by Pascale Rizk
Seoul – A Mass in English was celebrated at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, September 16, at Myeongdong Cathedral in Seoul, presided over by Archbishop Peter Soon-taick Chung, on the occasion of the second International Preparatory Conference for World Youth Day.
The conference is being held from September 14 to 17 at the Nest Hotel, in the Yeongjongdo area of Incheon, approximately 35 km from Seoul. Some 300 delegates from more than 100 countries, as well as members of the organizing committee and volunteers, are taking part. The Mass was accompanied by the WYD Seoul 2027 choir and orchestra.
On Monday, the conference opened at 9 a.m. with talks and presentations by representatives of the Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life and the International Youth Advisory Body, a body established by the Holy See following the 2017 Synod on Young People.
Participants were invited to reflect on the meaning of World Youth Day. At the end of the day, representatives from the various continents took part in a K-Culture Night featuring traditional Korean dance, K-pop performances and traditional games.
On Tuesday, September 15, the Korean dioceses held a Diocesan Expo , with each diocese presenting its history, main attractions, programs and plans for welcoming pilgrims.
“It was a fantastic event, giving us the opportunity to introduce our diocese and meet in person delegates from different countries who will come to visit us next year,” Aran Kim, a delegate representing the Diocese of Andong, told Fides, who had already travelled to Rome in 2024 for the traditional handover of the WYD Cross and the Salus Populi Romani Icon .
“I love meeting new people and chatting with them, so it was a real joy to present our region and promote the DID to international visitors who showed an interest in Andong,” Aran added.
The Local Organizing Committee for World Youth Day Seoul 2027 was established in December 2023, following Pope Francis’ announcement in Lisbon in August 2023 that the next gathering would take place in the land of the “calm morning”. This followed the first International Preparatory Conference, held in Rome in September of the same year.
The inauguration ceremony, together with the official theme and logo, were unveiled in 2024.
In February 2025, the Local Organizing Committee for World Youth Day Seoul 2027 moved to its new headquarters at the Spirituality Center next to Myeongdong Cathedral, where it held a blessing ceremony for the premises and official vehicles. It also recruited and trained volunteers, organizing them into 14 specialized teams to support preparations for the event. The committee also offered training courses to prepare young people to take on leadership responsibilities on the journey towards 2027.
In March 2025, the committee also hosted spiritual initiatives, including the Lenten vigil “24 Hours for the Lord” at Myeongdong Cathedral, responding to Pope Francis’ appeal for the Jubilee Year. Meanwhile, it continued to coordinate the pilgrimage of the WYD symbols and to work with the Vatican Dicastery for Laity, Family and Life to ensure that all preparations remained coordinated.
In April this year, the five patron saints of WYD Seoul 2027 were chosen , allowing work to begin in the archdiocese’s 230 parishes. Details and requirements were provided concerning homestays, training, staff assignments and the preparation of parish accommodation.
At present, each parish is recruiting host families to welcome pilgrims, while the organizing committee is also considering the possibility of using public facilities in Seoul as accommodation should it prove difficult to secure sufficient places exclusively through host families.
“At our stand, we had the opportunity to meet representatives from Cambodia, Mongolia, Ethiopia, France and SMY International, with whom we were able to discuss their participation in the diocesan phase of WYD, since they had already registered with our diocese for the event,” said Sister Ester Palma of the Servants of the Gospel of the Mercy of God.
“Representatives from participating countries such as Mauritius, Costa Rica, Paraguay, India and Malaysia also stopped by to ask for information. Although the language barrier can certainly be felt at events of this kind, the diocesan representatives made great efforts to communicate with the international delegates,” concluded Sister Ester, who has been serving in the Diocese of Daejeon, South Korea, for approximately two decades.
On August 3, the official WYD hymn was launched , followed by a Catholic Fair held in Seoul on August 8 and 9 as a pilot initiative in preparation for WYD Seoul 2027 .
To date, 378 volunteers have joined the organizing committee, including Koreans, foreign residents in Korea and international volunteers from abroad. The target for the main event is to recruit a total of 30,000 volunteers: 10,000 volunteers from Korea and other countries, and 20,000 parish volunteers, mainly from the Archdiocese of Seoul.
Recruitment of long-term national volunteers is currently underway, while long-term international volunteers are being selected through recommendations from the bishops of their respective countries.
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