杏MAP导航

By Isabella H. de Carvalho

Around 18,000 km over two flights, 8 and 11 hours long respectively, spanning a 12-hour time difference. That is the distance a group of around 40 young people and adults from Tahiti, French Polynesia, travelled to attend the Jubilee of Youth in Rome, which starts on July 28 and lasts until August 3.

“For some of the young people, it’s their first time taking a plane”, Marevareva Teuira, a 39-year-old accompanying the group, told Vatican News. “For us Catholics, though, Rome is our house, our home”.

In addition to the group from Tahiti, there will also be 6 young people from Guam and 3 from Tonga embarking on this long journey to represent the Pacific at this Holy Year event. Three pilgrims from these countries spoke to Vatican News to share how they are preparing, the challenges they have faced and their hopes and expectations for this trip.

Frankie from Guam: looking forward to having a “faith-lift”

“I can't wait to experience the universal Church with a bunch of youth and young adults, because on our island, we are around 160,000 people. The gathering in Rome is going to have many more, and it is going to be eye-opening for me and for my faith”. Frankie Casill, a 32-year-old criminology student from Hagåtña, the capital of Guam, is still in awe that he is going to be able to come to Rome for the first time. He is a volunteer for the Office of Youth and Young Adults in the Archdiocese of Agaña and will be coming with 5 other young people. “I’m open to whatever the Holy Spirit and God send my way”, he said.

“It still feels like yesterday I was in Madrid at the airport for the 2011 World Youth Day. The rain was pouring, it was cold, I didn't sleep well. In a lot of ways, I felt like I shouldn't be there, but through the grace of God, He made me get there,” Frankie remembered. “Seeing the 杏MAP导航 up close, witnessing all the youths in the field under the rain, in silence while the Blessed Sacrament was exposed, gave me the zeal to come back to my island and to help in any way that I can”.

And now Frankie is ready to live a similar experience again and bring back that same excitement. “It’s been very long since I’ve been on a spiritual retreat or journey like this. I think the Lord knows I need to recharge, or get a ‘faith-lift”, he adds laughing.

Frankie with his pet water buffalo

To prepare for this event, the Archdiocese has organised several initiatives throughout the year such as “coastal rosaries” on the first Saturday of each month at a different beach across the island, or youth Masses. Although the majority of the population is Catholic, like many other countries around the world, young people are increasingly less practicing.

“Hopefully by going on this pilgrimage to the Jubilee of Youth, I can then bring back to the diocese activities and programs that can bring young people back to the Church”, he said. “I just want to bring the message of hope”, he continued. “Especially to the island of Guam, to our Archdiocese, to keep moving forward and journeying together”.

Latu from Tonga: Our faith is universal  

For Latu Malupo, a 28-year-old civil servant from Tonga, it is her first time travelling to a different country. Despite the very long flight, she insists “it’s all worth it”. “I just want to experience how strong our faith can be. Coming from our little country to going to where it all came from, it’s wonderful”, she said. “I know that Italy is very rich in culture and history when it comes to Christianity and the Catholic Church”.

She explained that there are 3 people coming from her Diocese of Tonga and Niue, and that they organized themselves individually as it was a challenge to coordinate funding and logistics, not long after the 2023 World Youth Day in Portugal. Additionally, although the majority of Tonga’s some 100,000 people identify as Christian, only 13% are Catholic. Latu will be participating in the Caritas Youth Forum in Rome, taking place from July 24 to 26, which helped cover some of the costs of her travel.

Latu Malupo

She explained she was happy to bring her culture to Rome and hopes to inspire other Tongan youths when she returns. “We are very excited to learn more about other countries and their culture, and we also want to share our experiences, how we pray”, she said. “I am very proud to be a Catholic here in Tonga because we’re very small, and everyone knows everyone. Our faith sets us apart though”.

“Maybe when I come back, I can lead the youth in a more spiritual way and show them that our faith is not just based here in our country. Our faith is also abroad; it is universal”, she added.

The Diocese prepared for the Jubilee with rosaries, liturgies and other spiritual initiatives, but what stayed with Latu was the theme of hope that revolves around the Jubilee. “It’s the hope we carry within us that is going to take us to the end of our pilgrimage. I want to hold on to that”, she said.

Marevareva from Tahiti: bringing music and energy to Rome

“There's no question about it. Of course, we are”, Marevareva exclaims when asked whether her group will bring the instruments they use to animate their Masses in Papeete, Tahiti, to their pilgrimage to Rome. “Our instruments never leave us. We love music, we live our Masses like that”, she adds, explaining they are used to playing ukuleles, drums, piano and more in their liturgies.

For her, that is the only difference between a Catholic from French Polynesia and one from Europe. “For all the other aspects, we all live the same thing. We pray the same Our Father and Hail Mary. Above all, we love the same God and the same Jesus Christ”, she said. Marevareva highlighted, in fact, that she is excited that the young people in her group will be able to experience the universality of the faith during this Jubilee. 

Marevareva Teuira

“This event is a chance to have a profound encounter with Jesus, in the amazing setting of Rome”, she said, underlining that they “prepared their hearts” for this pilgrimage with catecheses and moments of prayer in their parish. “Rome is where our good shepherd lives, it is where our 杏MAP导航 is, for whom we have a great deal of love and respect. As Polynesians who have come from far away, this is what we expect from this trip. It’s a pivotal year for us”.

Organizing this pilgrimage has not been easy, due to the high cost. Marevareva explained that for over a year, the young people fundraised and sold meals to try and gather enough money for the trip. She said that the parishioners also helped and supported the group financially.  “Back home, we all support each other”, she said with a smile.

She insisted that young people are very active in Catholic Churches in Tahiti and she hopes they bring back some of the energy they will gather in Rome. “We want young people to reinforce their faith in Jesus Christ and to bring that to others their age, in their parishes, but also in their schools and in their families”, she said. “We hope that this Jubilee Year touches many hearts”.