation songs are played as the participants
arrive and register for the Preparatory Formation.
Fifteen minutes before the start of the program, the
emcee and animators invite the participants to engage
in singing and dancing animation songs to energize
them and to build the community spirit for the
gathering.
05 minutes Opening Prayer
After the animation, the emcee invites the
participants to settle down and invoke God’s
presence at the opening prayer.
The emcee begins with the sign of the cross, then says
a short prayer of adoration to God, and then invites
the participants to join in singing a Marian Song.
Lyrics are shown for everyone to follow.
Song: Hail Mary (in English/ in the local language)
20 minutes Getting-to-Know Activity
The emcee engages the participants to a getting-to-
know activity to break the ice and build camaraderie
among them.
For this, the Organizing Team may use a song or a
game that will help the participants learn about and
be comfortable with each other.
05 minutes Program Overview
The emcee provides an overview of the schedule for
the Preparatory Formation. Then, he/she enjoins
everyone to observe the following house rules, so as
to facilitate a fruitful encounter and meaningful
experience of the program, which aims to prepare
them for the NYD2022 celebration. Presentation
slides may be used to support this.
Page 19
BE ON TIME: Be mindful of the time. Be at the
assembly area before the session begins. Let the organizers
assist you in managing the time, etc.
BE ATTENTIVE: Listen to the emcees when they are
giving instructions. Listen well to the speakers who will
provide input. Listen carefully to your group mates during
sharing moments. Allow yourself to be enriched by the
things that you will hear.
BE SAFE: As the threat of the COVID19 pandemic is
still present, everyone must observe the health protocols -
always wear facemask, use alcohol as needed, maintain safe
distance with one another.
BE 100% PARTICIPATIVE: We are here to participate;
thus, give your best in everything, and surely you will gain
100% as well! Using our phones during sessions might lead
to distraction for you and for others, so limit yourself to
using them only during break times. Let the
Documentation Team capture the meaningful moments for
you.
BE AN OMG (Online Missionary of God): Share the
experience on social media using the following hashtags:
#NYD2Ph022 #MOVEwithHaste
#MaryAroseAndWentWithHaste
Furthermore, should you wish to post your pictures/
insights/ realizations on Facebook, Twitter, etc. do this only
during break time.
30 minutes Orientation on the NYD
The emcee then introduces the facilitator who will
give an orientation on the NYD, and links the theme
of this year’s NYD to the past themes.
The facilitator provides information about the NYD:
what it is, how it started, and why it is being
celebrated. This can be done by presenting the
orientation video, or by other creative means.
After the NYD orientation, the facilitator leads the
participants to recall the theme, key message, and the
challenge of past NYD celebrations - from 2020 to
2021 - through creative and interactive means.
Page 20
NYD2020
“Young man, I say to you, arise!” [Lk 7:14]
Pope Francis in Christus Vivit says to young people,
“If you have lost your inner vitality, your dreams, your
enthusiasm, your optimism and your generosity, Jesus stands
before you as once he stood before the dead son of the
widow, and with all the power of his resurrection he urges
you: ‘Young man, I say to you, arise!’” (20)
The NYD2020, which we celebrated in the first year
of the COVID19 pandemic, called upon youths to:
 Recognize the power of God; that in the
“experience of death”, He raises us up;
 Pray in compassion and solidarity with the
struggles of other people; and
 Participate actively in the mission of bringing
God’s hope to others through various forms.
NYD2021
“Stand up! I appoint you as witness of what you have
seen.” [cf. Acts 26:16]
Taking place during the celebration of the 500 years
of Christianity in the Philippines, the NYD2021
endeavored to ignite all the more in the hearts of
young people the conviction to stand up for and with
Jesus, and courageously respond to the call of
becoming missionary disciples today, especially in
those situations which call for the courageous
witnessing to the Christian faith that renews and
transforms.
The NYD2021 challenged the youth to:
 Discover how the Lord guides them towards
enlightenment and transformation amid their
experiences of darkness and struggles;
 Recognize God’s affirmation of their weaknesses
and failures; and
 Stand up for Christ as His appointed
missionaries, committed to witness to Him in
their daily lives.
Afterwards, the facilitator introduces the NYD2022
theme. S/He invites the participants to listen to the
introduction of Pope Francis’s message for the 37th
World Youth Day 2022-2023. To guide the
participants, the facilitator begins by asking the
participants:
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
There is a constant call to arise. What am I doing to
answer this call?
Reading the message of Pope Francis is the simplest
way to deliver this introduction. The Organizing
Team may prepare a creative expression of this.
NYD2022
“Mary arose and went with haste” [Lk 1:39]
Message of His Holiness Pope Francis
for the 37th World Youth Day 2022-2023
Dear Young People!
The theme of the Panama World Youth Day was, “I am
the servant of the Lord. May it be done to me according to
your word” (Lk 1:38). After that event, we resumed our
journey towards a new destination – Lisbon 2023 – with
hearts afire with God’s urgent summons to arise. In 2020,
we meditated on Jesus’s words: “Young man, I say to you,
arise!” (Lk 7:14). Last year too, we were inspired by the
figure of the Apostle Paul, to whom the Risen Lord said:
“Arise! I appoint you as a witness of what you have
seen” (cf. Acts 26:16). Along the route we still need to
travel before arriving in Lisbon, we will have at our side the
Virgin of Nazareth who, immediately after the
Annunciation, “arose and went with haste” (Lk 1:39).
Common to these three themes is the word: “arise!” It is a
word that also – let us remember – speaks to us of getting
up from our slumber, waking up to the life all around us.
In these troubling times, when our human family, already
tested by the trauma of the pandemic, is racked by the
tragedy of war, Mary shows to all of us, and especially to
you, young people like herself, the path of proximity and
encounter...
15 minutes Break
During the break, joyful songs (e.g. NYD theme songs
or Marian songs) may be played.
30 minutes Session: Hail, Full of Grace!
The emcee invites the participants to gather and settle
down as they come to a session to get to know Mary
more through the prayer “Hail Mary”. S/He
introduces the facilitator who will give this input.
"Mary arose and went with haste."
The facilitator then gives the input about Mary, in
the light of the prayer “Hail Mary”, following the
expanded outline below:
A. Introduction: Who is Mary?
Daughter of the Church, Mother of the Church, and
Model of the Church (cf. CFC 1431-1441)
“Daughter of the Church”
 As “being of the race of Adam, and redeemed by
Christ in a more exalted fashion”
 As a “believing disciple of Jesus”
“Mother of the Church”
 As “Mother of Jesus Christ”, as disciples of Christ
and members of His Body, Mary is the spiritual
mother of Christians
 As “associate in Christ’s saving work,” Mary is a
mother to Christians in the order of grace
“Model of the Church”
 Mary “shines forth to the whole community of
the elect as the model of virtues”
 As the first to be evangelized and redeemed
 As the first evangelizer
In Mary’s life, God cannot be taken out of the
picture. She was conceived without sin through
God’s grace; bore in her womb Jesus Christ through
the Holy Spirit; witnessed the life, death, and
resurrection of Jesus; and received unending grace
being assumed into heaven. In all these, God is in
her life.
There is a lot to know about Mary, but to begin knowing
her more, the easiest way to do it is by diving deep into one
of the most famous prayers, the “Hail Mary”.
[The facilitator invites the participants to recite
prayerfully the “Hail Mary”.]
B. What is “Hail Mary” and why do we pray it?
The “Hail Mary” prayer stems from passages in the
Gospel of Luke:
 [Lk 1:28] “Hail, full of grace, the Lord is with
you!” This was spoken by the angel Gabriel when
she greeted Mary in the Annunciation
Page 21
 [Lk 1:42] “Blessed are you among women and
blessed is the fruit of your womb!” were the words
of her cousin Elizabeth when Mary visited and
greeted her.
The “Hail Mary” is a prayer of praising, veneration
and expression of our love for Mary, echoing the
salutation of the angel Gabriel in the Annunciation
and the greeting of Elizabeth to her in the Visitation.
It is also an intercessory prayer, asking our dear
mother, the Mother of God, to pray for us.
C. The “Hail Mary” in the Rosary
The “Hail Mary” is repeated 53 times in the Rosary,
but it is not just a repetitive prayer; rather, this style is
contemplative. Without such contemplation, the
Rosary becomes a body without a soul, a mechanical
repetition of formulas that makes us “rattle on like
pagans who think they will win a hearing by the sheer
multiplication of words” (cf. CFC, 1546).
The structure and flow of the prayer is meant to aid
the individual in meditation. The rhythm of the
prayer can quiet the spirit and help a person be more
receptive to hearing God, and thus be formed
spiritually.
The repetitive praying of the “Hail Mary” in the
Rosary then becomes a means to seek Mary’s
intercession as we contemplate the life, death and
resurrection of Christ in every decade of the Rosary.
D. Conclusion: Mary, Model of Prayer
As Mary’s role in the life of Christians is realized, as it
is being acknowledged and as her intercession is
sought in praying the Hail Mary in the Rosary, may
she be held as the model of prayer and of virtue
among us, young people.
As part of our preparation for the National Youth Day
2022, may we reflect upon the life of Mary. May we seek
her guidance to really understand what it means to “Arise”,
to be the missionaries that we are called to be since the
NYD2020 and NYD2021.
Page 22
10 minutes Preparation for Closing Prayer
Following the input, the emcee introduces and
explains the NYD2022 Communal Prayer to the
participants. S/He challenges the participants to
actively prepare for the NYD2022 through the
praying of the NYD2022 Communal Prayer.
Like Mary who was in prayer, in an encounter with God
before she received the gift of Christ in her womb, we must
also prayerfully ready ourselves. Let us do this as we
organize and/or participate in the NYD2022.
Part of our Christian life is prayer; and we look forward to
prayer becoming innate in every youth; not forced, but a
natural response to our love for God and our trust in Him.
The NYD2022 Communal Prayer is a prayer of the
congregation or community (organization, parish, diocese)
done at the same time. It is having a common time for
prayer beginning with a personal prayer followed by the
NYD2022 Prayer adapted from the WYD2023 prayer, as
both celebrations (NYD and WYD) share the same theme,
“Mary arose and went with haste” [Lk 1:39]. Asking for
the intercession of Our Lady of the Visitation, may all
Filipino youth be prepared in mind, heart and spirit for the
NYD2022.
Personal prayer: this can be expressed in different ways; for
example, spontaneous prayer of thanksgiving or petition,
Bible reading and reflection, Lectio Divina, a memorized
prayer like the Rosary, novena or the Angelus. Whatever
kind of prayer you choose to do, what is important is that it
is made willingly and done at the same time with others in
our community.
This personal prayer will be followed by the NYD2022
Prayer.
This communal prayer shall be prayed by all youths in the
Philippines daily at 6:00 PM. It shall begin on the local
celebration of the WYD2022 on the Solemnity of Christ
the King (November 20), and last until the NYD2022
celebration (December 16). Whether gathered in a
physical/ virtual venue or not, this is a communal prayer
because all young people in the community are praying it at
the same time for the intention of preparing well for the
NYD2022.
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
The emcee invites the participants to agree on the
common prayer time of 6:00 PM daily. In the case of
a youth being unable to pray at the agreed upon time,
he/she shall set a time (at least 10 minutes) when he/
she is available to focus on praying. He/She may not
be praying it at the same time with fellow youth, but
he/she is praying with them for the same intention,
i.e. of preparing for the NYD2022.

These dynamics hope to spark in the young, with the

witnessing and accompaniment of their youth
ministers, the habit of praying at the same time
everyday; hopefully, this habit is continued even after
the NYD2022.

25 minutes Closing: NYD2022 Prayer

To begin accepting the invitation to a communal

prayer leading to the NYD2022, the facilitator closes
the Preparatory Formation by inviting the
participants to pray together the NYD2022 Prayer.
NYD2022 Prayer
(Adapted from the World Youth Day 2023 Prayer)
Please see next page.
(optional) Fellowship
After the Closing Prayer, this Preparatory Formation
can end via a simple fellowship moment. This could
be sharing a simple meal, watching an inspirational
movie, or playing group games.
NOTES TO THE ORGANIZING TEAM
It is ideal to conduct this Preparatory Formation on
the date of the local celebration of the WYD2022,
which is Christ the King Sunday, November 20, since
the invitation to recite the NYD2022 Communal
Prayer daily starts on that day.
The Organizing Team may schedule gatherings to do
the communal prayer in their setting between the
Preparatory Formation and the NYD2022 (for
example, if the NYD will be celebrated at the
diocesan level, then there can be gatherings at the
vicariate level per week where the NYD2022
Communal Prayer can be done). These prayer
gatherings can end with a fellowship moment, e.g.
sharing a simple meal, watching an inspirational
movie, or playing group games.

In the days leading to the NYD2022, the Organizing

Team engages the whole faith community (e.g. the
diocese and its parishes, the national organization
and its local units, etc.) in reciting the NYD2022
Prayer (e.g. as post-communion prayer during Masse,
etc.) as an expression of support to the youth of the
Philippines who will be the center of the NYD2022
celebration.

"Mary arose and went with haste." Page 23


The first part of the prayer (in bold) may be used as a shortened version;
however, it is highly recommended to pray using the whole prayer.
(English)
Mary our Mother,
you set out in haste
to the hill country
to meet your old cousin Elizabeth;
help us meet all those
who wait for the Good News,
Who is Jesus, your Son and our Lord! para sa Mabuting Balita:
We will go with energy,
with no distraction or delay,
but with readiness and joy.
We will go in peace,
which is the way of Christ.
Our Lady of the Visitation,
with your inspiration,
let this National Youth Day become
the mutual celebration
of Jesus received and shared,
as you once did.
Make this Day
a time of witnessing and sharing,
of fellowship and thanksgiving,
of reaching those who wait.
With you, we will continue
on this path of gathering,
for our world to also gather in fraternity,
justice and peace.
Help us, Our Lady of the Visitation,
to bring Christ to everyone,
obeying the Father,
in the love of the Spirit!
Hail Mary…
Page 24
National Youth Day 2022 Prayer
(Adapted from the World Youth Day 2023 Prayer)
(Tagalog) (in another Philippine language)
Maria, mahal naming Ina, (The invocation to Mary can be the Marian
title prevalent in the language/ community,
nagmamadali kang pumunta e.g. “Yena tam ngamin” in the Northern
sa bulubunduking bayan Luzon)
upang tagpuin ang nakatatanda
mong pinsang si Isabel; Write your translation here...
tulungan mo kaming tagpuin
yaong mga naghihintay
si Jesus na iyong Anak
at Panginoon natin!
Yayao kaming may sigla,
nang di nalilingat o naaantala,
nang may lugod at ligaya.
Yayao kaming mapayapa,
pagkat kapayapaan ang daan ni Kristo.
Mahal na Ina ng Visitacion,
sa inpirasyon mo,
ang Pambansang Araw ng mga Kabataan na
ito nawa ay maging isang salu-salong
pagdiriwang ng Kristong aming tinanggap at
ibinahagi, tulad ng minsang ginawa mo.
Gawin po ninyo na ang Araw na ito ay
maging panahon ng pagbibigay saksi at
pagbabahaginan,
ng pagsasama-sama at pasasalamat,
ng pag-abot sa mga naghihintay.
Kasama kayo, magpapatuloy kami
sa landas na ito ng pagtitipon,
upang ang amin ding mundo ay matipon sa
kapatiran, katarungan at kapayapaan.
Tulungan ninyo kami, Mahal na Ina ng
Visitacion, na dalhin si Kristo sa lahat,
tumatalima sa Ama,
sa pag-ibig ng Banal na Espiritu!
Aba Ginoong Maria…
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
 NYD2022
Opening Session
With Mary, let us arise!
Objective:
To welcome and prepare the participants for the
National Youth Day 2022 celebration
Time frame: Maximum of 1.5 hours
Materials needed:
 Logistics: Venue, sound system, projector/ screen,
microphones
 Altar: Candles, flowers, cloth decorations, etc.
 Marian image (preferably of the title venerated in
the diocese/ community)
 Holy Bible
 Music: “Hail Mary”, or other Marian song
 NYD2022 Video Message from the ECY Bishops
 Slides: Opening Prayer
 Slides: Orientation
Per participant
 Bible and rosary
 Writing materials/ journal
 Health protocols paraphernalia
30 minutes Reception of Participants
The program starts with the reception of the
participants. NYD songs are played in the
background to provide a joyful and welcoming
atmosphere in the venue.
15 minutes Welcome
At the start of the program, the emcee invites the
participants to settle down. Then, s/he acknowledges
all the groups present for the NYD celebration (e.g.
via a roll call, or a video presentation, etc.)
"Mary arose and went with haste."
Following the roll call, the emcee calls on the leader
of the Organizing Team (e.g. the Youth Director), or
the Bishop of the diocese (or his representative), to
give a welcome message to the participants.
Afterwards, the Main Facilitator also presents to the
assembly the NYD2022 video message from the ECY,
as a way to officially welcome them to the NYD
celebration.
05 minutes Orientation
The emcee enjoins the participants to agree on a set
of “house rules” for the entire celebration.
Below are proposals (also used in the Preparatory
Formation) which you may use, or modify as needed:
BE ON TIME: Be mindful of the time. Be at the
assembly area before each session begins. Let the organizers
assist you in managing the time, etc.
BE ATTENTIVE: Listen to the emcees when they are
giving instructions. Listen well to the speakers who will
provide input. Listen carefully to your group mates during
sharing moments. Allow yourself to be enriched by the
things that you will hear.
BE SAFE: As the threat of the COVID19 pandemic is
still present, everyone must observe the health protocols -
always wear facemask, use alcohol as needed, maintain safe
distance with one another.
BE 100% PARTICIPATIVE: We are here to participate;
thus, give your best in everything, and surely you will gain
100% as well! Using our phones during sessions might lead
to distraction for you and for others, so limit yourself to
using them only during break times. Let the
Documentation Team capture the meaningful moments for
you.
Page 25
BE AN OMG (Online Missionary of God): Share the
experience on social media using the following hashtags:
#NYDPh2022 #MOVEwithHaste
#MaryAroseAndWentWithHaste
Furthermore, should you wish to post your pictures/
insights/ realizations on Facebook, Twitter, etc. do this only
during break time.
20 minutes Getting-to-Know-You Activity:
“Kumusta Ka”
This icebreaker activity aims to build the participants’
rapport and trust in each other, and enable them to
know their fellow youth from different origins,
promoting openness and cooperation. This activity
hopes to set a positive energy that will lead them to
participate actively in the entire NYD2022
celebration.
The facilitator of this activity sings this song with a
guitarist.
D The facilitator may choose from the above, or create
Kumusta ka? Kay Kristo’y masaya!
A G D questions, then going more deep. As well, limit the
Ipalakpak ang kamay, ituro ang paa.
D on a high note.
Padyak sa kanan, padyak sa kaliwa,
A G D After the activity, the facilitator processes the activity
Umikot nang umikot at humanap ng iba.
Instructions:
1. Play the song once or twice, then demonstrate the
actions (as directed by the lyrics), and then ask the
participants to follow the song and dance, becoming
familiar with it.
2. While singing the last part of the lyrics—“Umikot
nang umikot at humanap ng iba.”—each participant goes
around to choose a new partner: someone they do
not know yet, or someone from an origin different
from his/hers.
3. To start, each partner must pair with someone.
Then begin the first round of song and dance; at the
end of the round, each participant must be paired
with a new partner.
Page 26
4. Each new pair shares to each other their names
and origins. Then they listen to the question from
the facilitator, the answer to which, they share to each
other. Then, they prepare for the next round.
Here are some getting-to-know-you questions:
 How long have you been part of your youth ministry/
youth organization?
 What is your favorite food?
 Who is your celebrity crush?
 If you will be given a superpower, which superpower do
you want? Why?
 Why did you join this activity?
 What is/are your expectation/s for this activity?
 Did you join the NYD2022 Preparatory Formation?
Share your most memorable experience during that day.
 How did you prepare for this activity?
 What is the first prayer you have learned?
 Who is your favorite Saint?
 If Jesus is in front of you right now, what will you say
to or ask Him?
his/her own. It will be good to start with easy
questions between 5 and 7, careful to end the rounds
with the participants based on his/her observation
and experience of the group; below are some guiding
points:
 Building connections with others starts with a
conversation. A relationship may start through a
chance encounter, but active and conscious
communication helps keep it.
 How we get to know the people around us can be
compared with how we get to know God; they are not
very different.
 We relate to people by talking to them, asking
questions, and understanding where they are coming
from. Similarly, we relate to God by talking to Him
through prayer, asking questions about our
understanding where He is coming from through the
Scriptures. So we begin our NYD by reflecting on our
relationship with God through prayer, and take
inspiration from our Blessed Mother in sustaining our
relationship with Him.
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
10 minutes Opening Prayer journaling (between 3-5 minutes), the facilitator leads
the participants in singing a Marian song to conclude
The emcee prepares the participants for this moment. the prayer.

A facilitator leads the Opening Prayer, where the

following Gospel text is proclaimed:

From the Gospel according to St. Luke

Then the angel said to [Mary], “Do not be afraid, Mary, for
you have found favor with God. Behold, you will conceive
in your womb and bear a son, and you shall name him
Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most
High, and the Lord God will give him the throne of David
his father, and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his kingdom there will be no end.” But Mary said to
the angel, “How can this be, since I have no relations with
a man?” And the angel said to her in reply, “The holy Spirit
will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will
overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called
holy, the Son of God. And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age, and this is the sixth
month for her who was called barren; for nothing will be
impossible for God.” Mary said, “Behold, I am the
handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to me according to
your word.” Then the angel departed from her.

During those days Mary set out and traveled to the hill
country in haste to a town of Judah, where she entered the
house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth.” [1:30-40,
NABRE]

The prayer facilitator invites the participants for a

short period of silence to ponder on the Gospel text.

The participants are given the following guide

questions to help them reflect for the whole day as
they listen, learn and participate in the NYD
celebration:
 What do you feel about Mary’s response to the news
given by the angel?
 Why is the message of the Angel good news for Mary?
Why is it also good news to us?

The prayer facilitator encourages the participants to

take out their writing materials and journal their
reflection.

After a short period of silent reflection with

"Mary arose and went with haste." Page 27

 NYD2022
Session 1
Mary arose and prayed

15 minutes Presentation: “Relationship 101”

After gathering the participant, the session begins

with the video, “Relationship 101”.
Objective:
20 minutes Small Group Sharing
For the participants to make prayer an essential part
of their spiritual life Following the video, the emcee instructs the
participants to form small groups composed of 3
Time frame: Maximum of 2 hours members, and share among themselves these
following questions:
Materials needed:  What part of the video speaks to you the most? Why?
 Logistics: Venue, sound system, projector/ screen,  How is your relationship with yourself? With others
microphones (family and friends)? With God?
 Altar: Candles, flowers, cloth decorations, etc.  How is your prayer life? Are you happy with it, or do
 Marian image (preferably of the title venerated in you think you need to work more on it?
the diocese/ community)
 Video: Relationship 101 This sharing in small groups will run for 15 minutes.
 Slides: Input
 Slides: Guide questions for reflection 15 minutes Synthesis
 Music: Instrumental for reflection
 Music: Our Father After the small group sharing, the facilitator calls on
 Handout: A.C.T.S.S. some volunteers to share their own reflection, or
Per participant (with the permission of the others in the small group)
 Bible and rosary the common sharings that transpired in their small
 Writing materials/ journal group. From these shared insights, the facilitator
 Health protocol paraphernalia then provides a synthesis of the activity.

The video we have watched is about building relationships:

with ourselves, with others, and also with God. The video,
as well as our own experiences, convey to us that our
relationship with God looks almost exactly the same as our
relationship with others. Only that with God, His love is
perfect even though we are not, and though we oftentimes
cannot give back the same love and quality of relationship.
All the same, everyone is able, and is expected, to build and
cultivate that relationship. How? Through prayer.

Page 28 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

15 minutes Input
The emcee calls on the facilitator who will give the
main input on the importance of prayer, as revealed
in the life and example of Mary, our Mother.
The following contents serve as pointers for the
facilitator who will be tasked to provide this input
that will deepen the session.
A. Introduction
In the Annunciation, we read about Mary’s response to
God’s call to her. We are familiar with Mary’s response:
we pray this when we recite the Angelus.
“And the angel answered her, ‘The Holy Spirit will
come upon you, and the power of the Most High will
overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will
be called holy—the Son of God. And behold, your
relative Elizabeth in her old age has also conceived a
son, and this is the sixth month with her who was
called barren. For nothing will be impossible with
God.’
And Mary said, ‘Behold, I am the servant of the Lord;
let it be done to me according to your word.’ And the
angel departed from her.” [Lk 1:35-38]
Mary, at her young age, had this special relationship with
God. We find this in the attitude of Mary towards God’s
call. She submits herself fully to God, calling herself as
δούλη (“doule”, Greek word for “female slave”), God’s
lowly servant. This points to a woman who had already
submitted herself fully to the Lord, a concrete living of her
faith which we call and celebrate as her “fiat”.
And it is not just because she was conceived without sin,
but because she devoted herself to building a relationship
with God through prayer.
Mary received the message from the angel Gabriel that she
will bear the Son of God. In the same message, she learned
the news about her cousin Elizabeth, who is of old age,
already carrying a child in her womb for six months.
The journey of Mary to Elizabeth, from Nazareth in
Galilee to Ein Karem, in the hill country of Judah, is a
130+ kilometer distance with an elevation of 400 meters.
"Mary arose and went with haste."
The path itself is believed to be dangerous for travel for
simple folk (remember the parable of the Good Samaritan?),
due to the danger of bandits and wild animals.
After the Annunciation, Mary could have
focused on herself and her own worries and
fears about her new condition. Instead, she
entrusted herself completely to God. Her
thoughts turned to Elizabeth. She got up and
went forth, into the world of life and
movement. Even though the astonishing
message of the angel had caused a seismic
shift in her plans, the young Mary did not
remain paralyzed, for within her was Jesus,
the power of resurrection and new life.
Mary could have lived in fear and not continued with the
journey. But in spite of it all, she arose and went in haste
to visit and take care of her cousin. Putting yourself in the
position of Mary, would you do the same?
What made Mary take it all in humbly is her personal
relationship with God. Her faith, her prayer life made her
able to accomplish this.
Mary was young like us. Young as we are, like Mary, we
are invited by God to a relationship with Him; this we can
through prayer.
B. Why We Pray
St. Teresa of Jesus describes prayer as
“Mental prayer in my opinion is nothing less than an
intimate sharing between friends; it means taking
time frequently to be alone with Him who we know
loves us.”
She pointed to an important truth: that prayer begins by
being aware of the love of God. She also pointed to prayer
as this intimate sharing, to it being a relationship of love.
Let us explore God’s love. Note that even for saints such as
Teresa of Avila, this knowledge of God’s love and prayer did
not come easy. For her, this took 18 years of struggling
between conversing with God and being caught up in the
activities of the world before she found this prayer she
Page 29
described. We too will struggle in recognizing God’s love
and making the time and effort needed to have this intimate
conversation with God. Nevertheless, let us take the first
step and explore God’s love.
As Filipinos, we have an intuition of our “kalooban,” a
sense of our deeper self. We understand that deep within
us, we have a sense of good will, of being loving. There
exists also a longing to connect to a being of greater
goodwill, of greater love. We find it natural to connect to a
higher sense of love and good beyond ourselves. This is our
natural inclination to God. Prayer springs up out of this,
prayer that springs out from our deepest selves. Our
“kalooban” is enabled by God’s Holy Spirit to connect to
Him.
Yet beyond this intuition, we need to be aware of God’s love
in order to respond to this love, and thus create prayer.
Through this, our prayer becomes less of an external
devotion but more of an internal turning of our whole being
towards God. Part of the sad reality of our Filipino
Catholic faith is that sometimes the external devotion and
prayer of Catholics seem to be distant from an internal
moral life. There is a gap between our private prayer and
living out a good moral life (cf. CFC, 1472).
Why do we pray? This is our response to God who loves us.
We find it fitting to build a genuine and intimate
relationship with God who loves us. We can also never
fully repay the love God has shown us, but we can respond
in the simplest way we can: by turning to God and building
a relationship with Him in prayer. We may find many
ways to do this, but first, the most important step is to
recognize God’s love in our heads and in our lives.
C. A Model: A.C.T.S.S.
Below is a “guide” for how to dialogue with God in prayer:
this A.C.T.S.S. format is an acronym for five words that
can help lead us in communicating with the Lord, especially
for beginners in prayer or for those who consider themselves
not yet “established” in prayer life. Each letter stands for a
specific focus in praying.
 A: Adoration
We proclaim the greatness of God. If we accept God
as our Creator, the Creator of all things, the Mover of
our lives, we will be in awe of His works of this world
Page 30
(cf. CCC, 2628). Adoration is the attitude of
accepting God as higher than us, as maker and ruler
of all, our provider and the main mover of our life.
Here we praise God. We affirm the authority and
power of God.
The Lord is king of the universe!
God, You are in heaven. Holy is Your name.
 C: Contrition
We ask for forgiveness (cf. CCC 2631). This is
another way of becoming like the humble Christ who
took on the form of a carpenter and a slave (cf. Phil
2:8). When we acknowledge our sins, this allows us
to be honest with God, building up our once broken
relationship with God. Just like the feeling when
people forgive us, we try to do this with our heavenly
Father by expressing our sins in prayer. Confess to
Christ the sins we committed, especially in preparing
for the sacrament of Reconciliation.
Lord, I am sorry for these sins I did today…
Heavenly Father, I think I hurt a person today...
 T: Thanksgiving
We give thanks to God. To be in a relationship with
the Almighty is already something to be grateful for!
We can thank the Lord for the little cheerful
conversations we had today, for the difficult but
helpful correction, for the love that came from a
person we once hated. Here we acknowledge the gifts
of God to us, through His Son and Holy Spirit (cf.
CCC, 2626).
Almighty, loving God, thank You for this experience of…
Jesus, I am grateful for this grace that You granted...”
 S: Supplication
We can ask. It is better to pray for people around
you first before praying for yourself (cf. CCC 2635),
such as by praying and asking the Lord to help and
heal those who need prayers, taking the time to
remember all those who are troubled, and asking the
Lord to be with them.
Holy Spirit, strengthen those who are discouraged…
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
Through Your Providence, please supply the needs of...
 S: Silence
We dwell in God’s presence in silence. St. Mother
Teresa of Kolkata found silence especially useful in
prayer. It helps us to hear our monologues less and
hear God’s word a bit louder. It is allowing God’s
loving presence to fill our minds, even putting silence
to our minds and peace to our hearts.
40 minutes Closing Prayer
As a culmination for this session, the emcee calls on
the prayer facilitator who will invite the participants
to an experience of prayer, following a guide which
will help them enter into a prayerful dialogue with
the Lord.
Using the handout on A.C.T.S.S., the prayer
facilitator shares points and questions to help the
participants in writing their own prayer, conveying
whatever they have to say to God in the moment.
They are instructed to write their responses to the
questions on the handout, and write these in a
prayerful manner, pondering on and meaning each
and every word.
The participants are given 10 minutes for their
personal reflection.
Please see next page for the handout.
After their personal reflection, the facilitator calls for
some volunteers to share in the big group their
answers to the following questions:
 What are the things you wrote in your prayer? Why did
you write these?
 What could be the possible struggles that you will
encounter in developing the habit of talking to God
regularly in prayer?
 How do you think this activity will help you in
improving your prayer life?
Following the sharing in the big group, the facilitator
leaves them with the following guide points:
 We are all encouraged to recommit ourselves to a life of
"Mary arose and went with haste."
prayer, making prayer an essential part of our lives.
Even after this NYD, let us allow ourselves to be helped
by this A.C.T.S.S. prayer guide. As we do this, we can
expect to rediscover how our relationship with God
through our communication in prayer is getting deeper
and more meaningful.
 Prayer is the form of communication to build our
relationship with God. Including other people’s
intentions into our own prayers also helps build our
relationship with them. It shows that we care for and
love other people who are also God’s beloved. If we love
God, we should also love those He loves.
 Also, one way of showing our love for God and care for
others is to pray for one another. Let us also make it a
habit to pray not only for our own intentions, but for
the intentions of other people.
The facilitator then invites the participants for a short
period of silence (around 3 minutes) to review what
they wrote in the A.C.T.S.S. handout. S/He also
instructs them to remember their fellow participants
as they pray for them and the intentions that they
keep in their hearts.
This session culminates with the mindful recitation
or singing of the prayer taught by Christ: the Lord’s
Prayer (which can be in the language of the
participants).
Page 31
 A.C.T.S.S.
In each row, write your own personal prayers following each focus or theme: adoration, contrition, thanksgiving and
supplication. Leave the last row blank, signifying that this is something that human words cannot fill, that only God can.

Who is God for you? What can you say about God?
Adoration
Loving God, Giver of all gifts, My
One Desire, Light of the world...

What are sins that you want to ask God for forgiveness?
Contrition
For nursing anger, for doing
nothing in front of bullying…

What do you want to thank God for? What graces has God given you?
Thanksgiving
For the gift of life, for family, for a
conflict resolved, for answered
prayer...

What needs or intentions, yours or others, do you want to lift up to

Supplication God?
That OFWs, including my
mother, be safe… for youth
education...

In silence, dwell in God… SIMPLY BE in God’s Presence.

Silence

Page 32 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

 NYD2022
Session 2
Mary arose and obeyed
Objective:
For the participants to reawaken the relationship
among brothers and sisters as one body of Christ, in
the spirit of synodality
Time frame: Maximum of 2 hours
Materials needed:
 Logistics: Venue, sound system, projector/ screen,
microphones
 Altar: Candles, flowers, cloth decorations, etc.
 Marian image (preferably of the title venerated in
the diocese/ community)
 Sets of puzzle pieces (according to the number of
groups)
 Prize for the winning group
 Slides: Input
 Slides: Guide for the reflection
 Slides: Guide for the Closing Prayer
 Slides: Chant lyrics
 Sheets of paper
 Bell for the Small Group Sharing
 Heart cutouts, with the printed statement:
“Brother, Sister, let me serve you…”
 Basket for the offering of sheets of paper
 Music: Instrumental for reflection
 Video: “Brother, Sister, Let Me Serve You”
Per participant
 Bible and rosary
 Writing materials/ journal
 Health protocol paraphernalia
"Mary arose and went with haste."
10 minutes Icebreaker: Puzzle Game
Participants are divided into small groups of 12
members. Each small group receives an envelope
containing a puzzle set that they need to put together
as a group. The completed puzzle should convey the
statement/ quote below from Pope Francis, which is
related to the theme of building relationships in the
Church, in the spirit of synodality (see below).
“To create a ‘home’ is to create ‘a family’. It is to learn to
feel connected to others…
No one can be indifferent or stand apart, since each is a
stone needed to build the home.”
Christus Vivit, 217
Before the NYD, print these words out on a single
sheet. Then, cut the single sheet into several pieces
to form puzzle pieces.
Create as many puzzle sets as there are groups for the
session.
The groups should be able to solve the puzzle in the
shortest possible time. The first small group to read
aloud together the statement written in the
completed puzzle wins the game.
After the “mystery quote” is solved, the emcee invites
everyone to read aloud the quote together.
Aside from this suggested activity, the organizers can
use a different activity as icebreaker for this session, as
long as it:
 Allows the participants to experience the joy of
working as one group;
 Gives a glimpse of the theme of the session,
which is centered on communion and synodality;
 Encourages participants to participate actively;
and
 Is an activity that is participatory and inclusive.
Page 33
10 minutes Sharing in the Assembly
The emcee affirms the participants for their active
participation in the game. Then, s/he leads them to
a moment of reflection (around 2 minutes) on the
statement revealed in the puzzle, guided by these
questions:
 What word/ line from the statement caught your
attention, or struck you? Why?
 Can you say that the statement is true to your personal
experience of the Church, or of being in the Church? In
what way?
After a brief moment of reflection, the emcee calls for
2-3 volunteers to share their reflection.
The emcee acknowledges these volunteers for their
sharing. Then, s/he links the shared insights on the
theme of the session.
The quote from Pope Francis that was revealed through our
icebreaker is only one of the many statements that he gave
where he emphasized the importance of building our
relationship within our Church community that is rooted in
Christ, thus making each of us feel that we are part of a
family, that we belong together as His Body and with Him
as the head.
Let us recall how, in our session earlier this morning, we
were reminded about the importance of keeping our
relationship with our Lord alive by committing to a life of
prayer. In this way, we are able to deepen our faith and
friendship with Him. We have seen this in Mary’s
rootedness in prayer, which led her to become open and
ready in accepting the Lord’s plan for her; that of becoming
the Mother of God. This is one significant fruit of a life
that is rooted in prayer. But another result of a prayerful
life is that we become more capable of reaching out to others
and be one with them in their need. Our faith, which we
nourish by prayer and the sacraments, is sustained and
becomes more fruitful when we allow God to lead us
towards communion with others, made manifest as we listen
and respond to their needs. This is what we hope to deepen
in this session.
15 minutes Input
The emcee introduces the speaker who will provide a
Page 34
deepening on the theme of communion and
synodality in the Church.
For this section, the following points are discussed:
A. What is Synodality?
 “Synodality” refers to the involvement and
participation of the whole people of God in the
life and mission of the Church.
 Etymology: from “synod”, which is Greek συν,
meaning "together", and ὁδός "way", "journey"
 It is “the specific modus vivendi et operandi of the
Church, the People of God, which reveals and
gives substance to her being as communion when
all her members journey together, gather in
assembly and take an active part in her
evangelising mission." It also “refers to the
involvement and participation of the whole
People of God in the life and mission of the
Church”.
 Synodality is a lifestyle that the Church is called
to embrace; that is, to walk together with Jesus,
Who is the way, truth and life (cf. Synodality in
the Life and Mission of the Church).
 Synodality is communion with God and with
others. This means that synodality can be
experienced in different areas of life. It may be in
the family, church, community, workplace,
school, etc. Synodality ought to be expressed in
the Church’s ordinary way of living and working.
B. Synodality in the Family
 First calling: To build meaningful relationships
within our families
 Jesus was first born in a family: “Joseph, the
husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is
called the Messiah” [Mt 1:16].
 Doing our responsibilities as son/ daughter and
as a sibling
 In Mary’s life: “During those days Mary set out
and traveled to the hill country in haste to a town
of Judah, where she entered the house of
Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth
heard Mary’s greeting, the infant leaped in her
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
 womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the holy Spirit,
cried out in a loud voice and said, ‘Most blessed
are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of
your womb’” [Lk 1: 39-42].
 Mary, as daughter to her parents and cousin to
Elizabeth, chose to be present and serve the needs
of her family, even if it takes traveling a long
distance and experiencing inconveniences.
 What does the Bible say about the family?
 “Children, obey your parents in everything, for
this is pleasing to the Lord” [Col 3:20].
 “...for if a man does not know how to manage his
own household, how can he take care of the
church of God?” [1 Tim 3:5]
 How is my relationship with my family, and with each
member of my family? In what way am I called to grow
in my relationship with them?
C. Synodality in the Church and Community
 “As a body is one though it has many parts, and
all the parts of the body, though many, are one
body, so also Christ” [1 Cor 12:12].
 Mary as the perfect type and image of the Church
(synodal Church)
 Her innate goodness to serve her cousin
 She was greeted as “full of grace”, an embodiment
of grace [cf. Lk 1:28]
 Importance of building a genuine friendship with
Christ as bond
...there is also an unhealthy haste, which can
drive us to live superficially and to take
everything lightly. Without commitment or
concern, without investing ourselves in what
we do. It is the haste of those who live, study,
work and socialize without any real personal
investment. This can happen in interpersonal
relationships… In friendships, when we
expect our friends to keep us entertained and
fulfil our needs, but immediately look the
other way if we see that they are troubled and
need our time and help.
"Mary arose and went with haste."
D. Synodality as Means of Inclusiveness
 Synodality is making every effort to involve those
who feel excluded or marginalized.
 We are called to reach out the least, the last and
the lost. Who are these in our community? Give
examples of discrimination in different forms
(sexism, ageism, social exclusion, religious
exclusion, etc.)
Dear young people, now is the time to set out
in haste towards concrete encounters, towards
genuine acceptance of those different from
ourselves. This was the case with the young
Mary and the elderly Elizabeth. Only thus
will we bridge distances – between
generations, social classes, ethnic and other
groups – and even put an end to wars.
 Elizabeth as an example: she was an old, barren
and poor woman, but the young Mary went in
joyful haste to reach out to her.
 We are called to become beacons of hope.
 Be like Mary! What was her attitude towards
Elizabeth who was an old and poor woman?
 Humility: Mary humbled herself to the will of
God. She was free from pride in traveling to
Judah for her cousin Elizabeth, despite being
pregnant too [cf. Lk 1:38-39].
 Patience: Mary showed patience when she
travelled to Judah and stayed to take care of
Elizabeth for three months [cf. Lk 1:39-56].
 Openness: Without asking the angel how her
cousin got pregnant, Mary went in haste [cf. Lk
1:36, 39]. Then, arriving in her cousin's house,
she greeted her with warmth and joy [cf. Lk 1:40-
41]. It is a concrete example of synodal dialogue
when we welcome what others say as a way by
which the Holy Spirit can speak for the good of
all [cf. 1 Cor 12:7].
 Disponibility (i.e. availability to be at the disposal
of God): “I am the servant of the Lord…” [Lk.
1:38]
 Pope Francis calls the youth to set out in haste
towards concrete encounters, towards genuine
acceptance of those different from ourselves.
Page 35
After Mary said yes to the invitation of God through
the angel, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word” [Lk
1:38], she “set out and traveled… in haste” [Lk 1:39]
to help Elizabeth who, after hearing her greeting,
declared the blessedness of Mary and of the Infant in
her womb. Our Lady then expresses her joy in the
Magnificat, her hymn of praise to the Lord.
15 minutes Synodal Encounters
Following the synthesis, the participants encounter
different people who will share their experience of
communion and synodality in their journey of faith.
There are two (2) pairs of sharers who will highlight
their experience of a meaningful and enriching
relationship with others amidst discrimination/
marginalization in their community; thus, making
them experience and share Christ with one another,
like the encounter between Mary and Elizabeth.
The following descriptions are suggested, but they can
also be modified by the organizers, especially when
there are other more pronounced situations of
exclusion or discrimination in their setting. It will be
good to highlight here how the Church responds to
these situations and walks in synodality with the
community.
 A volunteer in a facility for the elderly, and one of
the elderly in that facility, and how they have
mutually grown as persons through their
interaction
 A religious sister who is serving in a home for
abandoned women, and one of the women in
that home
 An old parish priest and his Parish Youth
Coordinator
 An old catechist and one of his/her Grade 7
students
 A pair/ relationship of service or shared growth
that came about, or became stronger, during the
pandemic
 A person who experienced discrimination in the
Church because of his/ her gender, and the
person who welcomed and accompanied him/
her
 A young person who is part of an indigent
Page 36
family/ indigenous people, and one of the
volunteers who is supporting them
The sharers can be physically present, or some of
them may send a pre-recorded video.
The sharers are given 3-4 minutes at most to share
their experience, with the following guide points:
1. Introduce oneself: Give basic information about
oneself, aimed at connecting to the audience and
providing a meaningful context for the sharing.
2. Walking together in Christ: As a pair of sharers,
each one shares about his/ her experience of
journeying and walking together in Christ, in the
context of the exclusion/ misconception/
discrimination that is present in the community, i.e.
significant challenges encountered, how the Church
community extended help and listened to the
marginalized, attitudes that developed in them in this
journey, etc.
3. Realization: Share your most important discovery/
realization from this experience of communion and
synodality, in the face of exclusion that divides people
in the community.
For a sample video that the organizers can use as
reference in instructing the sharers in preparing a
brief yet meaningful sharing, please see appendices.
The participants are encouraged to listen attentively
to the sharers, so as to gain insights and realizations
from their experiences.
03-05 minutes Personal Reflection
The emcee thanks the sharers for their stories and
sharing.
After listening to the shared experiences, the
participants are invited to a moment of personal
reflection, with the following questions as guide:
 What quality/ attitude of Mary do you think you
already have, which will enable you to follow God’s
invitation to build relationships with others in the spirit
of synodality?
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
 Who are the people whom God is calling you to reach
out to (e.g. in your family, school, workplace, parish or
friend groups)? How can you reach out to them?
Participants are instructed to journal their reflection.
Soft instrumental music accompanies this moment.
05 minutes Instructions for the Small Group
Sharing
Following the personal reflection, the emcee calls on
the main facilitator who will guide the participants in
the small group sharing.
The main facilitator gives the general instructions for
the small group sharing:
1. From the groups during the icebreaker, each group
will be further divided to have smaller groups with
three (3) members in a group.
2. Each small group receives a sheet of paper wherein
they will write down their shared responses from the
sharing. With this, the group members assign one of
them as a secretary who will note down their key
insights and reflection.
3. There will be three (3) rounds for the small group
sharing. The main facilitator gives specific
instructions for each round of the sharing, which the
small groups will follow as they share their personal
reflection with their group mates.
4. Participants are encouraged to make their sharing
meaningful yet concise, so as to allow each member
in the group ample time to speak. The facilitator also
reminds them to use “I” when speaking; avoid using
“we” or “you” (e.g. “I realized…”, “From what the
sharer said, I felt…” INSTEAD OF “That is why you
should not…”, “All of us know…”).
5. The facilitator gives the participants ten (10)
minutes for each round of sharing. S/He reminds
the participants of the time remaining for each
sharing round. The facilitator rings the bell at the
end of the time allotted, as a signal for the
participants to stop their sharing, so that the process
can move forward.
"Mary arose and went with haste."
After the main facilitator gives the instructions, s/he
sets the prayerful mood for the small group sharing.
10 minutes Small Group Sharing: Round 1
The facilitator gives the instructions for this round.
1. Each member shares his/her answers to the guide
questions given earlier. The other members listen
intently when someone shares, avoiding interrupting
with side comments, unless one wants to clarify
something on what is being shared. These are
repeated until everyone has shared.
2. Each one is encouraged to be aware of how he/she
feels/ is moved by the sharing of the group mates,
and also when one feels tension, or when one is
struck by a sharing.
3. After all the members have shared, the assigned
secretary identifies from his/her notes the common
responses shared in the group.
During this time, other facilitators go around to
monitor the sharing in small groups, taking care that
each group is able to follow and that all participants
are able to take part.
The facilitator rings the bell once the time is up,
signifying the end of the first round of sharing.
After the sharing, the facilitator allows a short period
of silence (between 1-2 minutes) before proceeding to
the next sharing round. If the energy of the assembly
is high, or if it would be helpful, intoning a chant—
for example, “Ang puso ko’y nagpupuri” (Taizé)—and
inviting the whole assembly to sing could be done, to
stabilize the atmosphere and prepare for the next
round.
10 minutes Small Group Sharing: Round 2
The facilitator gives the instructions for this round.
1. This round serves as a moment for the participants
to dialogue with one another. The members are
encouraged to share in their small groups the
common ideas/ insights/ realizations that they
gained, in reference to what they have heard from
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their group mates, during the first round of sharing.
They may also express a difference of opinion from
what was earlier shared, if any.
2. After all the members have shared, the assigned
secretary notes down the key responses shared in
their group.
Other facilitators go around again to monitor the
sharing in small groups, making sure that the
participants are able to follow the instructions and
share in their group.
After the sharing, the facilitator allows a short period
of silence (1-2 minutes) before proceeding to the next
sharing round.
10 minutes Small Group Sharing: Round 3
The facilitator gives the instructions for this round.
1. The participants are instructed to express in prayer
their learnings and realizations coming from all the
sharing and listening to one another in the first two
(2) rounds.
2. Each one in the group is invited to say aloud her/
his prayer of praise and thanksgiving to God, as a
fruit of their experience. S/He may also pray for a
specific grace that s/he would like to ask from the
Lord.
3. After all the members have prayed, the secretary
writes down the common prayer of or in the group.
Other facilitators monitor the sharing in small
groups, making sure that the participants are able to
have a meaningful prayer time together
After this round, the facilitator allows a short period
of silence (1-2 minutes).
05 minutes Orientation for the Closing
Prayer
After listening to each other in their small groups and
learning from this session, the participants are all
invited to pray as one community, thanking the Lord
for the meaningful experience of this session, and
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seeking His grace to truly walk the path of synodality
and communion, following the example of our
Blessed Mother.
The emcee calls the prayer animator to facilitate the
prayer ritual.
Prior to the prayer proper, the prayer animator
should have already selected the participants who will
read the statements for the contrition, thanksgiving,
and supplication.
The prayer animator gives a brief orientation on the
prayer flow, to include the distribution of the heart-
shaped pieces of paper needed in the prayer ritual.
S/He also reminds the group secretaries to be ready
with the fruits of the third round of sharing; these
will be used in the closing prayer.
Then, s/he sets the solemn mood for community
prayer.
20 minutes Closing Prayer
A. Introduction
In celebration of our communion as brothers and sisters in
the Church, a prayer ritual will be done which expresses our
oneness as a community, with our Lord God at the heart of
our relationship. Our faith unites us as brothers and sisters
in the Lord. And today, we manifest our being one in Him
as His Body, the Church; striving to imitate the ways of our
Blessed Mother - she who is pure, humble, obedient, always
ready to say yes to serve others.
B. Adoration
Let us begin our community prayer together with Mary, in
worship of our God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Ang puso ko’y nagpupuri,
nagpupuri sa Panginoong ating Diyos!
Ang puso ko’y nagpupuri, nagpupuri sa Panginoon!
This Taizé chant is sung several times.
C. Contrition
There might be times when we isolate ourselves and fail to
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
recognize the presence of God in others, or we fail to be the
face of Christ. Now we would like to take time to pray for
mercy and forgiveness as one community.
Acknowledging the times when we fall short of loving and
embracing one another, let us ask the Lord for His mercy,
and give us the grace towards healing and growth as a
Christian community.
For each prayer, let us all respond:
Forgive us, O Lord.
 For being untrue to our friends and families with
our broken promises. Lord, have mercy.
 For letting our pride hinder us from forgiving
those who have hurt us. Lord, have mercy.
 For failing to listen to the plight of those in the
peripheries. Lord, have mercy.
 For not listening to the wisdom of the elderly.
Lord, have mercy.
 For failing to respond with haste to Your call and
to the needs of others. Lord, have mercy.
D. Proclamation of the Word of God
From the Gospel according to St. Luke
During those days Mary set out and traveled to the
hill country in haste to a town of Judah,
where she entered the house of Zechariah and greeted
Elizabeth.
When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the infant
leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth, filled with the
holy Spirit,
cried out in a loud voice and said, “Most blessed are
you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your
womb.
[Lk. 1:39-42]
Let us allow God’s Word to echo in the silence of our
hearts. We continue our prayer in a period of silence
(around 02 minutes)
E. Thanksgiving
Let us give thanks to the Lord for His graces in our journey
of faith. We lift up our prayers of gratitude, and respond
with:
Thanks be to God!
"Mary arose and went with haste."
 For the gift of the Church, gathering and uniting
us as Christ’s body, we thank You, Lord.
 For the gift of generosity; enabling us to put the
needs of others first before our own interests, we
thank You, Lord.
 For the gift of true friendship, of genuine
support, encouragement and compassion for one
another, we thank You, Lord.
 For the gift of family, where we experience
understanding, acceptance and love, we thank
You, Lord.
 For the gift of empathy, of being attuned to the
suffering and pain of those who are excluded and
marginalized, we thank You, Lord.
F. Supplication
Now let us pray for our needs and the needs of all creation.
For each petition, let us respond:
Lord, listen to Your people.
 For the elderly, living by themselves, without
family close by, those who are sick or experiencing
difficulties, may they be able to find community
with their neighbors: hear us, O Lord.
 For parents and guardians, give them the strength
and guidance in bringing up the children
entrusted to their care and bring them to You:
hear us, O Lord.
 For lay adults, consecrated persons and clergy,
that they may work together in Your vineyard,
following Mary’s example of humble obedience
and solidarity with one another: hear us, O Lord.
 For all youth, shower them with Your love and
reveal Your calling for their lives and for the
needs of the Church and of their communities:
hear us, O Lord.
 For government officials and public leaders, keep
their hearts pure and their eyes turned toward
Your face as they work for the best interests of the
people You called them to serve: hear us, O Lord.
 For the pandemic frontliners, give them strength
every day to continue Your good work; protect
them from all harm: hear us, O Lord.
G. Offering
Now, we bring to the Lord the fruits of our prayerful
encounter in our small group sharing, which also contain
Page 39
our humble prayers that we, too, who are filled with God’s
loving grace, will be able to become men and women who
walk in synodality and communion with one another and
with others.

At this point, the prayer animator calls on the

secretaries of each small group to approach the altar,
and offer the outputs of their sharing that was written
on the sheet of paper. This part may be accompanied
by singing of a chant:

Sa pagmamahal, naroroon ang Diyos

Sa pagmamahal, naroroon ang Diyos

H. Sharing of Hearts

The participants are instructed to go around and

“exchange hearts'' with their fellow participants. As a
participant exchanges hearts with another participant,
s/he says to him/her, “Brother/ Sister, let me serve
you”. The other participant reciprocates the same
greeting.

The song “Brother, Sister, Let Me Serve You” is

played as this exchange goes on.

By the end of the song, everyone stays with the

person s/he shared her/his heart with. Each pair is
instructed to face each other, and to place one’s right
hand on the left shoulder of each other, and pray
quietly for one another.

As closing song, everyone sings “Brother, Sister, Let

Me Serve You”.

Page 40 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

 NYD2022
Session 3
Mary arose and went with haste

Objectives: 05 minutes Preliminaries (Assembly,

Welcome and Recap)
At the end of this session, the participants are
expected to: The emcee joyfully welcomes the participants to the
 Acknowledge and embrace that the call of third and final session of the NYD2022 celebration.
mission is for all
 Respond “with haste” to an area of mission In the first session, we learned that as young people, our
lives should be founded and rooted in prayer as a
Time Frame: Maximum of 1.5 hours relationship with the Lord. We also learned how this
prayerful disposition leads us to a better understanding of
Materials needed: and communion with our neighbor, especially those that are
marginalized. In this session, we are now being called to
Materials needed: live our lives beyond ourselves and our immediate
 Logistics: Venue, sound system, projector/ screen, communities. Like the Blessed Mother, we are invited to
microphones respond with haste to the call of mission. What is this
 Altar: Candles, flowers, cloth decorations, etc. mission? Where are we being sent forth in mission? In this
 Marian image (preferably of the title venerated in last session for our NYD2022, let us listen to how we can,
the diocese/ community) like the young Mary, respond to mission with haste.
 Slides: Input
 Writing Materials (pen, paper, markers) 15 minutes Input
 Colored Papers (1/8 short bond paper size)
 Double sided tape Prior to the NYD2022, the organizers shall invite a
 Manila paper speaker to share a short input on mission, giving
 Holy water emphasis on the following points:
 Music: Instrumental for reflection
 Music: WYD2023 Theme Song A. Mary as Model Missionary
Per participant
 Bible and rosary  Mary listened and prayed: our theme is “Mary
 Writing materials/ journal arose and went with haste” [Lk 1:39]. We need to
 Health protocol paraphernalia understand that she can only arise and go with
haste because she has prayed and pondered about
God’s call for her.

She arises and sets out, for she is certain that

God’s plan is the best plan for her life.

"Mary arose and went with haste." Page 41

 Mary obeyed: in Luke 1:38, we hear Mary’s fiat:
“Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord. May it
be done to me according to your word.” Fiat is
Latin for ‘let it be done’. Mary preferred God’s
will over her own, and this obedience is borne
out of her deep love for God.
 Mary went “with haste”: “haste” in this Gospel
text comes from the Greek word “spoudé”,
meaning speed, diligence, enthusiasm; in
Filipino, mabilis, nagmamadali.
 Her response is not an anxious, impulsive one.
Rather, it is a response characterized by joy and
availability to be at the disposal of God for His
work of building the Kingdom. A response from
one who understands the urgency and
importance of the call. Most of all, a response
from someone with eyes fixed on the Lord of
mission, to love Him and do His will at all costs.
 In Mary, we learn the disposition we ought to
have as we respond in mission: joy.
Mary set out in haste towards the hills,
“because she rejoiced in the promise and
sought to serve others with the enthusiasm
born of her joy…
Dear young people, now is the time to set out
in haste towards concrete encounters, towards
genuine acceptance of those different from
ourselves.
B. What is Mission? (And What is Mission Not?)

MISSION

IS NOT IS

EVERYWHERE: in your families, among your friends,

classmates, workmates and community! We are called
to bring Jesus wherever we may be.
Only going abroad or far flung places.
ABOUT responding to a need that God brings to our
attention: it can be both in the simple and grand things, from
social action to evangelization. What is important are our
sensitivity to the need and our willingness to offer oneself.

FOR EVERYONE! Regardless of, and even through,

Only for the ordained (bishops, priests and
deacons) and consecrated (nuns, religious
brothers).
one’s state of life, each one of us is called to take part in
God's work.
THE TASK shared by all the baptized: ordained,
consecrated, and lay—each “according to their own
state” (Ad Gentes, 26)

GOD’S CALL for all regardless of our gifting: “Never think

that you have nothing to offer, or that nobody needs you. Many
people need you. Think about it! Each of you, think in your
heart, “many people need me” (message of Pope Francis in his
meeting with young people, Maipu Shrine, 2018 January 17).
Only for the gifted and talented.
MAKING EACH OF US instruments of conversion. Not that
we convert others out of our gifts and efforts; conversion is
God’s work. Our role is to an initial proclamation of the
Good News, primarily through the witness of our lives.

Page 42 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

C. Why Do We Need to Respond with Haste?
The haste of the young woman of Nazareth is
the haste of those who have received
extraordinary gifts from the Lord and feel
compelled to share them, to let the immense
grace that they have experienced be poured out
upon others.
Just like how the Lord works tirelessly that His
kingdom here on Earth will be realized, the enemy
also works tirelessly that he may lead God’s people
astray.
Young people of today are exposed to the following:
 Culture of D.E.A.T.H.: more and more youth
around the world have started to embrace the
culture of divorce, euthanasia, abortion, total
population control, and homosexuality. These
ideologies are tolerated, and even being embraced
and advocated. Even if these are against the
teaching of our Lord, we find people in our ranks
supporting these.
 Culture of relativism: in the world we live in
today, we suddenly find it hard to fight for the
truth of the Gospel, because many have started
adopting the mindset that “your truth is different
from my truth”. If people continue to embrace
this mindset, it will be difficult to accept Christ
Who is the Truth.
 Throwaway culture: once an object or a person no
longer satisfies one’s needs, it is discarded,
“thrown away”. In our context, when someone
finds no use for a person, then this person is
ignored, abandoned, even persecuted. The
person, instead of being respected for one’s
inherent dignity, is treated as worthless. Or if a
natural resource is destroyed in order to acquire
an immediate benefit without regard for long
term effects.
With all these happening in our world today, there is
great need for brave young women and men who are
willing to go out there and evangelize. Now is the
time to respond to God’s call for us with haste. Now
is the time to embrace who we are: Christ’s
missionaries to the world.
"Mary arose and went with haste."
D. Where is My Mission Area?
Our mission: “Go and make disciples of all
nations” [Mt 28:19].
The greatest gift that Mary brings to her
elderly kinswoman is that of Jesus himself…
Each of you can ask: “How do I react to the
needs that I see all around me? Do I think
immediately of some reason not to get
involved? Or do I show interest and
willingness to help?” To be sure, you cannot
resolve all the problems of the world. Yet you
can begin with the problems of those closest to
you, with the needs of your own community.
What are the problems of those closest to us? What
are the needs in our own communities?
Here, the Organizing Team presents the identified
areas of mission in the local setting. In the case of a
diocese or youth organization which participated in
the National Conference of Youth Ministers 2022,
these areas of mission are the outputs from the team
meeting after October 15.
For a sample answer, please see the appendices.
E. I am a Missionary, like Mary
A quick activity: To help the participants
acknowledge that, like Mary, they are missionaries
too, and are called to acknowledge or embrace these
qualities of our Blessed Mother, the speaker
concludes this session with this short activity.
Let us all read aloud the following statements.
Mary listens and prays.
Mary obeys.
Mary responds to mission with haste.
Now, let us replace “Mary” with our respective names. Let
us proclaim again these statements; this time, with our own
names.
After the whole assembly has proclaimed, the speaker
Page 43
invites each one to write the statements in one's
journal, with one’s name in each statement.
15 minutes Small Group Sharing
The emcee leads the participants to form small
groups with 3 members each, making sure there is a
facilitator among them. The small groups in the
previous session may be applied here.
 What struck you the most from the input and
testimony?
 In reference to the 4 areas mentioned in the
session, in what area in your community is God
calling you to respond “with haste” as your
mission?
 How are you called to respond to your mission?
Distribute the following handout to each participant:

Once in their small groups, the participants are led to

reflect and share on the following questions:

My Missionary Insights and Commitment

How are you called to respond to

In reference to the 4 areas
your mission?
mentioned in the session, what
What struck you the most from
area in your community is
the input and testimony? Indicate three steps to actualize your
God calling you to respond
response. Specifically describe what
“with haste” as your mission?
you can do in each step.

Page 44 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

10 minutes Plenary Sharing/ Synthesis
After the participants share in their respective small
groups, the facilitator calls on 2-3 participants who
will share their responses to the guide questions.
Then, the facilitator gives a synthesis of the third
session, recognizing the various mission areas
identified by the youth and their mission responses.
25 minutes Commitment Making and
Closing
To ritualize the missionary commitment of the
participants, the facilitator leads them in this
commitment making and closing activity.
The facilitator sets the mood for the closing activity,
bringing to mind the learnings and encounters the
participants had gained during the day. Like Mary,
who “entrusted herself completely to God… [and] got
up and went forth, into the world of life and
movement” (WYD2022-2023 Message), the
participants are invited to do the same and so will
make the commitment for the mission.
A. Opening Prayer
The facilitator leads the participants to a spontaneous
prayer. After this prayer, the text of the Magnificat
[Lk 1:45-56], is proclaimed, or is sung.
A reflective silence follows the reading, allowing the
participants to take in the message of the Magnificat
and how it applies to their lives as young people.
B. Commitment Making
Instrumental music may be played at this part.
The facilitator invites each participant to:
 Draw or look for a symbol that will encapsulate
and remind him/her of the inputs, sharing,
learnings and encounters during the NYD2022
 Write their own Magnificat prayer (have the full
text flashed on screen), guided by the following
questions:
Like Mary in her Magnificat, what are the great things
God has done for me which I discovered and inspired or
"Mary arose and went with haste."
impelled me to reach out and respond to the mission?
How do I feel about them?
To what mission is God calling me to share His greatness?
 After ample time, ask each participant to share
with his/her immediate neighbor his/her symbol
and prayer.
 Proceed, by sharing partners, to the Magnificat
Wall to offer their symbols and to post their
personal Magnificat prayers. Appropriate music
is played to accompany this prayerful moment.
Once done, participants are instructed to return
to their seats while maintaining the prayerful
atmosphere.
If the local celebration of the NYD will culminate
with the Eucharist, then the elements below can be
incorporated into the liturgy where appropriate (for
example, the Pledge of Commitment can take place
before the final blessing or after the Gospel reading);
there is also a guide for the Eucharistic celebration in
the appendices.
Otherwise, the session will flow as follows.
C. Pledge of Commitment
The facilitator guides participants to recite their
pledge of commitment. S/He instructs them to place
their left hand on top of their chest and to raise their
right hand with open palm. The facilitator then
reads the commitment below, and the participants
follow suit.
The organizers may opt to translate the following
commitment statement in the local language:
I, (name), from the (parish or chapel or organization),
pledge to respond with haste to the (mission)
In my Baptism, I promised to be faithful to Christ and His
Church.
It is with faith and trust in the grace and love of Jesus and
in the providence of the Father that I pledge to serve with
humility, integrity, compassion, devotion, perseverance and
commitment to justice and peace.
I seek and ask the guidance of the Holy Spirit for me to
Page 45
serve collaboratively in faith, hope and love.

May Mary, our Blessed Mother, accompany me to “arise

and go in haste” as I carry Jesus within my heart, and bring
him to all those whom I meet!

D. Concluding Prayer

The Bishop or the Diocesan Youth Director (or

National Chaplain, or any ordained minister
available) leads the prayer for all the participants
using this prayer by St. John Paul II, "the Pope of the
young”.

Turn your loving gaze, O God, upon young people.

They carry in their hearts a great hope:
Make them strong and pure,
so that they can build their tomorrow
with confidence.
Let them receive freely the gift of the faith,
accept it with gratitude,
and develop it with generosity.
Mother of Christ, and our Mother,
help them to be now and forever
faithful to Christ and the Church.
Amen.

After the prayer, the bishop/priest sprinkles holy

water on the participants and gives his final blessing:

May the Almighty God bless you, + the Father, the Son and
the Holy Spirit.

The celebration has ended… Go with haste like Mary and

proclaim the Gospel!

E. Celebration

As a celebratory gesture, everyone sings the

WYD2023 theme song. Another song may be used,
taking care that it is thematic and proper to close this
session, e.g. “Servants of the Lord” (NYD2019 theme
song), “One In Mission” (2019 Year of the Youth
Theme Song), “Make A Stand” (2011 CBCP Year of
the Youth Theme Song), “Live Christ, Share Christ”,
etc.

Page 46 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

Appendix 1 Eucharistic Celebration
Introduction
Below is an addition to any prepared introductory
text that may be available:
Today, the 16th of December, we begin our joyful novena
preparing us to celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus. On
this day as well, we as Church of the Philippines celebrate
the National Youth Day. In 1986, the Catholic Bishops’
Conference of the Philippines (or CBCP) conveyed its
preferential love for the youth by approving the annual
celebration of the NYD every December 16, the first day of
the Simbang Gabi.
As we affirm our young people today as precious gifts to the
Church, we recognize that they too are challenged to readily
and joyfully respond to mission like our Blessed Mother,
who “arose and went with haste” (cf. Lk 1:39). Let us offer
this Eucharistic Celebration for our young people, many of
whom are in deep slumber, and need an awakening in the
faith in order to respond to mission.
May their hearts be modeled after Mary, who even while
young and could have focused on her own needs, and yet
arose and went forth, into the world of life and movement…
“for she is certain that God’s plan is the best plan for her
life” (cf. WYD2022-2023 Message).
Announce also that the Mass collections for this day
is allotted for youth ministry (70% for the diocesan
youth ministry and 30% for the CBCP-Episcopal
Commission on Youth: cf. Ordo 2023), and encourage
everyone to support this ministry through their
material help.
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Penitential Act
The text may be prepared to be aligned with the
theme, in close coordination with the competent
authority.
The Collect
"Mary arose and went with haste."
THE LITURGY OF THE WORD
1st Day of Aguinaldo Masses /
Friday of the 3rd Week of Advent
Isaiah 56: 1-3. 6-8
Psalm 66: 2-3. 5. 7-8.
John 5: 33-36
Homily
The homilist may use the homily guide prepared by
the CBCP-ECY (see Appendix 2).
Prayers of the Faithful
Brothers and sisters, let us pray to the Father for the grace
of a heart ready to respond to the needs of our community,
building Christ’s reign here on earth, Whose coming we
await with hopeful anticipation.
Lord, help us to rise and go with haste.
1. For the Pope: that through his leadership and
example, he may inspire and lead the faithful in
responding with haste to our mission of sharing
God’s love to others. Lord, we pray.
2. For parents: that they may be models of a healthy
and fruitful encounter with each other and their
children, experiencing this in their first ministry,
the family. Lord, we pray.
3. For our parish communities: that they may be
venues where genuine concern among members is
evident and experienced. Lord, we pray.
4. For government leaders: that they may act with
haste and with a heart of service as they respond
to the needs of the community. Lord, we pray.
5. For young people: that they may be sensitive to
the call of mission and be ready to be sent,
becoming joyful bearers of Jesus to others. Lord,
we pray.
Page 47
LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
THE COMMUNION RITES
THE CONCLUDING RITES
Solemn Blessing
Concluding Song: “Ha Pressa No Ar” (WYD2023
Theme Song)
Appendix 2
Homily Guide
The National Youth Day
In 1986, the CBCP instituted December 16 as the
National Youth Day, which is an annual observance
for the Church in the Philippines celebrating the
presence of the youth in the community.
The theme for this year’s NYD celebration is taken
from the action of our Blessed Mother after the
Annunciation of the Angel to her: “Mary arose and
went with haste” [Lk 1:39]—which is the same theme
of the World Youth Day for this year and next year.
Since the year 2000, the NYD celebration has
followed the theme of the World Youth Day of that
same year.
Below is a reflection on the NYD2022 theme
Mission in General
Mission is our way of life, the way that will lead us to
our purpose and ultimate end: to be in union with
God. It is the manner and way to validate our
Christian identity.
In the beginning, man was for God. He/She is
created in God’s image and according to His likeness
to receive the life of God (cf. Gen 1:26). It is God’s
intention that we will be like Him and make us the
same as He is. On our side, we simply need to believe
and live like Christ Who has the life of God, and live
our life cooperating with Him so that He may work
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with us each day and fulfill His plan.
As His image and likeness, each one then is a means
for God to manifest Himself on earth. Thus, when an
attribute of God is expressed, it is an image of Him:
like the attributes of love, light, holiness and
righteousness. For man, these attributes are
expressed in virtues. This is our mission! No one is
exempted! It is not whether or not we want to be
missionaries, because mission is already embedded in
our being by our Baptism
Pope Francis once said: “Life is a journey. When we stop,
things don’t go right.”
Life is dynamic, leading to fullness. It receives and
gives whatever the person has. If this dynamic or
movement stops, then life starts to deteriorate and
finally disappear. The aspect of sharing whatever you
are and what you have is mission, which is a part and
parcel of life. If we tend to forget these, then life
starts to deteriorate and becomes a burden.
Life is a mission; thus, to live is to be on mission.
This mission only ends when our life on earth ends.
Our mission is to express the attributes of a loving
God. It is our mission to live a life in love of God
and others. It is to be involved in living purposefully
and being able to serve others.
Mission in Mary
In Luke 1:39-56, we read: “…Mary set out and went with
haste to a Judean town in the hill country where she entered
the house of Zechariah and greeted Elizabeth. When
Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting the child leaped in her
womb. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and
exclaimed with a loud cry. ‘Blessed are you among women
and blessed is the fruit of your womb and why did this
happen to me that the mother of my Lord comes to me?’”
The Magnificat (in Lk 1:46-55) is the Virgin Mary's
response to Elizabeth's greeting, glorifying God and
thanking Him for choosing her to bear His Son. It is
a challenge that we can see in Mary our Christian
identity, our mission which is to be always aware that
God is walking by our side from the beginning until
now. That the more we are with Christ, the more we
are with others. When we are aware of being in
communion with others, we participate actively.
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

Mary is a woman of faith who believed God’s
promises to her. But her faith, since it is pure and
strong, sought to be shared. And knowing from the
Angel Gabriel that her kinswoman Elizabeth is
pregnant despite her old age, Mary knew she had to
reach out to her; she therefore arose and went with
haste to her. When she greeted Elizabeth, the old
pregnant lady in turn blessed her for her faith!
Mary’s mission in visiting Elizabeth was to bring
God’s presence to Elizabeth, to her unborn child,
Zechariah and the whole household—not only with
her helpful hands, but by the Divine Child in her
womb.
Through her life, Mary, as the human collaborator of
the Holy Spirit in the Incarnation, helps us to get a
sense of God’s action and presence in our world. In
the Ascension and Pentecost texts, the return of Jesus
to heaven is a prerequisite to the coming down of the
Holy Spirit Who will guide us in all ways. Still this is
a two-way movement. As in the life of Mary, it is the
Holy Spirit Who will inspire and guide us how to
fulfill the mission entrusted to us by Jesus. Through
the Holy Spirit, we are able to participate in the
general plan of God in Jesus Christ: to bring all of
creation back to the Father.
Challenge
It is a great privilege and duty of the Christian to go
with haste like Our Lady, to show up and to share the
good news that “the Mighty One has done great
things for me! Holy is His name!”
As Christians, when we encounter the faithfulness of
God, either in our lives or in the lives of those
around us, we are called to share this with others.
“Modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than
to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is
because they are witnesses” (Evangelii Nuntiandi, 41)
It is true that it will be hard when we work with
others, yet, we are called to that. We will face great
challenges and persecutions for the sake of Christ, we
will experience mistreatment as we proclaim the
Gospel of Jesus. Yet, we are called to hold fast to our
"Mary arose and went with haste."
mission. We need to collaborate with each other and
to participate; it is not optional. It is the ecclesial
style of the Church grounded in synodality.
“Do not worry about what to say… because it is the
Spirit who will do it for you” [Matthew 10:19]. Our
task is to remain connected always to Jesus: conscious
of His presence, open to religious experiences,
pondering on how Jesus has been so concrete and
present to us: these are our entry points.
Let us then always allow God to use us to be His
witnesses. Do not be afraid, but trust in God. You
will be led by the Holy Spirit Who will give you the
words to speak and guide you on what to do.
“You too, young friends, by your baptism have become living
members of the Church; together we have received the
mission to bring the Gospel to everyone” (Message of Pope
Francis for the 92nd World Mission Day). What
then are the ways or pathways where the Holy Spirit
is inviting you to take?
Appendix 3 Sample Mission
Areas (Session 3)
The following is a sample as regards preparing for and
animating “D. Where is My Mission Area?” The
organizers, if they have determined these mission
areas in their setting as part of their post-NCYM2022
activities, should use what they determined.
As samples, these two areas of mission are presented:
Social Action and Evangelization.
As these advocacies are introduced, the participants
are invited to pay attention to what moves their heart
and what problems they want to help address.
Social Action: People coming together to help others
in concrete ways and through practical service. We
are called to be charitable and extend the help we can
to our brothers and sisters in need, recognizing the
face of Jesus in them. But what sets apart Christian
Social Action from others is that we do not make the
charitable act an end it itself (our goal is not only to
give help), but to bring Jesus to them as well. It is not
Page 49
enough that we give them ‘bread’ to eat, we also need
to share with them the “Bread of Life”.
The following are two major areas for social action:
Caring for the environment (our common home)
 “Earth is an environment to be safeguarded, a
garden to be cultivated.” (Pope Francis, Earth Day
2015 message)
 “Climate change is a global problem with grave
implications... Its worst impact will probably be
felt by developing countries in coming
decades.” (Laudato Si, 26)
 When we look all around us, we see that there are
so many needs in the environment: from waste
management to deforestation, from climate
change to poor urban planning. Do you feel the
need to do something about caring for our
environment? Perhaps this is your mission field.
Promoting life and human and dignity / Service to
the poor
 “Every human life is unique and unrepeatable,
valuable in and of itself, constitutes an
inestimable worth.” (Pope Francis)
 As young Catholics, we want to be able to defend
life and uphold morality (especially in the areas of
abortion, divorce, same-sex union, live-in set-up,
multiple partners, blended families, etc.),
recognizing that it is a sin of omission if we do
not speak or do nothing: “Speak up for those who
cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all
who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly;
defend the rights of the poor and
needy.” [Proverbs 31:8–9]
 We are also called to care for the poor and the
homeless, the lives of extrajudicial killing victims
and the unborn through abortion. How do we
show our love for the sick and those without
education? There are many initiatives promoting
life and service to the poor. Are you called to be
charitable in this way? Maybe God is inviting you
to take part in this service.
Evangelization: to ‘preach the Gospel’ by word and
in deed. In earlier times, it means to ‘convert
someone to Christianity’. But even if there are many
Catholics/Christians nowadays, we still have to
evangelize people so they can know Christ more and
Page 50
be invited into a growing personal relationship with
Him. As young people, how do we do this?
The following are two major areas for evangelization:
Person-to-person evangelization (sharing the good
news to friends and family)
 People will come to know Christ more if they
witness it in our own life, and if we talk about
God in our conversations if we have the chance.
For example, when they witness us avoid
cheating, or the hope we have despite difficult
situations, or our service and love for other
people: “By this everyone will know that you are
my disciples, if you love one another.” [Jn 13:35]
 It may be difficult at first. But we just need to try
it and practice it until we can learn and be
comfortable with it (see Appendix 4 for tips!).
Social media evangelization
 Jesus and the apostles went to public places to
preach [cf. Mk 6:56; Acts 17:17]. They went to
strategic places where people are and preached
the Word there.
 Where are the young people now? Many of them
are on social media. There, youth are being
educated and miseducated, informed or
misinformed. And so we want to be a light in
social media and speak the truth and plant seeds
of faith there.
 We can ask this question: How can I make my
social media account evangelizing? Instead of
promoting myself, how can I promote Christ?
 A network of Catholic content creators is
currently being created so we can encourage each
other and even collaborate in proclaiming the
truth online using different social media
platforms. We want to invite you in this
initiative. You may go to Facebook and look for
the Catholic Content Creators PH (FB Group)
https://www.facebook.com/groups/
catholiccontentcreatorsph, or simply scan this QR
code to join:
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
Appendix 4 Guide for
Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for the XXXVII
World Youth Day 2022-2023--
Sharing https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/
messages/youth/documents/papa-
We offer the following guide on how to do person-to- francesco_20220815_messaggio-giovani_2022.html
person evangelization when given a chance to speak.
How do we share to others if we want to proclaim the Preparatory Formation
Gospel?
"What is the NYD"--
 God - Man - God - Man Formula https://drive.google.com/file/
This formula summarizes what God has done for us d/1Gp9bkjt5KwDItPq8Sg0isbxDjAs6AwBc/view
and the call to respond to Him, which is to repent
and believe in the Gospel. Opening Session: "Kumusta Ka"
God created everything in the world, including man
Learn the song-- https://youtu.be/yong2_X6RRg
Man sinned against God
God sent His Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins and
Learn the actions-- https://youtu.be/1mNnTtzzpJI
redeem us
(or you can adapt, and do your own meaningful steps)
Man is invited to repent and believe in the Gospel

 Personal Testimony: Before - During - After Session 1

This outline of sharing is used when we want to share
how God worked in our personal life and journey "Relationship 101"--
1. Before: How was my life like before I took my faith/
For further reading:
relationship with God seriously?
Mary traveled a highly dangerous path to visit
2. During: What were the events that led me to consider
Elizabeth—
growing in my relationship with God? What did people
https://aleteia.org/2019/05/31/mary-traveled-a-
do to help me in this phase of my journey? How did I
highly-dangerous-path-to-visit-elizabeth/
respond?
3. After: How has my life changed since? How am I
St. Teresa of Avila on prayer—
living my life now as a Christian (including how I
https://www.franciscanmedia.org/franciscan-spirit-
respond to challenges)?
blog/st-teresa-of-avila-on-prayer
 Sharing: A-B-C Method
Session 2
This method can be used to show how God moved in
your life in a certain event of circumstance:
On synodality--https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/
Audible
congregations/cfaith/cti_documents/
Brief (i.e. 5-7 minutes)
rc_cti_20180302_sinodalita_en.html
Christ-centered: focus on showing how Christ
moved in your life
Sample video for the sharing--
https://tinyurl.com/NYD2022SampleSharing
Appendix 5 Links "Brother, Sister, Let Me Serve You"--
https://youtu.be/0JahFRDrSCs
Pastoral Guidelines for the Celebration of World
Youth Day in the Particular Churches-- Session 3
http://www.laityfamilylife.va/content/laityfamilylife/
en/GMGpastoralGuidelines.html "Ha Pressa No Ar" WYD2023 Theme Song
(international version)--
https://youtu.be/SWo7r7PaHqE
"Mary arose and went with haste." Page 51
Appendix 6 “Cornerstones” of a “Youth Day”
From the Pastoral Guidelines for the celebration of World
Youth Day in the particular churches, published by the
Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life and approved by Pope
Francis, a set of “cornerstones” of WYD were given.
“World Youth Day – the fruit of a prophetic insight
of Saint John Paul II, who continues to inspire young
people in the third millennium – and national and
diocesan[/eparchial meetings, play an important part
in the lives of many young people, since they offer a
living experience of faith and communion that can
help them meet life’s great challenges and
responsibly take their place in society and in the
Church”. While stressing that these gatherings point
to “the ordinary pastoral accompaniment provided by
individual communities, where the Gospel has to be
shared and translated into life decisions”, the
Document affirms that “they offer the possibility of
journeying together as if on pilgrimage, of
experiencing fraternity with all, of sharing the faith
joyfully and growing closer to the Church”.
Thus, these “cornerstones” were offered, that must be at the
heart of every WYD—and even of any other Youth Day—
because of their clear programmatic value.
A. Youth Day as a “festival of faith
“At the heart of a life of faith is our encounter with
the person of Jesus Christ, so it is good that every
WYD should resound with the invitation for each
young person to meet Christ and enter into a
personal dialogue with him.”
B. Youth Day as an “experience of Church”
“...be an occasion for young people to experience
ecclesial communion and to grow in their awareness
of being an integral part of the Church.
Finding appropriate times and ways for the voices of
young people to be heard within the existing
structures of communion: diocesan/eparchial and
inter-diocesan/eparchial councils, presbyteral
councils, local councils of bishops, etc. Alongside the
Page 52
young people, there should be room for the various
charisms present in the jurisdiction.
The organisation of the Youth Day be choral and
involve the various states of life in a project calling
for synodal work
...gather and coordinate all the dynamic forces of the
particular Church, as well as to reawaken those that
are dormant. In this context, the presence of the
local Bishop and his willingness to be among
the young people show them a clear sign of love and
closeness.”
C. Youth Day as a “missionary experience”
“...youth ministry is always missionary.
...missions can be organised in which young people
are encouraged to visit people in their homes carrying
a message of hope, a word of comfort or simply being
willing to listen.
...lead occasions of public evangelisation with songs,
prayer and testimonies. They can go to streets and
squares in the city where their peers meet, because
young people are the best evangelisers of young
people. Their very presence and their joyful faith
already constitute a “living proclamation” of the
Good News that attracts other young people.
...have an experience of voluntary work, freely given
service and self-giving are also to be encouraged.”
D. Youth Day as an “opportunity for vocational
discernment” and a “call to holiness”
“...priority should be given to the vocational
dimension: a gradual approach that first of all helps
young people understand that their whole life is
placed before God who loves them and calls them.
God has called them first and foremost to life and
continually calls them to happiness. They are called
to get to know God and to listen to his voice, and
above all to accept his Son Jesus as their teacher,
National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program
friend and Saviour. To recognise and come to terms
with these “fundamental vocations” is the first great
challenge for young people.
When these first “calls” from God are taken seriously,
they already point towards demanding life choices.
These include accepting that our existence is a gift
from God that must therefore be lived in reference to
God and not in a self-referential way; the choice of a
Christian way of living in our affections and social
relationships; the choice of studies, of work
commitment and of our entire future in such a way
that it is fully in tune with the friendship with God
that we have embraced and want to preserve; the
choice of making our entire existence a gift for others
to be lived in service and selfless love. These are often
radical choices in response to God’s call that give a
decisive direction to a young person’s whole life. “
...proposing to young people the choice that must be
made of a state of life, one that is in accord with the
call that God is addressing to each of them
individually, whether it be to the priesthood or the
consecrated life, including in the monastic form, or
marriage and family. In this sense, the involvement of
seminarians, consecrated persons, married couples
and families can be of great help. By their presence
and witness, they can help to prompt young people to
ask the right vocational questions and to desire to set
out in search of the “great plan” that God has in
mind for them.
In the delicate process that guides them to make
these choices, young people must be accompanied
and prudently advised. When the time is right, they
should be encouraged to make their own personal
option in a decisive way with trust in God’s help.
They should not be stuck in a perpetual state of
indecision.
Every vocational choice must have at its heart the
even more profound call to holiness. WYD must
resonate in young people the call to holiness as the
true path to happiness and self-fulfilment. It is
holiness that is commensurate with the history and
personality of each young person. It does not set
limits to the mysterious ways that God has in store
for each one that can lead to heroic stories of holiness
− as has happened and still happens with many young
"Mary arose and went with haste."
people − or to the “holiness next door” from which
no one is excluded. It is therefore appropriate to
make the most of the rich patrimony of saints of the
local and universal Church, elder brothers and sisters
in the faith, whose stories confirm to us that the path
to holiness is not only possible and practicable, but
that it brings great joy.”
E. Youth Day as an “experience of pilgrimage”
“They are a united people, pilgrims who ‘walk
together’ towards a goal, towards an encounter with
the One who can give meaning to their existence, the
God who became one of us and who calls every
young person to be a disciple, to leave everything and
to follow.
Pilgrimage requires a minimalist approach that asks
young people to leave behind empty comforts and
certainties, to adopt a style of travel that is sober and
welcoming and open to Providence and to “God’s
surprises”, a style that teaches them to go beyond
themselves and to face the challenges that arise along
the way.”
F. Youth Day as “an experience of universal
fraternity”
“...an opportunity for young people to meet that is
not restricted to just young Catholics. “Every young
person has something to say to others. He or she
has something to say to adults, something to say to
priests, sisters, bishops and even the Pope”.
...an opportune time for all the young people who
live in a given area to come together and talk to each
other, regardless of their beliefs, their vision of life or
their convictions. Every young person must feel
invited to take part and be welcomed as a brother or
sister. We need to build “youth ministry capable of
being inclusive, with room for all kinds of
young people, to show that we are a Church with
open doors”.”
Reading and following these cornerstones, let us review our
“Youth Days” (parish,, diocesan, national, etc.) and see
how we can make these occasions match these cornerstones,
for the growth of our young people and the building up of
the Church.
Page 53
 Acknowledgments
The CBCP-Episcopal Commission on Youth acknowledges

the Federation of National Youth Organizations

led by its Coordinating Council

Chair Organization, Christ's Youth in Action (CYA)
Assistant Chair Organization, Couples for Christ - Youth for Christ (CFC-YFC)
Secretariat Organization, Missionary Families of Christ - Youth (MFC-Youth)
Treasurer Organization, The Lord's Flock (TLF)
Liaison Organization, Chiro Youth Movement

for their collaboration in creating this NYD2022 Formation Program;

the other youth ministers who contributed to this program through their feedback and spiritual
support; and

its ECY Secretariat

for the pastoral effort poured into this endeavor.

For inquiries concerning this program, please contact the ECY Secretariat:

Email secretariat@cbcp-ecy.ph
nyd@cbcp-ecy.ph
Website www.cbcp-ecy.ph
Facebook www.facebook.com/CBCPECY

Page 54 National Youth Day 2022 - Formation Program

 Like Mary and with Mary,
let us arise for Christ
and go on mission with haste!

"Mary arose and went with haste." Page 55

CATHOLIC BISHOPS’ CONFERENCE OF THE PHILIPPINES
EPISCOPAL COMMISSION ON YOUTH
CBCP Building, 470 General Luna Street, Intramuros, Manila

Telefax (02) 85279567 | Mobile (0917) 8536792

Email secretariat@cbcp-ecy.ph, nyd@cbcp-ecy.ph
Website www.cbcp-ecy.ph
Facebook CBCP-Episcopal Commission on Youth @CBCPECY