It will the youth of the Czech Republic who will be the first to take delivery of the Toronto WYD Cross. The announcement was made by the 22-year-old Katerina Kubickova, spokesperson of the National Youth Day which will be held at Zdar nad Sazavou (Czech Republic) from 13 to 18 August, in ideal continuation with the Canadian celebrations. “The next world youth day will be held in Germany explains Katerina but we will be the first country to take possession of the Cross of the WYD in Toronto. The Cross will be erected on the podium of the National Youth Day at Zdar nad Sazavou on 13 August and will remain there for the duration of the event”. Only some 135 youngsters from the Czech Republic will be participating in WYD in Toronto. “Travelling to Canada for the event explains Katerina is very expensive for our country and for our youth”. “To be able to pay for the journey she continues youngsters have been saving and working all year. A third of the Czech participants are the delegates of the youth diocesan centres. There are even those who will be able to go to Toronto thanks to the generous financial aid of the parishes; others won the flight tickets as a prize in dancing and other competitive events organized by the dioceses”. For those unable to attend WYD in Canada, the 3rd National Youth Day is being held in Zdar nad Sazavou, a town some 100 km from Prague, from 13 to 18 August. It is expected to attract some 5,00 youth. Its programme is very rich and varied. Each day there will be a catechesis animated by youngsters with moments of music, theatre and the exchange of experiences. Almost all the bishops of the Czech Republic will be present; each day they will take turns in giving catechesis, in meeting the young and in celebrating mass. On Friday there will be a Via Crucis, a penitential occasion with the participation of many priests for the sacrament of reconciliation. Saturday, on the other hand, will be a special Marian day, including the recitation of the Rosary. A rich programme of complementary events is also planned, ranging from sport to music, to a counselling service open to advice and problems of all kinds. No less than 16 concerts are planned to accompany the National Youth Day. Each day, moreover, the young participants will be able to participate in 29 thematic groups and discuss such issues as vocation, marriage, politics, EU membership and ecology.
