It was one of the most remarkable global manifestations of the
Catholic faith in recent memory.
But since pilgrims have started
returning home from World Youth Day, some are talking about the
disorganization they experienced and how the event could be improved.
“My sons went to World Youth Day in a group of 29,” wrote one mother from St. Joan of Arc parish in Denver, Colo.
“When they got to the Vigil on the Saturday night they were turned away, and flatly refused admittance despite their WYD credentials and being at the correct section. Basically they were told the section was full. No admittance. As you can imagine, the kids were very upset.”
“My sons went to World Youth Day in a group of 29,” wrote one mother from St. Joan of Arc parish in Denver, Colo.
“When they got to the Vigil on the Saturday night they were turned away, and flatly refused admittance despite their WYD credentials and being at the correct section. Basically they were told the section was full. No admittance. As you can imagine, the kids were very upset.”
Their
story has been repeated in other personal anecdotes: the pilgrims were
on time, at right venue, and had the correct passes but were refused
entry. Organizers estimate that around 100,000 of the 1.5 million
pilgrims were affected by such problems.
Although pilgrimages usually contain some form of penance, many pilgrims were not expecting the lack of portable toilets at the venue, the condition of those that were available, and the lack of transport to and from downtown Madrid.
Although pilgrimages usually contain some form of penance, many pilgrims were not expecting the lack of portable toilets at the venue, the condition of those that were available, and the lack of transport to and from downtown Madrid.
When it came to redeeming pre-paid food vouchers at the designated
outlets, some pilgrims were told after waiting in line three to four
hours that all the food was gone.
Yago de la Cierva, Director of
Communications for WYD 2011 in Madrid, told CNA Aug. 31 that what
happened at Cuatro Vientos “is that we are talking about young people,
and in many countries, a wall is seen not as a barrier but an invitation
to jump and go forward.”
The communications director said that this
attitude resulted in many young people simply abandoning their
designated areas in search of a better vantage point.
Another
issue was that many groups arrived with unregistered pilgrims and so
used their limited passes on a repeated basis. “We are not talking about
a few cases, but something done in an organized way,” he said.
The result was a greater number of people in the venue and too many of them in the wrong zones.
The result was a greater number of people in the venue and too many of them in the wrong zones.
Hence the authorities decided to close the entry
gates due to prevent unsafe overcrowding.
“It really was a pity, but in any event, people’s safety comes first,” said de la Cierva.
It
is estimated that around 75 percent of all pilgrims were unregistered.
While 445,000 had registered beforehand, as many at 2 million young
people descended on Madrid for the week’s events.
Spanish
telecommunications companies confirmed that there were over 1.5 million
individual cell phone numbers at the Sunday morning closing Mass.
“At
the same time, we have to put this in context: less than 5 percent
remained outside for the vigil and everybody who wanted was able to come
in for the Mass the next day. Each person left outside is important for
us and we are sorry that it happened, but the proportion of people
inside was quite high, I must say.”
So what lessons can be learned from Madrid for the next World Youth Day, which will be held in Rio de Janeiro in 2013?
The
Rio organizational team, aware of the fact that they only have 23
months to prepare for their gathering, traveled to Madrid earlier this
month to learn any lessons they could.
The Madrid organizers will also
draw up a final audit of their event to be presented to both the Rio
team and the Vatican.
What might surprise some is that World
Youth Day has no central organizing committee, an arrangement that de la
Cierva thinks should change. In his view, World Youth Day “should work
towards professionalization.”
“It’s really a pity that some of
the experience accumulated in these three years will be lost, because in
many aspects Rio will start almost from scratch. Unfortunately, that
was what happened in the past with Cologne, Sydney and also Madrid.”
His
solution is to have a core of experienced people who can advise local
committees on best practices. This is what happens at Olympic Games.
“Let’s not forget that, in terms of participation, a WYD could be three
or four times bigger than the Olympics.”
Despite any disappointments with the organization of World Youth Day Madrid, the overwhelming majority of pilgrims did seem to have a very positive experience.
Despite any disappointments with the organization of World Youth Day Madrid, the overwhelming majority of pilgrims did seem to have a very positive experience.
“Yes, overall it was a very good experience even
though we didn’t see the Holy Father,” said Fr. Joseph Cao, who led the
group from St. Joan of Arc.
“It was truly a pilgrimage and that always comes with suffering,” observed Fr. Cao whose group also got lost in Madrid at one point. “But we still got the spiritual benefits of pilgrimage, and I’m sure the kids will grow in the faith of the Catholic Church as a result.”
“It was truly a pilgrimage and that always comes with suffering,” observed Fr. Cao whose group also got lost in Madrid at one point. “But we still got the spiritual benefits of pilgrimage, and I’m sure the kids will grow in the faith of the Catholic Church as a result.”
“We do know that we made mistakes,”
concluded Yago de la Cierva, “but pilgrims and volunteers together gave
an incredibly powerful testimony of how the person and the message of
Jesus can be the secret for happiness for many young people.”