SPOTLIGHT 25/07/13 2027 WYD in Seoul will be a turning point for youths: Vatican offi

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Pope Leo will attend the event, the secretary of the Vatican Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life confirm‎s

Gleison de Paula Souza (right), secretary of the Vatican Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, and Auxiliary Bishop Paul Kyung Sang Lee of Seoul are seen planting saplings with WYD 2027 volunteers at the Jeoldusan Martyrs' Shrine in Seoul on July 9. (Photo: Catholic Times of Korea)

By UCA News reporter

Published: July 17, 2025 04:30 AM GMT

Updated: July 17, 2025 05:36 AM GMT

A Vatican dicastery official visiting South Korea to eval‎uate preparations for the 2027 Catholic World Youth Day (WYD) has expressed hope that the event will be a turning point for today’s youth who face a plethora of “personal problems.”

Gleison de Paula Souza, secretary of the Vatican Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life, which organizes WYD, made his remarks during a July 8-13 visit to Seoul, South Korea.

Pope Leo XIV will be attending the event, he confirmed. The triennial global Catholic youth gathering, established by Pope John Paul II in 1985, draws tens of thousands of youths from across the world.

The Church and society were “well aware of the personal problems, great suffering, frustration, and anxiety that young people are experiencing in this era,” Souza said, referring to the high rate of suicide among young people globally, particularly in South Korea.

While youths may find themselves in situations where they cannot see the light or hold onto hope, the WYD will “convey the hope of Christ to young people in Korea and around the world,” he added.

Souza, along with members of the dicastery, Auxiliary Bishop Paul Kyung Sang Lee of Seoul, general coordinator of the WYD Local Organizing Committee, and other volunteers, planted trees at the Jeoldusan Martyrs' Shrine in Seoul on July 9.

He expressed deep appreciation for the tree-planting initiative taken up by Korean youths. “Pope Francis also hoped that we would take good care of our common home, the earth, and have ‘ecological sensitivity,’” he added.

The event aimed to show the dicastery’s support towards the Korean youths’ goal to plant 10,000 saplings on Nanjido Island in a bid to create awareness towards efforts to overcome climate change.

Souza said that the blood of the martyrs shed at Jeoldusan flowed into the Han River, adding the Korean Church was thus “built on blessed ground.”

Father Lee Young-je, director of the WYD Planning Office, said that tree planting had a special meaning, as it “was held at this shrine where our ancestors sacrificed their lives as martyrs.

The Jeoldusan Martyrs’ Shrine in Seoul is a tribute to those killed in the Byeonin Persecution during the rule of the Joseon dynasty in the late 1860s. Approximately 8,000 Christians were murdered for refusing to renounce their faith.

The Vatican delegation also attended a meeting at the WYD Planning Office in Myeongdong, Seoul, to brief them about the volunteer roles and the status of volunteer work ahead of the event.

The delegates also visited the “Mustard Seed Courage: 2027 Seoul WYD Theme Scripture Meditation Exhibition” held at Gallery 1898 in Seoul.

They also participated in an art installation project, in which they wrote their wishes on post-it notes and attached them to a tree.