Facts about the Youth Ministry

• St. Aloysius Gonzaga. Named the patron saint of youth by Pope Benedict XIII at his canonization. Saint Aloysius is especially important to our culture today, in which so many young people have lost sight of their eternal home. He died at the age of 23, after living a brief but zealous and holy life.
• The Second Plenary Council of the Philippines declared that the “youth ministry should be assured of the fullest attention and highest priority in every way by all in the Church” (Art. 50, No. 2).
• 1986 – 1st WYD Rome, Italy
• The 1995 WYD Philippines closing Mass, held at Luneta Park, was estimated to have been attended by more than 5 million people, the 2nd largest Papal gathering (Next to Papal Visit 2015) in Roman Catholic history.
• 1986, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), as a way of concretizing its preferential love for the youth, approved the annual celebration of the NYD every December 16, the first day of the Misa de Gallo or Simbang Gabi.
• 1999 – 1st AYD Hua Hin, Thailand
• This coming May 1-3, 2015 the Youth of Davao will be gathering for the Archdiocesan Youth Day at REMASE

Source: WorldYouthDay.com