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Ongoing Catholic Youth Jubilee Year in Cape Verde: Preparations, Expectations, Experiences

Credit: Catholic Diocese of Santiago

By João Vissesse

Santiago, 06 August, 2024 / 9:36 pm (ACI Africa).

Young people from Dioceses in Cape Verde and beyond started the National Jubilee Year of Catholic Youths on Sunday, August 4 in the country’s Catholic Diocese of Santiago.

In an interview with Cape Verde’s National Television (TCV), the Diocesan Secretary of Santiago Diocese, Bernardino Gonçalves, said that committees of “young people have been working selflessly for the Jubilee since January.”

In the August 4 interview, Gonçalves said that young people were “being welcomed in the various parish communities” and that various services were “being offered to them, from catechesis, training, interactions that have to do with ecology, and visits to historical sites.”

“Young people have various dimensions, such as religious, spiritual, social, and environmental, so we are integrating everything into the lives of young people,” he said.

The August 4-12 celebration is part of activities marking the celebration of the 500th Anniversary of the Catholic Diocese of Santiago and the celebration of the Catholic Church’s 2025 Jubilee Year.

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One of the pilgrims, Denise da Graca, who is participating in a youth jubilee for the first time described the spiritual exercise as a “good experience.” 

Denise told TCV that “there are many young people from other places. This provides a good opportunity to share experiences and live our faith.”

Tatiana Lima, a Catholic youth from Portugal, told TCV that she is a “living example” of the participation of young people from the Cape Verdean diaspora.

The Catholic youth who took part in the World Youth Day (WYD) 2023 in Lisbon, Portugal, said she hopes to experience similar moments in Cape Verde.

“I hope this will be a memorable experience for renewal of faith and discovery of the Catholic Church in Cape Verde,” Lima told TCV, and added, “The experience gathered here will be shared with my peers when I get back to Portugal. The Catholic Church is alive in Cape Verde.”

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Paulo Flores, a volunteer at the ongoing event shared his experience serving the Church and young people in Cape Verde.

“We are in search of Christ, and we are expecting a lot of people, especially young people. We are invited to live the emotions of young people, towards the jubilee of the 500th anniversary of the creation of the Diocese of Santiago,” Flores said.

On July 29, Bishop Ildo Augusto dos Santos Lopes Fortes of the Catholic Diocese of Mindelo in Cape Verde called for active participation of young people during the event.

On his part, the President of Cape Verde, José Maria Pereira Neves said that the National Jubilee Year of Catholic Youths offers an opportunity for the people of God in the Archipelago and island country of West Africa in the central Atlantic Ocean to solidify their togetherness.

João Vissesse

João Vissesse is an Angolan Journalist with a passion and rich experience in Catholic Church Communication and Media Apostolate. 

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