A brief look at the story of how JMJ YOUTH came together from the experience of two pilgrims. It started in World Youth Day in Denver, Colorado. The rest, is history!

23 July 2012 marks ten years since John Paul II led his last World Youth Day meeting. It took place in Toronto back in 2002. Despite his age, the Polish Pope showed inner strength and energy, while encouraging the youth to not fear the pain that life can bring. He also told them to seize the moment by striving to be saints, from a young age. Watch this video to watch some of the highlights of WYD2002!

Millions of people attended World Youth Day in Madrid. But, afterward a group of young adults asked “Now what do we do?” So, they all decided to take action and launch a blog, to post different experiences.

……

On 2 April 2012, Pope Benedict XVI will meet with young people from Madrid, who will thank the Pope for choosing Madrid to host the last World Youth Day and, above all, for the fruits produced by his trip to Spain.

World Youth Day in Rio is still over a year away, but some cities are already putting their name out, hoping to host the World Youth Day after Brazil. Right now the most popular city is Krakow, Poland. London is also on the list, and others would like to see World Youth Day go to Asia. Also being considered are countries such as India, Honduras, Latvia, and Peru. Also an African country is in the picture for World Youth Day after the pope's visits to Benin, Cameroon and Angola.

According to the Polish press, Cardinal Stanislaw Dziwisz, personal secretary of Pope John Paul II, has proposed for Krakow to host World Youth Day 2015. Krakow will have to compete with candidates such as Lithuania and Mexico.

World Youth Day is a Catholic event for youth celebrated on Palm Sunday each year at the diocesan level, and every few years at an international location. It was founded by Blessed John Paul II in 1984, and has since spanned generations of pilgrims. Watch this video to learn more!

……

Benedict XVI's first World Youth Day in 2005 was also his first papal trip. He left for his native country, to Cologne, Germany. Watch this video to learn more about Pope Benedict XVI's WYD legacy!

World Youth Day 2011 will be Pope Benedict XVI's 20th international trip in his 6 years has Pope - and the country that will hold the title for the most visits is Spain! WYD in Madrid, will be the Pope's third visit to Spain. Watch this video for more.

More than half of the priests who were ordained in the U.S. in 2011 were between the ages of 25 and 34, according to a report released by the American Conference of Catholic Bishops. About 480 priests were ordained this year and roughly 20 percent of them attended World Youth Day at one time in their lives!